Are you penny wise and pound foolish? A lot of companies are when it comes to their website. If you want a cheap business website, designing your own is definitely the way to go. Even if you don’t know any code, you can pick from an abundance of free and cheap WYSIWYG website creators and have your own personalized website within a few hours. Unfortunately, these platforms are not consistent from browser to browser, nor across platforms like desktop and mobile. As of this past April, Google changed its algorithms to lay heavy emphasis on mobile websites; if your website isn’t mobile friendly, you won’t rank well on Google, and most of WYSIWYG website creators lack the backend architecture to make them truly mobile friendly. And, let’s face it, they look as cheap as the cost.

Another idea is designing your business’s website to fit within the parameters of a template, one from WordPress, for instance. But these are not without limitations either. Going this route will mean conforming to the parameters of the template you chose, often leading to a sterile-looking, unorigional website for your brand.

What does this have to do with budgeting? Everything. Practically every industry is fraught with competition, and your company’s website is often your audiences’ first impression as they hunt for quality products and services. Even if you don’t think your brand is that unique, it needs to stand out if it’s going to survive.

(Incidentally, at MAD Group, we’re pretty darn good at making your company stand out. We’ve successfully positioned hundreds of brands in totally unique ways. Contact us for a quick consultation.)

Cutting back costs is important for small businesses and large businesses alike. But if you want to save money on your website, do it after it’s properly designed, developed and launched. With every pixel already in place, we recommend gaining a familiarity with the basic behind-the-scenes opperations. This includes Blog Posts, Article Editing and Publication, and Module Management. Even a general understanding of your new brand’s website functionality will help you ensure that content stays relevant and accurate. You can take it a step further by learning how to create and launch compelling e-mail blasts.

We offer every client the opportunity to learn these important tips for business marketing when we launch their website. MAD Group provides a two-hour post-launch training session to help you take the reins. This is a $199 value that could save you thousands in the long run. Hiring employees to manage your website is costly both in time and finances, and you’re almost certain to receive a steep invoice for the hourly cost of routine website maintenance by even the most affordable marketing agency.

Apart from a company website that both looks and functions great in today’s mobile world, you could walk away with fledgling website management skills that will help your business take flight. And as for all the money you might save? We recommend making a sound investment in bean-bag chairs and a Kool-Aid fountain for all of your awesome employees.

Now go out there and get MAD!

Did you know it takes people as little as 10 seconds to form an impression about your brand? As soon as they walk into a store or land on your website, they’ll draw conclusions and decide if they’ll buy from you.

This is why you need to create a strong and solid branding foundation and leave nothing to chance. Keep reading to discover 10 essential branding tips that’ll help your business attract the right customers.

1. Define Your Brand Purpose

Before you create branding elements, you need to define your brand purpose. What do you want to accomplish with your brand? How will your brand fit into your customers’ lives?

Why should people buy your product and not your competitors’? And most importantly, why should they come back and buy again? These questions will help you position your brand properly to your customers.

2. Know Your Target Market

Your brand should exist to meet the needs of your target market. This is why you need to know your customers well so you can serve them properly. You should know what your ideal customers are willing to spend, what their favorite brands and stores are, and if they buy from your direct competitors.

Next, think about how your brand can enrich their lives further and offer value. No matter what product you’re selling, people will only buy if it will improve their lives in some way.

3. Define Your Brand Image

Your brand image is the way your customers see your product and company. The brand also includes their opinion and experience with it, which is something you can’t control but can try to attract.

Use your branding in your customers’ online shopping and shipping experience, customer service, quality, and in-store experience. If customers form an opinion about your brand that doesn’t align with your brand vision, it may be hard to change their minds.

With branding elements such as your logo, slogans, color palettes, packaging, and marketing materials, you can define your brand image from the very start.

4. Implement Your Brand Everywhere

When creating a brand, consider how the elements will look on your website, printed marketing materials, product packaging, billboards, and the product itself.

Your brand message should be immediately visible, and customers should be able to tell what your brand is about. This includes mission statement, tone of voice, expectations, price points, and employee behavior.

5. Define a Brand Mission Statement

Your brand needs a powerful mission statement that will speak to your customers. Before you start brainstorming ideas, get to know your target market better. Learn about their lifestyle, habits, everyday problems, and things that make them happy.

Think of ways your brand can become an essential part of their lives. This will help you define a mission statement that will make customers feel like your brand was made for them.

For example, Nike’s mission statement is “To bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world“. They do everything around this mission statement in terms of quality, marketing campaigns, people they work with, and target customers.

6. Build Brand Awareness

Branding your business is one part of the job, building brand recognition and putting it out there is another. People need to learn about your brand before they decide to buy. You can build brand awareness through paid ads, social media, SEO, TV commercials, free samples, brand ambassadors, or influencers.

7. Build a Brand Platform

Having a platform where your brand shines is crucial for building brand awareness. This is the best way to connect with your customers and post updates, product launches, discounts, and everything else that would interest them. A brand platform can be a social media channel, a blog, a networking hub, a workshop, or even email marketing newsletters.

As long as you engage with your fans, reply to their comments and messages, and offer great customer service, you will have a loyal fan base that will buy from you.

8. Infuse Your Brand Into Customer Service

Every single communication with your customers must represent your brand voice and mission. The way you address customers, respond to messages and complaints, and resolve issues are all-powerful brand messages. Always remember that word-of-mouth marketing is the fastest way to spread the word about your brand, but bad news travels even faster.

9. Analyze Your Competitors

Whether you already have some kind of branding or are thinking about building a brand, your competitors can help you get inspired. You should never copy their branding or even use similar elements, but you should analyze them, figure out what works for them, and see how you can do better.

10. Don’t Stamp Your Logo on Everything

Branding is way more than just your logo, so stamping it on everything and hoping people will buy it won’t suffice for modern customers. They need to feel connected to your brand and the message it conveys before they decide to buy.

This feeling of brand connection is why big-name fashion designers can put their logo on a simple white t-shirt and still charge exorbitant amounts. Their customers are happy to wear the logo because it signifies status and wealth.

The best way to build brand awareness and help customers recognize your brand is to be consistent. Talk to them often, offer discounts or free samples, have stellar customer service, sell quality products, and stay consistent with your brand message.

These Branding Tips Will Help Your Brand Get Noticed

Whether you’re trying to build a new brand or give your existing one a makeover, these branding tips will help you define and build a strong, recognizable brand.

Ready to make your brand stand out from the crowd? Let us help you build strong branding that will get your products noticed. Contact us today to learn more about our packages and how branding can give your company strategic marketing positioning.

As a business, your website must stand out from the billions of others even when you’re vying for local customer attention. If you’re a startup, it might be difficult to compete against industry titans. It’s especially tough when you have limited funds.

Don’t despair yet.

With this guide, you’ll learn how to improve your online marketing efforts. That way, you can get a loyal customer base and maintain your presence. Read on and find out more:

1. Optimize Your Website for Various Platforms

Did you ever test your website on various devices? After all, 72.6% of the entire internet will browse the World Wide Web using their smartphones by 2025. That’s why you must assume that your customers use various sources to view your website.

Once you ascertain this, you must focus on delivering a consistently positive experience for each platform. Achieving it is possible by ensuring that your website functions seamlessly across various devices. This includes PCs, Macs, smartphones, and tablets.

2. Make a Simple Checkout Path

This means your visitors must have an easy path to the finish line: buying your product or availing your service. You don’t want your customers to get distracted by wandering away from what your business can offer. A good method of doing this is to make checking out easier to spot, like using a big, obvious shopping cart icon.

Another approach is to be a minimalist. Don’t use background patterns and limit your use of graphics while maintaining site design colors to 2-3. Also, ensure that your links open in new tabs to ensure that they won’t get redirected away from your website.

3. Offer Free Shipping

Is your website made for selling products? If so, a good way to stand above your competitors is to offer free shipping promotions. Online shoppers prefer working with businesses offering this feature, with 77% of them insisting that it must be an option.

The worst thing your customers experience is to get surprised by unexpected shipping costs. If you do this, you can expect your conversion rates to get lower.

4. Improve Your SEO Efforts

If you don’t know what SEO is, likely, your website won’t last long. It’s because Search Engine Optimization is the ultimate way for Google to notice your business. This means people are more likely to find you when they search online.

A good place to start is to improve your content. This means you must focus on making high-quality, relevant content for your website. After that, manage your backlinks and ensure everything comes from reputable sources.

5. Make Social Media Accounts

Your company’s social media presence is as important as your website when driving customers to your business. At the very least, having social media profiles improves your online visibility. But the main draw of having a well-managed social media account is to increase the trust customers place in your business.

When delving into social media, you must at least have an account for the three major platforms: Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. This ensures that your client base keeps on engaging your business. Regardless, be helpful and cordial to your followers.

6. Get Listings in Free Directories

Free directories across the internet may already list your website automatically. That’s why the only thing you must do is to ensure that this information remains consistent across various listings. If you do this, Google will rank your website higher on the search engine results page.

You can use platforms and tools to automatically search and update any business listing on the internet. If you’re willing to pay extra, this option is great. Otherwise, doing manual claims and updates is the way to go.

7. Use Video Marketing

Now is the best time to consider adding engaging video content into your marketing strategy. It’s especially important when you use it on social media platforms. Posting a short, entertaining video can turn lots of attention in your direction.

An effective technique is to demonstrate your product in an interesting light. Ensure that it’s a quick, fast-moving clip with engaging music. You only have a few seconds to catch your customers’ attention—use it to increase conversions.

8. Get Positive Reviews

Your customer’s feedback is important. When new prospects see your brand, they must know how you managed to impress your existing clients. This increases their trust and makes them more willing to do business with you.

Always work to resolve issues your clients encounter while working with you. This decreases your likelihood of getting negative reviews. Learn how to craft a brand awareness strategy for your business to build positive buzz.

9. Study Website Data

Knowing what your audience does when they get into your website is a blessing. This allows you to make more important decisions to enhance your online conversions. A good way to do this is to take online marketing courses and use tools like Google Analytics.

Google Analytics is useful since it gives you a map of the things happening in your web traffic. This allows you to see the right direction and improve how people find you.

10. Run Ads on Either Facebook or Google

Facebook made lots of improvements to its ad management system. Using this alongside Google Ads are invaluable to your online marketing efforts. These might not lead to direct conversions, but they’re great at making your audience more aware of your content.

But the primary benefit of running ads is to improve website traffic. Awareness and traffic are two components that must happen before sales can take place. To make the most out of it, ensure that your ads only reach your intended audience.

Learn Online Marketing Today!

These are some tips to improve your online marketing efforts. Use these if you want to increase your business’s online visibility and find more customers.

Do you need a reputable online marketing agency? If so, contact us today and let us work together for your company’s betterment.

Wondering if video blogging is right for your business? Every day, YouTube users rack up more than 1 billion hours of video watch time. And every month, YouTube receives visits from over 2 billion logged-in users.

Vlogging won’t instantly gain you millions of views, but it gives you a new avenue to reach potential customers in powerful ways. Producing videos helps you connect with customers in a more personal way.

Keep reading to find out why you should consider video blogging to promote your business.

1. People Prefer Videos

Consumers like watching videos over reading written content, and 54% of people want more video content from businesses they like. People are more likely to watch videos thoroughly while they tend to just skim written content.

Video is easier for people to consume than reading. They can watch or listen to a video while doing other things without fully concentrating on what they’re doing.

2. Connects You to Customers

Video puts your face to the company for consumers. Instead of just reading about your products or reading an informational piece you write, they see you and hear your voice. It creates a more personal consumer with your consumers.

If you incorporate live video into your strategy, you increase the connection you have with customers. They can ask questions and add comments as you create the video. This lets you communicate back with people in real time.

When you vlog regularly, you create a following. People want to come back and check out your next video. You build a mini community around your videos, which helps solidify your company and grow loyalty.

3. Presents You as an Expert

Sure, you can add a list of credentials to your website showing your expertise. But your potential customers respond better to tangible evidence that you’re an expert.

Video is an easy way to share your expertise in your field. You can create a variety of video types, such as how-to, FAQs, insider tips, or general information videos.

Seeing you on video gives your customers more confidence in your expertise. It creates a sense of trustworthiness.

Consumers become familiar with your face and voice, which builds recognition. They see that you’re an active player in your business.

4. It’s Easy to Start

YouTube is a free video platform that lets you get started with vlogging immediately. You don’t need expensive camera equipment to get started with vlogging. A high-quality phone works just fine, especially when you’re starting.

Basic video editing software helps you put together a professional-looking video. You don’t need a movie-quality production to gain recognition and connect with your followers.

That doesn’t mean you should post low-quality videos or slap together whatever you feel like doing. You still need to create valuable content that looks nice. But you can get started with video relatively easily, even if you don’t have a background in videography.

5. It’s Compatible with Social Media

Social media platforms and videos work well together. Social media users tend to gravitate toward videos on those platforms.

Videos stand out in social media feeds. Users may scroll past post after post, but a video catches their attention and makes them stop because it’s different.

Social media also makes sharing your videos much easier. When your followers share your videos on social media, you reach a wider audience that you didn’t have before.

6. Ranks High in Searches

Worried you’ll miss out on organic traffic when you prioritize videos over written content? Do almost any Google search, and you’ll see video results at the top, even if you’re not specifically searching for video.

Google tends to prioritize videos in the search results. You may have an easier time getting your video content to rank on the first page of the results than you would a written piece on the same topic.

When you use YouTube as your vlogging platform, you give yourself another way for customers to find you. Don’t think of YouTube as just a video platform. Think of it as a search engine.

Users constantly head to YouTube for information. They search for different topics. If you have strong video content on the platform, you’re helping new potential customers find your business.

7. Increases Exposure to Products or Services

Vlogs are naturally more information-focused rather than being overly commercialized. Instead of blatantly advertising your products, you can integrate them naturally into your videos.

You might produce a cooking video and use some of the kitchen products you sell to make the food. Or you can record your team challenging each other to a game that you also happen to sell on your website.

Viewers see those products in action. It helps pique their interest, and you don’t have to shove those products in their faces or make it feel too promotional.

8. Builds Your Brand

Video helps build your company’s branding. You can add graphics to the video that support your visual branding. The tone of the videos, the language you use, and the way you present yourself also helps support your branding.

Developing your brand makes your company more recognizable. Your target audience is better able to connect with your brand when they see that your company’s personality matches what they want.

9. Demonstrates Processes Better

Have you tried to explain a detailed process in writing? It’s not easy to explain yourself clearly in written words.

Video offers a clear, precise way to share information or demonstrate a process. You can physically show every step instead of trying to explain it without visuals. Videos are ideal if you’re producing tutorials for your business.

10. Shows You’re on Trend

Integrating video keeps your business at the forefront of marketing trends. It shows that you’re aware of what works and you’re willing to use those methods.

Using video helps you keep up with your competitors who are already using video. If our closest competitors aren’t using video yet, it gives you an advantage.

Boost Your Business with Video Blogging

Video blogging is an interactive marketing tool that helps establish you as an expert and connects you to customers in new ways. It can help expand your marketing reach.

Are you ready to jump into video blogging? We can help you with your business video production needs.

Content is, and will always be, king. Only if you understand the right way to use it, though.

You could have the best content in the world, but if you’re not releasing it strategically, you’re going to miss the mark. If you don’t want to end up wasting all of that valuable content by throwing it aimlessly into the ether, you need to develop a content planner.

Today, we’re going to tell you the 10 steps to creating a great content plan so you can boost that online presence and become the content machine you were always destined to be. At the end of the day, if you really believe in the content that you’re producing, you’ve got to give it the promo that it deserves.

1. Have Goals

Before you start producing content or re-configuring your current content strategy, lay out the goals that you want your content to achieve. Here are a few common goals that most companies want out of their content:

• Driving traffic to your website
• Building brand awareness
• Lead generation and conversion

This is a good starting point for your content planner because it gives the entire process direction.

2. Understand How to Measure Performance

When you put out a new piece of content, do you just release it and move on to the next piece of content?

You need to be able to measure the effectiveness of each post/video/etc. if you’re going to improve your content strategy. Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) allow you to measure your content against the goals you’ve set out.

With KPI’s, you’re able to set specific numbers that you want to hit within a given time period. It might be hitting a specific revenue number, getting more subscriptions on your site, or improving your search ranking. Having specific measurables will help tell you if your content is performing or not.

3. Finding and Getting to Your Target Audience

Consider who you’ve been aiming your content at so far and whether or not it’s actually paying off. You have to get to know your audience so that you can produce content that’s specifically tailored to their interests.

To do this, collect demographic data about the people that buy your products and visit your website. Various analytics tools will be able to get you their age, gender, education, and income information, which will be valuable for understanding how to target the right people instead of just people.

4. Performing a Content Audit

Chances are, you’ve had a blog up for a while and you’re reading this because you aren’t satisfied with your current content strategy. There’s still going to be some value in what you’ve put out so far, even if it’s unsatisfactory.

Perform a content audit on yourself. In doing this, you’ll review all of your content marketing for the last year or more and what resulted. You can use this information to guide you on what worked, what didn’t, and what you need to change in order to perform better moving forward.

5. Understanding Content Formats

There are dozens of different ways to create content. Most people associate the word “content” with blog posts and social media, but there’s so much more you can and should do to make your website a well-oiled content creation machine.

For instance, the rise of video content has been one of the notable things to come to the forefront of digital advertising in the last few years. Because it’s so easy to watch videos on any number of devices, that’s how people prefer to receive their information. Now, companies are pouring loads of money into video creation.

It’s important to be versatile with your content, but understand what you’re good at and what your readers want. And, it’s not the end of the world if you try something new and it doesn’t work out because you’ll learn and adjust.

6. Idea Generation

A lot of businesses struggle with the creative aspect of content creation. Not everyone is idea-oriented, so it becomes difficult to conceptualize videos and posts.

Take what you know about the different content formats, get your most creative people in a room, and start throwing ideas at the wall. Sometimes you’ll go through dozens of bad ideas before you find a good one, but the time spent doing this is worth it in the end.

7. Allocating Resources

If you believe in your content, you’ve got to give it it’s due. Allocate some of your marketing resources to figuring out who’s going to be in charge of this content, what tools you can use (physical or digital) to create and manage the content, and what your content schedule will be.

For instance, you might need to hire a content manager to handle all of this. Once you get going, you’ll realize that content creation and management is a full-time endeavor. There are also content management programs that help you measure the effectiveness of social media and blog posts.

8. Create a Calendar of Content

Making a content calendar will help you organize everything so your strategy can be implemented for optimal effect. There are lots of ways to manage your content calendar.

Set up a Google Calendar with all of your content publication dates in it, so your content team knows when certain things are going up. This is a simple approach that will give you a chance to set due dates and promote your content when it’s published.

9. Release & Promote

As you’ve probably learned, a content creation team works kind of like a machine. The idea is that content is constantly being created and strategically released to your followers, then promoted in a cycle that repeats every day.

When you release a video, blog post, social media post, promote it with every tool that you’ve got so all of your followers know that it exists. Link to it frequently and wait for the public to consume it.

10. Measure Your Results

After it does, you’ll be able to measure the results. After a certain period of time, go back to those KPI’s from the beginning and assess the performance of your content.

If you’re hitting your goals, then set harder ones. If you haven’t quite met the mark, then start digging into the numbers to find out what your audience liked and disliked, adjust your approach, and come back with better content next time.

A Content Planner Is a Must

With a solid content planner at the helm, you can create content with a purpose. When you’re producing highly successful content, the effects will trickle into every other part of your business.

To get help with your content strategy, contact us at MAD Group. We’re one of Southern California’s top digital advertising companies, specializing in social media, video production, brand building, and several other types of content creation.

Check out our portfolio to view our past successes and come back and visit our blog to read more about how to create, manage, and promote your content.

66% of marketers claim improving their organic presence is their top inbound marketing priority. If your website doesn’t appear on the first search engine results page (SERP), you’re missing out on customers. 

When you rank at the top, you’re sending a message to consumers and your competitors. That top-of-page ranking demonstrates your authority and expertise in the industry. As you boost brand awareness, you’re also attracting more people to your website and increasing conversions.

It all starts with search engine optimization (SEO)! By hiring the best SEO expert in San Diego, you can boost your ranking and attract more customers.

As you improve your ROI, you can get a competitive edge in your industry and grow stronger than ever. Sound like a plan? Keep reading to discover the qualities to look for in a pro SEO company.

With these tips, you can start boosting your SEO ranking, one post at a time.

Why You Need to Hire the Best SEO Expert

Before you hire SEO specialists to work on your content and website, it helps to understand the importance of SEO. Here are the top reasons you should start searching for the best SEO expert in San Diego today.

1. Boost Website Traffic

In can feel difficult to stand out in today’s competitive business climate. Remember, if you’re not ranking on the first SERP for a keyword, you’re losing business. One of the best ways to attract more people to your website is to boost your SEO ranking. 

A well-rounded SEO strategy will help you rank higher for a range of keywords. These keywords are the terms and phrases your customers use when searching for your business. 

If you don’t rank on the first page for your keywords, there’s a chance people won’t find your business. When you do rank at the top for these keywords, you can increase website traffic.

The website traffic you attract benefits your SEO rankings even more. Google looks for websites that are relevant to their users. Attracting traffic tells Google you’re a relevant resource in your industry. 

However, your optimized website content will need to match the user’s original search intent. In other words, you need to answer the questions the customers are asking. If your answers aren’t relevant to their original search, people will leave your site.

When visitors leave without clicking around, it impacts your bounce rate. A higher bounce rate can impact your SEO ranking.

By hiring the top SEO expert in the area, you can make sure your content matches the user’s search intent. Then, you can attract more people to your site and further boost your ranking.

When Google crawls and indexes your website, it looks for the keywords you’re using. It will also look at your clickthrough rate, dwell time, and bounce rate. 

Your clickthrough rate tells Google people are clicking around and interacting with your content.

Dwell time tells Google people are staying on your site to read your content.

If you can improve your clickthrough rate and dwell time, you can rank higher than your competitors. The higher you rank, the more traffic you’ll gain!

2. Improve Credibility and Trust

When you rank at the top of a SERP, consumers will see your website over and over for that keyword. Over time, that initial brand awareness can build brand recognition. Consumers will immediately associate your brand with the product or service they need. 

Repetitive exposure can help you become a recognizable resource in your industry. The next time a consumer needs your product or service, they’ll search for you. 

Again, you need to match their search intent. Otherwise, they’ll only recognize you as irrelevant to their needs. 

A local SEO expert can help you create content that’s relevant to your target audience. When your content matches the consumer’s needs, they’ll start to trust you. That brand trust can help you gather loyal customers.

Increasing your SEO ranking can help improve your brand’s credibility, too. 

Google places the most relevant websites at the top of a SERP. Consumers know they can trust the brands listed at the top. A higher ranking tells consumers you’re knowledgeable.

When they see your website, they’ll know you’re a credible, helpful resource in the industry. 

3. Strengthen the User Experience

You can’t rank higher on SERPs if your website isn’t up to scratch. A pro SEO company in San Diego can help improve your website for the lastest user experience (UX) design trends.

UX design ensures your website is easy to use for visitors. If it’s complicated, they’ll leave, which will impact your bounce rate. A user-optimized website loads quickly, offers easy navigation, and helps users find what they’re looking for. 

There are over 1.5 billion websites on the internet. A website designed with UX in mind will set you apart from the rest.

You’ll need to make sure your website is mobile-optimized, too. Google now uses mobile-first indexing when determining page rankings. If you’re not mobile-optimized, you’re missing every potential customer that visitors your website from their smartphones. 

People are spending more time on their phones than desktop devices. If your website isn’t optimized, you’ll miss leads and sales, which can impact your ROI.

4. Increase Engagement

Improving your website for the UX can also help you increase engagement. Remember, you want people to click around, which will improve dwell time and your clickthrough rate. Then, you’ll rank higher!

Optimizing your site for UX will make it easier for people to convert on the page. Buttons will stand out and call-to-action text will attract the eye.

More engagement will help you boost conversions and sales. 

5. Better ROI

Search engine optimization is a long-term marketing strategy. Once you improve your page ranking, you can attract customers for a long time. Working with the best SEO expert in San Diego can ensure you keep that ranking, too. 

Google’s search algorithm changes throughout the year. By working with an experienced SEO company, you can make sure you’re keeping up with the latest changes. 

Trying to work on your SEO alone can cause you to waste valuable time and money. By working with SEO specialists, you can put your marketing budget to good use. They’ll help you generate results, gain more conversions, and boost your ROI for the long-term. 

Qualities to Look for in a San Diego SEO Expert

Now that you know why SEO is so important, let’s discuss the qualities you should look for in a San Diego SEO expert!

1. Years of Experience

When searching for the top SEO expert around, the first step is to look for someone with plenty of experience. How long has the company provided expert SEO services? Have they worked in marketing longer or have they always specialized in SEO?

Their track record can tell you a lot about their experience, too.

Ask the pro SEO company about businesses they’ve helped in the past. Which industries did those companies belong to? Have they worked with a business that’s relevant to your industry?

If so, they can use that prior experience to your company’s benefit.

If the SEO pros haven’t worked with many other clients, you might want to keep looking. 

2. An Understanding of All SEO Tiers

When speaking with different SEO consultants, try to get an understanding of their approach. After all, you want to know what they’re paying for. How do they plan on improving your SEO rankings?

You want to find someone who prioritizes the different tiers of SEO.

This includes:

• On-page SEO
• Off-page SEO
• Technical SEO

What about local SEO? Focusing on local SEO tactics will help you attract nearby customers to your store. According to Google, 50% of mobile searches lead to an in-store visit the same day.

By improving your local SEO strategy, you can attract more website and foot traffic to your business before boosting sales. 

The top SEO expert in the area will provide all four SEO services to ensure your site is completely optimized. 

3. A Track Record of Success

Look for SEO specialists who have a track record of success. 

How does the SEO company measure its success? Ask if you can see data that proves they’ve helped their clients, including case studies. Can they show you an increase in website visitors, clicks, and conversions?

If they can’t provide this information, look for someone who can.

4. Entirely Marketing Savvy

SEO involves multiple moving parts. When looking for SEO specialists, make sure they’re entirely marketing savvy.

Can they help improve your website with UX design trends? Can they tie your SEO efforts along with your pay-per-click (PPC) advertising?

Look for SEO specialists that understand the importance of combining your marketing efforts into one cohesive strategy. 

5. Excellent Communication Skills

As with any consultant, you want to make sure your SEO specialists are strong communicators. How will they provide you with updates regarding your campaigns? Will they email you regularly, or will you have to contact them?

Can they explain their plan clearly, or will they leave you in the dark?

Look for an SEO expert that’s honest and transparent about their services and abilities. Otherwise, you might have a difficult time trusting them to use your marketing budget wisely. 

6. Strategic-Minded

The best SEO expert in the area will have a strategic mind. They’ll know how to see the different parts of your SEO campaign before bringing it all together. 

Talk with the SEO pros about their strategy. Will they research your target audience beforehand? Will they take the time to learn about your products and services?

The better they know your business, the more likely they’ll create a strategy that will boost your SEO rankings. 

7. Creative Content Creators

You can’t improve your rankings without creative content. Remember, your content should also match the consumer’s original search intent. Google prioritizes brands that produce high-quality, unique content.

Look for an SEO specialist that can produce this content for you. Make sure the content is well-researched, knowledgeable, and creative. 

Otherwise, you’ll fail to attract visitors or convert those visitors on your website.

8. Relevant With the Trends

SEO trends change throughout the year. When looking for a pro SEO company, look for a team that understands the latest SEO trends. 

For example, 22% of voice search queries are looking for location-based content. You’ll need to complete thorough keyword and audience research to optimize for voice searches. 

Google’s latest algorithm update, BERT, uses machine learning to better understand users. A top SEO expert will know how this update affects SEO. They’ll have a strategy in mind to optimize your existing content for these new trends. 

9. Accountable

When you decide to work with SEO specialists, they’ll likely ask you to sign a contract. Before you do, make sure the SEO company you choose is responsible and accountable. 

What are their responsibilities? What promises are noted in the contract? Choosing an accountable company will give you peace of mind they’ll achieve your SEO goals and provide the services you need. 

10. Training and Certification

When choosing one SEO expert from the rest, you want to make sure you’re choosing the best. Look for an SEO specialist that has the proper training. 

Ask about their qualifications. Remember, SEO trends change all the time. Choose someone up-to-date with the latest SEO trends and tactics.

Their training and certification will indicate they know how to adapt to changes in Google’s algorithm. 

11. Always Optimizing

Once the SEO specialists optimize your site, what’s the plan? Will they continue producing content and making changes, or are they done?

The best San Diego SEO expert will continuously optimize your website. They’ll review your data for months to see which strategies are working and which aren’t. Then, they’ll use that data to make future improvements to your content and website. 

The best SEO expert is in this with you for the long-term.

12. Reputable

Make sure the SEO specialists you choose have a strong reputation. Ask to talk with their previous clients. Get another company’s point of view and hear about their first-hand experience. 

Check online for social proof and read reviews. These reviews can provide you with an unbiased opinion from the SEO expert’s previous clients.

A pro SEO company with a strong reputation will stand out from the rest. 

13. Affordable

Finally, you want to make sure you choose an SEO company that fits your budget.

When you hire an SEO company, you’ll have access to their expertise and tools. Make a note of which services you’re receiving as part of the package as well. For many companies, the initial cost is worth the return on investment they’ll receive long-term.

Make sure you understand what you’re paying for before you sign a contract.

Your Guide to SEO Success: How to Find the Best SEO Expert in San Diego

By hiring experts in the industry, you can achieve long-term SEO success. Otherwise, you’ll miss out on potential customers and fall behind the competition. By prioritizing these qualities, you can find the best SEO expert in San Diego equipped to help your business. 

Meet your San Diego SEO expert! Contact our marketing and advertising agency today to start boosting your SEO ranking.

By Lane Harbin | Guest Writer

As an email marketer, you know that email database decay is an unavoidable part of your job description. This is why you likely spend a significant amount of time on growing your email list. However, building your list doesn’t have to be such a challenge. You don’t need to work hard—you just need to work smart. With the right planning and implementation of the various ways you can grow your email list, you will definitely see results. Here are three of the best strategies for you.

1. Encourage Existing Subscribers To Share Your Content

Social media is a useful tool you should leverage to grow your email list. Encourage your subscribers to share your newsletters and promotions on their social media pages. This way, you can achieve two goals at once. Some ways you can urge your subscribers to share your email content include:

Adding A Personal Touch To Your Email

Every day, people receive tons of emails from various brands. It’s virtually a guarantee that they don’t open every single one. If you want them to open yours and increase the chances of your content being shared, you have to make sure that your message is unique, attention-grabbing, and tailored to the needs of the reader. This is where you need to take advantage of your segmentation and personalization know-how.

Analyze your email list and create a segment that consists of your most loyal customers. They are the subscribers who regularly purchase from you. These subscribers are obviously happy with your brand, which means they are more inclined to share your content to on their social media pages.

You can also segment your email list based on demographic information, such as their gender and location. You can then send personalized content to each of these segments.

If you want to get more subscriber data, make certain tweaks to your sign-up form. Depending on your type of business, your products and services, and the customers you have, you can ask for details about your potential subscribers’ age, the kind of work they do or the industry they belong to, their job level, and so on.

Focusing On Simplicity

Cramming two or more types of content in one email and including several call-to-action buttons can be confusing to your subscribers. The best way to compel your subscribers to take the intended action (sharing your content), use only one piece of content along with a single CTA.

You should also eliminate distractions in the email and keep the design of your email as clean as possible. Doing so will make it easier for your subscribers to remember the purpose of the email.

Optimizing For Mobile

A majority of your subscribers are likely reading your emails on their mobile device, so it’s a must that your emails are mobile-friendly. Social media buttons should be highly visible even on mobile for your users to easily tap them and share your content.

Email Forwarding

There should also be an email forwarding option within your email. At the end of the email copy, you can add a short snippet that explains the benefits of sharing your content. As an alternative, you can create email templates that include a send-to form. All a subscriber has to do is enter a friend’s email and hit the send button.

2. Launch A Referral Contest

Online contests generate traffic, and the tech industry is one of the top three industries that uses them as an audience-building strategy. Most companies run contests on social media, but you can also use this tactic on your email campaigns.

Entice your existing subscribers to refer their friends, family members, and colleagues by running an email contest. Prizes can range from a 10% discount on their next purchase for every valid referral to unlimited access to your content downloads (ebooks, whitepapers, exclusive videos, etc.).

You can also apply a tiered system for your prizes. For example, in addition to a 10% discount for every referral, the prize can be a 55% discount on their next purchase for five valid and successful referrals.

To maximize your contest’s reach, combine your contest strategy with the first strategy mentioned in this article. For subscribers to be able to enter your contest, they should first share your contest on at least one of their social media pages.

Don’t just think about your existing subscribers, though—make it worthwhile for the referrals as well. If you provided a 10% discount to a referrer, the referral should get the same discount. This expands your subscriber base and boosts your conversion rates at the same time.

There is no limit to what you can give to both your existing and new subscribers in terms of prizes. Remember: your contest, your rules. So don’t be afraid to be as creative as you want. The more fun and advantageous your contest is to your customers, the more subscribers you will acquire.

3. Share Valuable And Relevant Information

Sending out targeted messages to every segment in your list makes the content more relevant—and therefore compelling—to subscribers in those segments. This naturally makes them feel more inclined to share your content with others.

Take this scenario: you have a new product that resolves the concerns of the previous model. For a limited time only, your subscribers have the opportunity to purchase the product with a hefty discount.

The resolution of your customer’s pain points, coupled with the sense of urgency and the incentive of a big discount, is the perfect combination to encourage your subscribers to buy your product and provide you with referrals at the same time.

Can’t think of other types of content you can send? Here are some ideas.

Events

Asking your subscribers to attend events such as a product launch is a great way to gain more subscribers. Tell your subscribers to bring a “plus one” to increase attendance.

Fundraising And Charitable Initiatives

Being charitable is not only good for the people you would be helping, it’s also good for business. Customers love it when brands support good causes, so give your subscribers a chance to help out by making sure you share information about fundraisers and other charitable events.

Company News And Updates

Customers like being updated on brands that they follow, so always share significant news or changes in your company.

Conclusion

Keep in mind that because of email database decay, growing your email list requires constant effort. In order to build and maintain a list of engaged and loyal subscribers, you need to continuously, create content that is relevant and informative, encourage the sharing of this content, and find new ways to entice people to follow your brand. If you follow these aforementioned tips, then you’ll have a much smoother road ahead.

About The Author
Lane Harbin is the Senior Content Marketing Manager at Campaign Monitor, an easy-to-use email marketing platform that empowers marketers to send targeted campaigns that grow their business. When she’s not geeking out over email marketing, she enjoys binge-listening to podcasts, catching up on the latest tech news, and constantly rearranging her living room.

5 Eye-Opening Small Business Advertising Trends in 2024

“5 Eye-Opening Small Business Advertising Trends
A unique year in the business world compared to other years. Here are 5 eye-opening small business advertising trends”

Are you trying to take your small business to the next level by upping your marketing plan?

According to Fundera.com, 1 in 10 small businesses don’t invest in any kind of marketing. Don’t be one of the businesses missing out on the incredible benefits of marketing.

As a small business, it’s important to capitalize on the newest and biggest marketing and advertising trends to ensure you’re staying competitive and reaching your target customers.

Grow your company and your profits by learning more about some of the most successful new marketing trends

1. Conversation Based Marketing

Consumers have become more interested in having a conversation with the brands they love. As such, conversational marketing is key to brands that want to increase engagement with their target audience. Increased engagement means better customer relationships and greater brand loyalty.

While it can be difficult to respond to every comment on your website or social media platforms, there is a solution. Marketing technology is making it easier through the use of tools like chatbots. Chatbots can act as a 24/7 support service and outreach tool.

This can help to give your customers the instant gratification they may be expecting while helping them with their questions. Being available to answer customers’ questions regarding a product can be what invites a potential customer to make a purchase.

Conversational marketing can also make your brand more personable and put you a step above competitors.

2. Convenience Is Key

Optimizing customer convenience is an essential aspect to consider when forming a new marketing plan. Customers have more options to find solutions than ever before, so if you don’t make their convenience a priority, they will likely just go elsewhere.

Ensure your website loads quickly and make the navigation simple and easy to use. Implement an easy or one-step checkout if you want to avoid abandoned carts. On social media, your posts should be shoppable, so that a customer can access and purchase your product with a click of a button.

3. Privacy and Transparency

With the growth of digital use, there is a rise in the need for greater digital privacy and security.

Enable your customers to trust your brand as a whole by implementing privacy and transparency into your marketing plan. You can do this by switching gears and focusing on more personalized marketing content.

There are a few ways you can create more transparent content to build trust with your customers. One way to do so is by creating higher quality, interactive content on social media, and emails.

Posting insides into your company or industry is a great way to connect to your customer, and humanize your brand. Be transparent about what kind of difficulties your company has had, or a mistake you’ve made in the industry that you’ve learned from.

This content will be useful to those in your industry, as well as those wondering what it takes to get a career in your field. Consider posting content where you can share why you started your small business, or what it’s like being a small business owner to build a relationship with your audience. Keep your customer in mind, and create content that they would want to follow or subscribe to.

When it comes to privacy, you’ll want to consider your website. If you do use cookies to advertise your products, consider whether this practice is ethical. Install a pop up on your site to notify your customers of cookies, or give them a choice to allow or block them.

Make sure your privacy and cookie policy is easily accessible on your site. This enhances your transparency and honesty, which enables customers to trust your website more, and by extension, your products and brand.

4. Social Commerce

Having a social presence with shoppable posts is a great way to make it easier for customers to make purchases with you. While it’s vital to have shoppable social platforms, one of the biggest social commerce trend is customer reviews.

With customers who crave transparency, they will trust other customers’ reviews over advertisements. This is why it’s essential to have your business listed on review sites like Google My Business and Yelp. Build a review section on your product pages so that customers can see what others are saying about your products.

Get positive reviews by providing great customer service and quality products. If you want to get more reviews, incentivize your customers to leave them by offering them discounts over email. This gets your customers engaging in a conversation about your product with others.

5. Go Green and Be Socially Responsible

With the pressing issues occurring in our environment, customers, especially of younger generations, are looking for companies that care about sustainability. There are a few different ways you can promote sustainability in your company.

Using local products and ingredients or using minimal and recyclable packaging can help show your customer that you’re doing your part.

Marketing and Advertising Trends for Small Businesses

If you want to stay on top of the best marketing and advertising trends this year, make sure you’re implementing the above practices.

By staying on top of new marketing trends, you can stay ahead of competitors, while driving sales, and connecting with your customers. Make sure your company stays as innovative as possible with these modern marketing trends!

Are you looking for professional help and management of your advertising and branding content? Contact us today so that we can work on a plan to achieve your company’s goals.

The online platform remains a competitive ground for a lot of businesses. With over 1 billion websites present and counting, vying for attention and online presence becomes a battle that you want to have the edge on over your competitors.

What you need here is an effective means to catch the attention of your customers, both old and new. Today, we will look at a few tried and tested online marketing strategies. These will help you pull in more people to grow your business. Make sure to take note of these strategies and plans as you read on. 

1. Invest in Web Design

Among the online marketing strategies that you will see, web design stands out as one with the most weight. You need a website that provides more than an eye-catching layout. You should also consider how visitors would have an easier time navigating.

It takes about 33 milliseconds for people to decide whether to stay on your website and look around. During this timeframe, you must make a striking first impression.

Another factor in this is user experience. If the web design allows for easy and intuitive navigation, you can keep your visitors on your site. You want to push this to the point that the visit becomes a sale at that moment.

A bad impression, such as due to clunky design, would push visitors away. Keep in mind that your website is like your physical storefront. You want to make it both presentable and effective.

2. Optimize through Search Engine Marketing

The next aspect you should look into is in search engine optimization or SEO. Potential customers use search engines like Google to find products and services needed. This helps your website appear at the top of the results. 

Learn the basics of SEO. It will involve a consistent outpour of content related to your product or services. It also involves the effective use of keywords and phrases.

This is to make sure the search engine picks your website when a related search happens. This method would take time, but it is also a good way to build up your online presence and your reach. When combined with other methods (such as PPC), you can double the results. 

3. Build Upon Content

As a key component and an online marketing strategy plan template, you need to start making content for your business website. The good thing is that it comes in various forms and avenues. What you need is a means to channel that content.

Consider starting a blog for this. Here, you can create articles and other relevant posts to update customers about what is new. You also share and educate through articles and videos.

Among the different online marketing strategies, this is the easiest to personalize. This is because you’re addressing your customers as a representative of your brand. You can set the tone of your brand here to help customers relate and like your brand more.

With news posts and articles relevant and related to what you do, you can use that to build your credibility. It helps in establishing your business as an authority on that subject.

As for videos, you need content that engages with your customers. You can start with a call to your audience to send you questions pertaining to your business.

You can then answer these questions on your videos to help and educate them. You can also use this to promote what your business is all about.

You can check out our services in case you need help in making captivating videos.

4. Create an Online Personality

Adding a human element to your branding helps in engaging your audience. This allows you to build up relationships and trust between your business and your customers.

You can do this by adding a personal touch to your content. Whether these would be through blog posts or through videos. Putting a face to your company allows for a welcoming presence, allowing new customers and existing ones to relate and build rapport.

The good thing with this is that you can establish brand loyalty in this way. This is a good thing as loyal customers can also become willing brand ambassadors through word of mouth.

Satisfied and loyal customers would sing you praises and spread the word of your excellent service. Which brings us to the next online marketing strategy.

5. Tap on Social Media Networks

You need to also use social networking sites to build your audience. Having a website is crucial if you plan to push your business online. To build presence and broaden your reach, however, you will also need the help of social media.

Set up accounts and business pages for social networking sites like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. YouTube is also a great platform to work with when it comes to videos. Take advantage of the reach that you gain on Twitter with its quick and short messages. 

As for content, you can use Facebook and Instagram to put in your blog posts and promotional photos. Add some variety to your content. Take advantage of hashtags and use trends in your favor.

This way, you can establish a wide reach for your business. Social media is also a dynamic platform where you can interact with your customers. The trends can also change at any time.

With that in mind, use social media to launch your business. Take advantage of your creativity. Let your personality shine and engage.

If you are not sure how to get started with social media, we have the means to help you strategize.

Push Your Business and Flourish With These Online Marketing Strategies Today

What you need for your business is to take advantage of the online shift. With these online marketing strategies, you can take on a new frontier that can help you bring in more customers to try out your products and services.

If you find yourself in a marketing pinch, we have a solution for you. We have the means to fill your marketing needs. Our services include branding, social media, digital marketing, and more

To know more about what we can do for your business, contact us today to get started. We will get in touch with you as soon as we can.

Advertisers are looking to increase their spending to the tune of six percent in 2020. Experts predict that digital marketing will make up half of that spending, for the first time in history.

If you’re looking to increase your marketing in the year ahead, you’re likely looking at new opportunities. The good news is that there are plenty of options.

Which options are worth your time? Check out these five types of digital marketing. You may discover the perfect fit.

1. Email Marketing is Not Dead

If you’re looking for a digital marketing introduction, you may want to consider email marketing.

Email has been around long enough to be considered old-fashioned by some people, but that doesn’t mean it’s not an effective way to reach people. Email is one of the most effective channels, providing the highest ROI.

Most Americans have an email address, and many of them check it regularly. Some even say they prefer to receive emails about promotions and special offers. If you’re contacting people with consent, they’re usually happy to receive messages from you.

Consider starting a newsletter to tell your customers about new products or exciting company news. If you have seasonal sales, email may be the best way to reach people.

Don’t forget about personalization. You can use your business data to analyze what someone already bought and send them an offer for a complementary product. Consider sending them an automated renewal reminder when it’s time to restock.

People like receiving personalized offers, it encourages them to buy.

2. SEO Marketing is Key

Another digital marketing tool you may want to consider for your business is search engine optimization. If you have a website, you should be using SEO.

SEO helps your page rank higher on Google and other search engines. Higher rankings translate into more traffic to your site while improving your brand visibility.

Ranking high in search engine results means people can actually find you. Whether you need ad revenue from the site or you want to find new leads, SEO can help you achieve your goals.

SEO also supports many other types of digital marketing. Try combining SEO with another marketing strategy and watch your results grow.

3. Content is One of the Most Popular Types of Digital Marketing

Content is king on the Internet. Your audience has questions, and you have the answers. Or, perhaps people are just looking for entertaining videos.

No matter what your audience is searching for, you can deliver it to them with content marketing.

Marketing with content involves the creation of blog posts or videos that people crave, which drives them to your website. It also helps them learn about your brand.

Content is extremely important for social media. You can share content with your followers. In turn, they can share it with their followers.

Content offers can be an effective way of getting information from people. Someone may register through your site so they can receive an eBook full of industry insight. You can then reach out to them and discover more about how your product or service could help them.

As you can see, there are many ways to use content for effective marketing. Content marketing also pairs perfectly with other types of digital marketing. Consider adding SEO or social media marketing to your content strategy.

4. Social Media Marketing is Growing

Social media may not be the most effective type of digital marketing, but it is gaining popularity.

Social media marketing involves a combination of organic posts and paid posts. In either case, building a following on social media is essential to reaching people who are interested in what you have to offer.

Social media does much more, which includes helping cultivate the brand identity and improving the brand visibility.

You can also connect with your customers and leads via social media. Engaging in conversations and supporting them can help you grow long-term relationships.

Keep in mind that it’s easier to keep an existing customer than it is to find a new one. Repeat customers also buy more from you. Social media can help you develop relationships with these people and keep them coming back.

Finally, social media may allow you to connect with influencers. Influencer marketing has become more popular as brands look for new ways to reach their audience.

5. PPC Marketing Can be a Smart Choice

The oldest digital marketing example is usually pay per click campaigns. PPC has been around almost since the dawn of the Internet.

PPC is exactly what it sounds like. You buy an ad through a bidding process. When someone clicks the ad, you pay the bid price.

PPC allows you to tap into extensive advertising networks. Google Ads is probably the most well known. Facebook also has a PPC ad program.

Today’s PPC programs are quite sophisticated. Google doesn’t just take the highest bid, but also examines the quality of the ad and how it relates to the keywords you’re bidding on.

PPC programs may also have remarketing features, which allow you to reach interested parties again. If someone clicks your ad, remarketing allows you to show them a “follow up” ad. This second ad may be what makes the sale.

PPC can be cost-effective, because you only pay when someone clicks the ad. Some keywords aren’t too competitive, which keeps bids low. Make sure to protect yourself against clicks and high bids, which will increase your costs.

New Year, New Strategy

These are only some of the major types of digital marketing. There are many options for business owners like you.

If you’re ready to try out a few new digital marketing channels, get in touch with an expert team. Building a better marketing strategy can be quite simple.

SEO isn’t dead, despite the fact that hundreds of people look up the opposite every single month. In fact, SEO is thriving! If you look at the Google Trends graph, you can see that SEO searches have been trending upwards since 2004. While search engine searches about SEO aren’t as high as they were in 2016 and 2017, search engine optimization is even more important for website owners than it’s ever been.

Consider the fact that 57% of B2B marketers state that SEO is their single most important lead generation tool. Or that 81% of consumers research a product before making a purchase. 

It’s obvious that anyone using the Internet should be at least considering SEO as part of their digital marketing strategy. Considering that 64% of small businesses have websites at this point, it’s obvious that very nearly everybody is using the Internet for business at this point. 

That isn’t restricted to eCommerce websites, either. News blogs and websites need to consider SEO, for instance. If you’re creating digital content, you want it to be found, naturally. Blogs and special interest websites can be businesses, too. 

Whatever your reason for creating digital content, you need to factor SEO into your content strategy. Once you know a thing or two about SEO, it can even give you new ideas for fresh content. 

With the Internet being so prevalent and omnipresent in our lives, the rules around SEO are changing faster than ever. Even Internet specialists sometimes have a hard time keeping up with the Google updates and ever-changing algorithms. That’s where SEO experts come in. 

SEO can be a bit of a secret science, even for those who use the Internet extensively for business. That’s why we’re going to show you some of the benefits when you hire SEO Experts. 

6 Reasons You Need To Hire SEO Experts For Your Online Business To Thrive 

Before we begin, let’s delve into the question, “What is an SEO specialist?”

What Does An SEO Expert Do?

SEO is a vast and intricate discipline. So the short answer to “what is an SEO specialist?” is – a lot of things. 

The more involved answer is that SEO experts keep track of the latest search engine trends and algorithm updates. They can use these insights to create new content for your website. They also use this specialized knowledge to make sure your existing content is in compliance with the latest SEO trends. 

An SEO expert will work with you to understand your unique business goals and marketing objectives. Then they’ll work with you to help you attain those goals using the latest SEO insights. 

Say your goal is to grow your online audience and raise brand awareness. An SEO expert knows that viral media is a quick and easy way to achieve this. They might proceed to write some long-form content or click-worthy listicles, in a bid to get your audience to share your links on social media and to their personal networks. 

They might even create some multimedia content around that content, such as Pinterest pins or YouTube videos. 

While some SEO trends are constantly changing, others have remained tried-and-true for as long as Google’s been around. An SEO expert will also go through your existing content, making sure that your on-page SEO is up to speed. They’ll make sure your internal links are valid and you’re not missing any opportunities. 

An SEO expert will also make sure your site complies with the latest tech trends, like page speed or mobile compliance. If your page is taking too long to load, they’ll use a variety of techniques to speed it up so you’re not getting penalized by Google. 

We could go on and on. But this brief glimpse into what an SEO expert does should help give you some ideas of how they’ll help you succeed online. 

What It’s Necessary To Hire SEO Experts To Succeed Online 

There are currently nearly 2 billion websites online, at the time of this writing. That means that nearly 25% of the entire Earth’s population has some form of digital presence. 

That’s a lot of competition. A lot of people vying for the same eyes, ears, hearts, and wallets. 

Here are some things you can look forward to when you hire SEO services. 

SEO Experts Focus EXCLUSIVELY On Your Digital Content 

We’re all busy. 72% of small business owners report feeling overwhelmed. For many business owners, SEO is just one more thing to do in an already overwhelming workload. 

An SEO expert’s entire job is to make sure your digital content is its absolute best. That it’s in compliance with the latest Google updates. That you’re not missing out on any backlinks or hosting any broken links on your website. 

An SEO expert can create new content for you, as well. Creating blog posts, landing pages, copywriting, or even social media content all takes time. Yet they’re all essential if you’re hoping for your digital business to thrive in today’s digital economy. 

SEO Yields Organic Traffic

Sure, social media can yield an intense amount of traffic. While it’s tremendously exciting to watch the pageviews and site hits climb after you publish a piece of content, what are you supposed to do when the buzz dies down?

Organic SEO is essential for on-going traffic. It’s how your site shows up on the search engine result pages (SERPs). That’s one of the reasons SEO’s such a great investment. It never goes away! 

The same can be said about pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, which is pretty much your only other alternative for getting steady, on-going traffic. You can run a PPC ad campaign, but it disappears the moment you stop pumping money into it. SEO never disappears.

SEO Is The Cornerstone Of Search Engine Marketing (SEM)

SEO forms the nucleus of search engine marketing, or SEM. That is reason alone to put a sizable amount of resources towards hiring an SEO expert, especially if you happen to be in the B2B sector.

SEM means your customers are looking for you. Think about that for a moment. 

How do you think a business owner in the 80s or 90s would’ve responded if you told them you had a list of certified leads that were ready to make a purchase? Provided they didn’t think you were some snake oil-selling marketing guru, they probably would’ve given you the keys to their house for a simple peek at that list. 

SEM is a way to target your ideal customers, no matter what niche or industry you happen to be in. Search engine marketing can be particularly effective in achieving actual conversions, which is another reason it’s a good idea to hire SEO experts. 

You can even use search engine marketing as part of a local SEO campaign. This can be a highly lucrative approach if you happen to have a brick-and-mortar location or are selling physical products or services. 

SEO Experts Help You Compete Against Big Businesses

One of the most revolutionary aspects of doing business on the Internet is the way it allows smaller and independent businesses to compete against larger corporations, including Fortune 500 companies. It can even be to your benefit, at times, as smaller organizations are able to implement new ideas faster and evolve more quickly than megalithic businesses. 

Larger organizations have exponentially more money to sink into marketing. They can run PPC campaigns and target ads on social media pretty much around the clock. There aren’t many businesses that can keep up with that. 

When you hire SEO experts, you’re able to target the precise audience you’re shooting for. Maybe you’re running an independent market in Venice, Ca. for instance. Or a shop for sustainable fashion in Manhattan. 

With SEO and SEM, you can even turn the smaller size of your business to your advantage. Customers that appreciate independent businesses and sustainability are often mistrustful of larger corporations. You can leverage that insight to your advantage 

SEO Experts Help Build Brand Awareness

People can’t do business with you if they don’t know you exist. Unless you’re Nike or McDonald’s or Amazon, you’re going to have to let people know you exist, somehow. You’ve got to do it in just the right way, as well, or you could leave your prospective customers with a negative impression of your brand. 

Getting found is only one way that hiring an SEO expert can improve your brand. Consider the fact that Google advises hiring an SEO consultant as early as possible if you’re looking to optimize your online business. Now, why would they recommend that?

Granted, Google has a vested interest in SEO, as it’s how they’re able to function. Above and beyond that, however, Google measures for user experience. SEO factors are ultimately about usability. 

That also speaks to why you should factor SEO into your online business as early as possible. You want people to have a favorable opinion of your brand, which begins with your website. 

For your website to be ultimately useful, it should be: 

• Usable
• Useful
• Appealing
• Findable
• Accessible
• Trustworthy

If you get any of those aspects wrong, you could leave your audience with a negative impression of your business. Your online content would be doing the opposite of what it’s intended result. 

SEO Experts Guide Your Customers Through The Buyer’s Journey 

The Internet has leveled the playing field for independent businesses to compete against the majors. It also means you’re competing against everybody else. The customers are aware of this, as well, and get slightly savvier with each passing year. 

While this means you’ve got endless possibilities of reaching a global audience, it also means that there’s a lot more involved in getting a customer to actually spend money with your business. 

The ‘buyer’s journey’ or ‘buyer’s cycle’ has multiple stages, with new ones being added all the time. 

Presently, you could break the buyer’s cycle down into 4 stages: 

• Awareness
• Consideration
• Conversion 
• Retention

There are certain signals for each one of these stages. SEO experts know how to read those signals. Even better, then know how to interpret them and turn them into actionable insights. 

Consider the awareness stage. At that point in the buyer’s cycle, a customer isn’t ready to make a purchase. It’d be a mistake to try and sell to them, at that point – potentially a costly one. 

Examples of some phrases that indicate a customer’s still in the awareness stage might be: 

• How to do ___?
• Benefits of X
• Reviews
• FAQ

At this stage in the buyer’s journey, someone’s first just become aware of a problem, issue, idea, or product. They’re trying to learn more. An SEO expert can create content around those keywords and phrases and help deliver what that customer’s looking for. 

This creates brand awareness, loyalty, and steers them through the buyer’s cycle, all at once. 

Once someone’s entered the Consideration Stage, it’s possible to start gearing your customers towards making a purchase. The Consideration Stage is when a customer is starting to weigh their options. There are keywords and phrases for this, as well. 

Keywords For The Consideration Stage Include:

• Best
• Reviews 
• Cheap
• Affordable
• Deals
• Provider
• Troubleshooting

When people are looking up these phrases, they’re getting closer to being ready to spend money. A SEO company can create buyer personas to match your intended audience. They can then create content to help answer those customer’s particular pain points. 

Examples of content suitable for the conversion stage include: 

• Whitepapers
• Tutorials
• Video content 
• Infographics 
• Data and statistics

This content can also be leveraged towards other business and marketing goals, at the same time, such as signing up for your email list. It also helps increase brand loyalty and trust at the same time. Authoritative content like whitepapers, infographics, and tutorials shows you know what you’re doing, establishing you as a thought leader in your niche or industry. 

These are just some of the benefits when you hire SEO experts, which should tell you how much there is to know about this nearly endless topic. SEO is the DNA of the Internet. When you understand how it works, you can essentially achieve anything. 

Looking For SEO Services Near San Diego?

We’re so glad you’re here! We’re not just a SEO company – we’re also an advertising agency, a marketing firm, and your personal brand advocates, all rolled into one. 

We started MAD Group because we didn’t like how our industry was treating its customers. We work with brands we believe in. Which means we believe in our work, and stand behind it. 

Whether you’re looking to hire SEO experts or branding experts, we have everything you need to thrive in today’s digital economy, under one roof. 

We’re all familiar with the world of traditional marketing and its benefits. However, the current digital climate has welcomed us into new territory, and the stakes are higher than ever before. Many businesses are unsure of how to navigate this new system. With the help of digital ad agencies, companies have the opportunity to thrive in the world of online advertising. The experts working behind the scenes will ensure your company is getting the exposure that it needs, along with higher conversion rates.

The following are the benefits of hiring a digital agency to help your business reach its highest potential:

• Build Local SEO- SEO, or search engine optimization, is a great way for a brand to build its online presence organically. This is where a digital marketing agency comes in. SEO naturally boosts online traffic. The more traffic your website garners, the more consumers it attracts.

• Efficient Target Marketing- A San Diego SEO expert will analyse and determine your business’s target audience, then optimise the marketing strategies accordingly. These strategies include keyword search, SEO practices, social media statistics, and PPC or pay-per-click. Target marketing allows you to analyze the habits of clients and adjust your advertising campaigns accordingly. This vast array of components at your fingertips ensures that each initiative targets the intended demographic.

• Authentic and innovative- A digital agency in San Diego successfully develops unique, innovative, and customised tactics that can set your company apart from your competitors.

• Generating Optimised Content- A San Diego SEO expert will build a strategy that produces optimised content valuable to your business. In reality, everything centers on providing people with appropriate, helpful, current, valuable, and appealing material.

• Cost Effective- Digital marketing severely reduces overall business expenses. Better yet, you’re more likely to profit. Various businesses require different marketing techniques, which may cost more. To advertise your company locally or globally, digital marketing offers a much cheaper alternative.

• Modern tools and technologies- Statistics, delivering bulk emails and targeted messaging, creating content for social media, generating reports, and other viable tools are all available through digital marketing companies. A digital agency in San Diego can assist you in automating procedures by utilising such advanced solutions.

• Production of graphics, multimedia and more- Several methods provide valuable material to users. Written content, photos, music, and multimedia can all be used. A digital agency can assist you in producing the styles you want.

Conclusion

Digital platforms will continue to expand their consumers, so knowing where to advertise your brand most successfully is critical. The need for a digital agency is increasing to develop a profitable business organisation. The globalisation of advertising through online platforms has broadened the potential for several enterprises to participate in areas where it would have been challenging and costly.

We know that the phrase “content is king” has become a cliche in business and marketing companies. But there’s a reason why content has become so important for modern marketing and business development.

Online ads that are written just the right way can help you attract new customers. Having the right content on your website can help improve your rankings in search engines.

Do you want to create effective content for your business? You’ve come to the right place. When you follow our copywriting tips you’ll be creating content that produces results.

7 Essential Copywriting Tips

You may not have aced English or know much about writing copy, but we can give you the advice you need to create compelling copy for your business.

Having a consistent voice and established brand can help your marketing efforts, but creating an effective message will always involve copywriting skills. If you’re ready to give a copywriting boost to your important campaigns, follow these tips.

1. Always State Your Value

You’re far from the only business trying to get the attention of people on your website. There are tons of other businesses people could buy from, that’s why you need to show your value and why you’re better than the rest up front.

Take time to think about your unique selling proposition (also known as USP) that sets you apart from the competition. Essentially, take time to ask yourself why someone should choose you over your dozens of competitors.

Do you use high-quality materials to make your product? That claim should be in almost every ad, blog article, and social media post you create.

Are your prices affordable? Mention it in your copy in a distinct, clear, and easy to understand way.

You may have one significant USP you want to highlight, or you could have several. Regardless of where you land, you’ll be able to create compelling copy as long as your USP is involved.

2. Avoid Hyperbole

When people write marketing copy, it can be easy to exaggerate some of your claims.

Writing a sentence that states that your business helps hundreds of customers in your county may sound like a great statement, but it can come off as vague and nebulous to readers.

Let’s face it, if you’re a small business with one location it’s going to be hard for people to believe that you literally help hundreds of customers every year.

When you’re writing your copy try to be as specific as possible and don’t make outrageous claims.

Instead of saying you serve hundreds of happy customers, focus on a specific number or take the focus somewhere else. Talk about the quality of your services or the satisfaction of your customers.

3. Back Up Your Statements

Do you feel like you have something important to stay and want to avoid hyperbole? When you focus on facts and statistics to back up your claims, you’ll write effective copy.

Don’t lead statements with heavy statistics and studies. Making a statement and backing it up with facts is much more effective.

4. Be Direct

When people are reading marketing copy, they’re not going to spend a lot of time dwelling on the message. They’re going to want clear and direct action to take.

As an example, let’s say you’re writing copy to encourage people to sign up for your company’s newsletter.

Indirect: If you have a moment, please take some time to sign up for our newsletter with your e-mail address.

Direct: Add your email address and click subscribe.

Don’t beat around the bush when you’re trying to get people to take specific and clear action. Say exactly what you want to say when you’re writing copy, and you’ll notice more of a response from people.

5. Be Brief

Being direct with your intentions is important, and being brief is the flip side of the same coin.

You don’t have a lot of time to capture the attention of readers regardless of what platform you’re writing for. You want to make your point as fast as possible.

Keep your sentences short, and don’t write in long blocks of text. Make your content easy to read and scannable so anyone can get your message.

6. Remember AIDA

Do you want to write compelling copy that can get you the results you need? Always remember to keep AIDA in mind:

A: Attention

Grab people’s attention with a catchy headline or engaging opening sentence. Some people find that asking readers a question can help keep people interested in reading.

I: Interest

Now that you have the reader’s attention, it’s time to find something to grab their interest. Let readers know how your product can help solve your most pressing pain-points.

D: Desire

Stoke their desire for what you’re selling by promoting the benefits of your product or service.

A: Action

Give readers a call to action that makes them do something that benefits you. They could download important sales documents, fill out a form, or call a sales representative.

Keeping these important focuses in mind can help you produce great content for ad campaigns, social posts, and website updates.

7. Keep It Conversational

One of the best copywriting tips you can follow is to keep your writing as natural and conversational as possible.

Think about your own personal preferences.

Would you want to spend time reading long research papers, or would you prefer to read something that’s written to be as simple and easy to interpret as possible?

Avoid jargon as much as possible. Don’t write anything that someone outside of your industry wouldn’t be able to understand. Make your writing easy to understand, and keep it conversational to help keep a good flow.

Beyond Copywriting

You have some excellent copywriting tips that can help you improve any marketing initiatives you have. Now it’s time to think of other ways to help your business.

Be sure to contact us with any copywriting or marketing questions you have. We’re always happy to help businesses find their voice and marketing strengths.

Our blog can give you plenty of insight into how you can use marketing to grow your business. Read our post on how creativity can help boost your next marketing campaign.

While the concept of providing healthcare is relatively straightforward, running a healthcare business is anything but. Like any business, your success relies on the economy, consumer trends, and, of most of all, marketing.

But what are the best healthcare marketing techniques? How can you communicate your message to potential patients? Is there a way to market your business while expressing genuine care in the well-being of your patients while also pushing to drive business upward?

Keep reading as we dive into the top healthcare marketing trends of 2022.

1. Perfect Your Website

There’s no denying it at this point, we are fully immersed in the digital era. An astonishing 81 percent of Americans own a smartphone. We literally have access to infinite knowledge at our fingertips 24 hours a day.

Why is this important to your healthcare business?

The vast majority of consumers research products and services online long before they invest their time or money. This includes researching healthcare facilities, symptoms, diagnoses, treatments, and cures. If you don’t have a strong online presence, these internet users (almost everyone) will never even know you exist.

As the virtual face of your company, your website must be user-friendly. This means having quick loading times, an appealing design and layout, intuitive navigation, and multiple forms of media. If users don’t find your website appealing or easy to use, they’ll bounce off of it and find a different healthcare facility.

2. Lock Down Your SEO

Even the best-designed websites are useless without SEO. Search engine optimization is what directs users to your website when they search for information pertaining to the healthcare services you provide using search engines (Google, Yahoo!, Bing, etc.).

Your SEO rating will determine how quickly your website comes up on SERPs (search engine results pages). This is key to organic online healthcare marketing, as most online users won’t continue their research after the first page of results.

Improve your SEO rating by including a blog on your website. It needs to be loaded with articles that use keywords, multiple forms of media embedded with metadata, internal and external links, snippets, and more.

3. Focus Your Efforts in Social Media

To put the icing on the cake of your online presence, you need to have at least one thriving social media account. We recommend starting with Facebook, where nearly 70 percent of US adults are active. Here, you can use both organic and paid advertising in a powerful way.

Start building up your following by posting engaging and informative content. Try to get the community and your follows to interact by hosting contests, raffles, and promotional content and more. The more people you have sharing, liking, commenting on, and following your posts, the more your healthcare marketing efforts will prosper.

You can also use paid advertising through social media. Through Facebook’s Ad Center, you can direct your ads towards certain demographics of people in the community based on age, gender, location, and more.

Finally, Facebook tracks and analyzes every ad you post, giving you insights into how it performed (views, link clicks, shares, comments, likes). You can use this information to tweak your ads to make them more appealing to your targeted audience.

4. Use Email Lists

Next, using your website, landing page ads, and social media, start building an email list. You can gain email subscribers by offering valuable content for those who join. This can be anything from free content, exclusive offers, prizes, and more.

You should have an email campaign pre-designed and automated to send out when someone subscribes. The first email should thank the subscriber for joining and include the promised prize, content, etc. Several more emails should go out during the course of the month, gently reminding the subscriber that you’re there and providing valuable content, such as articles, discounts, promotions, and more.

5. Optimize Your Zero-Click Marketing

Zero-click research is becoming more and more popular. Internet users are typically looking for the fastest results, access, and information. Zero-click research provides them with that.

When you ask Google a question, a zero-click result comes up either on the top of the page or on the sidebar to answer your question. The answer can be found in webpage snippets or through the Google Knowledge Graph.

The important part is that people no longer need to click on a website to get the information they need. However, zero-click research marketing is important for healthcare marketing because it’s always a subject people want to dive deeper into. Most often, because they’re research symptoms and looking for remedies.

When they dig deeper into the subject, they’re going to choose the website that’s already given them at least one answer. Optimize your snippets on your webpages to answer potential questions and invest in a Google Knowledge Graph panel.

6. Get Involved in the Community

As a local healthcare provider looking to gain more clients, you need to get involved with the community. The locals need to know you exist, see that you care, and get familiar with your name.

Connect with a local non-profit or charity and host a fund-raising/awareness event. You can plan a concert featuring local artists, plan a 5K race, or host a silent auction with participating local businesses.

Start inviting other businesses to take part. It will grant them more exposure to the community, allow them to set up a booth, and provide you with more resources for the event. Begin advertising for the event as soon as possible to start building hype and maximize attendance.

7. Build Up Your Review Marketing

Finally, encourage your clients to leave reviews on your website, social media page, Google reviews, etc. Review marketing is one of the most effective healthcare marketing techniques.

When someone is sick, injured, or otherwise seeking healthcare assistance, they want to know they’re placing their health in the right hands. Any company can profess to be amazing, but people want to know what past clients have to say.

What was their experience? Were they treated well? Were their needs met with respect and compassion?

Looking for More Healthcare Marketing Advice?

If you’re looking to improve your healthcare marketing strategy this year, we can help. You run an important business, and your success is our priority. Contact us today to see what we can do and be sure to check out more of our articles before you leave.

It’s no secret that having a strong presence on social media is vital if you want to maximize your reach as a business.

While it’s important to be active on as many relevant platforms as you can, it’s not always easy to get the most engagement every time you put out content.

Instagram stories, for example, is where many entrepreneurs struggle to create the most engagement. Luckily, it’s not as hard as it seems.

Not sure where to start? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered.

Let’s look at everything you need to know about Instagram story hacks that can boost your engagement.

1. Keep a Consistent Aesthetic

Every brand should have a color scheme that it adheres to. While this is more focused on in the clothing industry, having a group of colors that “make” your brand is a great way to look professional.

So, when you post on your business Instagram story, you need to make sure that the colors you use align with your company’s chosen colors.

For example, if your aesthetic is made up of earth tones, you can use a beige or light gray background when posting a story that incorporates only text. When posting photographs, keep these colors consistent, too.

The result is your story looking clean, organized, and beautiful as your followers scroll through.

2. Collab With Other Brands

One of the best ways to build your own audience is to tap into someone else’s.

Working with similar brands in your industry can go a long way when it comes to overall reach, especially if your collaborator has more of an online presence than you do.

Ways to collab include reposting their content, giving them a shoutout, or creating something original together. All while tagging them in your post.

Building strong partnerships with other brands has the potential for you to exponentially increase your own audience overnight, so take advantage of it!

3. Schedule Your Posts

If you’re looking to post a series of Instagram stories at once, the last thing you want to do is post them in real-time. This will lead to people viewing the first few stories without knowing more are coming (or wanting to wait around to see them).

Instead, you can create them all beforehand and schedule them for a later time. This is especially useful when posting large collections of photos (such as a lookbook for a clothing brand).

If you have a hectic schedule, scheduling in advance will also keep you from missing the opportunity to make a post if you create them in your downtime.

4. Run Polls

Polls are a great way to not only get your audience engaged with your content but to offer them an opportunity to provide feedback.

Polls are particularly useful when:

• You want your audience’s opinion on a product or service you just introduced
• You want to know how they found out about your brand
• You’d like to learn more about their favorite product/service you offer
• You want to learn about the products or services they’d like you to offer in the future

As you can tell, you’re able to gather a significant amount of information about your audience through polls. And, since this info came straight from them, you know that it’s accurate!

5. Reply to Your Story Responses

Responsiveness goes a long way in building a relationship with your audience.

Too many brands leave messages unopened for days, weeks, or even months (or never read them at all)! This only serves to build a growing disconnect between the brand and its followers.

Responding promptly to messages, though, reminds them that there’s a human who cares on the other side of the screen.

Even if the DM is only a short compliment (such as ‘you guys are great!’) and not a business inquiry, take the time to reply. It will never hurt your future engagement, but not responding could.

6. Repost Your Regular Content on Your Story

Nobody’s quite 100% figured out Instagram’s algorithm yet, so there will always be members of your audience who missed your latest post (even if you posted at a time when they were active on the platform).

But, posting this same content on your story is a great way to throw them a friendly reminder that you have a new post out.

If your feed content was centered around getting your audience to follow a link, you can post content on your story that pursues the same result.

7. Post Content Your Audience Wants to See

As previously mentioned, it’s important to reach out to your audience and see how they feel about your brand. But, you can’t expect them to answer every brand-related question you have.

Instead, you’ll need to pay careful attention to your post analytics and determine what type of content gets the most average engagement from your audience. The term average here is important since there will always be posts that do better or worse than expected.

Once you determine what kind of content your audience likes best, you’ll be able to phase out content that doesn’t resonate with them and introduce content that they care about.

Wrapping Up Instagram Story Hacks

With the above information about Instagram story hacks in mind, you’ll be well on your way to connecting with your audience in the most effective way possible.

Having trouble maximizing your social media content? This page has everything you need to know about how we can help.

Are you using pay-per-click (PPC) advertising to attract new customers? With a strong Google AdWords strategy, you can expand your reach and build your business. Otherwise, you may risk losing sales and falling behind the competition.

PPC visitors are 50% more likely to make a purchase than organic visitors.

Similar to search engine optimization, PPC strategies and trends pay every year. By keeping up with the trends, you can get ahead of the curve and surpass the competition.

Kick up your PPC advertising and get those clicks with these PPC optimization tips!

1. Ramp Up Re-Marketing

What happens when people visit your website without completing an action? Chances are, you just missed an opportunity to gain a lead or make a sale.

Remarketing is one of the most important PPC strategies you can use to attract business.

With remarketing, you can display fresh ads to people after they visit your website. You can also personalize your remarketing ads so they better apply to each website visitor.

Remarketing gives you a second chance. Instead of missing out on a potential sale, you can capture leads. As a result, you’re improving your conversion rate and your ROI.

Remarketing ads will give you a chance to boost your brand awareness as well. Each time someone sees your display ads, they’ll become more familiar with your product. The more people see your ads, the more likely you will improve your click-through rate and conversions.

It’s important to use creative messaging to appeal to customers with your remarketing ads. Otherwise, the same messages could cause you to lose potential customers a second time.

2. Make Sure It’s Mobile

Many people are using their smartphones to search online. If you’re looking for important Google AdWords tips, you need to consider your mobile users. Otherwise, you’re missing out on potential customers.

Many PPC strategies focus on mobile-optimized ads. In order to improve your PPC advertising, you need to customize your mobile ad experience for these customers. Ignoring your mobile audience could cause you to waste your advertising budget.

First, consider the mobile traffic for your list of target keywords.

Google Ads allows you to study the performance of keywords on specific devices. You can focus more of your budget on keywords that perform well for mobile users.

Next, make sure you’re creating display ads for mobile devices. Otherwise, your ads won’t display well on smartphones.

Making these changes will ensure you appear in front of your entire audience of prospective clients.

3. Prepare for Voice Search

Do you ever use Alexa, Google, or Siri to make a search? More people are relying on voice assistants to search for answers online. If you want to use these PPC strategies, you need to prepare your ads for voice search.

Consider how your customers are using voice-based speakers to search for content.

You can use tools such as Semrush, Google Keyword Planner, or Google Trends to determine how people are searching online. Then, craft your ads or change your keyword strategy to reflect these trends.

By updating your PPC strategies for voice search, you can make sure you appear as a search result.

If your companies haven’t updated their PPC advertising to reflect the latest trends, now’s your chance! Speak with a local PPC expert today to determine how to improve your PPC campaigns. Once you do, you’ll attract more visitors to your website—and get more leads.

4. Get Personal

45% of small businesses use PPC advertising, according to a survey. If you haven’t begun using PPC advertising yet, it’s time to get started!

As you start using these PPC strategies, make sure to get personal with your ads.

Most people focus on keyword-based campaigns. However, it’s important to consider the needs of your customers as well.

Many companies are using audience-based targeting to display their ads instead. Using this form of targeting will allow you to personalize your ads for potential customers and avoid wasted clicks to improve your conversion rate.

You can target your audience based on their age, gender, marital status, and other demographics as well.

The better you know your customers, the more likely you’ll attract them to your website.

5. Add Video Ads

Video ads are one of the latest PPC advertising trends.

Adding videos to your PPC campaigns will help you stand out from other digital ads. These ads can improve your engagement rate. As you improve your brand awareness and click-through rate, you expand your reach to more prospects.

If you don’t want to dedicate a portion of your advertising budget to video marketing, consider using YouTube to target your audience. The niche is competitive but will allow you to improve your click-through rate.

6. Watch Out for New Ad Types

Remember, PPC trends are constantly changing. If you want to keep ahead of the competition, you need to remain up-to-date with the latest PPC trends. This includes any new features Google AdWords offers such as tools, targeting, and ad types.

For example, more companies are using location-based advertising. Brands are also beginning to use localization services to increase their conversation rates.

These new trends and ad types will help you discover new opportunities.

To make the most of your PPC advertising, keep track of the trends and apply the latest PPC strategies!

7. Keep Using Negatives

Even PPC advertising experts need to use negative keyword lists. These lists will ensure you don’t appear for the wrong searches. Otherwise, you’ll end up wasting money and attracting unwanted website traffic.

Punch Up Your PPC: 7 PPC Strategies for San Diego Based Companies

A well-developed PPC advertising campaign will help you attract more website visitors and build your business. Without good PPC strategies, you’re losing potential sales to your competitors.

Ready to get started? Contact our marketing and advertising agency today to improve your PPC campaigns!

Let’s face it.

You’re far too busy to wear all the hats in your business. But, it’s not always an easy feat to hand over the reins either.

However, you can’t take shots in the dark when it comes to your marketing strategy. Outsourcing is a necessary aspect that can’t be avoided if you want to run a thriving, successful business.

In a 2017 study, 37% of American small businesses said they’re willing to outsource. This not only stresses how common it is – but also, how necessary.

Marketing should be the focal point of your monetization strategy.

And that’s where outsourcing to marketing agencies come into play.

When you hire a reputable agency – the benefits are endless. And your ROI will blow you away long-term.

Still not convinced? Keep reading while we take a deep dive into 8 of the biggest reasons you need to hire a marketing agency, stat.

1. They’ll Boost Sales and Improve Your Bottom Line

There’s a reason businesses spend the time to ensure they have a solid digital marketing strategy. It’ll increase your sales and improve your bottom line – like nothing else.

Marketing has the ability to transform your business; even if you’re just getting started. You’re able to measure your success (or lack thereof) like no other method.

If you’re documenting and measuring your success – you’re 538% more likely to report success, than those who don’t.

On top of this awesome perk, you’re also more likely to see the conversions you’ve been swooning over for months.

Marketing experts know how to use digital marketing in your favor. They know how to find and access your target market in order to achieve the best results possible.

However, those aren’t the only benefits of effective marketing.

Some Outstanding Benefits of Digital Marketing:

• Brand awareness
• More affordable than traditional marketing
• Capture quality leads
• More sales
• You’re able to measure your success and adjust accordingly

As you can see, marketing is a top-notch tactic if you want to catapult your business; no matter what your industry or niche is.

2. You’ll Save Loads of Time

This may be an obvious perk – but a crucial one to mention none the less.

If you’re trying to build your small business into a thriving money-making machine, you need all hands on deck.

There are only 24-hours in a day – and you have to sleep sometime, right?

That’s where outside help comes in handy. Not only can you be confident they’ll do a stunning job, but you can rest easy knowing you can be laser-focused on other business tasks that require your attention.

3. A Good Marketing Agency Will Cover Far More Than Simply Marketing

You may be wondering: what does a top marketing agency do?

Many assume they merely cover the marketing side of your business. However, in reality, they can take on a load of other vital tasks off your hands.

A Few Areas a Marketing Agency Can Help You With:

• Branding
• Digital marketing
• Copywriting
• Content marketing and content marketing strategies
• Social media
• Your website

You can save on hiring individual agencies or freelancers – if you find the right marketing agency.

4. It’s More Affordable Than Hiring an In-House Marketing Team

You may be considering hiring someone in-house to keep things simple.

You may even be under the misguided advice that you’ll save money going this route.

As it turns out, hiring in-house is costly. And it’s more expensive than hiring a reputable top marketing agency.

You could end up paying around $130,000 yearly to have a marketing manager in-house. Not to mention the healthcare, benefits, and taxes you’ll have to fork over.

And if you think the price is brutal – keep in mind that this fee only includes marketing. Whereas marketing agencies cover all of your bases.

It seems like a large price to pay when you have a better (and more affordable) alternative.

5. A Fresh Eye and Perspective

As diligent as you may be, there are always things that remain unseen or fall by the wayside in a business.

Despite our best efforts, everyone needs an outside perspective at one time or another.

Especially if you’re self-teaching or teaching someone on your team the ropes, having that extra set of eyes can make a huge difference.

You’ll even find that a great marketing agency will give you insights and fresh inspiration that you otherwise wouldn’t have had.

6. They’ll Help You Create an Effective Digital Marketing Plan

You may be swimming in unfamiliar waters if you haven’t created a successful digital marketing strategy before.

An agency will ensure you end up with a personalized plan that is perfect for your unique business.

Often times they’ll first focus on honing in on your buyer personas and identifying all goals you’d like to achieve. Everything will stem off of this because of how crucial your customers and/or clients are to your business.

Without them – you don’t have a business.

It can be tricky to get all of the steps of your marketing plan down pat if you’re feeling confined by

As long as you stick to the marketing plan that’s been crafted for your business – you’ll find yourself swimming in leads and conversions.

7. You Need All the Help You Can Get to Get a Leg up on Competitors

You can bet your largest competitors are already online utilizing every digital marketing tactic they can get their hands on. And that includes outsourcing to top marketing agencies, for the best results possible.

They aren’t holding back when it comes to the amount of money they spend on their marketing efforts either. By 2021, it’s said businesses will be spending $110 billion on digital advertising.

Because of the massive ROI, an improvement on your bottom you get when investing in top-notch marketing strategies, it’s an investment you can be sure your competitors are utilizing.

8. You Can Rest Easy Knowing Your Business is in the Hands of Experts

To see the steady growth you yearn for, it’s imperative to put your marketing needs in the right hands.

If you’re not equipped with the right skills and expertise to knock your marketing strategies out of the park – you have no business doing it.

Especially if you’re a small business, it’s vital to let the experts take over your marketing. Then you have a chance to get a leg up on your biggest competitors.

The fantastic thing about hiring a marketing agency is you’re typically not limited to just one marketing agent.

You tend to have a group of knowledgeable people at your disposal.

Trust a Top Marketing Agency to Help You

While there’s nothing wrong with the DIY (Do it yourself) attitude for many business tasks – some things you don’t want to leave to chance.

Your customers are the bread and butter of your entire business. So if you’re not using smart marketing strategies to attract and convert them – it’ll be a daunting task to get your business off the ground.

Put your trust in a reputable marketing agency who specializes in what you need.

If you’re ready to take your business to the next level, contact us for more information about your specific marketing needs!

If you own a business, there are several ways to improve your online marketing strategy so that you can increase your lead generation, conversion rates, and ultimately, profit. One of the best ways to guarantee long-term growth, however, is to stay on top of the trends running the industry. This ensures that you’re never left behind and that you remain competitive.

If that’s something you’re interested in, read on to learn about the upcoming top digital marketing trends.

1. AI Is Growing

artificial intelligence (AI) has slowly begun to play a larger and larger role in business and digital marketing activities in all areas. In fact, 80% of business and tech leaders claim that AI boosts their productivity already.

You can take advantage of this productivity boost yourself by using AI technology to make your processes more accurate and efficient, boosting customer experience along the way.

Marketing chatbots are just one example of the power of AI.

2. Micro-Influencers Are Taking Over

Influencers are nothing new, and for a while, people thought influencer marketing might be on the decline. This changed when the global pandemic pushed more people online than ever before, and micro-influencers began to take over the scene. Micro-influencers are influencers with smaller followings of 1,000 to 100,000 followers.

Micro-influencers are taking over because they maintain more niche pages and are seen as experts in their industry or passion. As a result of this and the fact that they are smaller, their audiences are more engaged and trusting. Their smaller audiences are also more easily defined.

Another bonus: They’re cheaper than regular influencers with larger followings.

3. Video Is Always a Good Idea

They say content is king, and they’re right, but videos are the king of content.

Human eyes are attracted to movement, and due to our instincts, video is more attention-grabbing and stimulating than other forms of content. It also involves more senses – visual and audio. As a result, audiences watch video content longer.

This makes video advertising more effective and easy to remember. Studies even show that 95% of a message is recalled by viewers when in a video format, compared to a mere 10% when it’s portrayed in the text.

It’s also worth noting that it’s easier to invoke action-inducing emotion with video content.

4. Advertising on Messaging Apps

Among the upcoming digital marketing trends is the move towards advertising on messaging apps. You wouldn’t think users would need more than one, but people contact others through an assortment of messaging apps available. Facebook Messenger, Instagram direct message, and Whatsapp are just a few.

Advertising on messaging apps works because it’s taking place where conversations are already happening and the consumer is ready to take in information. Here, your business is associated with the other important contacts in a consumer’s life.

Messaging apps are great because they encourage conversation with your brand. It’s the opportunity to provide customer support, build relationships, and grow customer loyalty.

5. Voice Search Is on the Rise

About 50% of all searches made online are predicted to be made via voice search. It’s important to make voice search optimization a part of your marketing game plan.

Part of the reason voice search is growing is that people are realizing that it’s faster and easier than typing when you’re on the go. In some cases, such as when driving, it’s also safer.

The important thing to keep in mind for voice search is that people speak differently than they type, so you’ll want to adjust your SEO strategy and keywords to account for this.

6. Say Hello to AR and VR

Both augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) are on the rise, and smart, successful businesses are thinking about how to implement them in their digital marketing strategy.

AR and VR allow a customer to experience your place, product, or event without having to be there physically. It may seem futuristic, but it will soon be expected by users when competitors are providing AR and VR options.

This trend is especially important for online businesses or those with customers that can’t go onsite.

7. Stick With Social

Social media has been a popular part of online marketing for a while, but the number of users and time spent on social media platforms is only growing.

Plus, social media is always changing. To run a successful social media business page, you need to stay up to date on all of the platform’s unique changes, additions, and features.

Social media users continue to open up to following and connecting with brands that maintain a strong social media presence. This form of marketing will continue to be one of the best ways to build your brand community and generate leads.

8. Try Out TikTok

On the topic of social media, a likely huge player in marketing will be TikTok. Over the past year, the number of users on TikTok outside of China has exploded. Better yet, a huge portion of TikTok users are the younger audiences many brands target.

Make sure that if you create a paid social advertising strategy that you consider promoting on TikTok.

9. Focus on Customer Retention

As far as marketing trends go, successful businesses are beginning to realize that it’s cheaper and easier to keep customers than it is to find new ones. As a result, customer retention should take up a good amount of your business strategy. Brand loyal customers are also more valuable because they’re repeat-buyers and spread the word.

To work on retaining more of your customers, focus on personalizing their experience. A great way to do this is by segmenting your audience so that you’re not trying the same tactics on everyone.

Use These Digital Marketing Trends to Win

Staying informed of digital marketing trends is essential if you want your business to succeed. This is especially the case as more businesses move online, amping up the competition.

Found this article helpful and want to know more about improving your online marketing? Check out our marketing services today.

Curious about cause marketing campaigns?

Did you know that cause sponsorship is predicted to reach more than $2.14 billion in 2018? Furthermore, 78% of people between the ages of 18 to 24 will choose an ethical product over its non-ethical competition. Even when that product is more expensive.

In today’s digital world, competition is high. Yes, consumers still prefer products that are high quality and low cost. But unlike 20 years ago, consumers also take into account the company’s environmental impact and causes they support.

If you want to take a look at successful cause marketing examples, we’ve created a list for you. In the sections below you’ll find eight of the most successful campaigns in the last ten years. Read on to discover more.

1) World AIDS Day: Starbucks and RED

Starbucks teamed up with RED to raise funds for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS. The cooperative duo started their cause marketing on World AIDS Day over seven years ago.

As part of the campaign, Starbucks donates 10 cents for every beverage they sell in their U.S. and Canada stores. So far, they’ve raised over $12 million in donations. The red cups ensure consumers take notice.

The cause campaign increased Starbucks’ sales. It’s also provided a major boost to their brand loyalty.

2) Arctic Home: Coke and World Wildlife Fund

In 2011, Coca-Cola launched the Arctic Home campaign with the World Wildlife Fund. Their goal was to raise awareness for the plight of the polar bear, Coke’s unofficial mascot.

The bears are starving. Global warming is melting sea ice and forcing seals to relocate. This relocation is depleting the polar bears’ natural food source, the seals.

Since the campaign launched, Coca-Cola has raised over $3 million in donations. More importantly, they’ve significantly raised awareness for the polar bears’ predicament.

The digital engagement portion of the campaign has been noteworthy. It utilized websites, apps, social media, text messaging, emails, and other channels. The engaged customers and drove brand awareness.

3) Real Beauty: Dove and Unilever

Did you know that only 2% of women around the world describe themselves as beautiful? Dove does. They performed a study which surprised even the experts.

Soon after, they launched their “Campaign for Real Beauty” to address the unattainable depiction of beauty. The depiction has become prevalent in first world countries. Experts argue this depiction evolved from negative messages pervasive in modern media channels.

Since the campaign’s launch in 2004, sales have increased over 60%. The well-executed cause-related marketing drives Dove’s brand ethos.

4) Heart Healthy Meals: Subway and American Heart Association

The American Heart Association (AHA) offers a Heart-Healthy Meals certification. It’s given to grocery stores and restaurants that meet their criteria. When a restaurant is approved, they’re given a certification sticker. To pass, a restaurant’s food must meet standards in the following areas:

• Calories
• Sodium
• Total Fat
• Trans Fat
• Cholesterol
• Saturated Fat
• Beneficial Nutrients

To kick off their certification, and promote public response, AHA partnered with Subway. The sandwich restaurant was the first to receive a certification. One is displayed proudly in each restaurant of the sandwich chain.

If you’re interested in the certification yourself, it requires an annual cost of $5,000. It’s a way to show customers what you stand for and raise money for the AHA at the same time.

5) The Walk to End Breast Cancer: Reebok and Avon 39

Each year, Avon 39 holds a walk to end breast cancer. It’s held in seven cities across the country. The two-day, 39.3-mile walk raises money for cancer. That includes research, screening, diagnosis, and treatment.

Reebok sponsors the national event. Since 2003, they’ve raised over $620,000,000. Reebok has also connected themselves with a worthy cause. It’s increasing both their sales and brand recognition.

Now customers connect those little pink ribbons with all things Reebok.

6) Operation Safe Return: Jeep and United Service Organizations

The S.A.F.E Return project provides both financial and in-kind aid to America’s returning troops. In concert with the USO, Jeep gives support throughout the transition to home, work, and health. S.A.F.E stands for the following:

Secure Transport: Jeep provides vehicles at no cost to USO centers.

Aid for Transition: Jeep has created a veteran employment initiative. They’ve also given military incentives toward the sale of a new Jeep.

Freedom Adventures: Jeep gifts troops with armed forces celebrations.

Enduring Care: Jeep sponsors care for the wounded, ill, and injured troops. They also help their families.

7) Miracle Balloon Campaign: Walmart and Children’s Miracle Network

Children’s Miracle Network (CMN) is a group of hospitals dedicated to helping children. Such hospitals rely on donations and community support. Medicaid and other insurance programs rarely cover the full cost of care. Since 1983, CMN has raised over $5 billion.

Walmart has helped their efforts by partnering for the Miracle Balloon Campaign. Each time they shop, customers can purchase a $1 balloon to support CMN. Walmart hitched their name to community sponsored children’s hospitals across North America.

8) One for One: TOMS Shoes

The “buy one give one model” is popular in cause marketing. For example, TOMS Shoes “One for One” campaign began back in 2011. It’s since grown to include not only shoes but eyewear and clean water as well.

Customers purchases a pair of TOMS shoes, eyewear, or coffee. Then, a similar pair is donated to a child in a poverty-stricken country.

9) Buy a Pair, Give a Pair: Warby Parker and Partners

Warby Parker’s “Buy a Pair, Give a Pair” follows the same model. For each pair of glasses they sell, their nonprofit partners receive a pair. The nonprofits sell these glasses at bargain-basement prices to people in need. So far, they’ve distributed over 1 million pairs.

Building Your Own Cause Marketing Campaigns

Creating your own cause marketing campaigns can be daunting. Begin by reaching out to nonprofits around your area. They often partner with local businesses so that they can lead you through the process.

It’s worth noting that you don’t need an international nonprofit. Local nonprofits work exceptionally well for brick and mortar stores. Check with your chamber of commerce if you need help.

If you enjoyed this article, please browse our library full of other advertising tips.

So long and good luck!

As small businesses across San Diego are slated to spend around $75,000 this year on digital marketing, there are smarter ways to spend that money than others.

With the right digital content strategy in play, every dollar gets stretched as far as possible. If your digital content has a lot of depth to it, you’ll ensure that the hits you get translate to real visits and real dollars.

Here are four ways to revitalize the digital content strategy at your business this year.

1. Do Your Research

When putting together your digital content strategy, start by looking at where the market is currently. When you think critically about where other companies are compared to where you are, you get the chance to think about your present and your future. If you attack without a plan, you’re bound to waste a lot of time spinning your wheels with digital content.

Look at what the leaders in your market are doing. Stalk their social media profiles and see what kind of content they’re posting. Look to see what content people are responding to the most and whether or not your competitors are picking up on that.

It’s so common for a business to overlook their own assets and benefits. However, what they overlook can be the path in for you to take the reins and seize control of your shared customer base.

Research what your customers seem to want, outside of what your competitors are offering. You get ahead of the pack by taking risks and pursuing paths that they’re not. You don’t get ahead by following.

2. Assess Where You Are

Now start looking at where your business is today. If you’ve run content in the past, consider what your strategy was then. Make a chart listing the things that succeeded with another column for the things that failed.

The content from recent years let you know how your specific assets performed. Companies tend to overlook the past when they’re considering the future. However, when you have a handle on the future, you make better decisions in the future.

If you notice that some topics generated a lot of leads, make those central for the coming year. If there were themes that got a lot of social shares, put them at the frontline of this year’s social media campaign. While you shouldn’t put your eggs in just those baskets, starting off with strong elements gives the rest of your campaigns the chance to shine.

Look at the real material business results of your asses and investments. The metrics that show your spendings, earnings, and which topics helped or hindered those campaigns are the place for you to start.

3. Make a Few Themes

Your customers are changing all the time. As other companies try to fight for a piece of your customer base, it’s inevitable that their interest is going to change. Customers introduced to new ideas are going to move in unpredictable directions.

While trends shape the day-to-day in any market, there are going to a be a few key themes that prevail from year to year.

See what challenges your customers are seeing most often in your industry. What is it that they complain about or what do you get the most negative feedback on? The answer to these questions should drive the decision making of your company when it comes to themes.

Watch the trade articles and popular news items that shape how people interact with your industry. Those articles give a clue as to what people are thinking about and where their dollars are going to go in the near future. Ideas that generate a lot of buzz offer you a perspective on what to do with your brand and where to take your customers.

4. Write Your Own Script

While the foundational topics that you’ve outlined provide a loose sketch of where you want to go in the near future, you need a fleshed out strategy. Your content needs a lot more legs than just the quick-hit content that’s shared by buzzy news websites and that you pass by on Twitter feeds. You want your content to be that news item that keeps getting shared for a week accompanied by a long text written by the person sharing it.

You need to have a deep understanding of your foundational assets in order to write content like this. While some of this content can be farmed out to SEO and content producing sites, much of it needs to come from within your offices. Only the people who are closest to the product can give the outline for the story before it turns into a strong piece fo content.

Don’t be afraid to hammer against a theme as well. Just because you wrote one article about it doesn’t mean that the topic has been beaten to death. You can create a video or send some of your staff to talk on a podcast to see how much you can get out of the topic.

Reusing content might seem like a bad idea, however, your old and successful content offers an insight into how to succeed in the future. Old content that’s been successful has everything in its DNA that you need to succeed. Don’t rehash old ideas, but take them apart and see how your new content fits your old model.

Digital Content Strategy Is a Moving Target

Your company’s digital content strategy shouldn’t be the same this year as it was last year. Even if you still spend money in the same places, you need to find new ways to engage your audience and meet their needs with better content.

For more tips on engaging with your audience, contact us today.

As the average business is set to spend around $75,000 this year on digital marketing, there are lots of other marketing strategies to consider. When you’re headed out to a trade show, marketing means a lot of different types of strategies. Marketing at a trade show will require talking to people, giving presentations, and running your booth.

Here is everything to know about how to turn your next trade show into a marketing goldmine.

1. Make a Plan

Your team should start thinking about how you’re going to market yourselves at your next trade show as soon as you sign up. Since you know months in advance where you’re be exhibiting, you can start coming up with unique ideas to help you target the audience attending.

Rather than leave your marketing plan for the week before or, worse, the plane ride to the event, spend time thinking about how you want to reach out to people. You’ll have a pretty good idea who else will be at the event in advance. Look at your competitors to see what they’re doing so that you can find a way to stand out.

You should have a strategic process for every single tradeshow. You should start by getting people excited about your presence at the trade show. Give out promos to give people a reason to visit your section.

Make sure you’re offering something special. Well-made, attractive swag will get people lining up to get their own.

Plan out every element of your trade show presence so that they all work toward helping you meet your goals and company objectives. Have a metric for how you want to measure success and pivot to turn every interaction toward that metric.

2. Sign Up To Speak

While it’s great to have a booth at the next trade show you’re attending, you can cement your authority by signing up as a speaker. When you share your ideas on how to become successful in your industry, you give newcomers the opportunity to learn from your experience. You also let your competitors know that they had better keep up with you.

A platform to speak from gives you the ability to tell your story and why your business is unique. You also get to talk about some of the great features that your products and services provided.

Speaking to a self-selected audience means that you should target your speech.

Don’t just provide a sales pitch to talk about why people should buy your products. You could be convincing the top people in your field to apply for positions with your company. You could also be giving people ideas on how they could find ways to work with you.

Every trade show has its own method for finding speakers. See if there’s an online application or a specific person you should email if you want to speak. In absence of that, reach out via social media and see if they have openings.

There are always gaps in schedules that need to be filled. If you contact organizers early enough, you could get a prime spot of your choosing.

3. Make Design a Priority

No matter what kinds of products and services you provide, your booth, your promo materials, and your products all rely on design. People will react to what they see first and then decide whether or not to find out more.

Start by designing a booth that draws people in. Create a layout that’s inviting and will make it easy to engage.

You need to make a powerful visual impact, so consider backlit signs, screens, or large colorful posters. You only have a few seconds to attract people, so don’t hold back. People walking by should be able to figure out what you’re about and whether or not it applies to them immediately.

Make sure the staff that’s working your booth is also always on message. They need to have some kind of shirt or uniform signifying their relationship to your brand. They should also be using language that you find important to your business.

With crowds of people squeezing by for hour after hour, their eyes will glaze over without something to really stand out. Make your brand prominent with strong marketing materials. Make sure it’s consistent with how they’ve seen your brand in the past.

Above all, you need great swag. Your giveaways need to be clever, attractive, and useful.

Hats and shirts will just end up as rags or beach gear. Small tech items, problem-solving tools, and items like phone chargers will become staples of their daily life. When they see your brand over and over, you’ll be the first name that comes to mind when looking for products and services like yours.

4. Follow up Matters

When all is said and done, you want to be left with more than some dinged up signage and a few products sold. You need to be able to follow up with the people who you’ve spoken to.

Every time you talk to someone at your booth, ask for a business card. Otherwise, you can ask them if they want to sign up with your email list. Get contact information so that you can turn those interactions into leads.

The sooner you contact them, the better they’ll remember you.

However, don’t assume that everyone you spoke to is a lead. Some people are curious. Others might be competitors who are surveying the field.

Take some time to figure out which contacts were leads and how to nurture those leads for the future.

Trade Show Marketing Takes Finesse

In order to master the art of trade show marketing, you need to start by signing up for some. It will cost money to set up these exhibits and fly people around the country but it will be worthwhile just to be seen at these events. Ask colleagues or look at social media posts from competitors to find out which trade shows matter for you.

For more tips on how to make the most out of trade shows, contact us today

As a business owner, you may realize that digital marketing is one of the best ways to create revenue online.

You’ve gone the DIY route, but your efforts aren’t converting to sales.

You’re not even coming close to your business goals. And the process is so time-consuming. The hours you get to spend with your family or the things you enjoy doing most is almost non-existent.

Perhaps you need to hire a digital marketing agency. But be careful about who you choose. Not all digital marketing agencies are equal.

For an agency to be worth their salt– and achieve success for your business— they must master digital marketing best practices.

Here are the seven best practices you need to know when working with a digital marketing agency.

1. Find an Agency That Has Some Experience Working in Your Niche

Before you sign the contract, make sure the agency you hire possesses some expertise in your industry or a related industry. You may want to work with a team that knows your customer’s pain points, goals, and desires.

When an agency understands your customers, it will save you money since the agency won’t need to do as much research to learn about your business.

Since many digital marketing agencies charge their clients by the hour, you might be billed for less time when an agency knows your niche.

2. Identify the Expertise You Have and Need

The first thing you need to do is figure out your staff’s digital marketing knowledge and experience.

This helps you narrow down the services you’ll need to outsource to a digital marketing agency. There may be some tasks you can assign to your team which can cut your costs.

There’s no need to hire someone to manage your social media posts if you have someone on your team who can do that.

The agency can design and write your posts, but a staff member may be able to post them to your Instagram stories or posts–or your Facebook business page.

On the other hand, if you’re totally new to social media, an agency can take that task off your plate.

3. Learn the Services Agencies Offer

Knowing what services offered by digital marketing agencies will let you know if they have the bandwidth to handle all your needs. Or if you’ll have to hire an outside professional.

For example, if the agency doesn’t offer email marketing or Search Engine Optimization (SEO), you’ll need to look elsewhere for these specialties. As marketers offer different services, you’ll need to find out.

If you prefer to work with one agency to do it all, make sure they offer everything you need.

4. Read Their Case Studies

Case studies are detailed accounts of customer successes. They provide analyses of campaign strategies and the results they achieved.

The case study should include the marketing problem the client wanted to fix, the strategy the agency performed to attack the problem, and the outcome or solution obtained.

Case studies should provide measurable results, for example, generated leads and conversions that led to sales.

Reading case studies can show you how the agency accomplished the clients’ results that led to increased traffic and higher revenue achieved by the digital marketing agency.

5. Ask About Client Retention Rates

Knowing client retention rates will allow you to discover the quality of service you’re paying for. When clients are happy with a digital marketing agency’s services, they stick around.

When digital marketing agencies have repeat customers, it’s a sign they’re doing something right. They’re providing digital marketing solutions that work.

In contrast, when companies don’t stay with an agency, that usually attests to the poor quality, lack of creativity, and low response rate delivered by the agency.

Learning client retention rates will enable you to see the “proof in the pudding” that goes beyond empty promises.

6. Inquire About Different Content Marketing Writing Services

Content marketing is key in any successful digital marketing campaign. Yes, an agency might create a beautiful web design to attract clients.

But it’s the words on the website that speak to customers and convert leads to purchases.

Here are some of the essential content marketing services needed to build authority, drive traffic to your website, and increase revenue:

Blog Creation

Consistent blog creation is the heart of SEO. Well-written blog posts provide Google juice. A good blog writer needs to perform keyword research, know user queries, generate great ideas, know SEO, and write stellar headlines.

Blogging can drive prospects to your website and entice them to join your subscriber list.

eBooks

Does the agency have an eBook writer on their team?

eBooks provide an excellent opt-in opportunity for you to offer a free giveaway in exchange for a prospect’s email address. When leads furnish their email address, they’re now a lead you can nurture.

Email Marketing

Email marketing provides an effective way to build trust with hand-raisers and leads. You can obtain customer email addresses through an opt-in gift like an eBook, your blog, on social media, or in other ways.

The DMA says that personalized emails generate 58% of revenue. While anyone can write an email, a talented email marketer understands the sales funnel and creates personalized emails with the buyer’s journey in mind.

Today, it’s not enough to write a traditional sales email. An email sequence expert knows the psychology and emotional triggers necessary to empathize with your leads’ pains, goals, and desires needed to make the sale.

Whitepapers and Reports

Whitepapers and reports are essential documents to sell to B2B businesses. These documents position companies as thought leaders.

This long-form, well-researched content marketing content strategy created by experts provides an effective form of digital communication for high net worth purchases.

When researching digital marketing agencies, knowing the forms of content they provide can be a deal-breaker in helping you choose the right agency for your business.

7. Discover Which Tools the Agency Uses to Guide and Measure Progress

After understanding your company’s vision, a digital marketing agency needs to offer the tools in place to realize this vision.

A digital marketing brief also called a “brief” works as a blueprint to define your campaign objectives, assets, target market, digital strategy, approval processes and deliverables for your campaigns.

Make sure the agency uses one, as most reputable agencies do.

On this document, provide as much information to the agency about your target market: desires, goals, objections, and pains to enable them to achieve the best results for your company.

Seven Best Practices Revisited When Working With a Digital Marketing Agency

Incorporate these seven best practices when choosing a digital marketing agency to increase your bottom line.

When you’re both on the same page, you may actually be able to get some sleep. Or book that long-awaited vacation you’ve been wanting to take with your family or friends.

MAD Group provides brand, messaging, and campaign solutions for businesses who crave an online presence that produces results. Contact us today to boost your company’s revenue.

Today’s business climate is an extremely competitive one and it’s difficult to keep up especially in the digital world.

When potential clients are looking for business services or products online, more than 93% of online experiences begin with a search engine, and 47% of people click on one of the first three listings. 

How do you get noticed by online search engines?

The answer is SEO. SEO is short for Search Engine Optimization. It’s one of the most effective ways to get traffic to your website and get your business’ website to rank at the top of search results.

Though many business owners are tired of marketing companies that try to sell SEO services, most businesses would certainly love to be at the top of search results.

Here’s what our San Diego SEO Expert has to say about staying relevant today.

The Basics of Understanding SEO

You, along with most business owners realize that SEO is of great importance in this day and age. But do you really know what it is, and how it can change your business?

Any SEO expert will most likely tell you that the process is complicated and takes tens of thousands of hours to perfect. And that is true.

Yes, it’s about knowledgeable, technical experts who know the how, but our SEO expert in San Diego knows that it’s not JUST that. It’s about diligently optimizing campaigns to increase rankings. It’s also about the business owner understanding the basics, and understanding the goals.

The basic process of SEO is as follows:

Keywords Research

Competition Research

Creating a short and long term strategy

On-page optimization

Off-page optimization

Content Creation

Connecting With High Authority Websites

Posting articles in major online publications

Measuring results

Making adjustments

And More…

The SEO process sounds simpler than it actually is, but, if you spend any significant time with your SEO specialist, then you can begin to really understand the depth of their job.

The key to SEO success is that your SEO Expert needs to understand what you want to achieve for your business. It sometimes takes SEO Experts that think like business owners to create an SEO strategy that really works.

Keyword Research and Competition Analysis

An SEO expert may not understand your competition as well as you do, however, they have an advantage of incredible data and statistics about your competitors that most business owners don’t have.

If their website is showing up on search results that are higher than yours, they’re doing something you are not. It’s an SEO expert’s job to find out what that is.

This is where keyword research and your competitive analysis comes in.

There are keyword research tools that are available to understand your competition and what it takes to surpass them in the ranking.

Once your SEO Specialist has defined your keywords this will form the basis for rearranging your website, your content, and other elements so that you can move up the search results ladder.

Knowing your own keywords is only part of the process.

The next is to be in the know on what your competitors are doing. Find those websites that seem to be performing better than yours. Make notes of phrases and keywords that show up regularly throughout their website.

These are the phrases that might be helping their website perform better than yours, specifically if they’re not on your website.

There are tools that your SEO Expert will use that helps this process so that hours are not spent crawling the web for these insights.

Combining the findings from your keyword research with your competitor analysis will form a basis for your SEO campaign and content plan.

Website Structure

There are various other concerns that your SEO Expert will need to analyze.

Not only do the keywords and the content on your website contribute to your search engine success, but so does the structure of your website. For example, if you have accordions or tabs on your site that are hiding valuable content, that could affect your rankings, amongst many other things.

Engagement on your website, time spent on your website, and sharing of information through your website also helps SEO ranking. Call-to-actions are a good way to achieve some of this.

The focus here is to decide what the end call-to-action needs to be on your website. Look into examples of CTA campaigns, to get inspiration for your website.

Questions to ask yourself may be: Do you want the user to learn more about your product or service? Do you want them to make a purchase? Or send an inquiry?

Determining how functional your website is for a visitor is paramount. You need your website to be user-friendly with clear call-to-action buttons, and believe it or not, Google will understand by engagement ratios how clear and user-friendly your website is.

Links and More Links

Now you understand keywords, you’ve got an idea on what your competition is doing, and you understand your new website structure and what your call-to-action is.

Yes, you guessed it. There’s more to come.

Links within your website are particularly important to the success of your SEO campaign.

You want to make sure that any links inside your website are quality links. Some larger SEO firms will say that individual SEO Experts aren’t as good as their businesses and don’t have access to as many linking resources as they do. But this is not necessarily true.

Your SEO company certainly needs to include a linking strategy, yes.

By now you should know that high-quality content providing value is the next way to get natural backlinks to your site.

Links are also inclusive to internal linking of your website. The objective here is to keep the visitor on your site by linking to other areas of interest, within reason and staying relevant.

For example, one may be on a page that sells a marketing service, and within that page, the business may talk about branding and could link to another page within the site where they talk about their own branding service and the benefits there.

Do you see what we did there?

We took your visitor from a one-page viewer to someone who stays a bit longer, and the likelihood of them purchasing has just increased.

Hiring Your San Diego SEO Expert

It’s totally worth it to have an agency that conceptualizes and executes your SEO strategy and campaign for you.

When hiring an SEO Expert there are things you need to be mindful of, and things you need to steer clear of.

As mentioned previously, steer clear of organizations that sell themselves as backlink brokers, you don’t want to purchase low-quality links, you want to purchase content that is relevant, high-quality and linked with meaningful connections. A backlink broker won’t give you this.

Read up on the SEO Specialist before you choose one.

Read their reviews and customer testimonials. Most reputable SEO Experts will have a section on their website showing results for previous businesses.

They will show how much they grew the traffic by, and how many leads were generated from their SEO campaign. These are important numbers to take note of when hiring a professional.

Basically, you want to know what their success stories are.

An expert is not an expert, purely because they say they are. As the old saying goes, “The proof is in the pudding!”

Measurable SEO Success Factors

There are a number of factors you need to consider when trying to measure your SEO success.

Obviously, the number one factor would be sales.

But simply implementing an SEO campaign and then seeing an increase in sales is not enough.

You need to know where these sales are being generated from, and who to thank for the leads.

The key success factors look a little something like this:

Increased Rankings = More Organic Traffic

Increased Organic Traffic = More Calls or Web Forms

Increased Calls or Web Forms = Increased Sales

Increased Sales = Increased Revenue

Voila!

When you’re measuring success you need to see in which of the above stages your SEO is performing, so that if one section is not, you know where to direct your resources and attention to make it better.

A reputable, trustworthy SEO partner will have the ability to show you this process in detail, and where your clicks and leads are coming from. Keep this in mind when considering who to hire.

Your SEO Expert should feel like an extension to your team and not simply a supplier. It should feel this way from the beginning, then you know you’ve found the right fit.

Build a Content Strategy to Fit Your SEO Growth Goals

Your content strategy needs to fit your SEO growth goals. Simply creating meaningless content is not going to aid you in your SEO growth.

Building your content strategy solely around your keywords doesn’t mean that your audience’s content needs are solved.

A great way to sort out this problem is to speak to your sales representatives and your customer service department. Find out from them what questions your current customers are asking, because if you solve these problems for potential clients, it may mean that your potential client turns into a sale with minimal effort.

So, this means your keywords are great for developing your SEO campaign but not for your content strategy. Move away from a keyword-driven content strategy, and focus more on the dynamic needs of your audience and how to help them.

This will mean the difference between good content and great content while simultaneously achieving your SEO growth goals.

SEO Jargon or Professional ‘Speak’

There are many words associated with SEO that you will come across in your search for your San Diego SEO Expert. Understanding some of them in basic language will let you know if your expert is on the right path.

Keyword Research and Analysis: what keywords your business will use, which ones you should change and the basis on which to move forward.

Technical Website Optimization Edits: technical terminology for optimizing your website to be indexed by search engines.

Title Tags, Description Tags, and Keyword Tags: different HTML elements around your website that are basically descriptions throughout your site.

Website Content Tweaks: changing the content on your website slightly so it follows your SEO growth strategy ie: small changes here or there that may not be easily noticeable to you or to recurring visits.

Link building, Link Audits, and Management: building quality, reputable links both internally and externally and a continued evaluation on your site through the management of these links.

Competitive Research: ongoing research of your competitive environment in the SEO world.

Google Penalty Checks: A Google penalty is the same as a sports penalty. Your website has done something wrong, whether it be that it is no longer listed in search results or that your ranking has dropped significantly. Checks on these by your SEO Expert should be done regularly.

High Authority Guest Posting: Authoritative posting by your business on other reputable websites thereby making you an authority in your industry.

SEO Blog Writing: The blogs and articles on your site should not only be content-driven with a goal but also include the elements from your SEO strategy.

Directory Citation Building: A citation is a mention of your business anywhere on the web. These are great for local businesses trying to maintain a geographical excellence rating.

Automated Review Systems: Reviewing your site regularly so that performance issues are not punished in search rankings.

Google Maps and Google My Business: Making sure that your business information is correct, always.

Reports and Analysis: Ongoing reports for how your SEO Campaign is performing, your SEO Expert should report and analyze continuously throughout your campaign.

Now that you have the lingo, you may have a better understanding of what your SEO Expert is talking about when you have your initial meeting and start talking goals, services and expectations.

Benjamin Franklin

As the great Benjamin Franklin said, “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.”

We’ve armed you with the most actionable tips in the search for a San Diego SEO expert!

Although, we think you’re already in the right place.

Fill out the form, and MAD Group will do all of this and more for you and your business.

SEO Expert San Diego, over and out.

Did you know the global digital advertising market is worth over $192 billion?

Are you curious about the difference between advertising vs. marketing? Not to worry! In this article, we’ll go over the differences between the two and how they work together.

Want to learn more? Keep reading to find out!

Advertising Vs. Marketing: A Guide

Marketing includes the business of strategizing to promote services, products or brands. This is an umbrella term including all the things you do to spread the word about your business.

This includes setting up social media channels, creating graphics, and advertising. Advertising falls under the category of marketing and is the end piece of a marketing strategy.

For example, it’s understood as the practice of calling attention to a business’s service or product. Traditional advertising includes TV commercials or radio ads. You might find an ad in a newspaper or magazine, or even on a billboard.

Digital marketing strategies focus on pay-per-click (PPC) advertising. Another example is putting paid ads on social media platforms.

Let’s take a look at both in more depth.

PPC and Social Media Advertising

PPC is a form of advertising that works with marketing. Your business’s charged a minimal fee when someone clicks on your ad link.

This advertising depends on a good understanding of your audience and keywords. If you aren’t found on the internet with a common search term, you might miss out on possible sales.

Search engine optimization is a part of digital marketing that helps you get found on Google. If you need help with this, contact a professional. Specific companies help you with SEO services. 

Combine both PPC and social media advertising. Knowing what social media platforms your audience uses provides you with insight. You can make a strong advertising strategy and reach new customers this way.

You’ll have increased traffic to your website. You may see stronger engagement from your target audience.

To have success with an advertising campaign, you need to do some marketing research. Combine these two elements for a greater chance of success.

Research the Market

Conduct product testing and surveys. You’ll gain insight into what your customers seek and what they’re willing to spend on.

If you advertise without doing any market research, you might not succeed. Don’t waste your money. Take the time to research your audience before launching ads.

Break Down Your Marketing Strategy

Separate your plan into four phases: product, place, price, and promotion.

Product refers to services you’ll bring to the marketplace. These products or services will meet specific consumer demand. Consider factors like perceived value and margins for pricing.

Look into strategies like franchising, selective distribution, and exclusive distribution. This also includes physical outlets like online sales platforms or brick and mortar.

How will you promote your brand? This is an essential facet of your strategy. You’ll figure out how you’ll communicate about your services and products.

Do You Have a Brand?

You may offer an excellent service or product to customers. But without a brand, it’s hard to build a loyal following. With a logo or catchy name, you’ll stand out from the crowd. This is how marketing comes into play.

Consider using the same colors in your advertisements. Include your logo in marketing materials, so your customers remember you. This will help you build brand loyalty. When a brand has a strong identity, customers can relate to it. 

Build a unique website that has a lot of information customers seek and is easy to navigate. If the elements on your website match your brand, customers will recognize you. 

Do You Have a Social Media Following?

You may have unique advertising ideas, but you first need a social media following who will see these ads. Aim to find audiences with similar purchasing habits like your customers.

Engage with your followers. You can post useful and relevant content in the form of blogs. Answer questions or respond to comments folks share. This helps you build an interactive community online. 

Try Out Different Platforms

Where do you tend to hear or see ads during the day? Do you have a ton of social media apps on your phone? For example, people use Spotify and YouTube almost every day. They also might watch television or listen to the radio.

Customers don’t spend time in one spot. Take this into consideration when thinking about your marketing and advertising budget. When you’ve researched your target, develop a marketing plan to reach new customers.

Marketing and Advertising Work Together

To find success, you need to have a strategic plan to bring your service or product to market. Advertising is a part of your marketing plan.
Focus on public relations, media planning, brand development, and distribution.

These factors need a budget. Advertising tends to cost a lot, but it works well with other parts of the marketing strategy. This increases sales and spreads the word about your business to new customers.

When you see how advertising and marketing work together, you’ll build a strong business.

A strong marketing strategy will include advertising across various platforms. Create a comprehensive approach to ensure your advertising campaign reaches its full potential. 

Contact Us Today

We hope you found this article on advertising vs. marketing insightful. Take time to build your brand and research your target audience.

Want to learn more? Contact us today! We would love to chat with you.

Does your company brand represent you for who you are? Are you better than your company brand leads you to believe? If you are like most companies, you represent yourself poorly compared to the quality of service you provide. You don’t have articulate brand messaging that reveals to consumers your unique qualities; you don’t have a website or marketing materials that reflect your company’s personality and character; your marketing and advertising approach doesn’t align with who you want to be; and your overall brand has been pieced together reactively as opposed to a proactive, methodical formation.

Many marketing directors or business owners will think of individual marketing campaigns and marketing materials based on priority and budget, without giving consideration to the big picture and their long term goals.

For most companies it’s not too late to develop a brand or revise your old brand. Rebranding from time to time is almost a necessary thing. Markets change, consumer habits change, companies remove or add services and products, and many other influences may affect the need for a revised company brand. Overall the important thing to remember is that you will be paying for any branding shortcuts you make, so do it right the first time, because missed opportunities can be very expensive.

Request A Call Back To Learn About Our Branding.

Small business’ often find themselves overpaying for mediocre advertising services. In fact, most companies rely on stale tactics to promote their products or services. If you’re struggling to find a place in a highly competitive market, you’re certainly not alone, and there’s a viable solution at your fingertips.  

A traditional San Diego advertising agency may seem like the right choice, however, once you’re familiar with modern techniques in the marketing field, you’ll gain a new outlook on the concept. It’s time to kick traditional advertising methods to the curb and say hello to the digital age.

Advertising is a completely different game today, with a lot more power to its name. With the help of an exceptional San Diego advertising agency, any brand can achieve stellar results; it’s all about working with the right people. 

What Should I Look for in a San Diego Advertising Agency? 

There are plenty of marketing agencies in San Diego County. With that being said, it can be difficult to weed out the bad apples and find a respectable agency. Here are some important factors to keep in mind when hunting for a marketing company:

• A passionate, experienced team
• Stellar reviews 
• An organized system 
• Up-to-date technology 
• A thorough understanding of SEO
• Credibility 

Am I Better Off Working with a Smaller or Larger Agency?

Larger agencies are often seen as more successful, considering their mass in clientele, however, this isn’t always the case. A smaller San Diego advertising agency can truly focus on each client’s individual goals. It’s tougher to get this done when working with too many clients to count. 

When an agency is working with an overwhelming number of clients, their service won’t be as promising. Additionally, communication can be a problem for busier agencies. It’s tougher for larger companies to keep an open line of communication with each client; things can get misconstrued or forgotten altogether. 

Smaller companies can give their undivided attention to each of their clients. The minor details are important, and small agencies will keep them in their focus.   

How Can an Ad Agency Make a Difference for my Brand?

Marketing and advertising are critical to the success of any brand, especially in today’s chaotic market. The competition is fierce, and your company can benefit tremendously from an extra set of hands equipped with the right tools. 

Explore the other reasons you’re better off working with a qualified San Diego advertising agency:

• Time Saver 

Working with marketing agency can help you save valuable time. After all, time is money. A creative marketing company will focus on the core values of your brand with significant experience in their corner. 

You should be able to depend on the team you hire. A qualified agency won’t require you to spend much time defining campaigns or content. With a third-party service provider, every one of these problems will be eliminated. 

• Financially Efficient 

Hiring an effective ad agency may seem like a major investment, however, a good service provider will bring in the results without breaking your bank. In fact, you’ll receive a profitable return on your initial investment. 

• More Networking Opportunities 

An established agency will have built a healthy network that would otherwise take years for your business to accomplish on its own. You’ll garner professional relationships that will take your brand to new heights without risk. 

Networking is an excellent way to build on your brand’s awareness and visibility. Trying to accomplish this without the help of a third party is not only time consuming, but more costly. 

On that note, choosing to work with a marketing agency is one of the best investments you can make for your business.

• Effective Campaigns  

With the focus shifting to designing personalized campaigns for online marketing, the right marketing agency will help you redefine your journey to success.

It’s time to opt for a San Diego advertising agency that can embellish your company’s future in all the right ways.

As of this year, Generation Z makes up 40% of American consumers.

Gen Z has $44 billion in buying power on its own. When you factor in the influence that they have on what their parents purchase, that number is closer to $200 billion.

The oldest members of Generation Z are now joining the workforce. It’s time to start shifting our marketing strategies in ways that appeal to this unique generation.

How should you go about marketing to Generation Z? Are they basically the same as Millennials? Follow us and you will learn everything you need to know about marketing to Gen Z.

Who Is Generation Z?

There is no precisely agreed upon definition of where each generation starts and ends. Those born in the mid to late 1990s through the early 2010s are generally considered members of Gen Z. The children of Generation X or Millennials are Generation Z, and are considered to be digital natives.

Gen Z makes up today’s population of teenagers and early 20-somethings and are also called Post-Millennials, the Homeland Generation, and the iGeneration. Familiar with using several devices at once, 45% of Generation Z say they’re on their phone “almost constantly.” A whopping 98% of Gen Z members own a smartphone.

As the most diverse generation in American history, 48% of Gen Z are ethnic minorities. They are considered to be more progressive than previous generations and are known for having more fluid personal identities.

Marketing to Generation Z: What You Need to Know

An extremely important part to understand about marketing to Gen Z is this: authenticity is of utmost importance.

Gen Z is reluctant to be sold by traditional advertising techniques compared to older generations. The drive for authenticity in certain brands can be seen in all of these other Gen Z marketing tips.

1. Different Social Media Platforms Have Different Purposes

Gen Z has a different relationship with social media platforms, compared to the social media most used by the older generations. The different types of social media sites influence Gen Z’s social and consumer life.

Even though 34% of teens think Facebook is for old people, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be using Facebook in your marketing strategy. Gen Z tends to use Facebook as a source to glean information from, and Twitter is used to read the news.

Instagram, on the other hand, is where teens and young adults display their aspirational self. Snapchat is a place for sharing real life moments. It’s worth noting that 71% of Gen Z use Snapchat daily, and of those daily users, half use it at least 11 times a day.

Gen Z grew up with YouTube for most (if not all) of their conscious life, unlike older generations. When Gen Z is looking for shopping recommendations, YouTube is their platform of choice.

2. Keep It Short and Sweet

You probably already know that a crucial part of marketing in today’s world and boosting your SEO is creating video content. When targeting video content for Gen Z, however, it’s best to keep it short and sweet.

Those who predicted that the growth of the internet would shorten our attention span have proven themselves to be right. While Millennials have an attention span of a mere 12 seconds, the average attention span of Generation Z is shockingly only eight seconds long.

Therefore, if you manage to catch the attention of Gen Z, you better get your message across quickly. Even though 71% of the 13 to 17-year-olds watch videos online for more than three hours every day, they are less inclined to watch or read long form content.

3. Partner With Micro-Influencers

As a part of their tendency to appreciate authenticity, Gen Z is more likely to admire a YouTube or Instagram celebrity rather than a traditional celebrity. These internet personalities are seen as just regular people that Gen Z can relate to more easily than movie stars or famous musicians.

This is actually great news for marketing your business since internet influencers are more accessible than celebrities.

Micro-influencers are people who are considered experts in a specific niche and have online followings of between one thousand and one million people. Finding micro-influencers in your company’s niche to mention or promote your product can be an incredibly effective way to market to Gen Z. Typically, Gen Z influencers make around $300 per sponsored post, but lesser-known influencers might be willing to promote your product in exchange for a free sample.

4. What Does Your Brand Stand For? Can You Prove It?

It’s more important to Gen Z than other generations for brands to be socially and environmentally responsible. They want the brands that they identify with to take a stand on the issues that matter to them.

Being highly skeptical generation, Gen Z also wants you to be able to prove your dedication to the cause. What percentage of profits go to a specific charity? What environmentally sustainable production methods are you using to create your products? How conscious are you of your company’s effects on the environment, and what are you willing to do to mitigate those effects?

Gen Z wants to identify with brands that they see as making the world a better place. Not only that, but 93% of Gen Z say that an organization’s impact on society would influence their decision of whether or not to work for that organization. In fact, 30% even say they would be willing to take a 10 to 20% pay reduction to work for a company that shares the same social and environmental causes as them.

Generational Marketing: Use It to Your Advantage

The world is a quickly changing place, and it can feel frustrating to constantly be changing your marketing strategies. However, understanding generation marketing can make a huge difference in how your brand is seen by people of all ages. If you have a product you’re marketing to Generation Z, you’re not doing yourself any favors by trying to use the same tactics you would for Baby Boomers.

Did you love this article about marketing to Generation Z? Make sure to check out the rest of our advertising tips for more great information about all things marketing!

Building a brand is never easy, whether it’s one for your business or a personal one. It takes a lot of self-reflection and strategy; a good brand is one that both captures the essence of who you are, while also helping you stand out in your industry. Good branding services will help you understand who you are.

Then, once you figure out what your company stands for, you’ll be able to share it with the world. You’ll be able to use your brand to attract a like-minded audience that looks to you for content. Your audience will look to your brand as a beacon and will rely on it whenever they need to do business in your industry.

Building a good brand is also a lot of hard work. To save time, companies sometimes find cheap branding services to build a brand for them. Yet, such cost-savings will almost always backfire and end up costing the company more than they would have spent on worthwhile services.

Brands are powerful, and if they fail, they can take your whole company with them. Keep reading below to learn how powerful brands can be, and why you shouldn’t skimp on building a good one.

Cybersecurity Isn’t a Part of Branding Services

Most branding services just advertise that they will churn out regular content and post it on strategic platforms. They believe that a brand is nothing more than what people read on the internet. Yet, this couldn’t be any less true. A brand is more than just the content you make.

Your brand includes your business practices and it describes the role you play in your industry. Hiring someone to manage your brand is just hiring someone to create content for you. It’s impossible to get someone to manage your entire brand at a cheap price.

For example, something as banal as cybersecurity is a core part of your brand. Investing in it isn’t just a way to protect your company from hackers. It’s also a way to demonstrate that you care about your customers and want to protect their data. 

A Data Breach Will Damage Your Reputation

A cheap branding service probably won’t include your company’s cybersecurity in its overall branding strategy. That does more than just leave your company vulnerable to hackers and data breaches. It damages your company’s reputation and by neglecting your cybersecurity, you hurt your brand.

If your company doesn’t demonstrate its commitment to staying secure through its brand, people will get the impression that you don’t care. They’ll start to think that you’re apathetic about them and their data. And if they don’t think you care about them, why would anyone do business with you?

Your Brand Needs to Be Unique

One thing your brand is supposed to do is cut through the noise of other companies in your industry. It’s supposed to be unique enough to be recognizable, without being so unique that it puts people off. And for your brand to be truly unique, it needs to truly reflect your company and its values.

Yet, you’re the only one that can make something that adequately shows that. A branding service may try to get a sense for things your company is all about, but it won’t ever truly understand it. As a result, your brand won’t be a true reflection of your company, and it won’t be unique.

Instead, by hiring a branding service, your brand will only ever be a reflection of what the service thinks of your company. It won’t attract the people that truly share your company’s values.

Cheap Branding Services Follow a Template

The worst part of hiring a branding service is that your brand won’t ever be truly unique. Branding services usually follow a template to create different brands. They have a process for developing brands, and when many companies’ brands are developed with the same process, they are never truly unique.

At best, a cheap branding service will leave you with a brand that fades into the background of your industry. Your brand may go against the tide of the industry, resulting in criticism of your company as a whole. In this worst case scenario, your brand simply won’t tell your company story, and nobody will ever understand what you stand for.

Good Positioning Takes Industry Knowledge

One role that brands play in helping you attract new business to your company is positioning. Brands can be used to give your company an advantageous reputation that resonates with people. You can use your brand to be the cheap company, or the high-quality company, or the company known for excellent customer service.

However you want to position yourself, you first need to identify a space in your industry that you can fill. You need to see what kind of company is missing from your industry so that you can become that company. And when you fill a hole in an industry, you help everyone who participates in it.

People will recognize your brand as a valuable part of the industry and will respect you for it. When you position yourself to do something nobody else is doing, you enrich your industry and make people feel happier for being a part of it.

Brand Services May Not Be Familiar with Your Industry

To enrich your industry, you need to be intimately familiar with it. You need the kind of knowledge that only comes by running a business within it. Most cheap branding services don’t have that kind of knowledge.

That means you may not be able to position yourself and your brand as well as you could by yourself. By going with a cheap branding service, you’re costing yourself the opportunity to fulfill a role your industry may need. And you’re losing potential customers at the same time.

Build a Brand That You Love

The most important part of building a brand is making sure it’s one that you love. If you don’t love your brand, how could you expect anyone else to respect it? And that’s one of the biggest benefits of avoiding cheap branding services: you get to build a brand yourself.

You get to recognize all the work that goes into making a successful brand. You get to watch it grow and develop, and you’ll get to see all that work pay off in the end. That doesn’t mean you need to build your brand all by yourself, though.

Everyone needs help at some point, with anything. And if you need help building your brand, just contact us. We’ll work you to make your brand as good as it could possibly be, while also making sure you’re happy with it!

What if trying to save money ended up costing your business everything?

It’s understandable that most small businesses don’t have a lot of extra cash lying around. So when they go to build their brand, they end up cutting corners in order to save money.

However, the problem with using cheap branding services is that you get what you pay for. Keep reading to discover some of the hidden dangers of these cheap services!

No Guidelines

One of the most important considerations for branding is consistency. Visual elements like logos, colors, images, fonts, headers and footers, and more must all be in perfect alignment.

Creating a consistent brand means creating consistent visuals and consistent messaging. And, to be frank, cheap branding services typically lack the vision necessary to make those elements coherent and consistent.

Without solid branding guidelines, everything falls apart. Customers will be confused as to what your brand really is and how they can recognize it.

Conversely, a really solid branding service can create iconic logos and taglines that will outlast us all. If you want to be the next “Coca-Cola” in terms of marketing, be sure to not cut too many corners!

When Ads Go Bad

One of the best ways to bring more customers to your website is to use ads. However, cheap branding services may create ads that do more harm than good!

For example, sometimes ads are not speaking to their audience in a connecting manner. They can be bland and uninspiring. Online ads may not even link to a page that is relevant to the ad itself. In other words, interested customers click on one thing and they get something else entirely.

It takes only a few seconds for a consumer to make up their mind about your company. If your brand safety is at risk due to misleading ads, then you may have already lost prospective customers.

Bad Ad Placement

We talked about the problem of misleading ads. However, one problem that is even worse is an ad that is in the wrong place.

That’s because the old adage that “there’s no such thing as bad advertising” is completely false. When customers see your ads associated with things like extremist websites, they will think your company holds those same extreme values.

If you’re not careful, this can undo years of creating and following a company mission statement. But cheaper branding services may not be so careful and may advertise your business anywhere and everywhere.

Poor Customer Service

Sometimes, a marketing service helps with your customer service. And in this case, relying on cheap services is truly dangerous!

Customer service is the first point of contact many customers have with your company. And there’s a fine line between saving customers’ time and wasting it.

For example, many businesses now use chatbots to make messaging easier for customers. But badly-programmed bots may leave customers feeling frustrated and ignored by your business.

Long story short? If your marketing service will be helping with customer service, make sure you hire the very best.

Too Much Complexity

Think about the most iconic brands you know. Nike, for instance, is a stylized swoop and three words: “just do it.”

This is because the best branding is short and to the point. Unfortunately, bad branding services have usually not gotten this message!

When your taglines are too long and your logo has too many colors, customers are not going to think your brand is deep and complex. Instead, they’ll look at all that “complexity” and just see confusion!

You want branding services that can do a little bit of everything while still understanding “enough is enough.” That simplicity mixed with vision is the “secret sauce” of good marketing.

Too “Old School”

Most marketing happens online now. Why? Because that’s where most of your customers are!

However, the online world moves really fast. And one of the worst things a branding service can do is rely too much on “old school” cool.

For example, that super-complex webpage might have wowed everyone back in 2001. Now, when most customers will find your site via smartphone, it just looks busy and tacky.

Speaking of smartphones, you’ll want to make sure all your websites are rocking responsive design. Otherwise, they will look terrible on mobile devices and seriously turn your customers off!

If you want marketing that is hot and trendy, you need to hire a team that isn’t “yesterday’s news.”

Buzzword Bingo

At the most basic level, branding comes down to the words that describe your business. However, this “basic” step is actually really hard for cheaper branding services to take!

For example, a lot of marketing out there relies on meaningless buzzwords. How often do you see a business describe themselves as “the greatest” or an individual describe themselves as a “guru” or “thought leader?”

These words have been used and re-used until they stopped having any real meaning. Nonetheless, cut-rate branding services will still use these bad buzzwords because they cannot think of anything else!

And make no mistake, customers can see tired and overused branding from a mile away. It’s tough to convince them that your business is a true innovator if your marketing team couldn’t come up with anything new to say!

Online Data Breaches

The scariest phrase to most modern businesses is only two words: “data breach.”

No matter how much data is actually infected, a breach can cause serious damage to your brand reputation. Customers see you as vulnerable and they see their relationship with you as being dangerous.

Cheap branding services are cheap because they cut corners. These services may deal with individuals and institutions that increase your risk of a data breach.

Remember that a breach is a cat that you can never fully put back in the bag. It’s worth paying a bit more for a branding service that’s actually worth your money.

Branding Services: The Bottom Line

Now you know the perils of hiring cheap branding services. But do you know where you can find a branding service that will really transform your business?

Here at the MAD Group, we specialize in taking small businesses and making them the next big thing. To see what we can do for your business, check out our branding services today!

As a business owner, you know you need to “build your brand.” You also need to get your company’s name in front of more people so they know what you do.

Are those the same thing? Is there any difference between your brand and your company?

The truth is there is a lot to your company besides your brand. However, it’s unquestionable that your branding is the most public face of your business.

Here’s what you need to know about your brand vs company, and how to handle both!

Your Company: The People Who Work With You

Your company is much more than an image or a brand. In fact, it’s made up of people. The simplest way to think of your company is as the collection of people that work with you.

In a small company, this is the group of people that helps ensure your primary product or service is delivered on-time with top quality.

In a larger company, there may be several products and thousands of employees. You have people in accounting, marketing, customer service, sales, management, human resources, and much more.

In fact, one of the biggest differences between a company and a brand is that some companies manage multiple brands. For instance, Proctor & Gamble is one company, but it encompasses dozens of brands from Tide Detergent to Pepto Bismol.

A Brand: The Public Face of a Product or Service

When you think of “The Golden Arches,” you know it’s McDonald’s. It’s part of their brand. A brand is the way the company puts forward its product or service to make it recognizable.

Before anyone chooses to buy something, they have to decide not to buy other options. The answer to “Why would someone pick you over a competitor” is a key component of your brand.

Domino’s stood out and became known as the brand that would get you a pizza quickly. Over time, the brand became tarnished and was associated with tasteless, low-quality food. To save the brand, Domino’s had to reinvent itself and create new corporate branding.

Companies pour millions of dollars into building and protecting their brands. How can you build a great brand for your company? Here are some ideas.

Building a Positive Brand Image for Your Product

A lot of marketers spend a lot of time being clever. They try to come up with a tagline or jingle or an ad campaign that will give consumers a reason to remember them.

However, that’s not the primary method of building a positive brand. The biggest thing you want to do to build a company brand is set yourself apart from competitors and deliver an incredible customer experience.

Setting Your Product Apart

Why should people choose you instead of your competitor? A major part of how to brand a product is communicating your value to a potential customer.

For instance, Coca-Cola commercials focus on young people having a great time. The corporate brand message is, “This drink will make your life fun.” Red Bull focuses on energy with their motto “Red Bull gives you wings.”

Of course, there are other products that make these promises, but focusing on a specific value that you deliver is the first step to creating a brand. Remember, you want something simple and easy to remember. Give potential customers a reason to try you out.

Delivering a Great Customer Experience

Once someone tries your product or service, it’s vital to wow them. You should have high-quality offerings that deliver on the promises made in your branding.

Not only should your products be top-notch, but the customer service experience should also be extremely high-quality as well. If someone decides to call your restaurant to order pizza, for instance, and an employee is rude, they may never contact your store again.

If someone has questions about your SaaS product, and your customer service is not knowledgeable or they can’t figure out how to contact someone, they will move on to an easier-to-use option.

Make sure your employees, at every level, understand the role they play in creating and building your brand.

Overcoming a Negative Brand Image

Not everyone will have a great experience with your company – it just isn’t possible. Whether an employee had an off day or a customer is just hard to please, someone will be upset.

Sometimes these are one-off experiences and you don’t have to worry about the impact to your brand. Other times, as with Domino’s, your quality has really gone downhill and you need to make a recovery.

Domino’s took the bull by the horns, running ads that showed customer comments regarding their low-quality pizza. The CEO was on the commercial, taking responsibility and vowing to make it different.

The result? Domino’s once again has a good reputation, and share prices have gone from $8.76 per share to over $245 today.

You may not be able to overcome a bad brand image on your own. You may need a professional marketing firm to help you manage your reputation, respond to online mentions, and craft a strategy to turn your brand around.

Brand vs Company: Final Thoughts

In the end, a company is the people who work with you and a brand is the public face of your products or services. Some large companies have multiple brands.

However, knowing the difference between a brand vs company isn’t the end of the story. It’s important to build and manage your brand over time.

Are you looking for help creating a strong brand for your products and services? We’d love to help. Contact us for more information today!

You know that creating a strong branding strategy is just as crucial as making superior products or offering the most efficient and effective services possible. 

You want to make sure that the content you create, no matter its goal, is consistent with who you are as a company. 

But when it comes to understanding how to actually find your brand voice? 

You’re just not sure where you should start. 

Brand marketing and development is just too important to get wrong. Keep on reading this post to create a consistent, strong, and engaging brand voice for your company.

1. Remember Why You Started

The first step in developing your brand voice? 

Remember why you started your company in the first place. Don’t be afraid to get personal and show some vulnerability here. After all, your target market wants to connect with your story.

They want to feel like you get where they’re coming from, and that you’re willing to be upfront and honest with them. 

Maybe you started your restaurant in memory of your late father, who could cook traditional dishes from his home country that made you feel like you were thousands of miles away. 

Perhaps you got into the chemical storage business after learning about the human and environmental impact of chemical spills. 

Maybe your company addresses a niche market that’s close to your heart, or even that you’re a part of — like working mothers, millennial social media users, or adults over 60 with disposable income. 

Remember: your branding starts with your story. To make it a good one, you can’t be afraid of showing your cards. 

2. Know What Sets You Apart

The next phase of brand development is considering what makes you different than your competitors. 

After all, the reality is that, no matter how much you’d like to be, you’re far from the only game in town. So, what do you have to offer that they don’t? 

Are you serving a different market? Addressing a pain point that your competitor has ignored? Improving on the ordering process in some way? Creating an entirely new product that will save your target market time? Offering automation? Personalization? More choice? 

You get the idea. 

Another reason why you started your company was that you felt that you had more to offer than your competitors did. You knew you could do it better. You saw a gap they refused to fill. 

Use your branding strategy to prove it. 

3. Understand Who You’re Speaking To

Next, consider the types of people who are the most likely to buy your products or use your services. 

In other words?

You need to take the time to clearly define your market. 

Know their pain points, their age demographic, which social media platforms they prefer, the industries that they work in, and pretty much everything you can possibly find out about them. 

The best way to get to know your target market? 

Engage with them directly. 

Create polls that help you to understand what they’re looking for and respond to. Connect with them in the comments sections of your blog posts and on social media. Film a live video where they have the chance to ask you questions. 

After all, building a brand is all about making sure you meet the needs of your market. You’ll need to be as specific as possible to create content that resonates with them. 

4. Don’t Be Afraid to Stand for Something

We understand that having an opinion as a brand can often feel like a big risk. 

It seems like every other day, you read about a new controversy in the press where a brand has put its foot in its mouth. 

There’s a difference, however, between being willfully ignorant and out-of-touch and having a strong opinion about something. 

Remember that your brand, your products, and the services you offer are never going to be able to please everybody — and that’s just not a realistic goal. Instead, it’s about making sure that your branding resonates with your market. 

You don’t need to tweet out an “official statement” on every crisis or headline. 

Instead, it’s about standing up for your values — because more likely than not, they’re the same ones that your target market holds. 

5. Speak Your Language 

Remember that part of building a brand is creating your own lingo and language. 

It’s not about using buzzwords that your competitors drop into product descriptions and blog posts to cover up the fact that they don’t know what they’re talking about. 

Instead, it’s about knowing the kind of tone and language that your target market responds to, and the kind that’s consistent with who you are as a brand. 

Creating a lingo also helps to improve your brand recognition. When someone starts to read something you’ve written, they should know it’s from your brand by the end of the first paragraph. 

Need More Help Developing Your Brand Voice?

We hope that this post has helped you to realize that good branding doesn’t have to be complicated. 

Instead, it’s all about storytelling, clear market definition, and knowing what makes your company the best in your field. 

We invite you to check out some of our work to understand how we’ve created a brand voice for some of our top clients in the past. 

We look forward to being able to offer you the same level of excellent service. 

Whether you need help with branding, social media, copywriting, or something else, get in touch with us to ensure that all of your digital marketing needs are met. 

Marketing is a highly competitive business that can be tricky to navigate, especially if you’re unfamiliar with the tools you need to be successful in this area. Branding is an important factor for any business, in fact, it manipulates a company’s growth rate, no matter how big or small. 

An exceptional marketing agency can deliver:

• Monthly brand insights and perspectives
• A marketing roadmap 
• Strategic planning 
• Daily augmentation of marketing plans
• Attaining search engine optimization
• Augmenting PPC and digital marketing endeavors
• Email marketing and positioning
• Brand focused marketing campaigns
• Communication and promotional opportunities
• Brand-oriented marketing campaigns
• Social media marketing and branding strategies

Benefits of Opting for Creative Digital Marketing

When working with a creative digital marketing agency, you’re working hands-on with a tool that can promote your brand. This is a fundamental aspect of success in marketing. An exceptional agency will deliver fantastic results utilizing advanced methods uncommonly used in the marketing field. 

A creative digital marketing agency provides a fresh outlook on your brand and its potential. With that being said, the right agency will develop new ideas for your company, influencing its success long-term. 

How San Diego Marketing Agencies Can Transform your Business

Through creative digital marketing, your company will experience tremendous results. 

Creative digital marketing will:

• Help your brand reach a wider audience
• Increase your brand’s conversion rate
• Provide innovative thinking skills
• Create strategic marketing plans
• Revitalize your business 
• Increase your brand’s relevance 
• Help your brand stand out in a competitive market

Relying on traditional campaign methods will not instigate great results. Because of significant advancements in technology, the field of marketing has undergone vast changes to keep up. On that note, most brands aren’t sure how to tackle the rapidly changing world of advertising. 

This is where a creative digital marketing agency comes in. The experienced professionals working behind the scenes have the knowledge and skillset to generate excellent results for your business. 

When working with one of the best San Diego marketing agencies, the possibilities are endless! 

The Importance of Choosing the Right Agency for Your Brand

An exceptional marketing agency will prioritize your company’s goals. By focusing on data-driven creativity and extreme attention to detail, your business’ website will experience higher conversion rates. 

When an agency gets to know your brand’s deepest values, they possess the ability to grow with it, developing the most productive business relationship. 

By adopting the right agency, it’s possible to overcome challenges your company is likely to face. 

Can a Freelancer Provide Similar Results?

When working with a good digital marketing agency, you’re outsourcing a team of experts who understand the ins and outs of today’s marketing field.

Most freelancers lack the specialization and training necessary to garner success to their clients. Third-party agencies have a thorough understanding of collaborative projects. 

By working with the right San Diego marketing agencies, you’re attracting better branding and marketing opportunities. The competition is fierce, and the only way to come out on top is with the help of passionate, experienced professionals. 

It can be hard for small businesses to build their brand without a solid brand awareness strategy. Read on to find out how to promote your brand the right way.

Do consumers know who you are and what your business can do to help them? Is your brand standing apart from the competition? Why should consumers choose you over your competitors?

Without a brand awareness strategy, you could fail to stand out from the crowd. An inconsistent brand, on the other hand, can confuse consumers. Instead of building brand awareness and recognition, you’ll lose potential sales. 

It can take between five and seven impressions before you begin developing brand awareness. Meanwhile, it only takes 10 seconds for someone to form an impression of your brand. If you want to build a strong firm impression, you need to strategize.

Discover the eight brand awareness tips you need to succeed with this helpful guide!

1. Know Your Goals

First, take the time to determine your business goals. You’ll want your brand awareness strategy to align with these objectives. Otherwise, your brand will fail to accomplish your long-term goals.

For example, you might want to increase sales by a certain percentage. You might also want to increase online engagement. If you’ve recently merged companies, you might want to recreate your brand to present both entities.

Is your brand old and outdated? When was the last time you updated your branding? If your brand was last updated 20 years ago, it’s time for an upgrade.

You can make it your goal to create a brand that’s unique and appeals to a younger target audience. Maybe you want to modernize your existing brand.

Either way, try using SMART goals when setting these goals. SMART stands for specific, measurable, attainable, results-driven, and timely. Setting SMART goals will help you stay on track as you develop your brand awareness strategy. 

2. Find Your Audience

Who are your customers? What are they looking for as they search for your product or service? What do they expect from your brand?

The more you learn about your audience, the easier it is to create a brand awareness campaign that appeals to that audience. 

Distinguish your target audience based on demographics like age, gender, and location. You might want to consider their household income, education, and marital status, too. Try to create a niche for yourself.

Once you pinpoint your audience, you can craft a targeted message that appeals to their interests. 

3. Determine a Competitive Advantage

Before you can continue developing your brand awareness strategy, you need to research your competition. Otherwise, you might unintentionally mimic some of their brand elements.

What repeat elements are you noticing in their brands? Consider visual elements like their logo and color scheme. Then, take a look at their mission statement and core values. 

What competitive advantage do you have in the industry? What can you offer that no one else can?

Make that competitive advantage the heart of your brand awareness campaign to ensure you stand out. 

4. Create a Style Guide

It’s important that your brand remains consistent throughout every small business marketing strategy you create.

Remember, an inconsistent brand might confuse consumers. If they travel from your social media to your website and see a different brand, they might think you’re a different company. 

Consistent brand presentation across all platforms can increase your revenue by up to 23%.

In order to maintain a consistent brand awareness strategy, create a style guide for your brand. Any member of your team can use the style guide to keep different elements of your brand the same across all marketing channels. 

Once you’ve completed the research steps above, you can develop your:

• Logo
• Color scheme
• Font styles and sizes
• Imagery and photography style
• Voice
• Tone
• Messaging
• Mission statement
• Vision statement

These components should remain consistent as you begin marketing your business.  

5. Update Your Website

Once you’ve updated your website, take a look at your website. If you want to learn how to promote a small business, you need to start with your site. 

About 70 to 80% of consumers research a business online before visiting in person or buying. If you want your brand to speak for your business, updating your site is essential. Remember, you want to keep your branding consistent. 

Make sure your website features the fonts, color scheme, and language outlined in your brand’s style guide. 

Your website will represent your business even when you’re closed for the day. 

6. Stay Social

As part of your brand awareness campaign, you’ll want to start engaging with potential customers. Spreading the word about your business will build awareness and recognition. 

As you start gathering customers, you can build brand trust and loyalty, too. Once consumers are loyal to your brand, you can use retention to generate repeat sales. Repeat customers mean a better ROI!

Make sure your branding is consistent across all social media channels. As you post images and graphics, make sure the content suits your brand. Once people start commenting on your posts, comment back to boost engagement. 

7. Use SEO and PPC

Search engine optimization (SEO) and pay-per-click (PPC) advertising are two search marketing strategies that can help you build brand awareness.

First, start using SEO to create engaging, informative content on your website’s blog. You can create articles, infographics, videos, and ebooks to attract consumers to your website. Don’t forget to share your content on social media, too.

SEO will help you demonstrate your experience and expertise. As you rank higher on search engines like Google, you’ll build awareness and credibility.

PPC ads will also appear on search engines like Google. You can also create ads for social media. Make sure your visual ads fit your style guide.

As you use PPC, don’t forget to create a remarketing campaign. Remarketing allows you to reappear in front of previous website visitors. With repeat exposure, you can build brand awareness and recognition. 

8. Develop a Thought Leadership Campaign

If you want to build your brand’s credibility, create a thought leadership campaign. Create content like webinars, case studies, and interviews. Collaborate with other experts in your industry, too.

A thought leadership campaign will help you build your brand’s credibility, which can help new customers trust you.

Creating a Brand Awareness Strategy: 8 Tips to Success

With a strong brand awareness strategy, you can stand out from the competition and attract new customers. Don’t forget to follow your style guide and keep it consistent. Use these tips to develop an effective brand awareness campaign today!

Ready to develop your company’s new brand?

Contact our team of experts to get closer to your goals today!

Reading minds doesn’t seem to be as hard these days. Here’s how you can deliver an experience that leaves your audience feeling like you can read their mind.

Showing empathy and a deep understanding of your readers may be the one thing that separates you from your competition.

Now, you’re probably wondering how you can make that happen. It seems effortless for large corporations but you don’t have an expansive team and your marketing budget is basically non-existent.

Don’t worry! EDM marketing is a cost-effective and efficient way to develop long-term relationships with your audience. Keep reading to learn more about EDM marketing, why it’s important, and how you can get started, today.

What is Electronic Direct Mail Marketing?

EDM marketing, or electronic direct mail marketing, takes traditional email marketing to new heights. Although they sound similar, they aren’t quite the same thing.

Here’s why:

• Email marketing consists of outbound emails to your email list
• EDM encompasses email marketing AND additional methods of communication to develop brand awareness and long-term relationships

Successful EDM campaigns commonly use SMS messaging, printed materials, and advertising to create a influential user experience.

Why EDM Should Play an Influential Role in Your Business

Email marketing continues to be the most effective way to increase conversions, beating out social media and other marketing channels.

Since EDM marketing includes email marketing, it boasts the same benefits. But, it also has a few built-in benefits of its own. These inherent benefits make EDM a safe and reliable asset to your marketing strategy.

1. Analytics and Tracking Abilities

Most digital marketing techniques are hard to analyze. Often times, it’s impossible. But, email marketing stands above the rest because of how easy it is to measure.

Going further, analytic tools enable you to track the performance of your emails, social media posts, and paid advertisements. You can then use this data to conduct A/B testing or other methods to optimize your EDM results.

2. Cost-Effectiveness

For every $1 you invest, email marketing produces approximately $43 in return. This makes email marketing one of the best ways to increase your ROI. Because EDM encompasses other platforms, your return could be even higher.

3. Personalization Capabilities

3 out of 4 (77%) of businesses state that they use email to send personalized messages. Additionally, the targeting capabilities of digital advertising are becoming more advanced.

Delivering a personalized message is crucial to reaching the right people when they need you. So, it makes sense that most companies are investing time and money into it.

4. Establishes Trust and Brand Awareness

Email marketing is permission-based meaning that this person has agreed to hear from you. The additional avenues of EDM marketing allow you to build on that trust. This means that you can establish a long-term relationship through retargeting ads, email, and social media.

Elements to Include in Your Next EDM Marketing Campaign

Personalization

Personalizing an email means more than including their name in the first line. Consumers have high expectations when it comes to their inboxes and your business is no exception.

Learn how to effectively segment your list to create a personalized experience that’s tailored to the individual. Additionally, use what you know about your audience to target your social media marketing and digital advertising efforts.

Images

You’re not just selling a product. You’re selling an outcome. Use imagery that accurately shows what your audience can expect to become by trusting in your brand.

Storytelling

There are hundreds of other businesses like yours. The story you tell separates you from your competition. Weave that story into your EDM marketing campaign to appeal to your audience’s emotions.

Responsive Design

Approximately 70% of internet activity happens on a mobile device. Make sure every touch-point of your EDM campaign is mobile responsive.

Negative user experiences can destroy everything you’ve worked hard to build.

Interactive Content

Interactive content forces your audience to engage.

Things like surveys, interactive infographics, calculators, and quizzes can make a massive impact on how your message is heard.

One Call to Action

You know what you want your audience to do. They probably don’t know so it’s up to you to tell them. End your emails, social media posts, and advertisements with a singular call to action so they know exactly what they’re supposed to do.

3 Refreshing Marketing Emails to Send Your List, Today

Imagine if every email you opened up was a sales email? You’d probably unsubscribe after a while. Nobody wants to receive nothing but sales emails in their inbox.

Use these examples to change things up so you can keep your readers engaged, learn more about them, and make more sales.

1. Get to Know Who’s Behind the Screen

Create a survey and ask your audience for input. Bonus points if you can offer them something valuable in return.

Example: Abagail and Emylee from Think Creative Collective asked their audience to take a quick survey in exchange for being entered into a Starbuck’s gift card giveaway.

2. Create an Ultimate Guide that Solves a Specific Problem

Using the information you got from your survey, develop a guide that helps solve a common problem your audience has.

Example: MailerLite recently created a guide on A/B testing. In their email, they included an interactive poll, a video, and a link to the guide. They invite their readers to engage and help them find a solution to a common problem without asking for anything in return.

3. Personalized Content

If your list is segmented, you can send appropriate content to the right people. You know they’re interested in a specific topic so send them a roundup of your top content (i.e. blog posts, eBooks, videos, etc.) to encourage them to visit your site.

Example: Stitcher, a podcast app, frequently sends out emails with suggested podcasts and other content they think you will enjoy.

EDM Marketing Services that Yield Measurable Results

The Marketing and Advertising Design Group takes pride in offering top-tier EDM marketing services that don’t cost you an arm and a leg. The process is simple.

Provide some basic information and let the specialized team of marketers do the heavy lifting. You’ll see quantifiable results in the form of capturing leads and generating revenue.

Contact the MAD Group to get started growing your business, today!

With over 1.5 billion websites on the web today, getting your website out there for others to see can seem next to impossible, especially if you’re just starting out. More specifically, ranking at the top of various search results on sites like Google can seem like a pipe dream, especially if your website is based around a competitive niche.

Well, that’s where SEO comes into play.

SEO, or search engine optimization, is the process of turning your website into a more search engine-friendly one. Mastering the art of SEO can seem complex at first, at least until you figure out what SEO is at its core.

If you look a little deeper and figure out what it is exactly the search engines want, you’ll realize that SEO is a lot about user experience. Sure, there are little things like putting your keywords in the right places that are extremely important but making your website’s user experience a positive one is the overall goal of SEO.

The good news? Doing all of that for your homepage isn’t all that difficult and can even be done today!

So if you’re looking for SEO tips for your website, specifically your homepage, you’ve come to the right place! In this article, we’ll tell you about a few different homepage SEO boxes that you can check to ensure that your website can more easily rank for certain keywords.

Also, we’ll show you a few example websites, so you can have an idea of what these tips actually look like when properly utilized. Now then, let’s get started!

The Homepage Title

A lot of websites just use their name, or their domain name, as their homepage title. This makes a ton of sense on paper, as that homepage is what you see when you type in that domain name, but it’s actually not smart SEO.

In order to practice strong SEO, you’re going to want to get a bit more creative than that with your homepage title.

Put a few extra words that can help Google figure out what exactly it is your website is about. Keep it simple, but try to add a few keywords to that page title that you’re looking to rank for.

The Meta Description

A meta description is that little brief synopsis about a website that you see below a link on a Google search result. If you don’t have something filled out for your homepage’s meta description, Google will just grab something random off of your site, which can look bad and hurt your rankings.

This is yet another great opportunity for you to tell Google exactly what it is your website is about. Write a sentence containing two or three keywords that describe your site, so Google can help users searching those keywords more easily find you online.

A Homepage Image

When it comes to SEO, images do a lot for your website. Specifically related to the homepage, they tell search engines once again what it is your website is all about.

Now you may be asking how it is an image can tell Google what your website is about, and that’s a good question.

The short answer? It doesn’t, you do. Adding ALT text to all of your images, and naming them properly, can help you rank higher on Google. Simply name your image the name of your site, and put the name of your site in the ALT text of that image as well.

That way when people search your site name, Google sees that image on your site and puts you at the top of the results.

Check Your Website Speed

Website speed is extremely important, for obvious reasons. But how fast is fast enough? Well, most users aren’t willing to wait more than three seconds before closing out a window and finding a different site, which is obviously not what you want.

Because of this, search engines like Google put a priority on websites that are faster because it offers users a good user experience. Again, SEO is simply trying to make your website appealing to search engines. And search engines simply want to recommend sites that work well to their users.

A lot goes into making your website faster. Better servers, optimized images, and a few other things, just to name a few. If your website tests poorly on a website speed checker, consider contacting a professional to get your site up to par.

Confirm Your Site is Mobile-Friendly

Did you know that over 50% of all web traffic in 2018 came from mobile devices? Because of this, search engines have put a priority on websites that are mobile-friendly. Often times, non-mobile websites can’t rank highly at all, regardless of how many other SEO boxes they check.

Not sure if your site is mobile-friendly or not? Google offers a neat mobile-friendly checker that is easy to use and will give you an answer in seconds.

Not getting help from an SEO expert when you need it is one of the biggest SEO mistakes you can make. So if you need help making your site mobile-friendly, feel free to reach out to us today, so we can help you get on the front page of those search results!

Simplify Your Navigation

If users click on your site in a search result and then close out quickly, Google takes notice of that. And if it happens too many times, Google thinks there’s an issue with your site, and actually bumps you down the list in the search results because of it

One of the most common reasons why users close out of a website quickly, besides loading speed, is bad navigation. If they can’t quickly find what it is they’re looking for, they’re going to simply close out and pick the next site in the search results.

That’s why it’s important that you simplify your navigation, making it easy to find anything on your site in three clicks or less. Again, this is a user-experience kind of thing that will make your site better to use, and helps it rank higher on search engines, too.

Install an SSL Certificate

Have you ever noticed how some websites have “not secure” next to the domain name on your browser? Or how certain websites have an “HTTPS” domain name while others have an “HTTP” domain name?

Well, sites that have an SSL certificate are secure and have an “https” domain as a result. Search engines want to keep their users safe, so they don’t like to recommend sites that don’t have an SSL certificate.

So if you’re site says not secure, or your domain name doesn’t start with an “https,” you need to install an SSL certificate. The good news is, it’s super easy to do. In fact, your hosting provider’s tech support team should be able to do it for you.

Formatting Your Content

Search engines like all content on a website to be formatted in certain ways. That particular formatting is found to be easier to read by users, which of course is why search engines want it formatted that way.

So it’s important to make sure that all of the content on your site is written with this in mind. Learning to write SEO friendly content is simple, and can be explained in a few brief sentences.

First, break up space with paragraphs, pictures, and other forms of media. Include a few of your keywords in your content in a natural way. Again, keep this natural and don’t overdo it. Search engines hate keyword stuffing, so it’s not a good idea. Search engines will pick up on what you’re doing and flag your site as a result.

Close with a Call-to-Action

Regardless of what your website is about, you should have an end goal in mind when users land on your homepage. Whether it’s selling a product or trying to refer them to articles, you want to close out your homepage with a call-to-action to get users to act right then and there.

Something as simple as a feed of articles, or a clickable graphic that shows off what it is you’re selling is all you really need. Just be sure to keep it, and everything else on your homepage, simple. You don’t want to slow down your site and overwhelm users, as well as make navigation more difficult.

Now, with that said, here are a few solid examples of websites with SEO-friendly homepages that we’ve created for various companies and brands.

Example Number 1: Better Off Med Spa

Better Off Med Spa’s website checks meet all of the SEO requirements that we’ve covered in this article. Firstly, you’ll notice that the website title has Better Off, the company name, as well as what it is (med spa in San Diego), making it easier to find on search engines. See a case study on their website SEO performance here.

Also, the content on the site itself is formatted properly with spacing, paragraphs, and graphics to break up the words and make things easier to read.

After the first scroll of the mouse, you’ll see a “book an appointment” button, which is their call to action. The site is also secure (it has an SSL certificate), loads fast, and is extremely easy to navigate.

Example Number 2: Abbey Party Rentals

The second website, Abbey Party Rentals, is just as strong as the first. The homepage title has the name, as well as the city and a few different keywords, making it easy for people who are looking for party supplies to find them online.

And once again, the content is formatted properly, making it easier for users to read. The use of white space on this particular website makes this especially appealing to the eye, which is worth noting.

They have an SSL certificate, a solid navigation layout, and a site that loads quickly. Finally, they close things out with a “shop for your occasion button,” which sends users directly to their online party supplies store.

Example Number 3: ICT

ICT, or Intercontinental Coffee Trading, has an aesthetically-pleasing website design that also functions well and meets all basic SEO standards.

Firstly, the homepage title has their name and the words “coffee beans,” which is obviously their primary product. That helps them more easily rank for not only their company name but the words “coffee beans,” too.

Their navigation is think-less and smooth to operate, the content is easy to read and formatted correctly, and they’ve included tons of media to break up the text.

The site is secured and has a “this month’s inventory” button that takes users directly to their shop right after the first paragraph. That makes it much easier for the user to find their shop, and in return, much easier for them to make a sale.

Homepage SEO Tips and Examples

Well, there you have it! Those are a few homepage SEO tips, as well as some example websites that have successfully implemented these SEO practices.

Remember, above all else, search engines are simply trying to send users to credible websites that meet their search query. By thinking more about the user and less about the search engines, you can more easily make your website SEO-friendly.

Sure, you still have to know where to put the keywords, but for the most part, the rest is all about making your site function properly and appeal to users.

Still not getting the results you’re looking for? Interested in getting some help from an SEO professional? Contact us today, we’ll be glad to assist you!

How do you create a winning email marketing campaign when you’re competing with billions of other emails on a daily basis?

Without a doubt, email marketing is still the most effective marketing channel. It is also extremely cost-effective. Plus, it comes with tracking features and data to help you constantly improve your campaigns.

Are you struggling to create the perfect email marketing plan for 2022? Here’s our guide to make the most out of email marketing.

Why Create an Email Marketing Plan?

Although there is a lot of competition in email marketing, it is still your best investment for your business’ communication plan, mainly because the ROI is higher than any other marketing channel.

The ROI rate for online marketing strategies such as SEO, PPC, and content marketing does not reach that of email marketing. There’s no question that starting your own email marketing plan is key to your business’ success.

In fact, from every $1 spent on email marketing, you will earn $38 on average.

Ready to take our email marketing plan to the next level? Here are some important factors and strategies to consider.

Target Specific Audiences

An effective facet of email marketing is the ability to target a very specific audience with content that pertains specifically to their interests and needs. In today’s marketing world, your potential customers expect personalized content.

It is important to ensure you are sending targeted messaging that not only includes information such as their name, but also promotes products or services that relate to their demographic.

You can send a generic email to your customers that promotes the product or services in the same way, but people will unsubscribe if they don’t see something they like.

Once you lose an email subscriber you legally can’t send them emails unless they opt back into the email campaign, which means that each email counts. Ensure that you first understand your audience and what they want to see. Otherwise, you’ll quickly lose them to other businesses that are able to provide a more personalized experience.

Big Picture Planning

Before you even start to sit down and write the content of your email campaign, you should take a step back and look at the big picture of your campaign.

How many emails will you send? How far apart will each one be staggered? Are there any holidays or dates that you should take into consideration?

Who within your segmented audience will receive which messaging? It is a good idea to automate your emails ahead of time so they deploy on a regular basis. Also, create a drip campaign that includes people who indicate their interest in a specific email campaign.

When creating your initial campaign, it’s okay to start simply and slowly increase your emails from there. It’s also important not to overlap emails or send multiples to the same person in a day.

If you’re worried about sending too many emails or too few, consider what the purpose of each email is. If it has high value to your customer, it’s okay to send additional emails. It all depends on your demographic and whether or not the email holds value to them.

Subject Lines

Your subject line is one of the most important parts of your campaign. This is the first thing your audience sees. You typically have less than 60 characters to capture your customers interest and less than 30 characters on mobile phones, which is often the main device for viewing emails.

There’s no question that your subject line needs to stand out. When writing your subject line, try personalizing it with the person’s name. For example, grab your potential customer’s attention with an exciting line such as: “First Name, You’re In Luck!”

Don’t use spam words or symbols such as “free”, “clearance”, or “$$$.” These will only trigger someone’s email platform to instantly mark your email as spam and can discredit your business.

There’s no single method for creating successful subject lines. A great part about email marketing is that you can test different subject lines on your email list to see which ones work best. This helps you get to know your customers better and provide them with better information.

You should always split test your subject lines. A/B testing is often a part of email marketing services and can increase your email open rates significantly.

Mobile-Friendly is a Must

It’s important to make sure your marketing email is mobile-friendly. Be sure to test your emails on mobile devices and use different email platforms.

Even if your subject line is excellent enough to get the email opened, your potential customer could be instantly turned away by an email that is not mobile-friendly and difficult to read on a small device.

Another thing to keep in mind are the websites within the email. If your email is linked to a landing page or site that is not mobile-friendly, it could cause a potential customer to turn away.

Step-Up Your Email Marketing Campaigns

There is much planning and consideration devoted to each email marketing plan. If you want to take your business to the next level, email marketing is an effective way.

Want to learn more ways to create stellar email marketing campaigns for your business? We have more secrets to share about online marketing including SEO, social media, and branding.

Check out our site for more expert online marketing tips.

How to Hop On Trending Hashtags While They’re Still Trending

Hashtags will help you get featured, get noticed, and connect with a hot topic. Here’s how to notice trending hashtags and use them for your social media.

With millions of competing businesses in the country, you’re unlikely to stand out without proper methods. Even when you’re competing at the local level, you’re likely to find tens if not hundreds of competitors.

Don’t give up yet.

With this guide, you’ll learn how to get the most out of trending hashtags. These can work regardless of the social media network you’re using. Read on and find out more:

1. Pick the Right Hashtags

This might seem like an obvious choice, but it’s often more complex to find the right hashtags you’ll trend for. If your social media account has 10,000 or fewer followers, you have more chances of getting into the top posts if you use smaller, more targeted hashtags. For example, instead of using the massive hashtag #instafashion on Instagram, try something else, like #fashiongoals instead.

Always remember that your hashtag’s relevance plays a bigger role than its popularity. Instead of adding random hashtags to your posts, look for the most popular once within your niche. That way, you’re likely to get in touch with your targeted audience and develop a more meaningful relationship with them.

2. Generate Lots of Engagement

With over 1 billion monthly users for Instagram, you’re missing out a lot if you aren’t using the right Instagram hashtags. That’s why when you picked the right ones for you, focus on getting as much engagement on your posts as you can. The most efficient way of doing this is to post your content during peak hours when your targeted audience is the most active on the platform.

If you do this, you’re likely to get more engagement on those posts. This audience interaction gets Instagram to bump up your post on their users’ feeds, feeding the engagement cycle. With higher engagement, you get more visibility, with the process repeating as more people discover your content.

3. Gather 3-5 Major Hashtags on Your Post

Do you want an opportunity to get into the trending Twitter hashtags? If so, you must include 3-5 major hashtags that aren’t as targeted but make lots of likes and comments. Even if they aren’t as targeted as the ones you use, ensure that they still relate to your business’s industry.

But your primary goal is to look for hashtags with lots of posts and high levels of engagement. This means looking for tags search for by lots of people. For example, fashion brands should have major hashtags like #stylediaries and #lovethislook interspersed with niche hashtags.

4. Put a Call-to-Action (CTA) in Your Caption

In social media platforms like Instagram, it’s uncertain whether its algorithm favors likes or comments. Regardless, receiving tons of comments on your posts is necessary if you’re looking to get featured in trending hashtags. That’s why your post must come with captions since it’s an invaluable method of reaching this goal.

CTAs are great for inspiring your followers to engage with you in the comments. At the same time, they’re likely to spend more time looking at your post. These factors determine whether your post gets selected as one of the top posts for certain hashtags.

To make a call-to-action, you need only to ask your followers to act after they read your caption. It’s as simple as asking them what they’re planning for the weekend. No matter what you choose, ask them to leave their answers in the comments section.

What Makes a Top Post on Instagram?

Since Instagram is a more popular social media platform, we’re going to discuss its algorithm. If you want your content to become a top post, you must consider some of these factors. You can also read our guide to help make brand awareness for your small business.

1. Engagement

No one knows for certain how Instagram’s algorithm functions. But what most experts know is that the platform places more stock on posts that garner more engagement. It means they’re likely to feature your content in top posts if it has lots of likes and comments.

2. Hashtag Popularity

A good experiment for this is to open Instagram on both your desktop and smartphone. Look for a popular hashtag and sift through the top posts. Do this until you find one using other hashtags to supplement the one you searched for.

Pick one of those hashtags and look for the top posts within it. Did the post you first looked into also made it into the top posts for the next hashtag? Repeat this and see whether the result remains consistent.

This experiment is all about discovering whether your post trends for some of your hashtags. In some cases, you’ll trend with all, but at worst, you’re left with none. This all depends on the hashtag’s popularity.

As mentioned before, popular hashtags are competitive. You only have a slim chance of making it into the top posts if your posts don’t gain thousands of likes in a few hours. The key is to mix both popular and less popular hashtags on your post since this gives you the best fighting chance.

3. Engagement Growth Rate

Top posts on Instagram are trending, not the most popular. Even when the amount of engagement is vital, it only comes second to the rate of how you get it. For example, posts getting 500 likes within two hours are more likely to become top posts than ones getting 5,000 likes over a day.

This isn’t flawless science since you have other factors to think about. But if you’re looking to get into top posts for popular hashtags, speed is one of the major factors. The number of followers won’t matter.

Get into Trending Hashtags Today!

These are some tips to get trending hashtags for your content. Use this to gain more engagement and renown for your company and brand image.

Do you need help with marketing and advertising? If so, contact us today and let us help you out.

SEO, or search engine optimization, is crucial for businesses of all sizes, big or small. By appearing at the top of search results, companies in San Diego can increase their visibility, reach, and credibility, leading to more website traffic, leads, and, ultimately, sales.

In addition, SEO is a cost-effective way of marketing, it does not require paying for ads, and it helps to reach more customers long-term. It is a long-term strategy that can help a business to maintain its visibility and attract more customers over time.

Key Elements of an Effective SEO Strategy

An effective SEO strategy is comprised of several key elements that work together to improve a website’s traction in search engine results.

• Keyword research: When researching and identifying the keywords & phrases that potential customers use to find products and services similar to yours.

• Link building: Getting backlinks—or links from other websites to your website—is what this process is all about.

The more valuable and informative your content is, the more the chances that it will be shared and linked to by other websites, which can improve your website’s ranking in search results.

Local SEO Helps San Diego Businesses Rank Higher in Search Engine Results for Geographically-Related Queries

Local SEO is a crucial component of search engine optimization San Diego that want to rank highly in search results for geographically relevant queries. Local SEO is a collection of tactics and strategies that aid companies in localizing their online presence. This is crucial for San Diego companies that depend on local clients to generate revenue.

Local search engine optimization (SEO) entails enhancing several aspects of your site & online presence. This entails supplying details like your company’s name, address, phone number, and operating hours. To improve your online presence, obtaining customer reviews and listing your business in local directories and citation sites is critical

The Advantages of Working with a Professional SEO Agency in San Diego

Working with professional search engine optimization San Diego can provide businesses with a number of advantages, including expertise in the local market and access to the latest industry trends and techniques.

• Expertise in the local market: A professional marketing agency in San Diego will have a deep understanding of the local market, including the unique characteristics of the San Diego business landscape, as well as the consumer behavior and search habits of local residents. This knowledge can help them create a customized SEO strategy tailored to the specific needs of San Diego businesses.

• Access to the latest industry trends and techniques: SEO is constantly evolving, with new trends and techniques emerging regularly. Professional SEO agencies in San Diego stay up-to-date on the latest developments in the industry and have the knowledge and expertise to implement the most efficient strategies for their clients.

• Experience in different industries: A professional SEO agency will have experience in different industries, which means they will be able to understand your industry’s specific needs and create a customized SEO strategy tailored to your business.

• Measuring and Analyzing: A professional SEO agency will have access to tools and software that will allow them to measure and analyze the effectiveness of their SEO efforts. This can include tracking website traffic, monitoring search engine rankings, and identifying key metrics such as conversion rates.

• Saving time: Hiring professional Marketing Agencies will save business owners time. They will be able to focus on their core business while the agency takes care of their digital marketing needs.

Take Your Business to New Heights

In summary, working with a professional search engine optimization San Diego can provide businesses with a number of advantages, including expertise in the local market, access to the latest industry trends and techniques, experience in different industries, measuring and analyzing capabilities, and saving business owners time.

Eight out of ten businesses will fail within ten years of startup. Amongst many factors, a huge contributing factor to failure is a lack of a proper marketing and business strategy. There needs to be a comprehensive business strategy for every aspect of your business.

Your business model has to be set up so that clients will repurchase from you many times over. Your products and services must be better than your competitors’ offerings. You must be well organized and efficient. And last, but not least, your marketing strategy needs to be balanced and affordable.

These days, most companies run creative digital marketing campaigns to gain exposure and sales. Some business owners ignore a digital marketing strategy because they think it is too competitive. Well if the other guys can do it, why can’t you? Sometimes, all it takes is to have a very creative digital marketing strategy. Have you been shooting in the dark when it comes to creative digital marketing?

Read on for our 11 top tips to boost your results in the digital landscape.

Ready to Boost Your Digital Marketing Strategy?

Here are our top eleven creative digital marketing strategies you can implement tomorrow.

Make a Content Creation Schedule and Stick to It

A great way to market your business is to have a marketing strategy offering creative quality content. You need to be creating great content all the time.

You need to start a blog on your website if you don’t have one already. Post blogs containing keyword-driven and relevant niche content at least once a week. Twice a week is better.

Make sure you have list building functionality on your site to collect contact information. Sticking to a consistent content schedule will build your readership and give you the ability to exchange information, including contact information.

Remember to submit new content to Google Search Console any time you make a post. This will allow your content to get indexed faster by search engines.

Refresh Current Content on Your Blog

A key part of your digital marketing strategy template needs to include seasonal and year-to-year refreshes of your current content.

Any post that includes the year, references a season or current events, or any other dating material needs updating to include the current year and time. Even if there is an article about a specific event or technique that is now outdated, leave it alone.

If you have new content, update it to reflect as a current post. This will get you a refresh in the SERPs and boost readership on older content.

Use Email Outreach to Build Your Backlink Profile

A great digital marketing strategy example that many people overlook is the power of personal connection. We all know we need a substantial backlink profile to get noticed on Google and other search engines.

But, building links becomes a sort of ethereal thing that companies do for you. The truth is you can obtain links yourself from reputable sites in your niche by reaching out to them. Do your research and craft an email campaign to ask for mentions from the big guys in your industry.

Getting authority links like these is tough but you can get it done with some personal touches. Email marketing is becoming an important foundation in the digital marketing world.

Consider Out of the Box Backlinking Techniques

Speaking of backlinking, a professional digital marketing planner will advise continuing your backlink building every month. This isn’t a set it and forget it scenario. Your backlink profile continues to build onto itself to build your authority and reputation online.

Use a seasoned SEO expert to get you into the out of the box backlink game. They will have connections to the heavy hitters. They can get you hundreds of links for the same cost as it would take you to get ten.

Outsource the Heavy Lifting to a Specialist

Digital marketing specialists already have access to so much data. They will be able to curate keywords for your niche fast. They can create a strategy in weeks that will get you results.

While you can do some of this work yourself leave things like keyword research, optimization strategy, and the overall strategy scheduling to a professional marketer.

What is Proximity Optimization and Why is it Important for Local Business?

Now here is a creative digital marketing strategy you probably haven’t heard of. Proximity optimization is the art of getting you seen locally. This process uses tools like Google stacking, Drive stacks, GMB optimization, and others to make you the authority within a 20-mile radius.

If your business needs local foot traffic to survive you need to focus on local SEO. There is a 50% higher chance of a customer walking in after they find you in a “near me” search on Google. If you show up in the top three spots of the Google Maps preview even better.

Don’t let yourself lose out to your nearby competitors because you ignored local SEO. In fact, local SEO can be one of the most effective and affordable ways to market your business while building your brand exposure. A good SEO company can help you gain exposure using creative digital marketing search terms. For example, if you sell hats, instead of using search phrases like “pink hats for sale”, you may be more noticed for “pink hats for spring weddings”. These days, it’s sometimes good to be more creative so that you get noticed where others won’t be competing. The key to creative digital marketing is good research and using a professional who is both data oriented and creative.

Create and Adhere to a Social Media Posting Schedule

We know that you’ve heard it over and over again. You need to be active on social media. We know it’s a lot to keep up with. That’s why we suggest you hire a social media professional to maintain your posting schedule.

Professionals understand the look and feel of each different platform and are phenomenal in speaking all their different languages. This is key to having success in social media.

Implement Schema Across Your Website

Schema is the tool that allows your site to win featured snippets on Google. The featured snippet is the coveted position zero. Find a quality SEO tool for your site and it can do this for you.

The most important types are page type, reviews, aggregate ratings, and other key points. Schema helps you make tables searchable by search engine crawlers. It’s a good idea to implement all over your site.

Utilize Third-Party Tools to Study Competitors

Use tools like SEMRush to study your competition. These tools will also clue you into your own domain analytics. They will make suggestions on optimizations to make your site better.

Close Any Content Gaps Between You and Your Competition

What’s a content gap? It’s what your competitors are talking about on their blogs that you have not mentioned yet. You want to write blog posts on any of these topics.

This is another benefit of third-party SEO analysis tools. They can locate these gaps for you and make it easier to create a strategy to close them.

Implement Paid Advertising Strategies on Platforms that Convert for Your Business

Check out your Google Analytics. Where are most of your visitors coming from? Facebook? You need to be boosting Facebook ads. Google? Start considering a Google Ads spend.

Boost what your organic traffic is already doing by implementing strategic PPC plays. Choose platforms that are already traffic generating. These will garner the highest results.

Build Organic Traffic, Boost Conversions, Raise Your Bottom Line with Digital Marketing

We hope you have found at least one new digital marketing strategy that can help build your business on this list.

Having some trouble coming to grips with this whole digital marketing thing? We get it. This stuff is hard. Let us do it for you.

At MAD Group we evaluate your needs to see if we can make a difference for your business. We won’t take on a client unless we feel we can make a significant impact for you.

We have a great team of creative digital marketers that will help you get where you want to go. We have researchers, designers, web programmers, social media experts, Google paid advertising specialists, brand strategists and much, much more. Before you look any further contact us to see if we are a good fit for you.

In 2021, businesses around the world outsourced over $85.6 billion worth of marketing. The businesses came in all shapes and sizes, with unique desires and diverse needs. The question is why did they choose to pay someone else to run their marketing campaigns?

The answer is simple: the benefits outweighed the costs. The return on their investment made it worth their while, and it isn’t a new trend. Companies have been outsourcing their marketing since before humans created the barter system.

The difference is that now there are more reasons to outsource than ever before. In the article below we outline these reasons in broad strokes.

Curious to learn more about the benefits of outsourcing your marketing?

When you’re ready to learn why businesses like yours hire professionals to run their campaigns, read on.

You Can Scale Easily

We live in an era in which competition is steep. It takes more to build a business—more time, more expertise, and more money. Businesses have developed new strategies to contend with these pressures.

They must grow rapidly to keep from smothering under the shadow of their competition. They also must downsize to contend with the rapid fluctuations in the economy. Fortunately, technology makes scaling a business a straightforward process.

When you outsource any part of marketing, what you’re doing is renting marketing experts. You can rent them for as short or as long a period as you like. If you don’t find one marketing team beneficial, then simply switch to another one.

That also means you don’t have to pay benefits, sick leave, or deal with the headaches of hiring and firing employees. Scale up when you need a boost to your sales. Scale down when you’re struggling for cash. It’s as simple as that.

You Get the Expertise of Marketing Masters

Many small companies simply can’t hire in-house marketers. They don’t have the budget to keep an extra person on staff. Even if they did, they would be hiring a single person for the job.

Unfortunately, marketing in this day and age often requires proficiencies in many fields:

• Social media advertising
• Blogging
• Copywriting
• Graphic Design
• Web Design
• Coding
• SEO
• Etc.

No single person is a master of all these. Only a marketing group could claim expertise in all those fields. Large corporations still hire experts to fill each of these rolls on their marketing teams.

Well, now small businesses can do the same. Or at least they can rent them to build their marketing formula, social media campaign, or whatever else they need.

You Increase the Chances to Get a Better ROI

When you hire an expert, what you’re doing is bypassing the learning curve that comes with learning any new skill. Think about it for a minute.

If you’re new to digital marketing, you’d need to create ads for search engines and social media platforms. That alone means understanding the intricacies of the platform and the habits of its users. It also means mastering the art of persuasion, copywriting, color theory, and a whole laundry list of other skills.

The whole time you’re doing this, you must pay for your mistakes. Quite literally. Those mistakes add up quickly and can easily put your business in the red.

When you outsource, you pay marketing experts not only for their time, you pay them for their history. They’ve years of experience. They’ve already learned from their blunders, so they’re likely to skyrocket the return on your investment.

You Can Focus on What’s Most Important

As you know, owning a company requires you to play many roles. Nowhere is this more obvious than for the solopreneur. Unfortunately, solopreneurs have a finite amount of time each day to do their tasks.

When solopreneurs split their attention, they’re pulling time away from critical areas in their business. For most owners that includes areas that need high-level thinking and strategic planning. Without these, a business will stagnate and fall apart.

The same is true for small and mid-size businesses. Owners must have a vision for their business. It’s the only way to assure growth.

If an owner must pull his focus away from that vision and focus on the minutiae, he leaves his ship without a captain. That’s a certain recipe for disaster.

You Stay Current

Have you read up on the video marketing trends of 2021? What about Neil Patel’s latest blog post on optimizing a landing page?

You see, that’s the double-edged sword of progression. The availability of new tools can have a profound effect on the success of a business. Unfortunately, navigating the ever-changing terrain requires vast amounts of energy.

It makes it impossible for a single person to stay current on an entire industry. There’s so much information that you can only remain up to date on a small range of subjects. If you attempt to stay current on digital marketing, you’re going to lag behind in another area.

When you outsource, on the other hand, you’re assured that your marketing team already knows the latest information. They won’t waste their time on outdated methods. The best part is that you don’t have to pay for the time they spend sifting through blog articles and attending conferences. It comes free with the package.

One Quick Caveat Before You Go

The sections above presume that you hire a qualified marketing team. Unfortunately, the industry is clogged full of pretenders with little experience and even less know-how. If you plan to outsource your marketing, perform your due diligence.

That means figuring out what you need. It means checking the background of whichever company you choose to hire. It also means avoiding cheap labor, and realizing experts cost money. Fortunately, the ROI is worth it.

After You Read the Benefits of Outsourcing

Now that you understand the benefits of outsourcing your marketing, it’s time to evaluate your business. Check to see if your business would benefit from more visitors to your website and more sales. If so, dig around in your budget and see how much money you could allocate to hiring a marketing team.

If you found this material enlightening, pop over to our library and browse our other spectacular marketing articles. So long and good luck!

Many individuals know that creating a website can help skyrocket your business or brand. However, the majority of businesses don’t know how to get their business to rank higher on Google and other search engines.

The digital world can be a tough one to navigate, especially as Google constantly changes its algorithm over time. This is where SEO, or search engine optimization, comes in. SEO targets the active and new format to help you attain the desired traffic to your website. You need to work with an SEO expert from a San Diego internet marketing company. These professionals are well aware of the changing algorithm and how to adjust to it accordingly. With that said, you should have an exceptional digital marketing strategy on your side. To learn more about SEO and its extraordinary benefits, continue reading.

Garner Local SEO with the Help of Zero Click

If you own or run a business, then you need to understand the importance of local SEO and listings. These listings and rankings are incredibly important when looking to attract visitors to your company’s website. As zero-click searches are growing in popularity, so has the significance of local SEO. In addition to this, the higher ranking search engine results are solely produced on SERP because of the increase in zero-click searches. As you can see, zero-click searches play a significant role in search engine ranking.

Aside from this, zero-click searches signify that your brand is targeting the appropriate audience it would most likely appeal to, increasing the likelihood of them visiting your company’s website. With that said, this concept will also help you create an attractive profile over Google Business. Mobile and voice searches are only increasing in popularity. The demand for zero-click results are bound to increase, and they’re becoming more useful than ever.

Mobile Searches are the Future

Mobile searches are undoubtedly the future of the internet. Most individuals in today’s digital climate owns a smartphone and an internet connection. This massive change has triggered an unforeseen evolutionary shift for businesses conventional marketing tactics. As of today, brands are utilizing digital marketing techniques to garner a larger audience, and SEO is a major part of this process.

With this in mind, you need to use SEO for your mobile and desktop to rank higher on search engines and produce excellent results. Consult with a San Diego internet marketing company to begin your advanced online marketing journey and produce the results you need.

The Cumulative Layout Shift for a Higher Ranking

The SEO world is now seeing changes with CLS or Cumulative Layout Shift as one of the newest entries to it. As Google is now shifting its focus on Core Web Vitals to improve its measuring power of page experience score, CLS is added to it without any hindrance. However, the biggest problem that businesses these days are facing is that they are stuffing their websites with banners and not proper layouts. But your page should be more user-friendly and easily accessible, making CLS an important part of SEO ranking. So, make your website ore user-friendly and get it in the top results of the search page.

Understand the SMITH Algorithm and its Benefits

Google is known for frequently changing the search algorithms for its search results, ensuring that everything that comes up, as a result, is up-to-date and relevant. This is precisely how they have introduced its SMITH algorithm in place of BERT. The long webpage, which could contain in-depth content, can now be comprehended and analyzed by the algorithm, ultimately providing them with a better algorithm. The best part about this whole practice is that now you it’s unnecessary to create new landing pages for each of the topics but create one single page and include a multitude of topics within it.

If you are still having doubts related to SEO and digital marketing, then it is best to contact the SEO firm San Diego. Click here to know more and jumpstart your online growth.

Trying to keep your business ahead of the competition in 2022?

Are you staying on top of the latest digital advertising trends?

In the digital age, everything is changing and that includes the way that brands advertise their goods and services to potential customers. There are more opportunities than ever to get a message in front of an audience, and 2022 is bringing even more varied options than ever before.

If you want to keep your business competitive, you need to look for ways to implement some of these digital advertising trends into your own marketing plan.

Luckily, we’re here to help. Below we’ll look at the top digital advertising trends you need to know about in 2022.

1. Stories Are Becoming More Popular

One of the biggest up and coming trends in advertising is the use of Instagram and Facebook stories. Taking inspiration from Snapchat, stories on social media platforms are posts that show up and disappear after 24 hours.

This type of advertising seems more authentic and spontaneous to social media users and can be a great tool for marketing a business in a fun and attention-grabbing way. Stories ads are highly engaging to users on these platforms. If done right and in a creative way, they can be a goldmine for a business trying to build their brand online.

You can expect to see a bigger increase in the use of Instagram and Facebook stories during the coming year as more advertisers learn just how useful this type of content can be.

2. Advertisers Will Use Chatbots and Messengers

Chatbots and messenger marketing are also proving to be great options for advertisers in the digital age. These tools allow you to instantly market your services and goods to a social media user and get your message in front of them when they need it most.

Whether you have a special promotion going on that you want a follower to know about or you want to remind a customer about an abandoned shopping cart, using messengers can be a great way to reach them.

In addition to messenger ads, chatbots can be great to use on a website or a social media page. They can connect with customers and help them find what they’re looking for. Chatbots can help with customer support questions but can also help a customer choose the right product for their needs.

3. Online Giants Are Expanding

Online giants such as Facebook, Google, and Amazon are all growing and expanding at a rapid rate. They’re trying to get their hands into as many pots as possible. The lines are starting to blur online as each of these big companies continues to expand their offerings to users online.

For example, through the use of Instagram, Facebook is now becoming a bigger player in the e-commerce arena. Amazon’s influence is ever growing and Google is continuing to be as strong as ever.

As each of these sites expands to offer more services from music streaming and video streaming to video to social tools, advertisers will need to expand their toolsets as well. Advertisers will need to experiment with the many different avenues that become available to them to find an advertising platform and strategy that works for them.

4. Voice Search Is Growing

Voice search has been on the rise for some time, but in the age of Amazon’s Alexa, it is becoming even more important for brands to be aware of voice search for advertising purposes.

For anyone working on SEO as a form of marketing, it will be important to be more conversational with site content and to optimize for searchers who will be using their voice. More businesses will also turn to voice-based advertising to get new customers online.

Advertisers will need to be aware of voice searchers and plan accordingly if they want to make use of this growing demographic of people who are searching for goods and services using smart devices rather than a web browser.

5. More Advertisers Will Use Remarketing

Remarketing ads have been around for a while, but more advertisers are starting to recognize just how useful they can be. With remarketing, advertisers can target users who have already visited their business website, bought a product, or who have interacted with their business in some other way.

Remarketing is one of the most effective ways to advertise online and can easily be done using platforms such as Google AdWords and Facebook Ads. More businesses are recognizing the importance of this “warm” type of advertising, so you can expect to see more of it happening in 2022.

6. eCommerce Ads Are On the Rise

eCommerce is also joining the force of online advertising. Amazon, for example, has made the leap into the advertising scene recently. Chances are that other major retailers will follow suit as well to claim their piece of the advertising pie.

While Google and Facebook have been the biggest avenues for online advertisers in recent years, the tables may turn as Amazon and other retailers start to join the advertising game as well. You can expect this rise in eCommerce advertising platforms to change the digital world a lot over the coming years.

7. Influencers Will Become More Influential

Influencer marketing has become bigger than ever over the past few years and is continuing to grow quickly in 2022. Businesses started working with influencers heavily a few years ago, and their presence in advertising budgets only seems to be growing.

You can expect to see more of this type of influencer marketing and partnerships in the digital space in the coming year. Whether this type of advertising includes Instagram stars, Youtube celebrities, or other social media giants, many more influencers will be joining up with businesses to promote products and build brands over the course of 2022.

Learning to Use These Digital Advertising Trends in 2021

By making use of the digital advertising trends above you’ll set yourself apart from your competition and get more new customers that will grow along with your business. Make sure you look for ways to incorporate these trends into your advertising strategy if you want to move your business forward in 2022.

Ready to get started with a great advertising plan in 2022? Contact us today to learn more about what MAD Group can do for your business.

An advertising agency, or ad agency, is a group of experts who promote a business by advertising its content. The agency works to satisfy a client’s expectations in terms of image and sales.

There are countless agencies located all across India. The best advertising agencies trigger fantastic results that are long-term.

Services Provided

Ad agencies promote a business or brand through various creative methods that are not only unique, but highly effective.

Best advertising agencies provide you with the best services according to your brand’s individual needs.

Purpose

Digital marketing companies have many practical functions for a brand or business. These methods have a positive impact on clients and their firms. Observe the primary functions of a marketing agency below:

1. Informative Advertising– A company’s primary motive when advertising their brand or products/services is to inform their audience. The advertisement provides information about the brand or product; for example: its quality, effectiveness, and utilization.

That said, if a client takes a liking to a product advertised, they may choose to purchase it. Therefore, informative advertisement is highly essential and effective in the long run.

2. Maintains Familiarity – One-time advertising is insufficient if you want to lead your brand or business. Digital advertising is an excellent way of communication with consumers regarding your products or services. Ads establish a brand’s identity in the eyes of the public; working with a marketing agency is the smartest investment you can make for your business.

3. Increases Conversion Rates

Advertising agencies skilled in their profession work diligently to ensure their clients are garnering more and more customers. Agents know how to attract customers and keep them engaged long-term, without advertising false information.

Social media ads help customers identify the product in their feed. The ad answers essential questions like:

• Why do you need this product?
• What are you missing when you bypass this product?
• How can this product improve your daily life?

You can opt for any reputed San Diego social media marketing agency to produce more interactive ads for your brand.

4. Grow Consumer Base – Consistently achieving customer demand is no easy feat. Your brand must maintain loyal customers who rely on the products or services you’re selling. A digital marketing agency assists in this process, guiding your brand towards a more successful outcome.

Take Action

Marketing your brand is one of the most effective ways to communicate with your consumers. Additionally, the process assists in customer growth. A digital advertising agency establishes your company’s credibility in the visual sense, manipulating the way its viewed by the public. This is all in an effort to accentuate its image.

Consult an ad agency near you; it’s time to achieve the recognition your brand needs to become a successful business.

A brand must have a very unique or one-of-a-kind product or service to not have to worry about the competition. Most don’t have that luxury. To remain competitive and ahead of the competition businesses need a creative marketing strategy.

There are plenty of companies that offer products and services that are similar to theirs. Yet, have remained relevant in their fields because they were able to capitalize on their uniqueness. Just think about all the fast food restaurants and soft drink companies.

Building a strong brand that is easily recognizable is hard work. Not only do you need to build brand awareness but also make a strong correlation between your brand and the products you offer.

Are you struggling to understand the difference between a simple marketing approach and what is considered creative marketing? Continue reading for more information on widening the gap between you and the competition.

Start with an Amazing Customer Experience

Sometimes a consumer has a hundred options for a particular product. But what makes them loyal to one brand particular? Some may say it’s the quality of the product, while others may say it is the price.

The truth is, brand loyalty is more about the experience than quality, price, convenience or other things. It is not to say those things aren’t important, because they are. But more than anything, consumers want to feel respected and appreciated.

Greeting a customer with a smile and asking how their day is going, means a lot. Closing out the transaction by acknowledging their name, followed with a thank you and have a nice day, will get the back through the door.

Customers are also more likely to share their experiences, positive or negative, with their family and friends.

Be Present and Available in the Community

Don’t just have a business in a city, be an active part of the community. Part of brand awareness is being visible and easily recognized. A great way to do this is by being a staunch supporter of causes and organizations that are important to you and your employees.

Businesses have a unique opportunity to market creative ideas in multiple settings. Take advantage of sponsorships, big or small. When people see that your business cares about issues that are important to them, they feel a personal connection.

During community events wear branded attire and give away merchandise that has your logo and website.

Sponsorships are not limited to non-profits. You can also support community activities like concerts, sporting events, and high school boosters.

Have a Strong Creative Marketing Social Media Strategy

No digital marketing campaign can be complete without a social media presence.

Statista recently reported, Facebook had 2.27 billion monthly active users in the third quarter of 2018. Any business has to ask, how much they can benefit by reaching their target audience on their active channels.

Each social media platform presents a unique opportunity to be creative marketing to a defined group of individuals.

As part of your digital plan, you will need to explore each platform to see which ones appeal to your target audience. Next, develop a course of action to get the identified group to like your page. Once you have their attention it is time for your social media team to make your channels pop.

Images and videos are important, but they shouldn’t be the run of the mill videos that everyone else is posting. They should tell a story specific to your brand, your product, and your employees.

Be Responsive – It is also important to be responsive to your online following. Answer questions within an hour. If someone has a complaint, acknowledge their concerns and extend an invitation to move the conversation to direct messaging.

Incorporate Customer Feedback – Share positive comments from satisfied customers. Encourage them to tag your pages in photos and videos that promote your products. Do shout-outs to loyal individuals.

Be Consistent – Most important, be consistent with your messaging.

To market creative messages you have to be willing to think outside the box. Don’t abandon ideas that don’t trigger an immediate overwhelming response. Be willing to tweak them and try again for the desired response.

Utilize Your Website

Your website can be the launching pad for creative marketing. One way to get online users to your website is via amazing blogs. Blogs can cover a plethora of topics and good ones keep visitors coming back.

Your blog should also encourage people to comment and interact with others. Incorporate social plug-ins that allow social sharing of content and comments.

You can also embed interactive videos and create photo albums to promote your product or service.

Try Something New

Creative marketing has sparked a movement. Don’t be shy away from new technology that can gain your company new visibility.

Years ago many companies had no idea the impact social media would have on their bottom line. When Facebook was created it was a way for college students to stay in touch. Today it is a means for businesses to market to an audience they never imagined would be accessible to them.

Video live streaming was once something only news media had access too. Video production would cost tens of thousands of dollars and then you had a limited audience to view what you created.

Today all you need is a smartphone, internet connection, and social media platforms like Instagram, Periscope, and Facebook. People from around the world can view your stream live and many more can catch the replay. If you have a YouTube channel your videos can be an extra stream of income.

The best thing about videos is they can go viral and stay viable until they are deleted.

Now that you know the Difference What’s Next?

Knowing the effects a good creative marketing plan can have on your brand should have you excited for the future. It may seem like a lot to take in. That’s why it is important to talk to a professional marketing strategist.

If you’d like to talk to someone or check out our marketing checklist, contact us today.

In the age of social media, companies need a significant online presence to survive. In fact, it’s the most efficient way to reach potential customers and remain ahead of competitors.

One of the best ways to grow your online presence is through digital marketing. With an emphasis on SEO companies in San Diego, we’ll go over what digital marketing is in this article and how a digital marketing agency can help your business grow and witness greater results.

What is Digital Marketing?

Through various online channels, including social media, email, and search engines, digital marketing involves promoting a good or service. Reaching potential customers online, where they spend the majority of their time, is the aim of digital marketing. By using a variety of digital marketing tactics, businesses can increase their visibility and reach more potential customers.

Why is Digital Marketing Important for Businesses?

Businesses need digital marketing and digital marketing agencies because it gives them a cost-effective way to reach potential customers. Digital marketing, as opposed to conventional forms of marketing like print or television advertising, can be targeted to particular demographics and is simple to track and measure. This enables companies to determine which strategies are effective and which are not and to change their approach accordingly.

How Can a Digital Marketing Agency Aid in the Growth of Your Company?

Your company can grow in a number of ways with the aid of a digital marketing agency. Here are a few instances:

• Strategy Development: A digital marketing agency can assist you in creating a thorough digital marketing strategy that complements your overarching business objectives. You can use them to determine the strategies that will work best for your company and your target market.

• Search engine optimization (SEO): You can enhance your SEO strategies with the aid of a digital marketing agency. In order to improve your website’s visibility in search engine results pages, this includes activities like keyword research, on-page optimization, and link building (SERPs).

• Social media marketing: A digital marketing firm can assist you in creating and putting into practice a social media marketing strategy. Creating and scheduling content are examples of this.

• Email marketing: You can also work with a digital marketing agency to plan and carry out an email marketing campaign. This includes actions like developing and distributing email campaigns, segmenting your email list, and assessing the effectiveness of email campaigns.

• Analytics and Reporting: A digital marketing company can monitor the effectiveness of your website and offer regular updates on the results of your digital marketing efforts. Making decisions about your digital marketing strategy based on data-driven analysis can help you find areas that need improvement.

Why Choose an SEO Firm in San Diego?

Working with a San Diego SEO company should be taken into consideration when choosing a digital marketing agency. Here are a few reasons why:

• Local Knowledge: SEO firms in San Diego will have a thorough awareness of the regional market and what is most effective for local companies. Additionally, they can aid in local keyword targeting and website local search optimization.

• Personalized Service: As opposed to a bigger, nationwide agency, an SEO firm San Diego will be able to offer more individualized service and attention. They will take the time to learn about your company and comprehend your particular wants and objectives.

• Reputation: It’s crucial to pick an SEO company with a positive reputation in the sector. Search for a firm that has a proven track record of success and positive client testimonials.

Build a Better Business with the Help of a Digital Marketing Agency

SEO firm San Diego enables companies to develop relationships with potential clients via social media and email marketing platforms. Businesses can position themselves as industry leaders and gain potential customers’ trust by producing useful content and interacting with them on social media.

San Diego Ad Agencies are at the top of the list when compared to other national agencies. The advertising agencies in San Diego are impressive and measure up to any ad agency in New York, San Francisco, L.A., Chicago, or Miami. Even the most respected advertising agencies in these cities will tell you that the level of creative advertising, campaigns, and digital savvy is every bit as good as in the big metropolitan areas.

If you are considering an ad agency for your business, compare and measure each agency by more than just design and recognition. Measure them by how effective they have been for others and whether they give good bang for the buck.

Here’s how you should measure ad agencies against each other:

1. How effective are they at achieving their client’s goals?
2. How effective are they at connecting with consumers and prompting them to take an action?
3. Do they produce a return on investment?
4. How hands-on are they with their clients?
5. Do they pass down important responsibilities to lower level professionals or even interns?
6. Is their design determined by prior research and practical thinking, or just artistry?
7. Do they brand companies with a solid messaging foundation?
8. Do they use comprehensive marketing approaches?
9. Do they have the capacity to offer full services from TV to Internet and beyond?
10. Are their digital advertising services on par with their creative savvy?
11. Do they offer a full suite of services?
12. What are their values, vision, and business philosophy?

Some of these questions are hard to answer, but having worked with and competed against some of the best ad agencies in all of these cities, we’re still impressed with San Diego advertising agencies. We think we attract the best of the best here in San Diego, and because we know we’re up against larger ad agencies, we may always have something to prove. We’re passionate about our client’s clients, and we’re driven by building a reputation of excellence. Why go out of town when you can get great ad agencies in San Diego.

These days with business being hyper-competitive in most markets, it’s important to hire an ad agency that can create a compelling brand, then bring it to life with a solid web presence, and finally drive traffic through creative and hands-on advertising methods. Every advertising agency that regards themselves as a full service agency needs to have strategic business consultants, marketing strategists, branding specialists, copywriters, social media experts, SEO experts, website developers, creative designers, and digital marketers.

It’s not always important to hire a full service ad agency. You can hire agencies that are small, but who have the connections to help you get all that you need. This might be more trouble than it’s worth, but it’s certainly an option. These days most agencies are sized between four to fifteen employees. There are much larger agencies but there are fewer around than in years past. Since many people work from home and remotely these days, agencies don’t have to be as large as they used to be.

Since we live in a virtual digital world, you have the option of choosing any ad agency you want as long as they meet your criteria. Learn as much as you can about their capabilities, process, values, and business philosophy. This is more important than where the agency is located.

If you are looking for a full service ad agency, contact us here at MAD Group. We are a San Diego Ad Agency that works with businesses all over the country to help businesses grow.

Please Contact Us To See How Passionate We Are About Your Success.

The quality of branding agencies in San Diego rivals the best in the country. Some of the finest professionals from all over the world live here and produce work at a very sophisticated level. We have worked with New York and San Francisco agencies and understand the quality they produce. You can feel confident that when you choose a top San Diego branding agency, you are on par with the best. We are proud to be amongst the very best, recognized as a top branding agency in San Diego by Clutch.com, who have interviewed our clients and competitors.
What Makes Our Branding Different?
We are told by our clients that the degree of detail we go into and the questions we ask have never been sought by other branding agencies they’ve worked with. In addition, the visual component of our branding, though powerful, is only a small part of the branding we do. We combine a strong social component to branding companies, along with data, common sense, and business savvy. Most importantly, we never like producing work for a client that is second best or blends in with the crowd.
Please see our Branding or Services page for examples of our work and our approach to branding.

Every morning, I wake up to a pot of Hulk Hogan-strong coffee and quaff it while brewing equally strong plans for the workday ahead. Then I sit on my old motorcycle and hope it starts so I can turn those plans into actions for my clients. I open fuel lines and the choke, turn levers, twist keys and flick switches. I don’t know how much you know about old motorcycles, but they can be… temperamental. What I’m coming to find, morning after morning, is that no matter what – a lightbulb, the spark, the cold or hot air, me or the machine – whether it’s perfect or problematic, the roar of my engine comes down to one thing. The Connection.

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about connections and the importance thereof. Favorite clients, recent contacts, pets, parents, new flings, old friends… the crux of each of these relationships is connection. The building of it, the maintaining of it. Polishing it, not just so it looks and feels good but works really, really well. All communication is based on connection.

For instance, we’re currently rebranding a company that works to provide seamless connections in the more-mysterious-than-you’d-expect realm of hotel high-speed internet. They’re responsible for each guest’s web connection, their communication with the world away. Maybe something will come of it, a campaign or a commercial, but I can’t help thinking about all the people in all the hotels, or the military men and women abroad, to whom “home for the Holidays” will depend on a strong internet connection. Suddenly, this niche, new brand means so much to me. After all, I’ll also be watching my family open gifts and send Christmas wishes and I Miss You’s through 13 lonely inches of LED.

So tonight, after work has wrapped up and all the lights have been shut off, their connections disconnected till the morning, I’m going to sit on my motorbike, my old friend… I’m going to open the fuel lines and the choke, I’m going to turn the key and try to transcendentally communicate my good intentions, my drive to drive us both home safely. I’ll flick the START switch and hope the connection is good. See, I don’t give up on things that don’t give up on me – clients, family, friends… 1985 Honda Nighthawks – because when the connection’s good, I know I’m in for an unforgettable ride.

The field of online marketing is reaching daily advancements. At this rate, having a website with high-quality content just isn’t enough for a business owner in today’s world.

This is where SEO consultants come in. SEO, or search engine optimization, plays a huge role in your website’s ranking on search engine results. With that said, SEO-optimised content ranks your website higher, which generates more traffic. This process leads to brand recognition and trust, ultimately increasing revenue.

This is where San Diego SEO consultants are a necessity.

Who Exactly is a Qualified SEO consultant?

A qualified SEO consultant improves and expands a company’s online reach and visibility. You can rely on them for professional advice, suggestions, and ideas.
On that note, hiring one of the best San Diego SEO consultants is highly beneficial to your business.

What is SEO Consultant’s Job Profile?

SEO consultants plan, implement, and manage the complete SEO strategy for firm clients. They handle various tasks, including keyword approach, backlinks, online marketing, website traffic, and content planning.

Obligations and Tasks Performed by an SEO Consultant

San Diego SEO consultants offer a range of valuable skills they’ve garnered through time and experience. Explore the following reasons they’re a necessity for your business:

• They recognize the marketing goals of every client. Additionally, they understand the customer’s search engine optimization aims and targets, unique selling proposition, sector’s competitive environment, and the brand’s professional objectives.
• A marketing agency will conduct thorough research to gather a series of relevant keywords to incorporate into a website’s written content. Marketing agencies also look for alternate search phrases and relevant queries.
• San Diego SEO consultants help you garner a spot on the first page of search engine results. Digital agencies help you improve your website’s click rate, which positively contributes to the overall success of your company.
• San Diego SEO consultants help a brand with its SEO. This process involves conducting marketing strategies for your local SEO. These consist of a validated business profile with reputable information, a listing on the map for your business, a listing on the city pages, and an up-to-date NAP profile.
• Digital marketing agencies assist your company with its internal operations digitally. An SEO consultant utilizes a range of organic SEO tactics for link-building. This is yet another process that triggers better, long-term results for your business.

Conclusion

Hiring an SEO consultant for your business is considered a priority for businesses everywhere. However, many don’t feel it’s necessary because they’re focused on outdated methods that can no longer serve a business.

Marketing is a primary key in business. An SEO consultant understands the modern methods of advertising that most companies don’t.

There are various SEO packages that can be modified to fit your budget. Your SEO consultant will incorporate their understanding of digital marketing and search engine optimization into your business.

If you’re on the hunt for the “best ad agency near me”, you’re not alone. Many business owners are looking for ways to grow their business in a timely fashion, but most aren’t sure how to approach this. In the current digital climate, online marketing has become one of the leading ways to promote a brand. Channels like social media and websites have become the primary sources for consumer-business relationships. For the first time in history, companies have the opportunity to connect with consumers on a personal level.

SEO experts in San Diego are a team of highly qualified individuals who specialize in all things digital marketing. They understand the ins and outs of online advertising, and share their expertise with companies that need it.

What Exactly is an SEO Expert?

Building and optimizing a website are considered the beginning steps toward advancing a business. An SEO expert in San Diego is a professional who specializes in this area of marketing. They can increase organic traffic to your website, ultimately benefiting your brand’s online presence. Search engines work by analyzing your webpage and deciding how trustworthy it is based on your chosen keywords. Because getting organic backlinks can be complex and takes a lot of time, many firms opt to work with an SEO expert.

How does an SEO expert help your business grow?

An SEO expert in San Diego can draft personalized SEO strategies for your website in accordance with your budget. This is one of the many things that make them an excellent option in the marketing field. In mapping, executing, analyzing, and optimizing a business’s SEO strategies, these professionals use various keyword analysis techniques they’ve come to understand through time and experience. These strategies will ensure high returns, more customer engagement, and forming your brand’s identity.

Improve Web Presence

SEO services may assist your brand’s website to obtain a higher rank on the search engine result page or SERP. As per estimates, the majority of buyers never look past the first page of search results. That said, you’ll want your business to rank on the first page. If your website is optimized, it may rank higher on the result page, therefore increasing your company’s web presence.

Increase Website Traffic

Once your website has acquired the top place on the search result page, it will likely attract a larger number of visitors. These visitors can potentially turn into consumers. As said before, more than half of the user traffic goes to the first result page. Choosing an SEO expert will increase your website’s rank in the searches, attracting more website traffic and boosting your company’s success rate.

Boost Social Media Interaction

Choose your keywords wisely – they’ll help you garner more engagement on your social media pages. Keywords are crucial in increasing your post’s noticeability and earning a higher reach. An SEO expert in San Diego will create keyword-dense content that attracts more clicks. Additionally, they’ll optimize your content to develop user trust in your brand.

Take Action
These tools and techniques are vital in optimizing your website and positioning it at the top of the SERP. An SEO Expert will dive deep into your business needs and find appropriate keywords. This helps your website to attract more traffic and increase revenue. This will build users’ trust in your brand, establishing your brand’s identity and recognition.

Are you part of the 77.6% of small businesses using social media for promotional purposes?

Free platforms give you a cost-effective marketing strategy for your business, but posting without purpose makes your social media presence inconsistent.

A social media marketing calendar gives you a framework for your content. It creates consistency and gives every post a purpose. It also makes better use of your time.

If you’re not sure how to get started, follow these nine steps for creating a social media content calendar.

1. Identify Monthly Social Media Goals

Every social media post needs a purpose to make it useful. Start your content calendar by identifying your goals for the month. Are you trying to increase your follower count, educate followers, increase sales, or improve engagement?

Having an overall goal for the month helps you drill down to specific goals for each platform and post. If you know you’re trying to increase sales, you can focus your posts on promoting products. If you’re trying to improve engagement, you can focus on developing interactive posts and responding to followers.

2. Choose Your Platforms

You likely already have established social media platforms, but if you’re just starting your social media presence, identify which platforms you want to use. The type of content you produce and the preferences of your followers influence those choices.

If you want a strong visual focus, Instagram and Pinterest are solid options. Twitter is all about quick content, such as news and announcements. Facebook lets you go into more detail and works well for building relationships and promoting content.

Look at your current platforms to break up content. Decide which platforms you plan to focus on for the upcoming month.

3. Decide on Posting Frequency

Posting frequency is often a topic of debate. Some studies suggest daily posts once for Facebook, 15 times for Twitter, 11 pins for Pinterest, and one or two Instagram posts.

But there’s no perfect ratio for posting content on each platform. You need to find a schedule that works best for you. Consistency is important to keep your audience engaged and to keep your brand fresh in their minds.

Choose a posting frequency for each platform that works for you. Make sure you have time to create enough quality content to fulfill that posting frequency.

Use your posting frequency to fill in your calendar dates. Spread out the posts for each platform.

4. Identify Special Dates or Events

At the start of each month, look at your general calendar to identify any special events that might affect posting. General holidays might affect your posting schedule. You can also use those holidays as a special posting opportunity or a way to promote your content.

Look at things specific to your business that can influence posting. Maybe it’s your company anniversary or you’re launching a new product line.

You can use those special dates as promotional tools. You’ll also want to use them as part of your content calendar strategy.

If you’re launching a new product at the end of the month, your social media content leading up to the launch date will likely center around the product. You might preview the product or build anticipation by counting down to the launch date.

5. Evaluate Current Content

Review your existing social media content to help you plan your strategy going forward. Looking back helps you determine what works well for your brand. You can also understand which posts didn’t work well and which ones did.

Building off of the existing content helps create continuity. You also want to look back to ensure you are posting new or different content. Posting the same thing all the time makes followers lose interest.

Use the evaluation to see what type of content you’re missing. Maybe you haven’t posted many videos lately, or you’re slipping on your consistency in posting images on Instagram.

6. Outline Topics and Content Type

Break down your posts to cover specific topics. You might focus on one specific topic for the month or cover multiple related topics. This helps you create specific content that fits into those topics.

Consider the type of content you want to create. Businesses often post a mix of their own created content and curated content they share from other people.

Sharing content from other people keeps your accounts active without requiring you to create a large amount of content. But you also want original content to build your brand and keep people interested.

Identify specific content formats. That might include video, Instagram stories, polls, informational posts, how-tos, and promotions for sales.

7. Break It Down by Platform

Detail your plans for each platform based on the topics and type of content you plan to share. You can share similar content across platforms, but you want to customize it to best fit that platform. Plan both the frequency and type of content for each platform for the month.

Creating templates for each platform helps streamline your content creation. You can plug in different images and text in those templates to customize the content while making your production process faster.

8. Create Your Content

Creating your content at the beginning of the month makes your social media strategy more efficient. You’re prepared ahead of time instead of always scrambling to create content for that day. You can get into the groove of creating content, which may help you produce the content faster.

9. Schedule Social Media Content

Social media scheduling software helps automate part of your posting. These programs let you pick a date and time to post the content.

This method ensures consistent posting. You won’t forget to make a certain post, and you can schedule it to show up at the same time so viewers get used to your posting.

It also helps you stay productive. If you post manually, you’ll have to stop what you’re doing each time you post. Scheduling software doesn’t require any additional input from you after initially scheduling it.

That doesn’t mean you should forget about your social media accounts completely. You still need to interact with users and respond to inquiries and comments.

You also want to remain flexible in what you post. You may come across an unexpected opportunity to post on social media that really resonates with your followers.

Create Your Social Media Marketing Calendar

A social media marketing calendar gives you direction for everything you post. It makes better use of your time and marketing efforts, and it helps create a cohesive social media presence.

Are you ready for help with your social media content or marketing in general? Contact us for more information.

It’s predicted that global digital marketing spend will reach nearly $390 billion in 2022. If you’re planning to invest in digital marketing services this year, how can you ensure that your money will be well spent?

It’s all about who you hire.

But, with so many different digital marketing agency choices available in San Diego, how can you choose the best one to meet your needs? We’re here to help.

Keep reading to learn how to choose the best digital marketing agency in San Diego so you can put your marketing dollars to good use.

Figure Out Your Own Marketing Goals

Before you can decide on the best marketing agency for your needs, you have to look internally for a bit to figure out what you want to get out of digital marketing.

Is your primary goal to get more leads?

Are you trying to meet a certain sales number?

Are you hoping to build on your current digital marketing efforts or do you need help starting from scratch?

Take the time to write out some of your marketing goals so it’s easy for you to convey them once you start meeting with potential agencies.

Start Researching Companies That Meet Your Needs

Once you know what you need out of a digital marketing agency, do some online research to check out a few local agencies. As you browse through their websites, look through their services to see if they do the type of work you need.

For example, let’s say you want to increase your social media presence and get more followers on Instagram. You’ll want to find an agency that talks about their social media services so you know that they have the experience to help you meet your goals.

You might also look through their website to see if they have experience with other clients in your industry, so you have a better idea of how they might help a company like yours.

Check Out Examples of Their Work

Once you’ve narrowed down your search to a few agencies in San Diego, take the time to look through past examples of their work. You can do this in a few ways.

Start by looking at their website for a portfolio or “our work” section to see examples of what they’ve done for past clients. You can also check out their social media pages to see if they’ve posted any recent work.

Finally, don’t be afraid to just ask! Reach out to agencies to ask about specific examples, and they might be willing to share them with you.

Read Customer Reviews

Once you have a better idea of the type of work they do, it’s time to see what past customers have to say. Again, you can start by looking for customer testimonials on their website. However, keep in mind that these will likely only be positive reviews. For a more unbiased look, check out their Google listing and social media accounts to see more customer feedback.

Remember to take every review with a grain of salt, but if you notice similar trends in multiple reviews, then it can help you decide whether you want to move forward with a particular agency.

Figure Out Costs

As a general recommendation, you should plan to spend around 8% of your gross revenue on marketing. Do some calculations to determine how much you’re comfortable spending first. Then, talk to potential agencies about their fees and what they include.

Some companies operate on a per-project basis, where you pay only when you need something, while others operate on a monthly fee structure where you get set services every month.

Figure out which model works best for you and make sure you have a clear understanding of exactly what you’ll get from the money you spend, so there’s no confusion.

Set Expectations From the Beginning

Before making your final decision, it’s important to make sure that you and your agency will be on the same page once you decide to work together. This is the time to talk about expectations.

Ask questions like the following:

• Will I have one main point of contact or will I talk to different members of the team?
• If I do have a point of contact, who will it be?
• How often should I expect to hear from you?
• Will we have regularly scheduled meetings or will we only talk when something comes up?
• Do I have the final say before a promotion launches?
• How should I contact you if I have questions? Should I email or call?
• Will I receive reports showing the outcome of the campaigns?
• How do you measure the success of a campaign?

This may seem like a lot of questions, but it’s important to get everything out in the open. By setting expectations, it gives the agency a clear idea of what you expect, so they’re set up to succeed.

Make Your Final Decision

After you’ve done all the research, it’s time to make your final choice. We know it’s a big decision, but at a certain point, it’s time to take the leap and watch your marketing efforts start to soar. And remember, your choice doesn’t have to be a permanent one.

You can always re-evaluate and decide to work with another agency instead. However, we strongly believe that if you choose our team here at Mad Group, you’ll be thrilled with your decision for years to come.

The Best Digital Marketing Agency in San Diego

If you follow the steps we’ve outlined in this guide to choosing the best digital marketing agency in San Diego, we think you’ll find that no one compares with Mad Group.

Whether you need help with branding, website design, social media, email marketing, or anything in between, we’ve got your back. Contact us today to tell us more about your marketing goals and learn how we can help bring them to life.

How to Identify the Best Marketing Companies in San Diego

Marketing is crucial for holistic business growth. While many brands attempt to market with their in-house teams, the industry has morphed into a different animal, and a professional with experience is the only individual capable of navigating it.

The best marketing companies in San Diego have credibility and an exceptional track record that showcases how they have orchestrated successful campaigns for their clients. It is not an easy job for brands to choose the best marketing companies, especially when everyone claims to be the best.

With many marketing companies recently blooming in San Diego, you need to understand what exactly differentiates the good apples from the bad ones.  Look out for these particular factors when looking for the best marketing companies in San Diego:

Ask to Review their Portfolio

The best in the business will never shy away from taking names of brands they have worked with in the past and presenting examples of some of their most successful campaigns. A detailed inspection of the portfolio is a must if you wish to be associated with the top-ranking marketing company in the city.

Should you ask to see their portfolio? The short answer is yes. Typically, advertising companies will display their portfolio on their official website, along with customer reviews. You can ask marketing agencies to walk you through some of the recent projects they’ve completed.

One thing that you need to be certain of is whether you wish to hire an agency that has only worked with well-known brands, or you are good to go with agencies that have done well for clients, even if these clients aren’t well-known candidates.

Have a Local Presence in San Diego

You can hire an agency that has a nationwide presence, or you can choose a marketing company that is based in San Diego County. It all depends on your targeted audience. If San Diego and the adjoining regions are your priority market, you might want to choose from the top San Diego branding companies.

This is because they are knowledgeable of the regional market. They understand the challenges and limitations. In addition to this, they will have a stronger professional relationship with local suppliers and vendors in the logistic chain who will help in executing campaigns faster.

If your business goal is to push the market across geographic boundaries, you should consider marketing companies in San Diego with experience working in multiple regions and states at once.

Ethical and Transparent

If the marketing company is known for credible and best practices, it is worth trusting the agency. On the contrary, if the agency keeps things concealed and does not share all details with its clients, this could potentially be a red flag.

Remember it is your campaigns and your brand value that will be affected by each and every campaign. With that said, there won’t be a situation where you’re uninformed or lost in translation. Transparency is a must for the relationship to last and remain functionable.

Similarly, there cannot be last-minute surprises that put a dent in your budgets and/or schedules. It is best to avoid hiring such companies. The best marketing companies in San Diego treat their relationships with their clients as partnerships where both entities have equal access to all the information, tools, and resources.

Additionally, these marketing agencies understand the importance of a mutually beneficial business relationship. In conclusion, it’s imperative to suggest that the best agencies don’t always have a work history with Fortune 500 companies.

In fact, they produce higher quality content that agencies hired by Fortune 500 companies. Quality work influences a business’ growth and success, especially in the digital age. Work with one of the best marketing companies in San Diego to get started on your journey to professional triumph.

Video marketing is a crucial part of any campaign today. It does, however, present an SEO problem. Search engines can’t watch videos, so how do you make sure your video is at the top of the search results?

SEO can be worth thousands of dollars for small businesses. With this in mind, how can you harness the power of SEO and video marketing?

There are ways to do both, and we’re here to tell you how.

Are you ready to start combining the power of video marketing and SEO? Do you want to make your business grow? Then read on and find out how you can optimize video content for SEO.

Provide a Transcript

This is probably the easiest way to optimize video content: the script will need to be optimized for SEO itself. You will then provide a transcript for the video on the same page.

By doing this, you are not only optimizing the video’s page for SEO, but you are also providing a service. Deaf viewers and those who cannot watch videos will enjoy reading your transcript.

How many times have you wanted to watch a video, but not had headphones? Have you even bothered to go back and watch that video later? A transcript decreases the bounce rate and lets you access a wider audience as well as improving your video’s SEO optimization.

Choose the Right Platform

You should carefully consider which video platform you upload to. Each one offers different ways to optimize video content.

Youtube is the default, but make sure to do your research. Some providers, particularly those that are aimed at marketers, will add SEO-friendly metadata for you. Good metadata is a huge part of a video’s search engine optimization and determines its place in the search results.

If you’re just trying to build brand awareness, then Youtube and Vimeo are still the best bet.

Optimize Your Metadata

As we mentioned, some platforms will sort out your metadata for you, but it’s better to do it yourself.

You should research keywords before you even make your video. Once you’ve established what keywords you want to use, you need to make sure your video’s metadata is optimized.

The primary keyword should be in the video title. You also need to add them to the description, but avoid keyword stuffing.

Video descriptions should be over 250 words in length. This provides enough room to optimize the video for SEO.

Ensure that you include great tags for your video. Your main keyword should be the first tag, and relevant secondary keywords should follow.

Choose a Great Thumbnail

Your video’s thumbnail should be instantly engaging for the audience. If it’s drab, you won’t get as many clicks and your ranking will decrease.

Choose an engaging, beautiful, and thought-provoking thumbnail. It could be a still from your video or a related image. The main aim is to improve the number of clicks on your video, so let your imagination run wild.

Embed Your Video

Embedding your video on your site can help your video’s ranking improve. However, there are a couple of guidelines to be aware of:

1. If you want to optimize video content, you should know that Google typically stops crawling after the first video. If you’re embedding more than one video, use the one you want to promote as the first video on the page.
2. Don’t embed the same video on multiple pages. You will end up competing with yourself.

Optimize Video Content By Making It the Centerpiece

Your video should be the center of your web page. The whole page it is on should be built around the video.

Sometimes, you’ll see videos hidden at the bottom of pages, which isn’t the correct placement. You want your audience to watch your video, right?

Search engines are also more likely to crawl your video if it’s visible on the page. Make watching the video an essential part of the page’s experience.

Create an SEO Strategy For Your Videos

Your videos need to be relevant and related. If you’re a culinary business, you shouldn’t be making videos about tech.

Create an SEO strategy for your video content. You should know what topics you want to cover, their ideal length, their release schedule, and how you’ll promote them.

This kind of strategy will keep viewers coming back to your content. A regular release schedule and video length is comforting and lets them incorporate watching your video into their days. This gets you more clicks, which improves your SEO.

Promote Your Videos

Video marketing isn’t as simple as uploading a video and then leaving it alone. You need to promote your videos constantly.

Promoting your videos means that more people will watch your content, more people will subscribe, and people will continue to watch your videos. This will result in better search engine rankings.

Share them via email, social media, and your website. You could even provide your channel with a paid advertising campaign. The end goal is to get more viewers, and promotion will help you achieve that.

Final Thoughts

Knowing how to optimize video content can be difficult. The payoff is well worth the effort, though. Better SEO means more viewers and brand awareness.

This is what you need to be doing in video marketing in 2019, 2020 and 2021.

If you’re not sure what your next steps are, we can help you. Our success stories speak for themselves. We have proven ourselves as a capable and skilled marketing company.

Get in touch with us today and we’ll be able to answer any questions you may have and give you a quote for our services.

If you’re about to plan a digital marketing campaign, you’re in the right place.

Did you know, as little as 22% of businesses are happy with their conversion rates?

We want to change this. During this article, we’re revealing some sage advice that’ll help ensure you get the best results.

What’s the Point in Planning a Digital Marketing Campaign?

You might be thinking, “What’s the point in spending time and effort planning? Why can’t I dive straight in?”

Well, yes you can choose to go down that route, but we strongly suggest you don’t.

The planning process ensures you conduct some much-needed research, think through your customer avatar, consider the online platforms you’ll utilize, and settle on the end goal for your campaign.

The latter point’s crucial, otherwise, you don’t have a clear definition of what makes your marketing initiative a “success.”

Now we’ve covered that, let’s focus on how to best plan your marketing campaign.

1. Have a Website up and Running

If your business doesn’t already have a live website, this should be your number one priority. You don’t need to be an expert to launch a fully-functioning site that looks amazing!

If you’re a little unsure, head over to YouTube and take a couple of free tutorials. These will help you get up and running in no time at all.

2. Develop a Customer Avatar

Take the time to analyze who your target demographic is, and what they’re struggling with.

As you start to craft a customer persona, begin with basic information like:

• Age
• Gender
• Where they live, etc.

Then work your way towards more complex characteristics.

To get a more accurate account, head over to your “Audience Reports” section in Google Analytics. This tells you everything we’ve just listed above.

Then, establish your audience’s problems and pain points.

For example, what are they struggling with? What do they long to achieve? How can your products/ services help them overcome their issues?

Now, take this further and think about how these problems make them feel. What emotions are associated with their concerns?

• Sadness
• Excitement
• Fear
• Happiness
• Hope

Then, once you’ve crafted a customer avatar, you can publish content that’ll appeal to their needs. This massively increases the chances of launching a successful marketing campaign.

3. Social Media

Utilizing social media platforms is an essential part of your digital marketing plan. Some of the more popular assets include:

• Facebook
• Twitter
• YouTube
• LinkedIn

If you haven’t already, optimize your social media profiles for maximum exposure. Then, study up on the best practices about how to promote your business.

When done correctly, this goes a long way in developing a loyal following.

4. SEO

Take your website and do everything you can to optimize it to for specific keywords. When you SEO optimize your site, you’ll gradually attract more and more targeted visitors which is great for business!

First things first, conduct keyword research using “Google Keyword Planner” and try to find phrases your audience is searching for on Google.

Ideally, these keywords should boast a high search volume but shouldn’t be overly competitive to rank for.

If you have no idea how to refine your SEO strategy and have a WordPress site, go ahead and download the Yoast SEO plugin. This will certainly steer you in the right direction.

5. Get to Grips with Digital Marketing Metrics

As we’ve already said, you need to have a clear end-goal for your campaign. For example, do you want to:

• Increase traffic to your site
• Boost your conversion rates
• Increase sales
• Develop a social media following
• Encourage people to subscribe to your email list

To fully understand whether you’ve achieved any of the above, you need to learn how to integrate various marketing metrics. For example:

Visitors Analytics

These figures indicate how many visitors you’re getting on your site and how your digital marketing campaign impacts these results.

Once you know these numbers you can refine your methods to get better results.

Conversion Rates

There’s no point in increasing traffic to your site if you’re not converting them into customers or email subscribers. Ideally, you want to achieve a conversion rate between 2 and 4%.

Keep tweaking your digital marketing efforts until you achieve these figures.

6. Create a Calendar for Your Marketing Campaign

There’s no point creating a plan if you don’t refer to it. By creating an online calendar, it’ll help keep you accountable. Utilize Google Calendars and plot your digital marketing tasks here.

That way you and your team can see your timeline with a simple glance, and make edits as and when they’re needed.

Top Tip: Be sure to highlight core campaigns and give each of them a goal and a timeframe. This should help give you more of a direction.

7. Set a Budget and Stick to It

It’s imperative you create a budget and stick to it. The last thing you want to do is spend more money than you have.

This begs the question, “How do you make the most of your marketing budget?”

Look back through your marketing data and see what’s worked best. For example, are there any patterns that indicate a particular marketing channel or kind of content yields good value for money?

Once you’ve established this, you’ll have an idea of where to direct your funds.

Likewise, if something isn’t working, stop wasting your cash and re-think your marketing methods.

What’s Next?

The next step is putting all of this knowledge to use! Starting your own digital marketing campaign doesn’t have to be complicated. The important thing is that you use one!

If you found this feature interesting, we’re confident you’ll find our marketing checklist useful.

If you have any questions about online marketing, your digital marketing campaign, or our services, please contact us.

Google Analytics 4 (GA4) is the latest version of Google’s free web analytics service that helps you measure traffic and engagement on your website or mobile app. One of the most useful features in GA4 is goal tracking, which allows you to define goals and track how well your site or app is helping users complete desired actions.  Goals in GA4 allow you to track user actions that indicate success on your site, such as making a purchase, signing up for a newsletter, downloading content, or any other conversion you want to measure. Setting up goals properly is crucial for understanding your site’s performance and where users are abandoning the conversion funnel. This guide will walk you through creating goals in GA4.

Prerequisites

Before setting up goals, make sure you have completed these steps:

• Installed the GA4 tracking code on your website or mobile app following Google’s instructions. This allows GA4 to collect data.
• Created a GA4 account and set up a web or app stream for your property. This gives you a place to view analytics data.
• Understand the user actions on your site you want to define as goals, such as a purchase confirmation page.

Set Up Goals in GA4

Here are the steps to set up goals in Google Analytics 4:

·         Head over to the “All Events” section in your Analytics account.

·         Choose your preferred Google Analytics 4 property that you want to work in.

·         Select the “Events” menu.

·         Click the button labeled “Create Event” to add a new custom event.

·         A new window will pop up. Hit the “Create” button in this window.

·         In this section, give your custom event a descriptive name.

·         Under “Matching Conditions”, pick the “page_location” parameter from the dropdown menu since we want to track a destination goal.

·         Choose the “Contains (ignore case)” operator.

·         Input the text that appears at the end of your destination URL as the value, for example “thank-you”.

·         Click “Create” in the top right corner to finalize your new custom event goal.

·         You should now see the custom event goal listed under “Custom Events”.

The custom event we created will not be visible within the existing event section until it gets triggered. Upon triggering, we will be able to mark it in the form of a conversion. For example, when a visitor fills up the Contact section of your website, you will need to head to Google Analytics 4 and toggle to mark it in the form of a conversion.

Try it today

Configuring goals in Google Analytics 4 provides critical insights into how well your site or app converts visitors into customers and completes important actions. If you can’t do it on your own, you may seek the assistance of a San Diego Advertising Agency.  With its streamlined goal setup and enhanced reporting, GA4 makes it easier than ever to track goals and improve experiences. Following this guide, you can quickly get goals implemented in GA4 and start improving performance. Monitor goals regularly as part of your analytics routine to maximize value for your business.

Investing in a trade show presence can drain a lot of your marketing budget. But if you prep attendees with pre-show printed marketing you can improve your ROI from the show.

Trade shows in the US generated more than $12.8 billion in 2016. Tapping into that potential revenue is worth investing in a pre-show print marketing campaign.

A well-crafted and planned print campaign in the lead up to the convention can generate buzz and interest in your company. A combination of print materials that draw attention and point recipients toward your show booth is worth your time and investment.

We’ve pulled together some of the best types of print marketing and suggested ways you can use them to attract booth visitors. Read on to learn everything you need to know to have a successful convention.

Advertising

If you have a print advertising budget use it to highlight your trade show presence outside of the convention. 

Pick a media outlet that convention attendees pay attention to. Create a series of ads that highlight your brand and your presence at the trade show. Make sure you indicate that viewers of the ad should visit your booth.

If you don’t have an in-house creative team to make the ads consider working with an agency. You’ll get the benefit of their know-how and your ads will stand out and draw more attention.

Catalogs

Depending on your budget you can choose one of two catalog approaches to get trade show visitors. Either go for a one-off, high-production values showpiece or produce and send multiple cheaper, lower-quality catalogs in the weeks and months before the show.

In the first option look to get a beautifully designed, lavishly produced catalog into your potential trade-show visitors about a month ahead of the convention. That lead time will give them enough time to sit with your catalog for a while and learn more about your company and products. 

If you prefer the cheaper and more often approach, send a catalog to your customers every month for a few months leading up to the trade show. The repetition will get in your customers’ minds and they’ll be primed to come to see you at the show.

In either case, make sure your catalogs include incentives for recipients to visit your booth. 

You can combine a digital marketing tactic with your print marketing tactic in a catalog. Add URLs or direct people to your social platforms with hints at special offers they might get or insider content that is regularly updated.

Postcards

Postcards are cheap and effective. They are cheap to produce and cheap to mail. They still work, too.

If you want to saturate an area with a high volume of potential convention attendees or customers use the USPS’s Every Door Direct Mail option. If you have a good traditional mailing list, target those people.

Your postcard should feature an incentive targeted directly to the recipient. A special offer or exclusive piece of swag is a great way to encourage people to visit your booth when they attend the convention. Make the postcard feel unique and individually targeted. 

Outdoor Advertising

If you have the budget, invest in outdoor advertising ahead of the convention. Print marketing for outdoor advertising comes in the form of billboards, posters, bus benches, car covers, outdoor signage, and more.

A combination of some of these forms of marketing will ensure that a broad range of local possible attendees will see your company in association with the convention. 

Use teaser campaigns on posters that you change out a couple of times in the lead up to the convention. Create a link between your company and the convention with name-association decals on a fleet of local cars.

Stick outdoor banners and flags near the convention center or around your business. Make sure they are bright and colorful and boldly feature your name and the convention’s name. 

Floor Stickers

Less typical print marketing materials such as floor stickers are effective because they aren’t seen often. Outdoor floor stickers are the equivalent of sidewalk chalk. They grab the eye because so many people walk with their heads down.

Put them in strategic places around a convention center in the last few days before it takes place.

Flyers

Create flyers to promote your presence at the show. Use a team of street marketers to hand them out to attendees as they come to the convention.

Make sure the flyers are bold and eye-catching so that people don’t immediately dump them in the trash or ignore the people handing them out. Ninety-two percent of trade show attendees come to find out about new products so include information on the flyer about your new products or services.

Merchandise

If you have street marketers handing out flyers kit them out in branded t-shirts or other clothing. The team will be more recognizable. Your brand will be visible before people even grab a flyer. 

Spend a little more on quality merchandise so that your team doesn’t look cheap. You don’t want that association in the minds of attendees before they get to your booth.

Use a simple design on the merchandise. You can’t say a lot on a t-shirt. Big, bold, colorful and simple. Ideally, the design will be your company name or logo and that’s about it.

Print Marketing Can Draw Convention Attendees Before The Show Starts

If you use a combination of these print marketing pieces you will create a buzz about your presence at the trade show. Print marketing materials can be highly effective outside of the convention itself. Provide incentives to people to visit your booth in those print materials.

First impressions count. If you don’t have a creative team or you’re not sure how best to design print marketing work with a creative agency. The money you spend on the agency will be returned because of the look and content in your printed materials.

We have an incredible team of talented, creative marketers. We know how to make your printed marketing materials draw people to your convention booth. Get in touch with us to discuss your next trade-show campaign.

Influencer marketing strategy is a sales tactic using influencers to promote a product or service. An influencer is an internet personality that impacts the decisions and lifestyles of their followers.

Modern-day consumers dislike being “sold”, and therefore do their best to avoid advertisements. However, powerful influencers easily sell a brand to their followers. This is why businesses are eager to partner with influencers and will pay six figures for a single social media post.

The right influencer who is passionate about your brand is essential to help with your marketing objectives. Read on for seven tips to help your company pick the perfect influencers for your brand.

1. Match Influencers With Your Buyer Personas

It’s best to choose an influencer whose audience is similar to your buyer personas. All influencers have a niche. The best method is to find influencers that are already attracting a similar audience to yours.

You should also select influencers whose values match your brand values. You may have a disaster if your influencer’s actions don’t align with your company values. For example, an influencer that is a very vocal democrat or republican may rub your clients the wrong way.

2. Choose Influencers With A Following On Social Media

One way to choose an influencer to market your brand is to check the number of their followers, page views, or YouTube views. Influencers can have anywhere from a thousand followers to millions of followers. The more followers and views an influencer has, the more expensive he or she may be.

You should check the level of engagement that popular influencers have during the onboarding process. Celebrities have many followers and high engagement which often means a higher price. The greater the engagement with followers, the more effective an influencer will likely be.

Sometimes influencers with the most followers have the least engagement with their followers. It may make sense to engage micro-influencers because they can connect more with followers. Micro-influencers may also stay loyal to your brand because you are collaborating at the beginning of their business.

Influencers with large followings are best for brands that want to increase their awareness. However, always make sure the audience applies relevantly to your brand. For example, a golf club company using a fashion influencer may not be the best choice.

3. Your Influencers Should Be Credible

Some influencers gain their followers because they’re entertaining. This doesn’t always mean they are credible. It won’t be profitable to use an influencer with a following that doesn’t accept their advice.

The chosen influencer must post authentic content about using your product or service. Avoid partnering with people that have poor reputations of lying or overselling. If consumers feel deceived, it’s unlikely they will buy with the influencer.

Some social media influencers have fake followers, hence their reach may not be as wide as they claim. Performance reviews will help to establish how effective an influencer is before committing to a long campaign. Be sure to check the validity of their engagement stats before signing any partnership contracts.

4. Pick Influencers Passionate About Your Brand

An influencer that uses and loves your product or service will be more convincing than one who only wants to get paid to promote a product. Their followers will probably notice when they aren’t being genuine, as well. Seek partnerships with influencers that are passionate about your brand.

Your influencer marketing strategy team should be active social media users. Passionate influencers will most likely have followers that relate to them, which will help them sell products without being overbearing.

5. Find Skilled Influencers

Choose influencers that have the technical ability to help market your brand. Amateurs in videography and writing can make your brand look amateur. The best influencers are professionals that prioritize quality.

Influencers should be knowledgeable about their niche and the best way to market to and engage with their followers. Some influencers are knowledgeable about digital marketing. Seek personalities that take their job seriously and have the marketing skills and talent to attract and keep their followers.

6. Check The Frequency Of Your Influencer’s Posts

Influencers that post content regularly will usually have more engagement and loyalty from their followers. This personality type will represent your brand the most effectively.

Consumers today buy from people they have a relationship with. The best way to develop this is to produce valuable content often. It takes multiples visits to a blog or YouTube site to convince someone to buy something. Influencers should post regularly to keep their followers engaged and loyal.

7. Test Strategy Results

It’s important to test if you are getting the desired result from your partnership with an influencer. Decide on your expectations from the beginning of the campaign so the influencer knows what to deliver.

Administer check-ins throughout the campaign to make sure everything is going accordingly. Keep open communication with the influencer so they feel comfortable asking questions and voicing concerns, which will keep operations running smoothly and decrease the chance of an undesirable outcome.

Create an Influencer Marketing Strategy to Grow Your Brand

Creating an influencer marketing strategy can help advance your brand online. It’s important to set boundaries to get the desired results from your influencer partnership.

If you’re looking for more tips and help to build an online strategy that will work for your business, contact us today.

78% of marketing executives believe that custom content is the way to go in marketing. 

Digital marketing is the new marketing frontier and every organization needs to adapt to this trend to avoid being obsolete. Traditional marketing is being taken over with social media platforms and targeted ads, making it possible for brands to interact with their specific audiences in real time.

Customers expect a digital presence and are beginning to trust companies with a digital footprint.

With the emerging marketing trends, it can be a daunting task for your in-house team to keep up especially when you need to focus on other areas of your business.

Today, almost every business needs an effective digital marketing campaign. If you can’t design your own campaign, a digital marketing agency can help you design it quite effectively.

Below are criteria for selecting the Best Digital Marketing Agency

1. Know Your Brand Requirements

Even before hiring a digital marketing agency, try to understand what your goals are and what you are trying to achieve. Part of this might include creating or revamping your website, online advertising, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), blogging, or social media marketing. If you are able to articulate your business needs you will have better discussions with your prospective digital agencies.

2. Create Your Budget

How much are you willing to spend to ramp up your business? Most businesses spend between 4% to 6% of gross revenue, but if you want to make a significant impact on your business, you may need to budget close to 10%. Work with your marketing professional to help you create and prioritize a proper budget.

A good marketing firm will create month-by-month marketing plans that can really clarify your marketing activities. Keep in mind though, that marketing is about testing and retesting, so some of your marketing activities will change to welcome new ones.

3. Understanding What Needs To Be Outsourced

It is important to know what marketing strategies your in-house marketing team will be focusing on and what strategies a professional agency really needs to handle. Hiring a digital marketing agency may help with the technical aspects of your marketing strategy, especially since some sophisticated activities can be difficult for your in-house team.

4. Source for An Agency

There are numerous digital agencies out there that do a tremendous job, but there are some that make big promises on their ability to deliver but you get shortchanged. Credibility is important. Don’t be shy to ask the agency for client references.

Read through the clients’ testimonials on their websites and determine whether or not to work with that agency. Agencies should be open to sharing their not-so-pleasant engagements and how they handled the situation. This will give you an idea of their client service and crisis management abilities.

5. A Digital Marketing Agency that Has a Niche in Your Field

A digital agency that has the expertise to match your special needs can be a good fit. When looking into the company’s successful digital campaigns, consider the type of businesses they work with. It’s good to see where their strengths are and the details they pay attention to.

Ask how they approach new industries to see if they have any insights that are fresh and noteworthy. A good agency should evaluate your industry and offer insights that you cannot otherwise obtain. In addition, they should have some case studies of campaigns they have steered in the past and provide their results.

6. How Do They Track Their Key Performance Indicators?

The reason for using digital agencies is to boost your company revenue. It’s not only important to boost revenue with digital marketing campaigns, but it’s also important to keep the cost per client acquisition to a minimum.

The agencies should help clients increase online revenue and drive more traffic to their websites with efficient tactics. It will be important to have candid discussions that will help you achieve specific goals with specific tactics and strategies that are measurable and can be evaluated.

7. How Does the Agency Run Its Business?

After you have identified what you want the agency to do for your company, look through their website and see if they are applying the same for their own company.

If you hire them for SEO, how do they rank on search engines? If you need a blog, does the agency have one of its own blogs?
These are signs of what the agency can do for your company.

8. Be in It for Value

You need to work with an agency that invests in the future of your company. Building relationships and partnerships should always be long-term and have a win-win end goal. Go for a company that can do what they are hired to do and you enjoy working with.

Strategic partnerships take time to build therefore, choose a company that is open, transparent and handles a crisis in a professional manner. This way you can be confident that your money is well spent at the right agency.

9. What’s Their Price?

An agency that prices themselves to low just to be competitive is likely to be a bigger risk than a more expensive agency. Higher priced agencies may be able to deliver more favorably because they can afford to do so. Be sure to understand what the specific deliverables are and how they add up to the overall price.

10. Set Timelines

A good agency should be able to project timelines for most activities. After discussing the timelines and projected outcomes, set benchmarks so that you can determine how you are performing on your way to your goals.

Find the Right Agency for Your Company

Whether you’re a startup or mid-sized company, your clients need to know about your existence, the products or services you offer, and how they can get those products and services.

Hiring a digital marketing agency will help you get results which can accelerate your company revenue and any other desired results. Your digital marketing agency will manage your online marketing needs through analytics-driven and ROI focused activities.

An agency should help you build a plan that is based on your industry. It can help you avoid the cost of setting up an in-house digital marketing team as you focus on business expansion. It can handle the systems and processes that plan and execute campaigns from start to finish.

Check out this page to learn more about digital marketing services.

Every company likes to be recognized for its achievements and long hours dedicated to their clients. Luckily, that possibility has become a reality for us here at the MAD Group in San Diego.

We are excited to announce that our company has been recognized by Clutch, an independent third party reviewer of B2B companies around the world, as a top San Diego branding agency in their press release.

This achievement makes us especially proud because of the way it was earned. The main way Clutch conducts their research is by calling previous clients and publishing their feedback as a review on each company’s profile.

Our profile boasts six of these client-based interviews, with an overall rating of 4.8 out of 5 stars! We are proud of this achievement because it means that we are delivering quality work and experiences to our customers, which has always been our ultimate goal.

Providing exceptional experience is what Inc. wrote as one of the cornerstones for creating brand loyalty. We want to continue having clients from any part of the world choose us over other branding agencies, which is why these Clutch interviews are so valuable to us!

One of our clients, Yujin Robot Inc, told Clutch that “M.A.D. Group has treated us as more than just a client. They can think from the customer’s perspective, bringing in a lot of passion.”

In addition to this achievement, Clutch’s sister website, The Manifest, has named us one of the top 20 branding companies in San Diego for 2018!

With each new achievement, we continue to stick to our business and marketing values, but also take note of what unique aspects of our company brought us here in the first place. We look forward to learning how to better serve our clients in the future and to continue being recognized for it!

Reflecting on our formative years – those incipient, gradual steps from conceptual development to class-clownishness, creative growth to rhyming remedies for the mysterious afflictions of cooties – it became clear that many of our schoolhouse dogmas have proved, with age and experience, to be so, so backwards.

Take this find, for instance. Remember being forced to draw desiderata like this in elementary school? And worse, being forced to abide by them, knowing full well they were inhibitive? How shortsighted. How restrictive. How one-tracked… Looking back, we realized we forgot how conformist reading was in grade school. Ironically, what practices had been deemed “real reading” are, with the potential exception of Concentrating, unrealistic or frowned upon, especially in creative industries.

As a society, we’ve evolved our process of reading to adapt to the mountain of content and information we have to digest during any given day. Flipping pages quickly isn’t fake reading; it’s speed-reading. Talking… you mean brainstorming? Exchanging books before finishing them… Isn’t that collaborative R&D? Moving around… is something any medical professional recommends to palliate the pains of extended sedentary office hours. Only looking at the pictures? Photographs are what solidify an immediate connection between reader and content – and vice versa.

I guess we at M.A.D. Group are fake readers, at least according to our third grade teachers. But then again, we’ve never been much for following the rules anyway. Maybe that’s why we’re so good at helping our clients make disruptive waves in their respective industries.

So, when it comes to ye olde rule… let’s be real… and fake it.

Marketing consulting firms are companies that provide expert advice and guidance to businesses to help them improve their marketing strategies and achieve their goals. These firms typically offer a wide range of services, such as market research, branding, and digital marketing. They work with businesses of all sizes and across all industries and can help with everything from developing a marketing plan to implementing and executing marketing campaigns. 

The services offered by marketing consulting firms can be tailored to each business’s individual needs and include market research, competitive analysis, and customer segmentation. Additionally, the consulting firm can help the business create a marketing plan and guide them in executing it.

Overall, marketing consulting firms play a crucial role in helping businesses to achieve their goals by providing expert advice and guidance on all aspects of marketing.

Marketing Consulting Firms Can Help Businesses Improve their Marketing Strategy

Marketing consulting firms can help businesses to improve their marketing strategy and achieve their goals by providing expert advice and guidance on all aspects of marketing. This can include creating a brand strategy, developing a visual identity, and creating messaging that effectively communicates the brand’s value proposition.

These firms can help businesses to develop and execute a digital marketing strategy that reaches their target audience and drives conversions.

• Marketing planning and execution: Top SEO experts can help businesses to create a comprehensive marketing plan and guide them on how to execute it. This can include identifying key performance indicators, setting measurable goals, and creating a budget.

• Marketing Automation: Marketing consulting firms can help businesses to automate their marketing activities, which can include email campaigns, social media marketing, and lead generation. This can help businesses to save time and increase efficiency.

Types of Consulting Firms

There are many different types of marketing consulting firms, each with its own strengths and weaknesses.

• Creative agencies: Creative agencies are well-known for their expertise in creating effective advertising and marketing campaigns. They can provide valuable guidance on everything from Logo design to target market analysis.

• Market research firms: Market research firms are skilled in conducting surveys and analyzing data to determine consumer trends. They can help you identify which products and/or services to market to your target audience.

• Advertising agencies: Advertising agencies are responsible for creating ads that reach a wide audience. They can help you develop targeted marketing campaigns, as well as provide guidance on

Industry Expertise and Valuable Resources

Working with a marketing consulting firm can offer a variety of benefits for businesses looking to improve their marketing strategy and achieve their goals. They have the expertise and knowledge to provide businesses with valuable insights and recommendations to help them achieve their goals. 

• Third-party perspective: Marketing consulting firms can provide businesses with an unbiased, third-party perspective. 

• Cost-effective solution: Hiring a marketing consulting firm can be a low-cost solution for companies that lack the resources or expertise to handle their own marketing efforts. Overall, working with a marketing consulting firm can help businesses to improve their marketing strategy, achieve their goals, and stay ahead of the competition.

Top SEO Experts and Their Areas of Expertise  

Check out some of the top SEO experts who can help businesses to improve their search engine rankings and visibility by providing them with expert advice, tools, and resources. They can help businesses to identify and fix technical SEO issues, conduct keyword research, and create high-quality content that will rank well in search results and attract their target audience.

Small Business is making a comeback in America these days. With the help of affordable technology, a small business can offer some of the same services and products as larger businesses, while still offering it at a high level. With proper small business marketing, a small business can get the attention it deserves and win over clients that would traditionally buy from larger businesses.

The key is to start out by being a big fish in a small pond. Look for the areas you can compete in that are underserved; then serve them well. Simultaneously, start focusing on a small business marketing approach that lets consumers know you can give personal attention and one-on-one service, both online and off.

The centerpiece to your marketing is your website. Start by making it personal and inviting. Then once you’ve got it thoroughly refined from a visual and marketing standpoint, change your focus to optimizing so that it gets noticed by search engines. Once you’ve done this you will be ready for following a small business marketing plan.

The small business marketing plan should include clearly defined goals for a two year stretch, plus a quarter-by-quarter action plan of what needs to be accomplished. To get a good grasp on how to create a small business marketing action plan, you may need some professional help. But to start, you can calculate the average lifetime worth of your clients, and then estimate how many leads you would need to land each new one.

Next, whether it is B2B or B2C, you will need to be creative in your approach. Marketing for small business requires good timing and creative marketing materials. The materials you use should be created with clever headlines, clear call-to-actions, and highly refined designs that resonate with their audience.

We realize there is so much more to this than we can possibly include here, so call us to see how we can make an impact on your business.

Please Contact Us To Get A List Of Small Business Marketing Tips.

Are you new to the competitive world of online sales? Is your small business having a bit of trouble finding its audience?

Online sales are worth almost $500 billion each year, and growing. Carving out an online identity is well worth the effort. If you’re new to online marketing, you might be wondering where to begin.

If you’re looking to focus more attention on your brand, this article’s for you. We’ll give you the inside scoop about product branding. We’ll also help you find a local branding agency that will help you crush the competition.

What Is a Brand?

Every company has a brand, but not every company uses it to their advantage. A brand is more than just a company name. It’s your identity, a reminder to your customers of the services you provide.

Imagine that there are two local plumbing businesses. One has been around for decades and primarily works on commercial buildings. Another is newer and provides 24/7 emergency service to their customers.

The established plumbing company may not need to spend as much on advertising: they get a lot of word-of-mouth referrals. The newer company may need to spend more time familiarizing potential customers with their range of services.

Branding is the process of focusing on what’s great about your company and what makes it different from the competition.

How to Define Your Brand

A brand can be defined by its logos, its slogan, or its origin story. What inspired you to start your company? A compelling story can attract customers – and keep them coming back.

If you don’t have a website, it’s a good time to get online. Websites are great for sales because people can take their time and make buying decisions outside of normal business hours.

Your website should have a section that’s about your values, your mission, and your history. It should also have a blog and an FAQ section.

You may not feel comfortable developing your own website, but there are experienced marketing agencies that can help. They’ll talk to you about your business goals and make a website to focus on customer retention.

Product Branding for Beginners

Before you meet with your branding agency, take a little while and think about what makes your brand special. Do you offer services that your competitors don’t offer? Is your return policy more liberal? Does your staff volunteer?

There is more than one right way to reach out to your customers. It’s okay to do some research to see what your competition is doing. Are they using videos or live chat? Do they have a lot of customer testimonials?

Don’t feel like you need to imitate larger brands. Part of small business’ charm is that they’re all different. You can incorporate pictures of your staff, a video of your office, or links to other websites.

The main goal for your branding brainstorming session should be to find the value in your business. What do you have to offer your customers? How did you find the path to success?

Websites are powerful tools to reach out to new customers. Make a list of all your branding and marketing goals.

Inexpensive Branding Ideas

In addition to making a website, you’ll need a logo and a slogan. Your branding agency can help you with that, but there are ways to reach out to your community.

You can run a contest to come up with a memorable slogan. Contests and promotions are inexpensive ways to connect with potential customers. Once you find the right slogan, you’ll know.

You should also work on creating a memorable logo, but wait to roll it out. You’ll probably need to do some testing first to make sure people like your logo. It might be too bright or difficult to read.

Once you have the logo and slogan settled, you can make a video for your website. Videos don’t have to be expensive and they can reach a wide audience. They can play on your website and can be used as advertisements as well.

You can make quick “explainer” videos for your products, demonstrating how to use them at home. You might be surprised at the positive response you get from a short video.

More Insider Brand Building Tips

There are more ways to find your audience than just building a website. One of the most important marketing tools you have is online: social media. Social media outlets like Facebook and Twitter have millions of users and can be extremely effective for new business outreach.

When you make your social media accounts, try to post every other day at first. You don’t want to overwhelm your audience by posting too frequently, but you want to remind them that you’re there.

You can brand yourself on social media by choosing the content that you share. Do you want to make your audience laugh, think, or both? What kinds of articles and videos would be a good reflection on your business?

Again, an experienced marketing firm can help you with your social media strategy. They can also help you build email lists to reach out to your customers more effectively.

How To Get Started with Online Branding

Brand building is a process that starts with the core values of your business. It’s a process of getting recognized by your target audience, and it’s all about driving sales.

The great thing about a marketing agency is that they can track statistics for you, also known as metrics. They can tell you how many customers clicked on an advertisement, and how many went on to buy from you.

They can also help you reach out to people who have visited your website, a marketing strategy known as remarketing. You can show your advertisement to people anywhere in the world, at any time of day.

We have worked with hundreds of companies in industries from health care to party supplies. We’re committed to providing innovative, game-changing services to our clients. Send us an email so we can get started on your website!

Finding the right marketing agency for your small business can be difficult. Let us help.

The drastic changes and advances in marketing practices these days are getting hard to keep up with. There’s no telling where it’ll go next. If you’re running a small business, you might not have the time or resources to put into a proper marketing campaign.

Sometimes, it’s just easier to admit that you need help. There are marketing agencies all over the country that specialize in digital and old school marketing tactics. So, why not pay up and get your business marketed the right way?

Finding a marketing agency can be difficult, however. It’s a fine line between symbiotic and confusion in the marketing world. It’s good to have help from a marketing agency but if they don’t capture your voice or the identity that your business is going for, then there’s no point.

In this article, we’re going to tell you how to find the best marketing agency for your company’s important needs. It’s about time someone other than you did something around here, right? 

Finding the Best Marketing Agency for You

There are certain steps that you should take when looking for the right marketing agency. It’s all about knowing who you are, the demographic you’re trying to appeal to, and being able to trust someone to nail your brand. Here’s what you’ve got to do.

Know Your Own Brand

Who knows you better than you? You can’t go into this search process without having a strong sense of identity for your company. The company branding ultimately comes down to you and your employees’ cohesiveness when it comes to identity.

It’s important to be able to take yourself out of it and see your company through the eyes of the demographic that you’re targeting. If you can do that, you can better figure out how to appeal to their wants and needs.

When you start researching and interviewing marketing agencies, you’ll be asked questions about what your brand is and where you want it to go. If you’ve got a strong sense of it then you’ll have a much easier time finding the right agency.

Figure Out Your Needs

The other thing that you should do before you even start Googling marketing agencies is to figure out what your needs are. Start a doc with some of your higher ranking employees and make a list of what you want to accomplish by hiring a marketing agency.

Having a sense of where your strengths and deficiencies are as a company, and being able to communicate that to the agency representative, will make this process much easier. 

If you’re a new company, maybe you’ll want them to focus on creating brand awareness. If you’re an online shop, maybe you want to see increased sales. If you’ve been in business for a long time, maybe you’ll just want a digital marketing update to keep up with your competitors.

Marketing agencies provide a wide range of services from digital, email, and video marketing to social media, website, and brand development. So, knowing what you need is a good way to start your search.

Start Searching

Okay, now you’re ready to start searching. It’s not surprising that the best way to find your new marketing agency is through Google. All the research that you’ve done prior to this will help you in the beginning stages of your search.

Depending on what you’ve decided your needs are, you can specify your search to get the best results. Using local SEO to take advantage of Google’s search results should be something your prospective marketing agency is aware of and able to help you with. 

For instance, if you’re in southern California and you want an agency to help with your social media marketing, then you’d type in “southern California social media marketing agency,” and see what comes up. 

Be wary of paid ads that appear at the top of the SERP, but you shouldn’t have to do too much digging to find a good marketing agency.

Online Presence

When you’ve found a few suitable candidates, scope out their websites. In this case, judging a book by the cover is actually a smart thing to do. If their website is outdated or hard to navigate, how are they supposed to help you with your digital marketing?

Secondly, you should be able to easily find information on what you’re looking for through their site. In the example above, we were looking for social media marketing in So-Cal, so it should be clearly displayed that they offer this service on their website.

Take a look at their social media numbers as well. Do they have a good number of followers? Do their branding and online presence appear to be in-line with what you want to do?

It’s okay to scrutinize everything about what they’re presenting online because these are the people that will be handling your marketing campaign.

Testimonials

Any reputable marketing agency will have a testimonials section on their website, but how do you really know that it’s an honest representation of what happened?

While this can be a good source of information, you should bring this up when you start having meetings with them. Don’t only focus on their success stories, either. A good company will be able to openly discuss where things have gone wrong in the past and how they use that information to be better in the future.

You can also go as far as talking to other businesses that they’ve worked with before to get an idea of what they’re like to deal with. The proof is in the pudding, so to speak, so don’t be afraid to narrow your search in this way.

Interview Different Companies

When you start interviewing your top candidates, keep in mind what you’re hiring them to do. They should be able to focus in on how they can help your business thrive in today’s digital marketing-heavy world. 

Have a list of important questions prepared for them and don’t be afraid to tell them if you don’t like one of their answers. You’re paying good money for this service and you should have it done right.

In the end, you’re going into business with this company, so you should enjoy being around them. A simple meeting over coffee or beer should give you a sense of how genuine they are, not only with you but with your customers too.

Start Your Marketing Agency Search Today

Alright, now you’re all set to start your search for the best marketing agency. Remember, you don’t have to settle for the first thing. It’s important to take your time and find the right people to take the marketing for your business to the next level.

Mad Group is San Diego’s premier digital marketing agency; we provide a range of services from website building to branding makeovers. Contact us to get the ball rolling on a new marketing campaign for your business.

Building a strong online presence for your business is a necessity in 2022.

If you’re able to get noticed online, it trickles into every facet of your business. Conversion rates and sales rise and your brand becomes more noticeable, but it’s not as simple as it might seem to achieve.

In this post, we’re going to offer up eight tips for getting your business noticed online. Online presence management is crucial, so if you put as many of your resources as you can into developing, you’ll see a payoff almost immediately.

In the digital age, branding is everything. There are so many businesses out there vying for the attention of consumers, so follow these tips and become the business that sticks out from the crowd.

1. SEO

Search engine optimization is what drives online visibility for businesses and personal brands alike. If you want to get noticed online, you have to either master SEO yourself or hire a firm to do it for you. A deep understanding of current and cutting edge SEO practices can keep you relevant.

SEO is much more complex than just keywords and page speed. It touches almost every aspect of what we’ll discuss in this post. For instance, if you’re a small business that is geographically bound to a specific area, strong local SEO is essential to stay ahead of your competition. This means filling out all of your listings and having good reviews to appear in location-based searches.

2. Mobile Optimization

It wasn’t until a few years ago that mobile search finally surpassed desktop as the public’s main search method. For this reason, mobile website and search optimization have become incredibly important for online visibility. If you don’t have a high-functioning mobile website, searchers will find some other business that does.

Similarly, if you don’t consider how people perform searches from their phones in your SEO strategy, you’re going to lose customers. Right now, voice search is becoming more and more popular, which goes against a lot of the older keyword strategies.

Instead of highly-focused keywords, people tend to voice search in full sentences, so you need to use long-tail keywords in your content to appeal to their search terms.

3. Social Activity

These days, your online presence and brand depend a lot on social media. Having a great social media presence is important because consumers are most likely to discover something, since they spend so much time using it.

Building this presence organically comes from regular posting and lots of engagement with your followers. Basically, you want to make them feel like they’re a part of what you’re doing. You’ll increase your conversion numbers when your followers like you and feel that you’re a trustworthy source for the goods or services they need.

4. Your Listings

We discussed why filling out your listings is crucial for local SEO a little bit earlier, but we didn’t delve into exactly how to make them work in your favor. People tend to trust ratings and reviews from Google and Yelp more than they trust the advice of their own friends and family, so you’ve got to be present and popular.

To fill out your listings properly, make sure everything is always accurate and consistent across all platforms. You can’t be listed as “Jones & Stevenson Automotive” on Google My Business and “Jones and Stevenson Inc.” on Yelp; your SEO will take a huge hit.

Keep everything listed the same way and always encourage your happy customers to leave you a rating and review on their favorite listings site. This is invaluable for staying relevant online.

5. Email and Messenger

Email and Messenger marketing are an important tool for customer retention and advertising as a whole. Your online presence is always going to be tied to your brand, your reputation, and your ability to let people know about you without annoying them.

Email marketing in particular is a difficult concept to master. It is essential to advertise the right deals and promotions to the right people, but with too much repetition, your message will end up in the spam folder. Putting the work into figuring out what your customers want to see will help you navigate this problem.

6. Provide Content

Content is everything these days. If you don’t give your audience a consistent stream of informative and entertaining content, you can bet your biggest competitor will. The source can come from blogs, videos, social media, and pretty much anything else you can think of.

Again, this all ties into your SEO strategy. If you can develop a strong voice and brand through multiple channels, it’ll create a domino effect and your online presence will go through the roof.

7. Working On Your Brand

Brand building is a phrase you’ll see a lot when you research how to increase your internet presence. Your brand is the voice, appearance, and overall “vibe” that your customers associate with your company.

All the best and biggest businesses in the world have extremely strong brands, so it’s vital to invest time and effort into building and evolving your brand. Get your whole company to buy into what you’re selling and your brand will permeate every facet of your online presence.

8. Never Stop Researching

To have great online presence management, constantly work at it and use the tools available to you. The internet progresses rapidly; even last year’s marketing trends are a thing of the past now!

Make sure you’ve got a strong, creative marketing team that can build your brand, understand SEO concepts, and produce amazing content regularly. It is a key component for small businesses to stay afloat.

Online Presence Management Is Key

“Online presence management” isn’t merely something you check in on from time to time, ensuring that everything’s still running smoothly. Your company’s online presence is something every employee should have an eye on, because it affects every aspect of the business.

Online presence is the pulse of any successful company, so follow these tips and keep it strong. Working with a great marketing company is always the best way to do that. Contact us at MAD Group to find out how our group of talented and experienced marketing professionals can increase your online presence today.

Digital marketing is unavoidable these days. Make the most of it by staying up to date with digital marketing trends, according to a San Diego SEO expert 2022.

Over the past couple of years, SEO digital marketing trends have evolved around being mobile-friendly.

With more and more people searching on their phones for online businesses, it’s more important than ever that businesses are able to capitalize and make their business more SEO optimized.

But in order for businesses to integrate SEO into their content and website, they need to know about the most current trends.

In this article, San Diego SEO expert explains the 7 best digital marketing trends of 2022 to follow. These trends will not only boost traffic to your business, they will modernize your business and give you a higher conversion rate.

1. Mobile-Friendly SEO

Although briefly mentioned, it’s important to dive deeper into how you can make your business website more mobile-friendly. Making it mobile-friendly can help your website rank higher because Google sees it as being mobile-friendly.

In fact, Google will soon be mobile-indexing instead of only doing desktop indexing.

It shows the value of ensuring your content reads easily on a mobile device. You want to make sure the download speeds are fast as well.

2. Quality Content Rules

Another trend to follow in digital marketing is the quality of content is becoming more and more valuable.

Anyone can write a basic blog post. But in order to write original content, it takes to research and will typically be longer than your average post. It gives the reader everything they need from a single post.

Writing quality content also involves adding keywords organically. You don’t want to overstuff on the keywords. You want to add them organically throughout your content and on your website so Google ranks higher.

Finally, if you want to maximize quality content, you also need to add keywords strategically into your headers, subheaders, meta description, and URLs.

3. More Personalization

A lot of businesses use automatic email marketing or messaging to communicate with customers. However, this often can hurt relationships with the customer.

That’s why personalization is one of the recent trends in digital marketing. That means, instead of sending an email blast, it’s better to send personalized emails.

It may take longer to send personalized emails, but it will be more rewarding because you responding to each person uniquely.

4. Video Marketing

Video is also another trend in digital marketing. Almost 70% of business executives visit a marketer’s website after they’ve seen one of their videos.

It shows the power of video marketing and how easy it is to convey information. However, to get the most out of your videos, you need to keep them short and concise. It will help keep someone’s attention about what they are watching.

You should also optimize your video for SEO. That means creating an accurate meta description of your video and adding a relevant title.

5. Customer Experience Is More Important Than Ever

Another important digital marketing trend is the customer experience. Your business needs a brand that appeals to the customer.

For example, you want your brand to tell a story about your customer. Your website, your content, and everything about your business should tell a compelling story about your customer.

When you do this, it helps create a memorable customer experience. You are telling a story that makes the customer’s experience more memorable.

6. Voice Search

Alexa and Google Assistance are some examples of voice search. They are becoming more common to search for items.

While your business doesn’t have to create a product like Alexa, it can create voice advertisements to put on Alexa or Google Assistant. You can create unique advertisements that speak to your brand and enhances the user experience.

7. Interactive Content

Instead of having content that people read, it’s important to consider how they interact with your content. When your consumers interact with your content, they become a participant instead of a spectator.

Some of the ways to add interactive content are to add quizzes and polls. You can ask people questions about what they thought about your articles or what they think about your products.

When you add more interactive content, the customer feels more connected with the brand. They are immersed in the story that your brand gives to them.

8. Be a Part of Social Media

Social media has been trending for years and will continue to be a top trend in digital marketing.

Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Snapchat, and other social media platforms are a great way to advertise and promote your business. It’s a great way to give your business a presence and show what you have to offer.

With social media, you can promote videos, give quizzes, and offer more engagement for the users. It’s the perfect opportunity to spread brand awareness.

You can also advertise to a specific audience. You can retarget audiences who clicked on your advertisement.

If you want to see how we help business with their social media presence and their overall marketing strategy, check out our work here.

Why It’s Important to Follow Digital Marketing Trends

Businesses need to understand the consumer and their behavior in the market. The advice of a San Diego expert on these digital marketing trends helps you understand the consumer’s behavior.

You understand what they are interested in and how your business can adapt to their interest. If you want your business to stay relevant, it’s important to follow these trends. Ultimately, your business can generate more traffic, more conversions, and maintain a relationship with customers by adopting these trends.

If you want help with your digital marketing plan, contact us here.

As a business owner in San Diego, it’s crucial to have an exceptional online presence. San Diego SEO marketing is the most efficient way to increase your company’s online visibility. In this blog post, we’ll discuss what SEO is and how a digital agency in San Diego can help you improve your SEO strategies to boost your business’s online presence.

What is SEO Marketing?

SEO marketing aims to improve your website’s and online content’s placement on search engine results pages (SERPs) for pertinent keywords. Your website has a better chance of showing up at the top of the search results when someone uses one of these keywords, which increases the possibility that they will click on it and buy something.

Why is SEO Important for Businesses in San Diego?

With the majority of people turning to the internet to research products and services before making a purchase, it’s more important than ever for San Diego businesses to have a strong online presence.

Optimizing your site and online content for search engines can increase your visibility and reach more potential customers. This can lead to more website traffic, more leads, and, ultimately, more sales.

How Can a Digital Agency in San Diego Help with SEO?

A Digital Agency San Diego can help you improve your SEO strategies in a number of ways. Here are some of the examples that you must know:

• Keyword Research: If you wish to get trending keywords to target for your company, a digital agency can conduct keyword research. They can also help you identify long-tail keywords, which are more specific and have less competition but can still drive significant traffic to your website.

• On-Page Optimization: A digital agency can assist you in optimizing your website’s content and structure for search engines. This entails making your website mobile-friendly, loading quickly, and optimizing your header tags, meta descriptions, and title tags.

• Off-Page Optimization: A digital agency can also help you improve your off-page SEO, which includes things like link building and social media marketing. This can help increase your website’s authority and visibility in search engine results in pages.

• Analytics and Reporting: A digital agency can track your website’s performance and provide regular reports on your SEO progress. This can assist you in locating problem areas and assisting in the development of data-driven decisions regarding your SEO strategy.

• Local SEO: A digital agency can also help you align your site for local search, which is crucial for San Diego businesses. This will include different aspects such as listing over Google My Business, getting listed in online directories, and analyzing and incorporating local keywords on your website.

Why Choose a Local Digital Agency in San Diego?

When choosing a San Diego SEO marketing company to help with your SEO, it’s important to consider working with a local agency. Some of the reasons are:

• Local Knowledge: A local digital agency in San Diego will have a deep understanding of the local market and what works best for businesses in the area. They can also help you target local keywords and optimize your website for local search.

• Personalized Service: A local digital agency will be able to provide more personalized service and attention than a larger national agency. They will take the time to get to know your business and understand your unique needs and goals.

Grow Your Business in Real Time and Witness Incredible Results

SEO works for a relatively long time. It is unlike the concept of paid advertising, which won’t work once your payment stops. Digital Agency San Diego can continue to drive traffic and leads to your website for months or even years after the initial optimization work is done.

Businesses need every resource they can to make an impact these days and when it comes to digital marketing that means search engine optimization. A San Diego SEO expert can help you take your business to the next level.

SEO isn’t just putting keywords on your website. It’s a complex tapestry of marketing that includes everything from the content on your site to the business listings on websites like Yelp. You can try doing it yourself, but the time invested and the results by someone untrained could be mixed.

Check out the many reasons why today’s businesses need expert SEO for their website and beyond.

Business Competition is Fierce

San Diego and the surrounding area takes up a lot of real estate. There are likely numerous businesses just like yours and they’re doing their own SEO. If you’re a business that sells nationally or internationally, then that competition is fiercer.

Website rankings play a big part in what people choose when they research businesses or topics related to the services you offer. If your competition is on page one and you’re on page three, then your business never gets seen.

You’re losing customers and revenue because all your competition is rankings higher than you on Google, Yahoo and Bing. You can spend thousands of dollars are on a top-notch website, but it doesn’t matter if no one sees it.

Search engine optimization’s single purpose is to make your website more visible on search engines. By utilizing amazingly written content and proper keyword selection, your website can climb the rankings and get seen before your competitors.

Few people go beyond the first search page and many don’t go beyond the first few search results. If you want to stand out and be a leader in the rankings, then your business needs SEO.

Google is Constantly Changing So Use A San Diego SEO Expert

When Google first came around, the algorithm was simple and easy to beat. People could stuff their website with keywords and buy backlinks from random websites and soar the top of the search results. Websites that were not worth being there still ranked and Google did not like this.

They’ve advanced and developed their algorithm over the years to make it more difficult to cheat the system. Google is a business and wants their customers to get the best product they can. If the search results don’t focus on what they want and provide websites that have the answers they need, then Google is failing its customers.

SEO is constantly evolving to keep up with the changes Google makes. The tactics that worked only a few months ago could be negated by an algorithm update. You need SEO experts that are constantly on the lookout for changes in search rankings and can re-evaluate SEO strategies based on those changes.

SEO is important, but it’s also important to not continue to do strategies that hurt your business because you didn’t realize there was an algorithm change. Businesses must keep up to date with changes or have an SEO expert on hand to do it for you.

Organic Traffic Still Rules

There are many ways a person can get to your website from social media to paid advertisements. These are all wonderful additions to your digital marketing strategy, but search engine traffic is still the leading traffic getter for more websites.

How many banners and search ads have you dismissed without even really seeing them. They’ve become so common that they’re in the background and mostly unnoticed.

When people want to know about a business, product or service, they Google it. Google handles billions of searches each day from all around the world and don’t discount the other search engines too.

If you want to get your piece of that traffic, then you need to rank well on the search engines. The only way to do that quickly and efficiently is through search engine optimization.

That’s not to say the other forms of digital marketing aren’t a good investment, but they need to be part of a whole package. Check your Google Analytics and see how much traffic comes to your website from Google organic.

It probably dwarfs all your other forms of qualified traffic. Don’t underestimate the power of organic traffic and the ability for SEO to drive it to you.

SEO Builds Expertise, Authority, and Trustworthiness

Recently, one of the biggest changes Google made to its algorithm was called EAT. It stands for expertise, authority, and trustworthiness. Google has always put a focus on those qualities, but it’s seen set into the algorithm.

How do you measure EAT? Google isn’t coming forward with a lot of answers on that, but SEO experts have ideas on the best ways to grow your EAT through SEO. SEO helps create high authority backlinks from websites connected to your niche.

SEO uses long-form optimized blog posts to show your expertise in the field. It helps build reviews and show people you’re a trustworthy source for the information. Also, creating well-thought web content, you’re helping with user experience on your site.

Everything SEO does to help your website rankings builds your EAT. Google notices these changes over time and you’ll notice your rankings begin to climb week after week and month after month. You might even find your blogs part of Google’s Q & A or other snippets that appears above the search results.

Focus on Local SEO

If you’re a business that serves a specific area or region, then you’ll need local SEO. The main difference between local and national SEO is local tries to rank you well for searches within that region.

It uses regional and city-specific keywords to help tell Google the areas you service. Blog posts include geographic keywords, so it shows up for people that use those geographic keywords.

For example, if you’re a central air company in San Diego, then you might want to use keywords such as central air repair in San Diego.

Local SEO also includes making sure you have local backlinks, a properly filled out Google My Business profile and Google Maps integration on your website.

Many times, local searches include a map and a listing of businesses pertaining to their search query. SEO helps you be a part of that and included in with the other businesses.

Local SEO also includes making sure your business information is correct on various business listings and review websites like Yelp. These sites rank well and many times the information isn’t correct. You don’t want someone to visit a Yelp page and find that your phone number or business hours are wrong.

SEO is Less Expensive in the Long Run

The problem with social media and paid digital marketing is they cost money. If you really want to reach people on social media, then you need to boost posts. The days of free long-reaching social media posts are long over.

With Google Ads, you can spend hundreds or thousands on ads and unless your campaigns are run well, end up with little in return.

If you do it yourself, SEO is free, but it’s time-consuming and you have a business to run. Professional SEO services cost money, but once you reach a good ranking in the search results it’s hard to knock you off. You’ll find the efforts are worth it in the long term.

SEO isn’t something that happens overnight. That’s why it’s important to have a short-term and long-term marketing strategy. It takes time for the changes to be made on your site, Google to notice those changes and then change the rankings.

SEO requires patience, but it’s worth the wait when your organic traffic starts increasing by leaps and bounds. It’s the type of investment that continues to grow long after you’ve switched to different strategies.

SEO Helps You Understand Your Traffic

Unlike Google Ads, it’s a little more difficult to quantify the results of SEO. With Google Ads, you have tons of metrics that let you know how much traffic came from what ad and how much it cost.

SEO doesn’t have anything like that, but there is Google Analytics. SEO is primary concerned with improving search engine rankings, growing your traffic and improving your conversions.

Google Analytics is a free application by Google that lets you examine your traffic sources and see where your traffic comes from and where it goes. When coupled with Google Search Console you can get a comprehensive look at traffic and how your SEO impacts it.

Changes made for SEO may take a few weeks or months to truly catch on with Google. You’ll be able to watch and see how the SEO impacts your traffic over time, see if it helps increase conversion and what pages are being viewed by this new traffic.

If SEO focused on a specific set of pages and suddenly those pages received an increase in organic traffic, then you know the SEO works. You can check conversions and see if the traffic led to conversion or just to page hits.

SEO Shows You new Opportunities

You know your products and services better than anyone. You may think SEO should focus on one area because it’s a popular item or service. An SEO expert may suggest a different area because he recognizes you have an SEO deficit in that area.

It could be a product or service you don’t know as well, so you didn’t put in keywords naturally when creating the category or product descriptions. They may identify that people are asking questions about a specific product and suggest a blog post answering that question.

When you have an expert at SEO helping you, they take an impartial view and look at the data. They see trends, deficits and opportunities you may not see.

That blog post may help improve your traffic 15 percent or lead to a 5 percent increase in conversions. You know your business and may want to focus on a specific area, but many times you can improve other areas and get a better return on investment based on your current rankings.

SEO experts look at keywords competition and search volume to determine what would be the best keywords for your business to focus on. They may suggest long-tail keywords that have less search volume but would be easier for you to rank for and this gains traffic and conversions.

It’s Proven the Test of Time

There are many digital marketing avenues out there, but few have been around as long as SEO. As soon as search engines began, people were trying to get that number one page rank. SEO was around since the Internet was in its infancy.

While the SEO of today is a far cry from days past, it’s evolved and changes with the search engines. As the algorithms became more complicated, so did SEO. We rely heavily on data, best practices and lots of know-how to maximize your rise in page rank.

Businesses who need a method of digital marketing that is time tested need to have SEO. Page rank is as important today as it was a decade ago, if not more. Making your SEO meets the needs of mobile users, schema to provide context to Google and more are all part of the SEO experience.

SEO experts have spent countless hours learning the ins and outs of the digital marketing process and how to use SEO in conjunction with other applications such as boosting blogs through social media.

Businesses Need SEO

Search engine optimization is a vital part of any business’s digital marketing portfolio. Organic search results are still a leading traffic provider for websites and SEO is less expensive than other types of digital marketing.

If a business wants to be competitive in today’s digital marketplace, then they need a San Diego SEO expert on their site. If you want to learn more information about search engine optimization and how it can help your business, then please explore our site.

Consider who your audience is and what they would think if they received a printed piece that is more casual versus more professional. If your business is an art gallery or has an upscale clientele, it may be better to use a professional printer. On the other hand, a taco shop that has a temporary, over-the-counter promotion using flyers may not require a professional printer. Also, if you are printing small quantities of a hundred or less or if you need your prints quickly, a professional printer might not be the way to go. Set up time and costs are expensive for professional printers. Lastly, consider what your competitors are doing and try to do it better. As a consumer yourself, what would your expectations be?

Print quality has improved tremendously on the low-end and high-end of printing over the past five years. Expectations are now much higher than they were before. When you have the budget to do it professionally, you should definitely NOT do it yourself.

Why? Because professional printing offers so many options for paper quality, coating finishes, high resolution printing, colors and is more flexibility in cutting, folding, embossing, binding, and so on.

Find out what the strengths and limitations are on the equipment you’re printing on and then design your marketing materials accordingly. Sometimes gradations in certain colors don’t show up well on laser copy machines and you usually can’t print to the edge of the paper. In addition, keep your designs simple and use strong messaging and headlines. Usually when you use powerful headlines and subheads on marketing pieces, readers don’t notice the limitations of printing because they are captivated by the message. If you depend heavily on the visual aspect, more is riding on the print quality. Conclusion: Do-it-yourself print works better with a strong message.

This DIY SEO Tip Still Works

Every small business is chasing the golden ticket to SEO. In such a competitive environment, with Search Engine Optimization playing an imperative role in reaching audiences, figuring out how to get on the first page of Google and other search engines is no easy feat. Even large companies with dedicated marketing teams work constantly to maintain or elevate their Search Engine Results Page (SERP) ranking.

As SEO and the understanding of relative algorithms have evolved, so too have the tactics for getting that proverbial golden ticket, landing that proverbial big one – the coveted first page.

Early SEO Strategies: How We Finally Got It Right.

Believe it or not, in the early days, webmasters and self-proclaimed SEO gurus were actually more on-target than those following relatively recent trends. Website and search engines originally had the same, singular objective, which was to reach users and convert them (be it to purchase, signup, watch a video or read an article). Then came the cannibalistic idea of appeasing algorithms. While this is certainly necessary, the approach of trying to appeal to search engines led good web content to be devoured by bad web content. Search engines hated it, and Internet users were confused and frustrated by all the redundant, hyperbolized, boilerplate messaging. According to Google’s Maile Ohye, a Developer Programs Tech Lead, this all went down around 2005.

Luckily, like fashion trends, SEO trends are cyclical. We’re no longer in the regrettable “80s Hair-Dos and Neon Spandex” days of SEO, when websites were littered with keywords in vain attempts to nail arbitrary keyword density ratios. Websites are finally coming back around to what’s most important for SEO: The User Experience. When a website shows it’s putting the user first, meaning pages are easy to navigate and are populated with informative, compelling and cohesive content, search engines reward it with a better ranking.

If your content is like candy (sweet) and your website is up to date, you’re on the right track. If not, refine it, test it, refine it some more.

Remember: When It Comes To SEO, Your Website’s First Impression Isn’t Your Website.

When Internet users search a keyword or a phrase on Google (or on the off chance they use Bing), they’re greeted with upwards of 100,000 results. Your website – you hope – is tucked in among the throng of relevant and irrelevant pages. To make it to the top of the Google rankings

takes time and effort. And while an SEO company can help you achieve this goal, there are many strategies that small business owners and marketing managers can do on your own to optimize your site and stand out to searchers.

One of the most important elements of on-site SEO is the snippet. A snippet, as the sobriquet suggests, is a snippet of code, comprised of two main parts: the title element (AKA title tag), which is the blue headline you see when you search a keyword or phrase; and the description, which is the one-to-three sentence blurb you see under the aforementioned title element.

Title tags and descriptions work in two distinct, yet important ways. The title tag is where important keywords should go. Google crawlers will search your site, see your title tag and use it as one of many factors determining your website’s relevance. However, it’s vital that you don’t jam your title tag with keywords; your title tag should instead contain relevant information about your company and the services you provide.

Utilized properly, the code for title elements should be unique for every page of your website. Likewise, it should be updated as your website is updated. For instance, as the Holidays approach, and you have merchandise to move, you’ll ideally update your website’s snippets to reflect what a great opportunity your audience has to buy gifts for friends, family or – more than likely – themselves. If you have a robust website, this will undoubtedly be a lugubrious process.

There are two viable alternatives: Leaving snippets blank; and using a tag manager.

Leaving a snippet blank won’t result in nothing appearing when searchers enter a keyword or phrase to find your website. Instead, Google will parse information from your website and do it for you. This is okay if you’re not concerned with how your audience views your search result. But it can leave potential viewers with incomplete information and thus an incomplete idea of what they’ll find by clicking through to your site. If you’ve ever seen ellipses (…) in the tags or descriptions on search pages, it’s because Google has combined multiple snippets, or grabbed an unfinished statement. Though it’s easy to just let Google do the work for you, the downside is that it often takes months and months for your page to be updated. The result may be missed opportunities to connect with your audience.

Some companies use a tag manager, much like the one offered by Google. This allows you to facilitate the process of managing your snippet. But you do have to get an account.

Identifying Title Tags:

Exploring HTML sounds daunting, especially because you’re not entirely sure what HTML stands for. Don’t worry, this will be little more than a crash course in dipping your toe in the water.

First, do a Google search for anything you want. Our coffee machine has been broken for a while, jeopardizing the quality of our clients’ projects due to insufficient caffeine levels throughout our creative department. So, we used “New Coffee Machine” as our search query. Then we scrolled down to a result that caught our eye. It happened to be from Good Housekeeping.

After clicking on the link you like, right click on the web pages background and select “View Page Source” (in Google Chrome; other browsers use different terminology) to view the website’s HTML and find the title element. Looking at Good Housekeeping’s page source, we see their title tag nestled between the title element…

… and the description under the

See how the search title matches the HTML title element? And how the search snippet matches the snippet of description code? It’s pretty apparent that Good Housekeeping tailors their title tags to specific pages on their website, in this case, the page features 21 of the best coffee makers. Now try this with any page on your website. If your pages’ snippets aren’t descriptive, pay close attention to the tips and instructions below.

(Note that we searched “New Coffee Machine” but the omniscient Google understood “coffee machines” is a relative search to the more widely searched term “coffee makers.” And, thus, it drove us to useful information. Good job Good Housekeeping. Props to you, Google.)

Search Engine Poetry: Writing Relevant Snippets

Sitting down to a blank title tag is somewhat akin to sitting down to a blank piece of paper to begin your magnum opus. Relax, here are a few proven guidelines so you know what to do and, more importantly, what not to do.

Know your limits

Unlike your magnum opus, your website’s title tags and descriptions can’t go on forever. Moz, a leading voice in SEO, recommends keeping your title elements between 55-60 characters for Google results, stating that titles under 55 characters long will show completely around 95% of the time. This is because the perimeter is not the character count, but a 512-pixel display.

As far as your description is concerned, you have about 160 characters to work with before your description is truncated. Bing and Yahoo apparently try to fit as much in as they can, but if keeping it concise means pleasing everybody, why wouldn’t you?

It’s all about the deets

Write your title tags to be as detailed but concise as possible. We often see DIY websites and those made by template designers lacking in this regard. Google doesn’t recommend keeping the page name, such as “home” or “about”, in the title or the URL. Instead, make this title coherent, relevant, and interesting. Don’t be verbose; be interesting, not impressive.

Stuffing is for turkeys

Google strongly tries to dissuade “keyword stuffing.” Jamming your title tags with repetitive keywords or variants of a single word or phrase gives the appearance of spamming and could make your site look untrustworthy to both search engines and searchers. That said, we haven’t read a statement from Google outright stating it will punish websites for doing this, but they have stated it won’t help your Google ranking. Essentially, it’s better to not look like a used-car salesman, even if you are a really, really good used-car salesman.

Your 15 seconds of fame

Most users know what they’re looking for when they search a keyword or phrase, meaning your snippet only has a snippet of time to snag their attention. This is where our branding can come into play. If you’re a previous or current client, consider using the tagline, slogan, positioning statement or combination thereof that we created for you in your title tag and/or description.

For example, if San Diego Small Business Marketing Services (SDSBMS) merged with Marketing and Advertising Design Group (MAD Group) to create a single, San Diego-based super agency, we might combine the SDSBMS tagline with the MAD slogan for a title tag which reads, “Practical Action-Steps To Make Your Business Matter More.” That should catch users’ attention, and at 57 characters it should appear perfectly on all SERPs. We’ll then entice users with a relevant, interesting, and coherent description so they know to click through for a great marketing experience.

Get Definitional – Descriptions should be descriptive

A great SEO tip is to create a unique description for every page, i.e. an informative snippet for every page of your website. Even for things like team bios, a detailed description (like facts and stats) will help users know exactly what’s on your page. This means you could be more likely to attract readers attention.

Quality counts.

Search engines strongly encourage webmasters and anyone managing a website to aim for high-quality descriptions. Because the meta descriptions aren’t displayed in the pages the user sees, it’s easy to let this content slide,” Explains the Google webmaster support page. “But high-quality descriptions can be displayed in Google’s search results, and can go a long way to improving the quality and quantity of your search traffic.”

Okay, young grasshopper, you’re ready to optimize.

Great, you’ve now got an overview of how title elements and description code work. Not to mention, you’ve probably come up with some descriptive, relevant, interesting tags that you want to use to attract visitors to your site. If so, it’s finally time to start implementing them.

Editing Title Tags and Descriptions In Joomla

If you have a Joomla website, changing the title tags is easy. Install the plugin called sh404SEF, if it’s not already installed.

1. Under Components, go to sh404SEF, then click Url manager.

2. Once you’re in the URL Manager, type into the Search bar the name of the page you want to give a title tag and description tag to. For this example, we used the About page. Then, select the correct page from the list. Next, click on Title and Meta Tags. Fill in a great title tag under Page Tag and an interesting and informative description under Description Tag. That’s it!

Editing Title Tags and Descriptions in WordPress

If you have a WordPress site, changing the title tags is easy. Install the plugin called Ultimate SEO, if it’s not already installed.

1. Log into your Admin.

2. Under the Dashboard menu, click on Pages and select the page you want to give a title and description tag to.

3. Scroll down to the SEO Settings. From here you can edit the Title Tag and Meta Description under Search Engine Listings, as well as in the Social Networks Listings.

Alternatively, you can roll over SEO towards the bottom of your menu panel. Then click on Meta Descriptions. Select the Pages tab to enter the meta description you want into the text box.

That’s All Folks!

And so, there you have it. Now, we certainly must impress that there is much more to SEO than perfect snippets. A lot has to do with the content quality and user interface of your website. A lot more has to do with the amount traffic your site receives, strategic and high-quality link building, and even popularity from social media platforms. However, having an appealing snippet for each page, with informative and well-crafted title elements and meta descriptions in place, will only work to your benefit.

We encourage all of our clients give this a try. Most clients will have experienced our one-hour web training session, which establishes a foundational understanding of entry-level website maintenance. If you’ve taken this course, you should do just fine.

If you simply don’t want to hassle with code, or don’t have the time to go through each page of your website, feel free to give M.A.D. Group a call. Our web designers can populate each page with title tags and meta descriptions for you. Just supply the descriptions you’d like to use. If writing isn’t your forte, our copywriter can craft creative and relevant descriptions for you.

Those of you not exploring small business video are missing out!

Video is becoming the top content choice among many Internet users. So, it makes perfect sense why you’d want to explore video marketing.

What better way to reach people than with a super engaging (and fun) format?

Below, you’ll find some of our best tips, tricks, and strategies for making video work for your business. Follow these tips and you’ll see brand awareness, lead generation, and sales grow.

1. Learn the Basics, Make Mistakes, and Have Fun with Video Production

The video format is one of the most enjoyable to explore. You get to tap the full potential of creativity without feeling pressured to perform. The hardest thing to overcome is your willingness to be on camera but even that you can avoid!

Learn the Basics

There are many beginner video marketing guides there to support your beginner efforts. YouTube, for example, has a creator academy that shares everything needed to get started — all for free.

Make Mistakes (Often)

You’ll learn more from the mistakes you make along the way than the ones you read about. The best way to learn production is by going through the process without nit-picking. Be okay with failing because you will get better as you go.

Have Fun

What’s the point of exploring video for your business if it’s a slog? You should have fun creating them! Let the videos be your way of exploring fresh ideas you otherwise couldn’t do through other means.

Bring It Together

Video production is a skill anyone can learn given they’re committed. Going through the process will make the skills sink in. This openness to experiment and be creative is more powerful than any specific video tip.

2. Learn from Your Competitors, Creative Peers, and the Industry

Online video has a pretty extensive history dating back to the early ’90s. YouTube added to its popularity and commonplace. Today, many people watch more online video and streaming than they do television!

What does all this mean?

Well, creators have a pretty strong understanding of what people want. They also have video metrics to lean on. Plus, we’re starting to see best practices form with online video and its presentation.

Here is what you can do:

1. Round up about 10 to 15 video creators in your niche
2. Watch the top 2 or 3 videos of each of these creators
3. Take notes about their presentation and video formatting
4. Find a common thread between the best videos in your industry
5. Create a new template you’ll use as a starting point for your production

The elements you may discover could include:

• Video length and editing type
• Presentation preferences
• Call-outs and graphic choices

This doesn’t mean rip off the best person out there creating videos. It means to learn something from them since you know what they do works. Leverage their work to get a head start when exploring and growing with video.

3. Let Others Tell Stories for You

Here’s the thing about creating video…

…a lot of people will see it as a commercial and this is a turn-off.

User-generated content is a fantastic way to offer authentic content to the community. This content is also dirt cheap to produce and plentiful.

UGC also gives a better peek into the community and its culture. This is quite welcoming to others thinking about getting behind your brand.

Here is how you can explore UGC:

• Hold a content where people join through video submissions
• Livestream and interact with viewers that also call in via video
• Do one-on-one talks or interviews with community members
• Encourage the community to make videos about your products

People like being the center of attention. They also like sharing their experiences with a great product, service, or event. Use the excitement to get content from your vocal community members.

What do you do after content gets created? Try:

• Sharing it on your social channels and have them help promote it too
• Drop a thank you and follow-up to “lock-in” their brand commitment
• Ask if they know others willing to contribute video content

People are more willing to trust reviews from peers vs what’s touted by a brand. Video content is the perfect method to deliver these reviews and experiences.

4. Explore a Variety of Video Formats and Types

You’re not bound to explainers or tutorials when creating a video for your business. Nor are you stuck to screencasts or drone-like interviews.

There are several formats worth exploring like:

• Brand and storytelling videos
• Corporate or TT commercials
• Training and customer support pieces

Variety is in your favor especially if your competitors stick to a tired format. Your videos will stand out among the rest, and this means more views.

Our suggestions? Try doing this:

1. Try at least one of each video format
2. Note the feedback and video analytics
3. Narrow in on a handful of formats that work
4. Refine what works but still experiment

Templates get created for the standard video formats from this process. Then, you have time to get creative and try new formats when the old ones get stale.

5. Do the Video “Tricks” That Work (For Now)

Online video is forever evolving so it’s hard to say what will stick. So, use what’s captivating everyone’s attention and evolve as it goes.

What are these “tricks” to do in your videos? Consider:

• Editing pauses between sentences, tightening up the presentation
• Using a quick but branded introduction graphic, video roll, or animation
• Leaving space for call-outs at the end to encourage content exploration

You can also try things like:

• Standardizing video thumbnails so they’re branded and recognizable
• Having a regular schedule much like having a show or series
• Complimenting recorded video with live streaming efforts

Make sure to get videos embedded onto your business site, too. Adding the video will boost the view count and encourage interaction. This can “jump-start” video marketing efforts by leveraging the community.

Add a touch of on-page SEO and the video (and page) will get a healthy bump in search, too. This further improves the video’s reach and branding efforts.

Captivate and Convert with Small Business Video

Small business video can become monumental for your branding lead generation, and sales. Getting started with it is easy, but it does pose one major hurdle: finding the time to make it happen.

Video benefits from consistency much like other forms of content. You may find this hard to do when you’ve got a business to run.

Let us take over the hard stuff while you come up with the big, fun ideas.

We offer several video specialties. And, we have a proven record of creating quality videos for our clients. We’d love to talk with you about how we can deliver the same, exceptional experience to yours.

Call 619-866-6148 or click to learn about our video production services.

A great way to promote your business is to promote someone else’s.

As strange as that may sound, it’s true. When your company partners with a charitable organization, you’re not just raising money for those in need. Social cause marketing is one of the best ways to prove your business stands by your code of ethics and wants to do good in the world.

So, what is a social cause, exactly? Some examples of social causes include:

• Fighting poverty
• Preventing bullying
• Civil Rights Advocacy
• LGBTQ+ advocacy
• Fighting for or against immigration
• Raising money for life-saving medical research
• Helping the homeless, etc.

And what better way to spread the word about your social cause than… well, social media! (Feel like I should have seen that coming.)

Keep reading for promotion strategies that will help you market your good cause across social media.

Why Focus on Social Cause Marketing?

Don’t think of this as a once-a-year, obligatory charity giving activity. Running a truly successful cause marketing campaign could improve the face of your brand forever.

In a recent global study, 91% of millennial consumers said they would likely switch to a brand that supports a good cause for no change in price or quality. That’s pretty amazing. Our information-driven society has started to care more about making a difference than looking out for ourselves.

One of the best cause marketing examples is Chase Bank’s Community Giving Project from 2010.

First, Chase Bank spread the word that they were going to donate a total of more than $5 Million to local causes that deserve them. But rather than choose the causes themselves, they gave their social following the chance to vote.

In November of 2009, Chase used Facebook to let consumers nominate all their favorite low budget organizations. Over the next few months, users voted for who should receive each round of grants. By January of 2010, Chase had their $1Million grant finalist and several million new social media followers.

In a matter of months, Chase Bank changed from being a typical, cold, financial institution. Now they’re the first bank to run a wildly successful community giving event that others now try to replicate.

See where we’re going with this?

The Greatest Benefit of Cause Marketing

Consumers today care more about corporate social responsibility (CSR) than ever. Put your money where your company ethics are to turn passive shoppers into raving fans.

Cause marketing appeals to our higher nature. By affiliating your brand with an amazing, positive message you move your marketing focus from what your company does to why you do it.

Choose a cause that embodies the heart of your company mission statement. When your audience sees what you care about and how much money you’re willing to put behind it, they’ll develop a new respect for your brand.

A word of caution: Your audience can tell when you’re faking it for the likes and shares. Make sure your altruism is authentic no matter how the social campaign works out in the end.

Finished doing your research? Great.

Now, how should you use social media to promote your cause marketing campaign? Here are three of the most important steps…

1. Require Follower Interaction

Do whatever you can to get your followers to engage with your social cause posts. Likes, shares, comments, and reposts are the currency of social media platforms.

Here are common examples of how to do this while raising money for a cause:

• Pledge to donate $1 (or other amounts) for every “Share” on Facebook
• Pledge to donate $0.50 for every Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and Facebook post that uses your branded hashtag
• Invite followers to post their own photos of a relevant object in exchange for donating the price of that object to a person in need
• Ask followers to vote, spread the word, or share relevant personal stories

Point being, reward engagement with donations as much as possible. This way, folks at home get that amazing “I just made a donation” feeling simply by pressing the like button.

2. Publish Content Targeting Relevant Holidays

Take advantage of trending hashtags relating to upcoming holidays.

People seek out holiday content when they want to take a break from run-of-the-mill cat GIFs and feel some profound emotions. You couldn’t ask for a better setting in which to bring up your amazing cause.

Let’s say for example you’re supporting a cause that benefits military veterans. Publish your social media content leading up to Memorial Day with relevant hashtags. Ask followers to leave comments or reply to your Instagram story with their plans for Memorial Day weekend.

National holidays generate tons of hashtags, trending phrases, and geotags. Take advantage of this! People are already looking at their phones to post about the holidays, so make sure your cause is one of the things they see.

3. Set a Measurable Goal and Share Progress

The most effective goals are SMART goals: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timely.

Exactly how much money are you hoping to raise or willing to match? How can your social followers impact this number? How much time do they have to do it?

Motivate your audience to raise a specific dollar amount, and tell them how many more shares or likes it’ll take to get there. Set a deadline for the campaign, and create a sense of urgency. Regularly keep everyone updated with the current progress toward that goal.

Most of all, celebrate and reward all kinds of progress. Having clear benchmarks gives you chances to reward your audience for participating.

Conclusion

Obviously, you should love helping social causes you believe in no matter who knows about it. But letting your consumers see what your company believes in by including them in the giving is so much more fun.

To see other ways we’ve helped companies like yours improve their brand image, check out our client success stories.

For a complete list of our services, click here.

Thanks for reading.

Compared to only 5% in 2005, these days 7 in 10 Americans are active on social media. 

If your small business in San Diego does not have the social media attention it needs, you could be missing out on sales. 

Although promoting on social media might seem scary, with only a few tips you can begin to see the difference. 

We put together some pro social networking tips to help you make it happen.

1. Start by Laying Out the Objectives

As a small business in San Diego, your social media success in the local market depends on how well you promote your accounts. 

Before you start a social media campaign to create more awareness, you need to have a strong plan, set goals, and objectives. If you don’t know what your ultimate goal is, then you won’t know how to get there.

Setting a plan from the start will also allow you to measure how successful said plan is. In case it doesn’t work as you expect it, you can go ahead and change it. 

2. Create a Plan for Each Social Media Platform

There are plenty of social media platforms to choose from. And as a small business in San Diego, you want to take advantage of all of the ones that make sense for your business. 

If you plan to use multiple platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, then you need to have a plan set for each one. 

Remember that each platform serves a different purpose so you can’t for one plan to work in all of them. Think about it as creating multiple mini-plans for each of your accounts. 

3. Select Carefully What You’ll Share

What you post on social media can make or break a business. Before you start posting, decide carefully what you want to share. Ask your team to come up with content ideas that will be relevant, entertaining, and helpful to your audience.

If you what you want to post is neither of those, then you should consider scratching it and starting over.

4. Consistency is Key 

For a small business in San Diego, it’s important to stay on people’s radars. If you only pop on their feeds once a week, chances are you’re not going to create the impression you want. 

Decide how often you want to post on each social media platform. Twitter, for example, moves quite fast, so the chances of people seeing your tweet are slimmer. You might want to consider posting a couple times a day if that makes the most sense.

Facebook and Instagram don’t move as fast, but you should still keep it consistent.

Take advantage of a social media planning schedule so you stay on track of your posting.  

5. Try Posting More Images 

In order to make your business in San Diego really shine on social media, you should take advantage of posting more images. 

While it’s important to also post quality content such as articles and blog posts, or even video, images tend to be more successful.

For example, 35% of images on Twitter get Retweets. That is compared to 19% of quotes and 28% of videos.

Images can also be shared by users across multiple channels.

6. Try a Social Media Management Tool

Small businesses in San Diego will benefit from having a social media management tool to help them out in their efforts. 

When you’re using multiple channels such as LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook it might be difficult to give each one the attention it needs. 

Social media management tools make it easier for a business to manage all their different accounts. A management tool makes it easy for a business to:

• Collaborate with the entire team
• Schedule all posts in advance
• Publish across all social media platforms
• Take a look at all the feeds in one place
• Look at the results of your efforts

There are many social media management tools to choose from depending on your business goals and your budget.

7. Listen to Your Customers Before Promoting

Before you start promoting your business on social media, listen to what your customers are saying. 

It will help you in your efforts if you can give your customers exactly what they want. They will appreciate the fact that you have been paying attention to what they’re saying rather than just promoting your business.

8. Find a Way to Measure Your Efforts

You can’t call a social media marketing strategy successful unless you can see the results. Before you let your social media efforts go to waste, you need to find a way to track your metrics.

At the very least you want to measure the following:

• Likes, comments, and mentions
• The reach and engagement on Facebook
• Impressions on Twitter
• Clicks and interactions on LinkedIn

Pay attention to these numbers on a weekly basis and discuss with your team. Each quarter take a look at the overall results to see how you did. 

9. Join Similar Communities

When you’re trying to make your business grow in a place like San Diego, it might help your social media efforts if you join local online communities.

Reach out to influencers in the area and look for ways to collaborate. Also look for other local businesses that are not competitors and interact with them. You might even want to join Facebook groups if it makes sense. 

10. Have a Contest 

If you spend time on social media, you must have seen some business or influencers having giveaways. This is a great way to draw attention to your business.

Consider having a giveaway or a contest and gear it only towards your customers in San Diego. Offer to give them a product or service they really want. 

This will make your audience more engaged in your social media accounts. They will most likely spread the word and you will get more followers. 

Pro Social Networking Tips in San Diego

Use these pro social networking tips and you will begin to see how your small business in San Diego catches the attention of customers. 

Need a little boost with your social media efforts? Let MAD Group help you. Contact us for a consultation and see what we’re all about. 

Increasing customer retention by 5% increases profits by 25% to 95%. One of the important things you can do to increase customer retention is building a trustworthy brand.

Branding is an essential part of building a sticky business where customers stick around for the long-term. Continue reading this article to learn the top branding trends of 2022.

What Is Branding?

Branding is not just creating a name, symbol or design that sets your company apart from other companies. Branding is your company’s unique personality, character and set of values. It is displayed with messaging, visuals and a strategy. Branding can also be created for each specific product or service as well.

If the market you are in is highly competitive, your branding will play a major role in your success.

Building Your Business Brand to Dominate

When you want to dominate in business, you need to build a trusted brand. With the right guidance, building a brand isn’t as difficult as it sounds. The below tips will help you see what you need to do to keep up in 2022.

1. Customer-Driven

When you’re working on your brand, you need to align it to your vision. These days, if you want to have an endearing brand, it needs to be true to who you are and customer-driven simultaneously.

What do your customers want? What is important to them? If you try to push your agenda on your customers, they are going to run the other way. Companies are getting better at connecting with customers. If you are behind the times on this, your bottom line is going to suffer.

Your customers want an experience they can brag about. Your customers want to know you are listening to what they want. Being customer-driven is the only way to go this year and from now on.

2. Niched Down Brand Ambassadors

Instead of fancy celebs and athletes, brands realize that niched down brand ambassadors are the way to go. Influencers that have a strong following can move the needle for brands more than other spokespeople.

The message of “if you talk to everyone, you talk to no one” is finally resonating with brands. As they niche down and talk to people specifically, brands see they can spend less money on marketing and still get a good return.

3. Content Creating

Content creation is becoming a necessity for brands that want to make it online. Content is a way to stay in front of your target market without being obnoxious. Even potential clients that sign up for your email list often aren’t at a place where they are ready to buy.

Brands that create content build goodwill with their potential clients. When it comes time to buy, soon-to-be customers are likely to have an email or bookmark of the company website.

4. Coaching

Taking it a step further are brands that offer coaching to help with their products and services. Instead of leaving customers to learn everything on their own, live webinars and Q&A sessions are put in place to help customers with their purchases.

Clients that get coaching are more likely to stay on with the company. The reason customers are more likely to stay on with companies that offer coaching is that they know how to use the product. Since they know how to use the product, they will get the results they want and continue to use the product or service.

While coaching through webinars and other mediums may cost the company money, the retention they are able to get makes up for it. Many times the retention doesn’t only make up for it, but it brings in more revenue.

5. Varying Logo

Branding experts have been against changing logos for as long as we can remember. Now not only are experts changing their tune about upgrading their logo but now companies may have more than one logo. Depending on the platform the logo is being displayed on, it may be a different variation.

6. Super Detailed

Companies are taking their logo and design to the next level. Creating super detailed and intricate designs and logos are meant to draw customer attention.

7. Neo-minimalism

Neo-minimalism is having a very minimal design with a lot of negative space. The parts that are not negative are very bright and colorful hence the neo in the name.

8. Playful Interactions

If you’ve interacted with any highly popular brands lately, you may have noticed that they have various playful interactions in place. You might see some funny hamster or cat gifs. Other companies even say funny things when they welcome you to their email newsletter.

Exciting Developments Happening in 2022

Even though we’re not even halfway through the year, it is easy to tell there is something special in the air. Developments are happening at an increasingly fast rate from voice search to augmented reality.

Now is the perfect time to be a business on the rise. The opportunities are endless and working on your brand is a necessity to capitalize on this exciting time in history.

Old brands are rethinking their strategies and trying to keep up with upstarts that challenge their market share. Companies that can “out think” the big guys have the opportunity to compete and even surpass some of the companies that are most well-known.

Every element of businesses from chatbots to online portals will be branded to get customers to embrace the message and community of the company. The use of the term family continues to rise, and more companies are creating a group of closely connected community members.

A Worry-Free Branding Strategy

Do you think that branding is important, but you’re not sure where to get started? Maybe you don’t want to go through the whole process on your own.

Instead of trying to figure out everything on your own and executing your plan on your own, let us help you. Contact us today to learn how we can help you put together a branding strategy that works for your business and market.

branding

Video is taking over more and more of our Internet time. According to the Digital Marketing Institute, the average person watches 1.5 hours of video every day.

That’s good news for marketers. In the same survey, 76% of marketers reported that video helped them increase sales for their companies.

Video can do the same for your company. Here are just some of the top video marketing trends you can take advantage of today that will help turn 2022 into your most successful digital marketing year yet.

First, we’ll look at some of the types of videos you can create for your company. Then we’ll look at how these videos are getting made in 2022 and what it is about them that makes them hot.

Types of Videos

There are so many different ways you can use video to build your business online that it’s not hard to see why video itself is one of the hottest digital marketing trends in 2022. Each video you make should try to fill only one of these video types to be the most successful it can be:

• Branding videos: tell a story about why your company is the best
• Promotional videos: show how a product or service will solve a particular need
• Training videos: teach someone how to use your product or service or how to do business with you
• Testimonial videos: build third-party credibility for your products and company
• TV commercials: reuse and repurpose TV spots on the Internet
• Explainer videos: dig deeper into the reasons to use a product or the benefits of doing something a certain way

Of course, even if you try to keep each video separate from the rest, there will be some overlap. That video you created to explain how to install your product may wind up convincing someone to buy it.

It could wind up being both a training and promotional video, but if you set out to create a video that does both, you decrease your chances of doing either really well.

Video Marketing Trends

Production technologies are where we’re seeing the biggest trendsetting changes in video today. The most common denominator does seem to be the capabilities of a smartphone.

Smartphones have replaced whole studios full of equipment for production of some types of videos. It’s the increase in production values and capabilities that are propelling the popularity of other types.

Live Video

Live streaming on Facebook, Instagram, and now LinkedIn continues to grow in popularity. Cisco predicts that live video will account for 13% of all video traffic by 2020. Considering that Facebook Live just launched in 2016, this is unprecedented growth.

Live video promotes your brand as authentic and approachable. Because there is the “anything can happen” quality to your live stream, audiences trust these videos more and stay tuned to them longer than prerecorded videos.

They’re economical for a company to produce two ways. First, there are no real “production” costs associated. Normally these are just a person talking into the camera.

While some sales made during a live stream or live video webinar undoubtedly stem from FOMO (fear of missing out), recordings of the video do still exist on the platform, so there is residual value as well.

Storytelling

No one likes to be “sold,” but we all love a good story. No matter what type of video you are creating, if you use storytelling to get your point across, you should see better results.

This was proven in an anthropological experiment in 2012. Items that had been purchased for an average $1.25 at a garage sale were sold on eBay for up to $8,000 as a result of the story that was told about the item.

How we tell those stories has been adapted to fit new social networks. A good story still needs a beginning, a middle, and an end. Now, however, those pieces can be broken up in a Snap Chat story or flow from a Facebook teaser ad to a YouTube video.

Square and Vertical Shapes

For a while, it seemed we were headed toward a standard online video format. The 16:9 wide horizontal video looked like a winner.

Then came mobile-first web design and development and the rise of square images on Instagram. Most people do hold their phones vertically most of the time, but those horizontal videos do not look good when viewed vertically.

Square videos already work on Instagram and Facebook. YouTube is making adaptations to improve the display of square and vertical videos there, so this is one you can expect to pick up steam as the year progresses.

360-Degree Videos

Panoramic, or 360-degree videos, are also gaining traction. These videos are shot with one or more cameras shooting in every direction simultaneously. Unless they are displayed on several screens set up in a sphere, much of the depth is lost.

Enough depth and dimension remain for these videos to be particularly popular in travel, real estate, and experience videos. Augmented reality videos are also moving into high-end product promotions. As the technology matures, we can expect to see their use increase.

Textural Elements

Increases in the ability to mix text and video together are blurring still more lines. Closed captioning and subtitles are helping Google make more sense of video content, which is, in turn, ensuring more videos show up in search results.

Other uses of text in videos, like annotations or live links, are allowing marketers to use video as a more pivotal piece of the sales funnel.

Explainer Videos

Explainer videos as a type of marketing video began to emerge shortly after infographics proved popular. They are also one of the hottest trends to watch in 2021 because of the way they are produced.

The idea of breaking complex information into bite-sized nuggets with engaging visuals is an ideal use for animation, which has been a staple of video production for nearly 100 years. However, new tools are emerging daily that make it easier for ordinary people to put together stunning graphical stories that explain how or when or why to do something.

Putting It All Together

It’s easy to see why video is has captured the imagination and attention of the Internet and why so many companies are planning on investing more into producing videos for their business.

What’s not so easy to see all the time is just how you should put each of these video marketing trends to work for you. Should you start with a brand story video? What should you talk about on a Live Stream video?

One place to start is to check out these examples of how other companies are using video to help vision meet viral.

Television advertising revenue has increased by 7% in the last year, and for good reason. Brands are combining the power of advertising and marketing to create a long-lasting and effective strategy that yields big returns.

Still, you might hold some confusion as to the difference between advertising and marketing, and how to best utilize each in your brand strategy. Fear not, here we will break down some helpful tips on how to combine the two. 

What is Advertising

We are exposed to hundreds of ads a day, and yet many are unsure of what advertising is and how it works.

In it’s simplest form, advertising is using specific types of content and mediums to evoke an emotion from the audience. Those emotions are then linked to the brand to create a lasting impression. If all goes to plan, the end result will be increased sales and brand awareness. 

For example, the Michael Jackson Pepsi ad is a great example of advertisers using positive emotions to sell a product. 

What is Marketing

Marketing covers a wide range of mediums and methods, however, it can be best summarized as efforts made to directly reach audiences.

Marketing methods include everything from advertising campaigns to guerilla marketing and research efforts. Even a simple survey that offers the right insight can be viewed as a valuable marketing tool.

Advertising vs Marketing

Often the terms advertising and marketing are used interchangeably and for good reason. The two are connected in a number of ways, and while all forms of marketing may not be advertising, all advertising can be considered marketing.

The difference between the two lies in the fact that marketing is an effort to send a message to your audience, promoting a person, product, or brand. While advertising involves using a paid medium to deliver that message

This means you could label radio ads, print ads, tv commercials, and even billboards as forms of advertising. However, other mediums like direct mail, email marketing and social media marketing (excluding social media ads) are considered to be marketing but not advertising. 

How to Combine Advertising and Marketing 

However you may classify them, there is no denying that advertising and marketing work hand in hand to deliver the strongest results.

Often, marketing is needed to bring a strategical approach to how advertising happens. While you can put together an ad you feel looks good and send it out into the world, hoping for the best, chances are this will be a waste of time and money.

It’s the target audience research, messaging, and branding that allows advertising to really do its job. On the flip side, the powerful effects of advertising on audiences is what gives marketing strategies their edge!

The Benefits of Combining Advertising and Marketing

So why combine advertising and marketing for your strategy? While it’s possible to reach audiences on marketing efforts alone, advertising comes with its own benefits.

Read on to learn why it’s worth combining these powerhouse tools. 

Getting Content in Front of a Larger Audience

While some marketing efforts can reach larger crowds (like your impressive email list), chances are you want to reach a larger audience. To reach thousands in one go you’re going to need some advertising.

Whether you choose to run your ads through tv or radio, by choosing mediums with a high audience you can greatly enhance your exposure. 

Stronger Targeting Capabilities

Hopefully, while creating your marketing strategy you’ve taken some time to carve out a strong target audience. This audience is the group you find to be most responsive to your messaging and products. In the very least you should know important demographic information, like their age range, average salary, and location. 

Once you’ve created this target audience, you’ll have to find the right mode of outreach to get your message to them. This is where advertising comes in. By simple gaging the interests of your target audience, you can place ads where you know they are likely to see them.

For example, if you find that the same audience you’re targeting also has an interest in golf, then placing an ad in a popular golf magazine would be a smart choice.

Powerful Analytics to Back New Strategies

Advertising trends are constantly evolving, and it can become easy to simply follow the competition. However, what’s “in” isn’t necessarily what will yield the strongest results for your brand.

This is where marketing comes in handy. Marketing utilizes research and analytics to properly steer new strategies. This means enhancing your chances of a strong ROI.  

Increase Brand Awareness

You have a laundry list of reasons why your product stands out among the competition, and you want your audience to know about it! Unfortunately, the average person’s attention span is now a mere 8 seconds.

That means you have to deliver as much information to your audience as you can in a short period of time. Advertising uses imagery, text, and even background music to deliver valuable brand information in one short go. 

Finding the Perfect Balance

Once you’ve tapped into the perfect balance of advertising and marketing, you’ll find it remarkably easy to tap into your audience and deliver your message seamlessly. 

However, it’s important to remember that there’s a learning curve that comes behind finding the right marketing technique. If you’re looking to achieve great results without taking time and energy away from your business, contact us today to see how we can help. 

If you run a business, you’re always looking to find the most effective forms of marketing. And you also want to get the most bang your marketing buck.

So, now that we’re firmly in a digital world, you’re likely wondering if a traditional marketing approach is the way to go, or if you should be fully digital with your marketing.

It’s a great question, and one we’ll take a look at in this post.

We’ll go over the pros and cons of traditional marketing and digital marketing so you’ll have a better sense of what each one can bring to your business, as well as the potential drawbacks for each. 

And you can make an educated decision as to which might be right for you and your company.

Sound interesting? Keep reading to find out more!

Traditional Marketing

Traditional marketing is exactly what it sounds like. The marketing that has been used for decades as the primary means of spreading the word about goods, services, and the companies who offer them.

It sometimes might seem like the era of traditional advertising is over, given the amount of non-traditional marketing that goes on. 

But that’s actually not true. Traditional marketing is still popular and effective amongst some demographics with mediums like newspapers and magazines, TV, radio, brochures, flyers, and more.

Let’s talk about some of the advantages of traditional marketing.

Reach A Local Target Audience Organically

Sending handwritten letters with inserts is still highly effective. Buying ad time on local radio stations or sending flyers in the mail that have compelling call-to-actions are also effective. You still have the ability to target specific demographics in specific local areas with this form of marketing.

That means you can get a level of marketing specificity even with a relatively lo-fi method. 

Ease of Use

A Canadian study showed that direct mail marketing calls for more than 20% less cognitive brain power than digital marketing.

And it’s also something that can be sent to anyone across the country, even those without regular Internet access. 

Plus, if you are utilizing tangible items like paper flyers, people have an opportunity to physically save them in their home as a reminder. 

Next, let’s look at some of the negatives of traditional marketing.

Engagement

Some drawbacks to traditional marketing can be its expense, less ability to track accurately, the ability to engage with consumers, even targeted follow-ups on those people who are interested but ready to buy yet. Of all of these, engagement might be the biggest drawback.

This means you are putting information out there and just hoping people pursue it.

Cost and ROI

Traditional marketing can be more expensive with some mediums. This is especially true when it comes to anything TV related. But even radio ads on small-town stations can quickly add up. 

With traditional marketing, it’s also tricky to figure out if there’s a direct return on investment from your marketing campaign. There aren’t as many tangible numbers you can use to measure this. 

Next, let’s take a look at some of the advantages of digital marketing.

Digital Marketing Targeting and Tailoring

The Internet lives everywhere, so putting up a blog or a post to advertise your business can just as easily reach someone across the globe as it can reach your next door neighbor. 

You can also tailor your content in more ways, in order to reach hyper-specific segments of the population. If you know some of the parameters of your ideal customer, you can target them with much more precision with digital marketing.

And, since it’s constantly evolving, you can always update your digital marketing to find the best methods.

Better Engagement and More Options 

As anyone who enjoys social media can tell you, a lot of its fun lies in the engagement with other people. So if you are using social media as a part of your digital marketing strategy, it means people can respond and interact with you.

It also means that people can often choose the medium with which they engage you and your brand. If you have an Instagram ad, it means people who are partial to Instagram will interact with you on that platform.

And the same goes for people who are partial to all the other major platforms. You are essentially communicating with them in their comfort zone, which helps build trust. 

Cost and ROI

Digital marketing can be much more cost effective than traditional marketing. And that’s even with the help of a marketing company and paid ad buys. 

And there’s no comparison when it comes to measuring ROI with your digital marketing plan. 

Services like Google Analytics can give you precise numbers on things like how many people have visited your site and how many of them clicked on ads.

It can also tell you how long people stayed on your site, and who purchased what from you.

These analytics make it a snap to figure out if your latest digital marketing moves are having any effect on your return on investment. 

Non-Intrusive, and Potentially Viral

If you’ve ever been locked into the twists and turns of a TV show, only to have it interrupted by an annoying ad, you know the experience of intrusive advertising.

With digital marketing, you can sometimes avoid this type of intrusion. If people want to ignore your online ads, for example, they can do so. But if they are intrigued by what you are offering, they can click on the ad and follow it to your site.

And digital marketing has the potential to go viral, something traditional marketing really can’t do, other than by strict word of mouth.

With digital, a post, video or social media meme can spread around the world in minutes, giving you the ultimate in marketing success.

Traditional Marketing and Digital Marketing 

As you can see, there are reasons to hang onto traditional marketing techniques, as well as reasons to move forward to the world of digital marketing.

Depending on what you and your company needs, you might even want to try some of both.

Either way, this primer should have given you a better sense of the pros and cons of each. And now it’s up to you to decide which strategy fits your company, your brand, and your marketing goals.

If you have questions or want to know more, contact us today!

What if you were bringing your marketing “A-game” to the wrong audience?

There is a world of difference between traditional marketing and digital marketing. Unfortunately, many businesses have trouble figuring out which option is best for their particular audience.

Wondering how to determine which form of marketing is best for your business? Keep reading as we explore the different benefits and features of each style!

What Is the Difference?

We’ve put together a solid guide exploring every aspect of traditional and digital marketing. Before we go any further, though, we need to define exactly what these terms mean.

Traditional marketing is defined as non-internet based marketing which includes print media, such as magazines, newspaper, periodicals, handouts, flyers, brochures and larger format fixed forms of such as billboards, signs, and posters. Tv and radio also fall into this category though there is cross-over into the digital realm.

Digital marketing is defined as electronic internet-based marketing that is usually interactive and dynamic. This can include electronic ads, social media, e-mail marketing, all things website related, and so on. Digital marketing also includes techniques such as automation and SEO to help drive visitors to your site.

Now that we have these terms defined, it’s time to explore the unique benefits each one offers.

Traditional: Going Local

One of the most important considerations is whether you have a local business or a global business. For a local business, traditional advertising reigns supreme.

Places like regional restaurants or “mom and pop” shops aren’t too worried about customers half a world away. Instead, they want to make the locals happy and keep them coming back for more.

This can be pretty simple, too. Major billboards can entice someone into a special Friday dinner, and sales flyers in the local paper can convince someone to return to your shop.

Ultimately, you must go where your customers are. And if your customers are local, you should be doing traditional advertising.

Traditional: It’s Tangible

We love digital advertising. But it has one big downside: it’s never truly permanent.

For instance, people love to share funny images and videos they find online. But that engaging advertising is gone as soon as they click on something else or turn the phone off.

However, traditional advertising is tangible. If a customer leaves the newspaper on their counter, you are effectively advertising to them for several days inside the comfort of their own home.

And appearance is everything. If your advertising appears to be steady and stable, then your business will appear that way as well.

Traditional: Nice and Simple

The final benefit we love about traditional advertising? It’s nice and simple.

Digital marketing offers the ability to do complex multimedia campaigns spread across multiple online channels. However, some demographics prefer things to be much simpler and straightforward.

For example, you might be pouring a lot of money into SEO marketing for your local business. However, if most of your customers grew up in a world without the internet, then internet marketing may be lost on them.

However, traditional advertising is easy and accessible for everyone. Things like TV and radio commercials have been an advertising mainstay for the better part of a century for a simple reason: they are simple and effective!

Digital: All About Analytics

The biggest downside of traditional marketing is that it’s tough to tell what’s working. You might spend a lot of money on a billboard or a television ad and be ultimately unable to tell how effective it was.

With digital marketing, you have the power of analytics. You can actively monitor which marketing efforts helped to drive specific increases in things like website visits, online purchases, and more.

This is invaluable because it allows you to “course correct” as needed. If one form of advertising isn’t working, you can try something else. This sure beats throwing all your money into something that’s not working!

Digital: Surprising Value

Another thing we love about digital advertising is the sheer value of it. You can a lot of advertising mileage without spending a lot of money.

For example, social media advertising is very popular, especially among Millennials. And it costs little or nothing for you to create social media accounts for your business.

Plus, there’s always the chance that some of your content may “go viral.” This means that customers will share what you made with everyone, you know.

That kind of digital “word of mouth” advertising is highly effective. And did we mention it’s completely free?

Digital: Find New Customers

Earlier, we mentioned the difference between a local and global business. It’s important to note that most new businesses are global businesses that cater to customers all around the world.

There is one “hard part” to that approach, though. First, you have to find the customers!

This is where good digital marketing shines. The right SEO or viral video content can lure in customers from all around the world. Combined with analytics, you may discover you have audiences you never even knew about!

With traditional advertising, you can focus your efforts on the customers you know. But digital remains the best way to find entirely new customers.

Traditional Marketing vs. Digital Marketing: Which Is Better?

This brings us to the big question, then: which form of advertising is better? The answer depends on the needs of you and your business.

As we said before, traditional advertising is best for local audiences. And it may be downright necessary to help you stay ahead of your local competition.

Digital advertising is best for anyone hoping to find a global audience. This includes many businesses that operate from homes and mail products directly to their customers.

And if your business has both a local and a global presence, it makes a lot of sense to do a bit of both!

The Bottom Line

Now you know about the different benefits of traditional marketing and digital marketing. But do you know who can take your marketing to the next level?

Here at the MAD Group, we help your business to reach its maximum potential. To see how we can help you grow and expand, contact us today!

Close your eyes and think of Coca Cola. Now think of Nike. Now try Apple. Those logos, colors, and images are probably vivid in your head. You might never have owned an Apple product or worn a pair of Nikes. But you know their style and logos without even thinking.

That’s the power of branding.

It’s more than just knowing a company though. The branding process is present at every level of a successful business and creates a cohesive, living brand that the audience can identify.

Do you want your brand to be strong and clear from the start? Do you want people to immediately think of your business when they need the services or products that you offer?

Well, it all begins with your branding. Let’s dive into the branding process and look at how a powerful brand is created.

What Exactly Is a Brand?

A brand is a set of identifying characteristics that separate your business from another.

The first thing you might think of in branding is the logo. And logos are extremely powerful. This is the visual side of branding that extends to the colors, font, and image types your brand uses.

A brand is also made up of its communication, how it speaks to its audience and the type of language it uses, even down to the punctuation.

Beyond this, a brand defines how customers feel during and after they use your services. Do they feel like they’ve made a friend? Like they’ve conducted a serious transaction?

Fundamentally, a brand is a look, feel, sound, and experience unique to your business.

How Do You Build a Brand?

If building a powerful brand was easy, most businesses would see endless success. But many simply choose a logo and a font and think they’re done.

There’s so much involved in building a brand but there’s no need to feel overwhelmed. When you take the branding process step-by-step, you’ll watch it come together before your eyes.

1. Who Is Your Audience?

You can’t build a brand without understanding your audience for a very simple reason. You want to attract your audience to your brand and not all audiences are attracted by the same thing.

A furniture company targeting a young, modern audience isn’t going to succeed if their branding is old-fashioned and conservative.

The first thing to do is to create a customer profile. You’ll need to know:

• What age range is your ideal customer?
• What education level do they have?
• What budget do they have?
• Do they have a family?
• Where do they live? City? Rural? Suburban?
• Are they impulse buyers or considered buyers?
• What problems do they face?

It can be easy to create a customer profile but harder to know if they exist. Look at market trends, competitors’ customers, and even conduct market research.

2. Why Does Your Business Exist?

Now you know who your audience is, you’ll need to know exactly how your business can help them. This is where market research becomes crucial.

Once you’ve identified your audience, you can ask them about the struggles they have with existing products or services related to your business. By getting real feedback, you’ll have invaluable information about how you can help.

This will also allow you to see if your business is necessary and in-demand. If you’re trying to sell something that no one needs or wants, your job will be considerably more difficult, if not impossible.

When your business has a clear reason for existing and will solve a problem for your audience, you can build it into your branding.

3. What Makes You Different?

When there is no difference between you and your competition, your audience will be forced to go off the price. That’s a sure race to the bottom.

Branding helps you display clearly why you’re different. Apple and Microsoft both sell computers, but Apple’s branding makes them stand out. It’s clean, modern, user-driven, and shows their audience how great they’ll feel using Apple’s products.

This reflects Apple’s actual products, which are sleek, modern, and fun to use.

4. The Look of Your Brand

Now onto the fun part. What does your brand look like?

Visuals are much easier to absorb than text so are exceptionally important for branding. Having a professional logo designed that develops brand awareness is a solid starting point.

Brand visuals extend to the color palette your business uses as well. Not just blue and white, but the exact HTML color code for each color. This will keep your visual branding consistent.

If you’re selling physical products, branding extends to the look and feel of the packaging as well as the product itself. A strong brand is developed when every part of your business aligns.

5. What Language Do You Speak?

You’d probably talk to a senator in a different way than you’d talk to your best mate at the bar. We modify our language every day to suit the people we’re interacting with.

Your business has a clear audience and you need to communicate with them in an appropriate way. By creating brand communication guidelines, you can pin down the exact tone of voice, language, and punctuation that your brand will use.

To do this, you need to find out how your audience speaks. Do they use slang? Are they informal? Do they like chatty, fun businesses? Or do they want formal, professional language?

Having a recognizable tone of voice helps your brand become consistent, trustworthy, and personable.

How to Keep Your Branding Consistent

You’re going to put a lot of hard work into developing a cohesive and comprehensive brand but consistency is the only way to strengthen it. When your audience starts to understand your brand and recognize it, your reputation will grow.

The easiest way to keep your branding consistent is to have guidelines for every area of your brand. From communication to photographic guidelines, you’ll always know exactly what to do to stay on brand.

For small businesses looking to expand, brand guidelines will help your future employees stay on brand as well.

Excel at the Branding Process

The more familiar you become with your audience and your brand, the easier it will be to add in different types of marketing.

You’ll have set brand fonts, so you’ll never need to choose a font again. You’ll have a defined color palette so your designers will always know what they’re working with.

A strong branding process can go like clockwork when it’s in place. But building a strong brand takes time and dedication. If you want the strongest brand possible, we can help. Get in touch to chat about our branding services and we’ll do the hard work for you.

Over the past decade, the Internet has become one of the most powerful tools for entrepreneurs.

In fact, there are companies that provide products and services solely over the Internet.

Regardless of what industry you’re in or what you offer your customers, you need to take the Internet seriously when it comes to marketing.

More specifically, you need to take advantage of social media. As of 2021, approximately 77 percent of Americans have a social media profile.

This means that you forego thousands (or even millions) of dollars in business if you don’t up your brand’s social media game.

Not sure where to start? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered.

Let’s take a look at everything you need to know.

Cost Efficiency

When it comes to marketing your business, using social media is one of the most efficient ways to do it. You can get the full benefits of a social media profile for free on most platforms.

By saving money on marketing through social media, you’ll be able to invest those funds into other aspects of your company, such as equipment, scaling, etc.

But, some platforms, such as Facebook and Instagram, allow you to pay money to increase the number of people who see your posts. If you decide to do this, however, you should only put down small amounts of cash at first to see what works and what doesn’t.

With enough research about your target audience, you’ll be able to see exponential returns on the money you put toward social media.

Increased Brand Awareness

Having a business profile for your company on social media does wonders when it comes to increasing your brand awareness.

It offers you a multitude of channels to provide your audience with quality content and ultimately direct them back to your website. But, the awareness doesn’t end with just your audience.

Social media will help you connect with other local businesses in your industry. Many times, other companies will return the favor if you send positivity their way, such as through sharing their posts with your followers.

Furthermore, commenting on their posts or page will allow all of their followers to see your brand. While this doesn’t have any immediate results, it’s an extra step you can take to get your name out there.

Improved SEO

While consistently posting quality content to your brand’s blog is crucial to your digital marketing strategy’s success, it’s not the only factor you need to keep in mind when it comes to SEO.

Sharing your blog’s content across your own social media channels has a positive effect on your SEO ranking due to search engines recognizing shared content as coming from a quality, legitimate source.

Plus, having your content on multiple sites allows you to take up more slots on Google’s search pages when your audience is searching for relevant keywords and phrases.

Audience Engagement

If you’re looking to communicate with your audience, a contact form on your website isn’t the ideal option.

When considering the importance of social media, the level of communication that it provides can’t be overlooked. Direct messages provide a quick way to answer questions or concerns.

Comments that your audience makes can be responded to publicly, which gives you the opportunity to display to your followers that you’re friendly, accessible, and willing to help them with their needs.

You’ll also be able to announce deals, contests, and other important information to your followers on your social media profiles.

Humanization

Most people like to spend money. That is, after all, why consumer spending drives the economy.

But, nobody likes to feel like they are being sold something. The more your business seems like a faceless company looking for cash, the less they will resonate with your brand.

Being active on your social media profiles will go a long way when looking to humanize your business.

Everything from your profile to the content you share to the way you interact with your followers will establish that your company is run by humans who care about their customers.

This will ultimately lead to an increase in…

Brand Loyalty

When people identify with a brand, they’re more likely to make purchases from that brand. You could offer the most efficient product or service in the industry, but if you don’t stand out from your competition, you’ll have a difficult time making sales.

Luckily, social media is a powerful tool when it comes to building brand loyalty. Your followers will have access to promotional offers that only available on your social media profiles, which will help create a community around your brand that your followers can participate in.

Level The Playing Field

Most other companies in your industry are using social media, and all of the top players are.

So, if you want a chance at being a dominating force, you’re going to have to build a social media presence for your brand online.

Since your competition is active on social media, you can also research how they interact with their consumers, when they schedule their posts, and what kind of promotions they offer.

The Importance of Social Media Can’t Be Stressed Enough

So, start incorporating social media into your marketing efforts as soon as possible.

You’ll create a loyal online following that will see your brand for what it is, which will ultimately lead to increased conversions.

If you’d like to learn more about the importance of social media and how it can benefit your company, feel free to get in touch with us and see what we can do for you.

Digital ad revenue reached nearly $100 billion last year.

If you’re wondering why, it’s because digital advertising works. Even though tradition formats are still seeing use, the digital world is where it is at for businesses big and small.

But knowing exactly how digital advertising can help you is important. And if you don’t know how it can help, then you might use it for the wrong reasons.

Lucky for you, this article is going to break down exactly how you can use it to your advantage. After reading, you should be ready to be an advertising expert.

Read on to learn more!

Low-Cost Advertising

Nothing is more interesting to a savvy business owner than getting what you want for a low cost. Surprisingly enough, digital advertising is one of those types of things.

In fact, quite a bit of digital advertising is free. From SEO to social media marketing, you can draw in leads for little to no money.

Of course, you might want to spend some extra cash to learn how to do it well. You don’t want to waste your time and energy on something that might not work. There are plenty of SEO and digital marketing experts that will be happy to help you.

There are also some tools that cost quite a bit of money. But if you choose to work with an expert, they will already have these tools.

When you do spend money on digital advertising, chances are you still won’t be spending as much as you would with traditional advertising. Some types of advertising only make you pay for leads you do get, and others cost less than $100 for advertising to thousands.

Can TV do that? It sure can’t.

The low-cost benefit isn’t just nice for your wallet. It also means there’s plenty of room for trial and error. In traditional advertising, this would cost you way too much money, but digital advertising lets you fail and find out what works best for your business.

Target Your Messaging

When you place an advertisement on TV, who sees it?

Well, whoever is watching TV at that time sees it of course. But if they change channels or just happen not to be watching, chances are you’re wasting your money.

With digital advertising, you can target directly to people interested in your product. This means that none of your ad spend goes to waste.

For example, let’s say you sell handmade furniture in the San Diego area. You can actually buy a Google ad that will show up when people in the San Diego area search for handmade furniture.

You can also use social media to target to the exact people who would are interested in your business. If you run a San Diego coffee shop that caters towards 20-year-olds interested in gourmet coffee, you could run a Facebook ad that shows up on that exact person’s feed.

Facebook tracks demographics, likes, and online behavior to make sure that you get in contact with the people you want to speak to. No traditional ads offer this kind of direct marketing.

Analytics Are Awesome

When you’re advertising in the traditional sense, you don’t get to see how people take your ad. You might get a little bit of information about how much your sales increase, but you don’t get any hard facts.

Instead, all you’re left with is guessing whether or not something worked.

This is not true for the digital advertising world. You can see exactly how people interacted with your advertising. Everything from clicks to time spent reading will tell you how your audience likes your ad.

This is helpful because it tells you what to do next time. If you find that no one is clicking on your PPC campaign, you might want to consider moving on to social media ads or content marketing. Or it may be as simple as changing your keywords.

Whatever the case is, you’ll be able to optimize your future campaigns with statistics from past ones. You can also give use analytics to optimize your messaging mid-campaign.

Digital Advertising Is Instantaneous

With digital advertising, it doesn’t take days or weeks to start marketing your product or service. It takes just a few minutes to get started.

As long as you know what you want, you can set up a digital marketing campaign with ease. No more discussions with ad reps or trying to fit into a times slot. The digital market is always ready.

It’s an Emerging Landscape

The biggest hangup people have with digital marketing is that they don’t understand it. It can be complex at first, but after some time, you should have it down pat. And this is an exciting concept.

Digital marketing will always be changing, but if you’re able to get on the horse now, it will be that much easier to stay on. Think about how different the landscape could be 10 years from now!

As digital advertising continues to improve, you’ll see your business grow with it. And as more and more people get used to digital advertising, the more you’ll be able to market to your target audience.

Plus, think about your competition. Are they already on the digital advertising bandwagon? If not, you still have some time left, but they might be starting soon.

Are they already? Then they might have a serious head start on you, an this could cause your business to suffer.

Whatever the case, getting used to digital advertising will give you a leg up on your competition.

Ready to Use Digital Advertising?

There’s no doubt that digital advertising is an effective form of reaching potential customers. And with these benefits in mind, you should be ready to start doing it yourself.

Getting started with digital advertising is easy, but doing it on your own can be hard. If this sounds like you, you’re in the right place. Get in contact with us to learn more.

SEO in San Diego is a fairly unpredictable approach to marketing, because of Google’s algorithms. With that said, the search engine’s algorithm fluctuates on a regular basis. In other words, it’s volatile in nature, making it difficult for inexperienced individuals to successfully navigate.

It’s so important to be aware of SEO’s latest trends within your business’ industry. An SEO Agency will take care of this aspect from a professional and experienced perspective. After all, your online presence is crucial to your company’s rate of success.

Better yet, working with an SEO Agency will make things a lot less stressful on your end. Keep an eye out for the following trends:

SEO Localization

Local SEO has remained the eye of the storm for quite sometime now. Recently, Google adopted a new policy that grants impetus to local businesses and its online algorithms. This means that Google My Business is a tool that can’t go ignored.

Positive testimonials from real customers can significantly boost your company’s consumer rates. Whether you own and operate a small business or a larger enterprise, your consumer base serves as the foundation of your company.

On that note, it’s vital to keep them engaged with your company’s website. That way, business remains steady, or better yet, improves tremendously. You need to hire an SEO strategist to handle certain aspects of your company’s search engine optimization.

San Diego SEO services ensure that you’re receiving the best strategy possible. You’ll want your company’s website to rank as highly as possible, so more online users visit the website and boost performance rates.

Structured data for Video SEO

In 2021, Google made an announcement that would change the industry forever. The tech giant welcomed two new forms of structured data including Seek Markup and Clip Markup. Prior to this change, the most valuable features were solely available for YouTube.

However, the update now allows videos to have a better chance of a higher ranking on Google search engine results. With the help of these tools, your business will witness impeccable results.

The Seek Markup and Clip Markup play a major role in search engine optimization, especially when it comes to video content on your website or blog. Additionally, they can help your site generate more organic traffic, ultimately boosting its algorithm.

Multitask United Model of Google

MUM, also known as Multitask United Model of Google, has been hailed as a huge step for AI by the tech giant. Some of Google’s leading officials have said that MUM is a much more advanced method compared to BERT or Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers, which was introduced by the platform back in 2019.

MUM is Google’s newest Natural Language Processing Model and is coded to be at least a thousand times more robust than BERT. This new language helps the bot multitask better than ever before.

In fact, it can assess images, text, and video content pieces across 75 languages to give the searcher the most appropriate answers to even the most complicated of search queries. It’s important to remember that Google algorithms focus on their user’s intent.

That’s why your Agency needs to ensure vigilance in their San Diego SEO services at all times.

Textual Content should be Long-Form

The Google bot is showing increased inclination in ranking long-form articles at the top of Google search engine results against the given set of keywords. Studies suggest that such content pieces have the probability to garner around three times the traffic versus content pieces that are about 1000 words long.

The chances of getting quality backlinks and shares are also higher with the help of long-form content. With that said, work with your SEO Agency to focus on the quality and the length of your online blogs/articles as part of regular campaigns regarding SEO in San Diego. 

It is imperative to check with your SEO agency to see if they are offering these San Diego SEO services. Brands need to understand the critical importance of these trends and service points because these are some of the primary factors in running a successful online business.

Branding is one of the most successful strategies used in business. A powerful brand compels its audience and interacts with its consumers to reach a wider audience.

SEO, or search engine optimization, is an incredible tool in the world of digital marketing. With the right approach, a brand can influence a large number of people, turning them into valuable consumers.

There are various ways a branding agency in San Diego can help you build your brand.

Defining a Branding Agency

The services provided by these organizations are extremely useful in online marketing. Their primary objective is to assist in brand creation, growth, upkeep, and improvement.

Their broad umbrella may include art, style, and communication; however, their primary specialty focuses on a strategic plan for the brand in question.

A branding agency in San Diego will take a deep dive into your company’s knowledge, outlining the goals and conveying them to the appropriate audience.

Furthermore, they will utilize this data by developing plans to expand your brand and provide you with tools to integrate your brand ranking, beliefs, commitments, and image throughout the process.

How Branding Affects Your SEO or Search Engine Optimization

Your brand is identified by the light in which your clients, investors, and stakeholders view it. Commitment and character strongly influence how consumers perceive your business.

Recognition is impacted by your brand’s image, which leads to higher search rates. When your website receives more traffic, this naturally increases your company’s sales.

This process comes with SEO-optimised web copy. On that note, how exactly does a brand’s recognition and SEO work with one another?

Backlinks

Links play a huge role in brand development, as well as credibility in search engine results pages, or SERPS.

An organization’s brand will often feature quality, organic, and long-term backlinks. Links are unquestionably among the most essential ranking factors in the game of SEO.

Social Signals

The total number of likes and shares of a brand’s presence on social media refers to key social signals.

Search engine optimization in San Diego is not only valuable but absolutely essential when it comes to the longevity of your business.

User Behaviour

To make educated judgments about ranks and exposure, search engines track user interaction with results pages.

SEO rankings and brand recognition can be closely related; if users often engage with a certain keyword, internet site, or search engine result, the browser will notice these trends and adjust its ranking accordingly.

The chances of ranking higher than your competitors in the market will grow depending on the number of clicks your website receives.

Link Building

Building a brand involves enhancing a company’s credibility, authority, and relevance among consumers and browsers. Brand building is to make a brand more visible and compelling to audiences.

You’re simply demonstrating brand authenticity, trustworthiness, and pertinence to online users by enhancing your brand’s credibility with relevant backlinks.

Tracking

By developing a thorough grasp of the business’s brand success and the proportion of the traffic in relation to the brand, a branding agency in San Diego can determine factors that are affecting your company’s SEO performance.

Contrary to popular belief, evaluating brand success and applying the information to boost brand engagement is not only possible, it’s genius.

Conclusion

A branding agency in San Diego will consider a comprehensive plan to broaden your company’s exposure, garner recognition, and boost perception.

Consider your brand’s productivity when developing your standard optimisation methods for various SEOs. Therefore, working with a branding agency in San Diego is the smartest, most effective thing you can do for your business.

Advances in technology have made the world more connected than ever. But nothing beats the human connection.

That’s why even in today’s society, trade show marketing continues to be one of the best ways to reach out to your audience and make new connections.

While trade shows rely on good old-fashioned human connection, there’s nothing old about these innovative trade show ideas for 2021.

1. Minimalist Design

Leave the bells and whistle at home. The trade show booth of today is streamlined and focused on offering an open, welcoming space for prospects to come in and learn more about your products through conversation.

Ditch the text-heavy displays and only provide pertinent information on your booths. No one is going to stand there and read the text on the booths anyway, it clutters the space and can be overwhelming.

An open space design is welcoming to attendees and encourages mingling and may make them stick around longer to learn enough about you to leave them wanting more…and leave you with their contact information.

2. Comfort

Some companies focus so much on the booth panels that they disregard one of the most important aspects of the show–the attendee. Like the minimalistic booth, a booth with chairs and sofas (even bean bags!) will keep attendees comfortable.

Trade shows are a lot of work and involve a lot of walking. By offering a lounge area where attendees can sit and unwind, you’ll draw in a larger crowd and open up the opportunity for conversation.  It’s a great way to learn more about them while you have them at the booth.

Offer snacks and beverages so they feel pampered. Extra points if you also have a charging station.

When they leave they’ll remember the experience and they’ll probably refer others to your booth.

3. Socially Conscious Activity

Consumers today will often choose a company that aligns with their beliefs and more and more buyers target eco-friendly, socially responsible brands.

A socially conscious company can integrate their cause with their trade show booth to display their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) actions and connect with like-minded customers.

To display your company’s CSR beliefs, you could do a fundraising activity or hold a product giveaway. First, you’ll want to create a buzz around whatever activity you choose.  And that starts before the trade show.

Email your lists and let them know you’ll be at the show and what you’re doing. Blog about it and announce it in a press release. If you’re holding a fundraiser tell your prospects how they can get involved.

4. Multi-Sensory Experience

It’s no longer just about the booth’s design. Revolutionary trade show booths include items that appeal to the five senses. Think appealing sights, smells, and flavors. The trade show has become a full-blown experience.

Put products on display to feel. A greetings card company could have a sample of different card stock on display shelves. Attendees can touch and feel the product and take some samples to look over later.

Take a unique approach and offer foods that you can align with your brand. For example, a business with an elephant logo could provide peanuts at their booth.

5. Virtual Reality

Trade shows are great for that human connections but technology has a place in helping you stand out. There’s a ton of potential for Virtual Reality (VR) in trade show marketing. Who doesn’t want to get away from reality for a while and just play?

VR can help you attract customers to your booth and keep them engaged. Whatever your product, if you can incorporate that with VR and get attendees’ attention, you’ll stand out and they’ll remember you.

Incorporating VR into your presentation shows that your brand is keeping up with technology trends.

6. Integrated Marketing Strategy

Marketing doesn’t start at the trade show. The trade show is part of a larger message and can be used as the culmination of your marketing efforts. The lead up to the trade show should include blog posts, website content and social media messaging.

Podcasts are another option to provide listeners with an insight into what to expect at the show and where to find you. Send emails to your lists that include your booth number along with all the information about the trade show.

These activities should start weeks or months before the show to entice prospects to come and see you. While you’re at it, invite them to your booth for a giveaway.

7. Customer Focus

What happens at the trade show doesn’t have to stay at the trade show. No really, take the show off the floor and hold an off-site event for your qualified leads. It will make them feel special and it will allow you to connect with them outside of the hustle of the show floor.

This can be as simple as an informational session to a more in-depth themed event or cocktail party. Incorporate your brand by adding the logo to the napkins or even wine glasses that double as a take-home gift.

Take this opportunity to introduce prospects to your executive team or CEO. This provides an opportunity they wouldn’t otherwise have to really get to know the people behind the company.

Trade Show Marketing Success

While trade show marketing has changed throughout the years, one thing hasn’t…the human connection should always be at the forefront. Regardless of whether you’re incorporating virtual reality into your booth, pleasing the five senses or doing a trade show giveaway, it’s all about connecting with the attendees.

This combined with providing an inviting environment that caters more to attendee needs than yours will allow you to connect with them better than ever before.

Visit us here for more marketing strategies that will make your company stand out.

The United States Small Business Administration (SBA) recommends that marketing managers allot between 7% and 8% of their company’s gross revenue toward advertising and outreach.

That’s a substantial chunk of change, no matter how thick or thin your bottom line might be.

That’s why it’s important to protect your investment and make sure it’s generating the kind of return you need to grow. While you could handle the work entirely in-house, chances are your teams are already stretched to capacity.

That’s where marketing firms come in.

Allowing a third-party agency to take the reigns on your campaigns could be the smartest move you make for your growing reasons. Join us today as we share a few reasons why.

What Does a Marketing Firm Do?

Before we dive into the top reasons to hire one, let’s answer one initial question: What is a marketing firm and what can you expect from one?

As their name implies, marketing firms are designed to help guide your overall marketing strategy.

Yet, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all setup. The specific role this firm plays will vary from organization to organization. A few of the most common duties they can handle include:

• Researching your business model, target audience, and competition
• Determining how to position your company within your market
• Helping your team establish a marketing budget
• Deciding which marketing tactics to pursue
• Establishing branding and design standards for campaign materials
• Creating core marketing materials
• Monitoring your campaign and reporting on Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

In most cases, a marketing firm will take care of all of the above tasks and more.

Once they research your company and learn about your product and industry, these professionals can help you devise a strategy to generate sales leads and build brand buzz. From there, they can help create the visual designs and sales pieces (e.g. presentations, digital ads, social media posts, websites) that will form the backbone of your advertising strategy.

Along the way, the firm keeps a close eye on your campaign. You’ll receive real-time feedback on which strategies worked, which need to be tweaked and which to scrap. This helps you make more informed decisions to drive more traffic your way.

Benefits of Hiring a Marketing Professional

If you’re at the helm of a startup or small business, your marketing employees are most likely pulling double duty. They might also help out with sales, customer support, troubleshooting or contracts.

This means the time they can devote to marketing is limited.

At the same time, if you have a large enough enterprise to create a dedicated marketing team, these employees may also be stretched to the hilt. Juggling multiple accounts, deploying different strategies and staying on top of new technologies can be exhausting.

A marketing firm can help relieve this stress.

Improve Your Overall Strategy

If your numbers aren’t where you’d like them to be, letting an unbiased third-party direct your efforts could be the switch-up you need. Most are designed to help you achieve the following goals:

• Grow your sales leads
• Support your current sales efforts
• Build greater brand awareness
• Increase your market share

Has your brand recently encountered a setback that damaged your reputation? A marketing firm can also help reposition you within your market, helping improve public perception.

Support a Singular Project

While all of these are valuable benefits, business leaders most often hire outside marketing companies to help with a specific project.

For instance, are you getting ready to launch a new brand? Do you want to completely revamp your online presence? Are you ready to introduce a new product line or service?

Relying on your same, tired marketing tactics to build excitement around these changes can prove challenging. An outside perspective is often all that’s needed to start afresh on the right foot!

Learn New Technologies

For decades, your firm has relied solely on print marketing. Flyers, brochures, and pamphlets are your bread and butter.

However, you’ve read the statistics that show 83% of companies are seeing success from digital marketing. You’ve noticed your sales numbers dipping and you’re reconsidering your stance on online outreach.

If you were to dive into this newfound territory headfirst, you’re liable to drown. There are countless other competitors already acing the game.

In this case, you can bring a marketing firm on board to help your teams learn these new technologies. From social media to Search Engine Optimization (SEO), there are many new tools, concepts, and solutions they can help you master.

Discover What Marketing Firms Can Do for Your Business

Whether you want to overhaul an existing outreach strategy, roll out a new one or reinvent your entire brand, marketing firms can help you get there.

They’ll bring order to your chaos, help you see your business in a new light, and inspire your internal teams to dream bigger than they ever thought possible.

Then, they’ll help you design and follow a precise roadmap to make sure you achieve the goals you set for yourself. From small businesses to major corporations, every advertising department can benefit from this support.

Looking to hire a marketing firm to help position your organization for success? That’s where we come in.

We’re a full-service marketing and design group dedicated to helping our clients build the most powerful brands possible. From social media to video, we do it all.

Contact us today to learn more about how we can help and let’s take this next step together.

SEO mainly stands for Search Engine Optimization. Simply put, SEO has the capability to improve your internet visibility. Your online traffic will automatically increase when more people will visit your website. It empowers you to clear all the doubts of your potential customers.

Your business will eventually get more profit if it will rank at the top of search engine results. This is the reason why you must hire professional SEO experts who know everything about the ever-evolving Google algorithm. In this blog, we will discuss how it can help you to get the desired results to grow your business.

What SEO Experts Do to Improve Your Online Visibility?

A reputed SEO company will offer you search engine optimization services for every type of business. They are well-equipped with everything that helps those businesses to get increased internet visibility and higher Google rankings.

A well-known SEO agency generally has several projects and clients under its belt which showcase its experience and effectiveness. They use advanced techniques and strategies to help their clients stay ahead of the curve. You can get customized services as well. However, below we have mentioned several services that an SEO agency has to offer.

1. Website Evaluation

The initial step of an SEO agency is to carefully analyze your business website to see where it needs improvement. When you will hire a digital marketing agency, they will also read all your website content to understand if your website content needs any technical aspects such as SEO-friendly keywords. Then, they will conduct research about your company to know what services or products you offer to achieve specialized insights. After that, they will make a solid SEO plan to improve your website.

2. Install SEO Programs and Tools

Certain programs must be installed to perform the necessary action to better the website of your company. In general, SEO agencies use a very popular platform which is Google Analytics. It is highly beneficial in order to transform your website as Google is the most used search engine. An SEO company will install certain tools as well to monitor SEO campaigns, set up filters, and do certain changes to your website.

3. Build Proper Strategies

The next thing that your SEO development needs are to make proper strategies that will align with the business platform. an SEO expert will make a strong specialized plan with the help of their expertise and experience to boost your online business growth. The main part of this strategy will be identifying the phrases and keywords to curate more effective messaging to convey to your potential customers.

4. On-page and Off-page Optimization

The main work will begin after setting the goal, planning the strategies, and installing the platform. your SEO partner will do on-page optimization to make your business website user-friendly and mobile-friendly. When they will perform off-page optimization which includes developing specific strategies, link building, and achieving website authority. They will provide you with a proper plan to make you understand how you can establish authority and trust with the search engine.

5. Continuous SEO Development

A professional SEO agency will always monitor your business performance to help the website rank higher on search engine results. They will always revise their own strategies to sustain your online business growth. As SEO is a complicated and time-consuming process, your SEO partner will always keep an eye on your business website to make changes so that your website can cope with search engine changes.

SEO has the ability to take your business to greater exposure, growth, and revenue. Hence, you must work with a well-known digital marketing agency to scale up your business. If you are confused, then make sure to contact us to get general information about SEO or its importance to better your business. We, MAD marketing group, are one of the leading SEO agencies in the field of digital marketing as we use only the white hat SEO approach to optimization. We put much effort and devote time to benefit your company in many aspects.

As a responsible business owner, you know how important marketing is to sell your products or services. It’s one thing to have something consumers really need or want. The question, though, is whether or not they know of your actual business.

That’s where marketing comes into play. Marketing and sales have been practiced as long as trading itself. Over time, marketing strategies have developed into complex plans, but they work.

If you are looking to develop real profits from your startup business, you need to make the most of marketing avenues available to you. A big part of any successful marketing strategy is a well-developed brand. Your business’s brand is essentially your business’s personality.

Statistics show that consistent brand presentation increases a business’s revenue up to 23%. Continue reading to learn all about the proven advantages of branding your business could be experiencing. Don’t get left behind in today’s market.

1. Express Your Business’s Values and Personality

Perhaps you’re first starting out with your startup business. That’s okay because branding is a part of your fundamental business identity. It’s a necessary step in figuring out your long-term vision and goals.

By establishing your business’s brand, your new employees will benefit from its definition, too. No matter if your brand is casual or more sophisticated, your employees will follow suit. In many ways, a well-developed brand inspires their loyalty.

2. Long-Term Advantages of Branding

You need to start thinking of branding as an investment in your business’s future. A well-established brand is important in a long-term business plan.

You need to be able to trust in your consumer base to keep you going. In return, they need to be able to trust in the consistency of your brand. Sure, it might cost some initial finances, but in the long run, your growing presence will be well worth it.

3. Inspire and Maintain Customer Loyalty

As mentioned above, a solid brand can go a long way in inspiring loyalty. Both your employees and your customers need to know who exactly they’re working with. Your business’s brand is the best way to let everyone know you can be trusted in more ways than one.

Your brand’s personality is going to attract customers who have similar taste. This is good news for anyone who fears their business’s brand might be too “out there.” As long as you present a genuine and consistent branding strategy, your likeminded customers will stick around for a long time.

4. Branding Can Affect Your Social Media Presence

It’s no secret that everyone these days is connected to a digital device at one point or another. Technology and the Internet reign supreme over our daily lives. In many cases, your customers are going to first experience your brand through social media networks.

That can be a great opportunity for your brand, though. The fact of the matter is that your business can’t succeed without social media in today’s modern marketplace. The digital world is simply too impactful to overlook, and your brand will heavily affect how successful your online presence is.

5. A Good Brand Makes a Good Online Reputation

Speaking of your business’s online presence, it’s something you should take seriously. A consistent brand is the best way to prove to your consumer base that you can be trusted to fulfill their needs.

In fact, one study showed that around 58% of American consumers conduct online research of a brand before purchasing from it. If you want people to buy your products or services, don’t forget to prioritize your brand’s digital development.

Don’t forget that customers are always going to follow your every move. They’ll even be checking out any online reviews of your products or services. Don’t lose potential business because you haven’t prioritized a positive experience of your brand.

6. Branding Is How You Interact with Customers

On top of presenting a trustworthy persona online, branding can also help you interact successfully with your customers. Consider the definition of a branding strategy as your business’s personality. That expression can be useful in any customer service interaction your business undertakes.

7. A Well-Developed Brand Helps You Stand Out from Your Competitors

As mentioned above, it’s likely that you aren’t the only business in your area selling your products and services. If you want to stay ahead of your local competitors, you need to ensure your business is making the most of your brand identity.

Having a strong brand personality is the best way to maintain customer loyalty. Plus, it shows that you are unafraid to be genuine, and customers will prove to appreciate that. In comparison to potential competitors, if your brand is more recognizable, you’ll get the extra business in your area.

8. Establishing Your Business’s Identity Could Prove Meaningful

Perhaps one of the most important things to remember about branding is its potential impact. Your business is going to profit from a strong brand, it’s true. Even your employees will benefit from knowing exactly who their company is and where it’s heading.

Don’t forget, though, that understanding your own business’s brand could prove meaningful. It can show you the great qualities of your business that you maybe haven’t considered before. In other words, branding strategies are well worth your investment.

9. An Established Brand Will Stand the Test of Time

These days, it seems as though businesses of all kinds are popping up from out of nowhere. Chances are that there a similar business to yours in your local San Diego area. That’s okay, though, because there’s still a way you can stand out.

Hire the Best Branding Services in San Diego

At this point in the article, you should have a solid understanding of the many advantages of branding. Your business simply can’t thrive these days without it. You need to make the most of your business’s brand by really investing in it.

That’s where we come into play. We want to help your business’s brand grow every step of the way. We encourage you to reach out to us concerning our high-impact branding services you could be profiting from in no time.

4 in 5 consumers want to see paid ads that are specific to their city or local surroundings.

If you didn’t know this, then you might be failing at your SEO efforts. If that’s the case, then it’s okay!

SEO can be a tricky thing to tackle as a business owner. That’s why it makes sense to contract the services of an SEO expert who can help you make sense of it all.

From using the wrong kinds of keywords to writing low-quality and even publishing the wrong kinds of ads, here are the top SEO mistakes you need to avoid.

What is SEO?

Before getting into the most common SEO mistakes that businesses make, it’s best to answer the question of what SEO is and how it works.

So, what does SEO stand for? It’s the acronym for Search Engine Optimization.

This refers to the optimization of your website so that Google and other search engines rank it higher and pull it up to the first page when someone searches for a specific keyword.

Now, you can rank higher for organic and non-organic searches. Non-organic searches are the paid ads that you see at the top and bottom of a Google search page.

These are great, and there’s a lot of potential ROI if you can work Google Ads correctly. However, it’s great to aim to be at the top of the page for an organic search.

This means that if someone is searching for the “best ice cream in San Diego,” then your ice cream shop shows up as the number one result.

How do you get there? You optimize your content! You can do this in a few ways:

• Enhancing your website’s user experience. Google loves to rank websites that give users a great experience when they visit their page.
• Fix broken links. Google doesn’t like to rank sites that have broken links.
• Constantly publish high-quality and informative blog content. Include lots of hot keywords and ensure that you’re always providing value.

These are just a few of the ways that you can go about optimizing your website to enhance your SEO.

However, knowing what to do isn’t the same as actually being able to effectively implement all of these aspects of SEO.

Often, companies make small mistakes that cost them a lot in the long run. Here’s what to avoid.

Only Using Short Tail Keywords

If you’re just getting started with SEO, it’s pretty rare that you’re going to rank for a short tail keyword.

Why? These are keywords that have three words or less. Usually, they have just one word. They not only tend to have a lot of competition but are also pretty general.

Using the example above, imagine trying to rank for the keyword “ice cream.”

Not only is that going to be difficult as there’s a lot of content online for ice cream. But, you’re not going to be attracting the right kinds of customers because they’re not going to be looking for ice cream specifically in San Diego.

When you’re doing your own keyword research, it’s best to focus more on longtail keywords.

The competition for these tend to be much lower, but it’s because the search volume is also lower.

Imagine searching for “SEO expert” and then searching for “need to hire a San Diego SEO expert.”

The latter probably only has a few searches, but the people who are searching for that are ready to purchase, sign, or commit to whatever they’re looking for.

Neglecting Your Google My Business Page

As a local business, you need to be targeting and attracting local customers. One way of doing this is by optimizing your keywords for local searches.

However, if you don’t have a My Google Business page set up, then you’re not ready to fully convert that search into a full conversion.

Google continues to place importance on “near me” searches, which makes your My Google Business listing crucial.

54% of smartphone users use Google search to look up a company’s business hours. 53% use it to find directions to a local store.

This means that if someone in your area is searching for “fitness supplement store near me,” then you’ll want to have your My Google Business page updated with hours, directions, a phone number, and more.

This is your opportunity to establish your brand’s presence and ensure customers can easily contact you.

Only Focusing on On-Page SEO

On-page SEO refers to optimizing your website with keywords and quality content.

While this is a crucial aspect of any digital marketing strategy, it’s also important to think about off-page SEO.

This is where most business owners fail. They focus way too much on writing SEO-optimized blogs and social media hashtags that they forget about building their online presence elsewhere.

To avoid making this mistake, set aside time each month during your normal content creation hours to cultivate content for other websites.

This can look like:

• Writing high-quality and informative blogs for other websites in your industry. If you’re a vet’s office, for example, write a blog each month or week for a local pet food store in your town.
• Creating infographics with industry-leading statistics. Publish these as soon as the stats come out. Other companies will likely publish them on their blogs and link back to you.
• Answering questions on forums such as Quora. Use keywords in your answers and actually provide value. You’re trying to establish yourself as an authority in your industry.

These are just a few ways to engage in off-page SEO. What’s really important is that the content that you publish on other sites is keyword-rich and links back to your website.

If you really want to increase your off-page SEO game, then focus more on social media marketing.

Your social media accounts obviously have little to do with your actual website. However, establishing a strong social media brand presence can greatly increase traffic to your website.

Consider investing in things such as influencer marketing and creative YouTube marketing strategies.

This is a whole separate aspect of digital marketing, and if you’re going to do it, it’s best to get the help of a qualified social media marketing expert.

Not Performing Regular Website Audits

Most small business owners are so busy with other aspects of running a business that they often forget to audit their own website once it’s up and running.

But, broken links can negatively impact your SEO ranking.

404 errors affect the user experience of your website, which is part of what Google looks at when it ranks your pages.

When you’re putting so much time and effort into small business marketing, it’s silly to let a small mistake such as a broken link affect your rating.

An SEO expert will automatically do this for you, but if you want to do this yourself, you’ll need to get Google Analytics.

It’s best to optimize and 404 error pages with links to other areas of your site.

This means that if there’s ever a broken link, then at least when a user arrives at the error page, they’ll be redirected to other potential pages so they can continue to browse your site.

Along with fixing broken links, performing regular website audits ensures that you’re up-to-date on all of your content and keywords.

Take a look at your blogs and see if you can update them with recent information. You’ll likely see this at the beginning of each year when companies begin to update old 2018 blogs, for example, with new 2022 data.

Take advantage of this time to also optimize your keywords. Do more research and make sure you’re not still working off of keywords that aren’t popular or are too competitive.

Not Publishing High-Value Content

You’ve probably heard of the phrase “content is king.” It’s so true.

A few years ago, businesses could make SEO work for them simply by writing low-quality blogs that writers stuffed with keywords. Google hadn’t yet created an algorithm that could see past this kind of trickery.

Now, Google has caught on to the tricks. You have to write high-quality, valuable content to rank.

Not only that, but your readers are going to know the difference, too. SEO is about getting people to your website. When they get there, you want them to actually build a sense of trust towards your business.

This means that you’re providing them with valuable content that answers their questions without trying to sell them anything.

Engage in good copywriting practices that ensure that you’re balancing direct response copy with pure informative content.

You can do this by:

• Publishing “How-To” articles each week. Give customers insight into how to use your product or how to improve their lives in some way.
• Answering questions in the blog comments. Interact with your audience and respond to any questions they have in a timely manner.
• Creating blog content surrounding questions, ideas, and lifestyles that your target audience has an interest in.

The last one is a big area with a lot of potential that most people often don’t tap into.

The idea of publishing informative content is to have readers stay on your page for a longer period of time.

If you own a small surf shop San Diego, for example, then it’s likely that your target audience enjoys things such as the conservation of wildlife, clean water efforts, and general environmentalism.

Even though this has nothing to do with your business in a direct manner, publishing content about these subjects will guarantee more organic traffic.

Thinking Like a Business Owner, Not a Customer

As a business owner, it’s easy to get lost in the details and only look at the bigger picture.

This is a huge mistake when it comes to SEO. You have to think like a customer to win at SEO.

This starts from the very beginning when you’re creating the most basic keyword list. As a business owner of a digital marketing agency, you might think that people would simply search for the keyword “digital marketing agency.”

Instead, try putting yourself in their shoes. If you need digital marketing services, what would you search for in Google?

It’s likely that you’d search for something more specific such as “digital marketing services near me” or even “how to optimize my blog for more traffic.”

If it helps, try searching on Google yourself. Start with a basic keyword or question and see what the autocomplete function spits back out at you.

This will give you a good idea as to what people in your area are actually searching for and want to know.

Here, it’s important to touch on the act of keyword stuffing. Now that you’ve found your ideal keywords and they’re highly-targeted, you need to balance how you include them in your website copy.

Avoid overstuffing your blog and web content with keywords, as Google can recognize this and will automatically penalize your page.

Not Getting Help From an SEO Expert

We’ve saved the biggest mistake for last.

When it comes to optimizing your content, increasing your Google ranking, and establishing a strong brand presence, the biggest mistake you can make is not getting help from an SEO expert.

It’s probably clear after reading this entire article that there are a lot of factors that go into doing SEO right.

With so many different factors, strategies, and techniques, it’s hard to really formulate a solid SEO strategy if you’re not an expert in the field.

If you make and sell pastries, you wouldn’t entrust that part of your business to someone who’s never used an oven before, right? The same goes for digital marketing.

Ready to get started with a local San Diego SEO expert? Contact us today to get closer to your goals and begin optimizing your content across the board.

Finding the ideal internet marketing company to partner with is critical for San Diego businesses looking to increase their online presence, traffic, and sales. In today’s digital landscape, having an effective digital strategy executed by marketing experts can be the difference between struggling online or accelerating growth. This guide will walk through the key steps for identifying and choosing a premier digital agency out of San Diego marketing agencies to drive your success.

Understand your goals

First, outline your specific goals so agencies can propose tailored strategies that will achieve your objectives. Do you need more website traffic and leads? Improved search engine rankings? Help building brand awareness on social media? Whatever your needs, having clear goals will allow firms to understand exactly what you want to accomplish together.

Do research

Next, research established agencies with proven success improving digital performance for San Diego clients in your industry. Look for case studies and testimonials validating their impact for local brands. Seek out firms recognized with awards for their work and active participation in top professional associations. This shows commitment to driving real results and expertise in the San Diego market.

Understand the approach of your chosen internet marketing company

When discussing potential partnerships, probe how the agency audits your current website, ads, and analytics to spot optimization opportunities. Do they establish key performance indicators to track progress on goals? How do they research target keywords and analyze competitors to inform strategies? Understanding their strategic orientation will reveal if they can fuel success.

Check in-house expertise

Also evaluate capabilities by ensuring the internet marketing company San Diego has in-house experts across all key digital disciplines – website design/development, search engine optimization, paid search advertising, email marketing, conversion rate optimization, analytics, and reporting. This breadth of specialized talent delivers integrated digital solutions.

Determine the cultural fit

Finally, confirm cultural fit by choosing an agency that prioritizes open communication, transparency with no hidden costs, collaboration welcoming your feedback, agility to adjust programs, and proactivity in bringing new ideas. Shared values and mindsets ensure a strong partnership.

Following this step-by-step guide will lead you to the right internet marketing company for your business. With an accomplished digital marketing partner, San Diego companies can achieve online visibility, traffic, and revenues exceeding their highest expectations. The ideal agency match is out there to unlock success.

A well-designed, functional website is essential to business success these days. Without it, you’ll fail to improve your ranking on search engines and build your business.

In fact, 38% of users will stop using a site if it’s unattractive. Meanwhile, 39% of visitors will stop engaging if the site takes too long to load.

Today, websites are a digital version of your store. When it works well and is creatively designed, people will soon become paying customers. Otherwise, they’ll take their business elsewhere.

If you’re looking to update your website this year, you need to find the best web design agency for the job.

Here are seven tips to help you choose between different web design companies. With these questions to ask a web designer, you can narrow down the list and find a match. Then, you can create the website of your dreams.

Get started with these helpful tips!

1. Ask About Their Expertise

When searching for the best web design agency, you need to understand the designer’s knowledge of their craft. For example, what’s their strategy when creating new websites? Do they have more experience updating existing websites instead?

Make sure the designer has the resources and techniques necessary to design your website.

If they can’t explain their process, you might want to continue searching among design companies.

You must find a web designer who is extremely competent. Make sure they’re using white label design trends, as well. Otherwise, the designer could negatively impact your search engine optimization (SEO) and pay-per-click (PPC) advertising.

A web designer with proper expertise will greatly improve your website. This will ultimately support your other marketing efforts.

Your website will fall behind the latest design trends if not continually improved.

Finding the best web design agency for your company will help you achieve complete online success.

2. Determine Their Industry-Specific Experience

As you begin to narrow down your list, try to look for web design companies that have experience with your industry. A designer with industry-specific experience will give you an advantage.

People learn with hands-on experience. The best web design agency for your company is one that’s had experience with a company like yours. Therefore, they’ll already have researched your target customers.

You need a website that’s designed with your customers in mind. How do they intend to use your website? What content are they looking for?

A web design agency with industry-specific experience will know how to design a site for your customers. That way, you have a site that’s optimized for potential sales.

3. Check Their Portfolio

As you explore web design companies, make sure to check out their portfolio. After all, you want proof of the company’s abilities.

Take a look at the web designer’s previous work. Even if they’re talented, you still want to make sure their skill set aligns with your company’s needs.

Make note of your favorite websites within each portfolio. Take this time to flag any design elements you want for your own site. Make a note of the elements you don’t want to use, as well.

A company’s web design portfolio can tell you a lot about their experience.

As you explore portfolios, ask the web design agencies if you can speak with some of their clients. Firsthand testimonials can tell you what it’s like to work with the agency. Gather referrals from resources besides the agency’s website to make sure it’s an unbiased account.

4. Explore Their Services

Mobile devices now make up 52.2% of all internet traffic. When searching for the best web design agency, you need to find a company that offers multiple services. For example, are they able to update your website for mobile optimization?

A good web designer will know how to update a site with user experience in mind. Improving user experience is essential when encouraging people to explore a website. A quality designer will offer a range of services that improve the user’s online experience.

You can also ask if they offer services that complement your web design needs.

These can include:

• Website content writing
• Pay-per-click advertising
• Search engine optimization
• Social media marketing

A single, freelance web designer can’t always provide this range of services. Exploring different web design agencies can help you find a team of professionals who can help. With their skills, you can improve the customer’s user experience and build your brand.

Prioritizing your online users will help you prioritize your customers.

5. Ask About Ongoing Maintenance

When exploring different web design companies, ask if they provide ongoing maintenance.

Websites need regular tune-ups. You’ll need to update your plugins, refresh the content, and make sure you’re up-to-date on design trends. Otherwise, you’ll fall behind with website design and development.

Check for web design companies that are available for regular maintenance. Then, you’ll have someone who can offer help when you need it. If your website breaks down and you can’t fix it alone, you can quickly get things back up and running again.

Moving from one designer to the next can get exhausting. Instead, choose a website design agency that understands your website. This way, you’ll have someone who can quickly make changes instead of wasting time explaining your site to multiple designers.

6. Check the Contract

Make sure to always read the fine print before signing a contract.

Read the sections that mention payments, refunds, and deliverables twice. What happens if a problem pops up? If your company has a lawyer, have them read over the contract as well.

7. Is the Price Right?

Finally, when choosing the best web design agency to partner with, you’ll want to check the price. Make sure to break down the price based on each service you’re paying for and review their portfolio to make sure they’re worth the cost.

The Best in the Business: 7 Tips for Choosing the Best Web Design Agency

Looking for the best in the business? With these tips, you can find the best web design agency that can help boost your business.

Ready to get started? Contact us today to achieve your business goals!

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Website traffic can boost your business and give you more revenue. 

The key is to find a marketing strategy that will boost your website traffic. You can either have SEO or SEM. But what’s the difference between SEO and SEM? 

For starters, SEO is about organic traffic by writing blogs and optimizing the content on your website. When it comes to SEM, it’s about paid traffic. 

Of course, there’s a lot more strategy and knowledge of SEO and SEM beyond what was just described. You have to understand how they are used differently to figure out what works best in your business. 

Here’s a guide on everything you need to know about SEO and SEM and how they can benefit your business. 

Everything You Need to Know About SEO

When it comes to SEO, you need to know exactly what it is and how it can benefit your business. SEO stands for search engine optimization. It helps your website rank higher on Google pages when someone searches for something related to your business. 

To gain a proper understanding of SEO, you need to know the different ways it works. You need to know how it can benefit your business. Here’s a proper breakdown of SEO and how it works. 

SEO Keywords

if you want your website to rank higher on Google, you need to know about keywords. They are an essential part of SEO. 

Google looks at specific keywords to see what’s the most popular in your industry. If you use these keywords in your content, it can help your website rank higher. 

However, some keywords are nearly impossible to rank, or it takes a long time to rank in a particular keyword because of your competitors. That means if a keyword is really popular among your target market. Still, it’s hard to rank because your competitors already use that keyword a lot. It’s probably a good idea to consider another keyword to use in your content. 

For example, when you are searching for keywords to use in your content, you should consider the volume of which the keyword is searched and the difficulty it is to rank in that particular keyword.

SEO Quality

After you’ve found the keywords you want to use in your content, you need to consider the quality of your writing. 

When Google looks at content and determines how to rank it, they look at the content’s quality. They want to see how useful it is for a particular target audience. 

They want to see the usefulness and relevance it is to your target market. For example, if you were to write a blog article on a particular topic and it helped your target market a lot with whatever problem they had, Google might bump up your website a little higher because of that article. 

SEO Meta Tags

Meta tags are important because they’re often the first thing someone sees before they click on your website. It’s the heading and description of your link on a Google search. 

Google also looks at these to see if how well you are conveying your message on a search. 

If you want to generate more clicks, you need to consider writing persuasive meta tags. You need to add the keyword in the meta tags and make it compelling enough for your target market to click on it. 

Everything You Need to Know About SEM

SEM stands for search engine marketing. It’s different from SEO because you have to pay for this kind of marketing. SEO is about using keywords and writing a lot of content to be found without paying for ads. 

Here’s a breakdown of how SEM works and how it can benefit your business. 

SEM Bidding

If you want your ads to be seen, you need to have a certain bid. That means you want to create ads with keywords. 

When someone searches for something with the keyword included, you pay for Google however much you bid on. You also have to remember that your competitors are also bidding, so if you want to outbid them and make sure your ad is shown more, you will need to pay more for certain keywords. 

SEM Focus

If you want your SEM ads to do well, you need to have a goal. 

If your goal is to generate more clicks and website visits, you should consider using the cost-per-click Google bidding. This is what kind of focus you want when you run Google ads. 

Besides, you can also have a conversion campaign when you are doing SEM. For example, if you are trying to accomplish the goal of more conversions, Google will make sure you have a bid that optimizes your conversions. 

You also want to make sure you set an ad budget. You don’t want to overspend on ads that aren’t working. 

Now You Know the Difference Between SEO and SEM

Knowing the difference between SEO and SEM can do a lot for your business. It can clear up any confusion on which one will work better for your business. It’s important to remember that they each serve a unique purpose in your business. 

In fact, SEO and SEM can work together to generate more website traffic. You can use both to talk about your brand and produce quality content that drives in more traffic. This article can help you get started on generating more website traffic and generating more revenue. 

If you need help with your SEO or SEM campaign, you can contact us here. 

It’s easy to think you can afford to let SEO sit on the back-burner.

In reality, you can’t.

The longer you wait to optimize, the harder it is to rank well. If you’re not focused on SEO, your competitors are. And there are more competitors popping up every day.

There are nearly 2 billion websites.

Your business doesn’t exist in a vacuum. The competitive business climate is fierce. Everyone wants the same thing — attention in a saturated digital world.

Bad news aside, there’s a light at the end of the tunnel. Hiring a local San Diego SEO expert is easy. They’ll do all the heavy lifting for you.

Prop your feet up, grab a blanket and a cold drink.

You’re in good hands.

SEO Is a No-Brainer and Here’s Why

There are 77,000+ Google searches made every second.

That equates to nearly 7 billion searches a day. Pretend .0001% of those searches are relevant to your business.

That’s 7,000 searches a day that could be interacting with your website. That’s 210,000 visitors a month. Think about what that kind of traffic could do for your business.

Myth: If You Build it, They Will Come

Your website knocks it out of the park. It’s painstakingly perfect and it’s the ultimate salesman. But, just because it exists doesn’t mean anyone will find it.

It’s up to you to meet potential customers where they are. As it turns out, 93% of all online experiences begin with a search engine. So, it’s safe to say that’s where you need to meet them.

Proper SEO is what puts your business in front of the right people at the exact time they need to see it.

SEO Allows You to Meet Consumers Throughout the Buyer’s Cycle

Most people using a search engine are looking for information.

They’re not ready to make a purchase. But, that doesn’t mean you should ignore them.

By lending a helping hand early on, you’re putting your brand on their brain. Eventually, they’ll be ready to buy. And they’ll remember the exceptional experience you delivered.

Targeting keywords with varying intents allows you to attract new customers independent of where they sit in the sales funnel.

You Want People to Trust You, Right?

The first search engine results page gets 91.5% of traffic generated.

Think about how you behave online. When you search for “cat training tips,” you expect the first page to contain what you need.

You trust Google’s judgment and so do consumers. Hence why most people don’t search past the first page. Passed experiences tell them they can find what they need on page one.

If Google trusts you, so do they.

You Can Outsource for Explosive Results

Revenue and results scale disproportionately to the time and money you spend.

Plus, you can outsource SEO to an experienced expert to amplify your results.

It’s no secret that the hardest climb is at the beginning. But, that isn’t because it’s steeper. Once your business reaches the tipping point, your reach will explode.

Hiring an SEO expert will decrease the time it takes to reach your tipping point and magnify what happens after.

San Diego SEO Expert Tip: Start optimizing your website right away.

An Inside Look at What a San Diego SEO Expert Does

SEO is a complex universe that changes nearly every second. Specialists are constantly learning new skills, techniques, and strategies to take your business to the top.

Here’s a peek at what a San Diego SEO expert can do for you.

Competitor Analysis

The goal isn’t to reinvent the wheel.

First, they’ll research and analyze what works for competitors within your vertical. Specifically, they’ll dig into:

• Keyword strategy
• Information gaps
• Social media
• Paid ads
• Email marketing tactics
• Other digital marketing strategies

This is the foundation of everything else moving forward.

Content Audit

An SEO expert will check your existing content.

What pieces perform well? Which ones don’t?

They’ll tweak your headlines, body text, meta tags, and more to increase their performance. They’ll also look for gaps and areas of improvement.

Keyword Research

Keyword research is a science. It boils down to finding search queries with a golden ratio of search volume to difficulty.

And relevancy.

And search intent.

And cost per click.

It sounds complicated because it is.

An SEO expert will do the mathematical work behind the scenes while you sit back and reap the benefits.

Keyword Strategy

A strong keyword strategy takes those golden keywords and turns them into an actionable plan.

This plan covers every step of the buyer’s journey from awareness to retention.

Content Creation

Content creation takes your keyword strategy and turns it into digital content. This could be in the form of:

• Blog articles
• Videos
• Social media posts
• Landing pages
• Infographics
• Interactive content

The goal of each piece of content is to solve a problem your audience may have. And then to help them find it when they need it.

Local Optimization

Proper local search optimization means appearing in search results that include “near me” or a specific location.

An SEO expert will set up your Google My Business listing, manage your directory citations and reviews, and optimize your website for you.

On-Page Optimization

There are specific areas Google crawls to understand what your pages are about. On-page optimization is utilizing them to give search engines a clear picture.

A long, long time ago…

The more times a keyword appeared, the higher that page would rank in search results. But, that’s not the case anymore. Good on-page SEO finds the perfect balance of giving Google what it wants without sounding like a robot.

Site Structure

Is your site easy to navigate? Does your menu structure make sense? Do you have an XML sitemap?

A proper SEO expert will double-check and take care of it for you.

Site Speed

The internet is a place of instant gratification.

74% of users will abandon a website that doesn’t load in 5 seconds or less. It’s imperative that your website loads quickly across all devices.

The more people bounce from your site, the less Google trusts you as a source of high-quality information. They’ll penalize you by moving you down the rankings.

Ouch.

An SEO expert will make sure your site is lightweight and loads quickly.

Backlink Generation

A backlink (or inbound link) is the search engine equivalent of a five-star rating.

In Google’s eyes, if a high-authority website links to yours, you must be offering something good.

Experts help you generate backlinks by guest posting, email outreach, and other white-hat SEO techniques.

Analytics and Reporting

If legwork is the cupcake, analyzing results is the icing on top.

Analytics and accurate reporting prove what tactics work and those that don’t. This information helps build a continuous SEO growth strategy moving forward.

San Diego SEO Expert Tip: Research everything in this section so you can discuss them during your free consultation.

How Hiring an SEO Expert Will Benefit You and Your Business

You’re busy managing 7,832,405 other things. Hiring an expert allows you to do your thing.

And allows them to develop a unique SEO strategy specifically for your business.

1. You’re Hiring an Expert

Experts say that it takes 10,000 hours to become an expert.

Wait. Who are these experts and what are they experts on? Who knows.

Whether it takes 10,000 hours or not, being an expert takes a lot of time, research, studying, and effort among other things. Odds are, you don’t have time for that.

You’re probably trying to become an expert on something else.

Hiring an SEO expert means you’re getting a specialist who’s put in the blood, sweat, and tears to sit where they’re at. They have a backlog of experience to lean on.

So, you can rest easy.

2. Stay Up-To-Date with Google

Google updates it’s search algorithm approximately 9 times a day.

Each update makes the algorithm more human and harder to understand.

Even the folks at Google don’t know 100% how it works.

But, SEO experts live and breath for those updates. To them, it’s a welcomed challenge. They stay up-to-date so you don’t have to.

And because they enjoy it.

3. Save Yourself Time, Effort, and Money

DIY results take a lot of time to see (usually 6 months to a year, if at all). That’s if you have an idea of what you’re doing.

Hiring an SEO expert saves you the hassle and cost of learning how to do everything yourself. Plus, you’ll see results sooner.

It’s a virtually hands-off approach that lets you focus on other things.

4. Cost-Effective and Consistent

Effective SEO campaigns are consistent and cost-effective.

Experts understand this and work hard to deliver human-first optimized pages and content. Every aspect of your online presence is cohesive with a big-picture strategy in mind.

A common mistake is hiring someone to optimize one page at a time. This creates inconsistency and provides no general structure to the madness.

5. Avoid Devastating Mistakes

Honest SEO mistakes can wreak havoc on your online presence, especially if your website is new. Something as simple as trying too hard can get you banned from Google.

Using a keyword one too many times can destroy your rankings for months on end. Buying backlinks is also a deal-breaker for Google.

SEO experts understand these bad practices and know how to avoid them.

6. Accurate Reporting

Reports and analytics are vital for understanding how your business is performing.

Often times, analytic reports from standard software are hard to understand.

But, experts understand the importance and are able to generate reports that make things easy. You’ll be able to easily understand the impact of your SEO investment.

Understanding the impact simplifies decisions about the future of your business.

7. Increased Search Engine Performance

After hiring an SEO expert, you’ll see increased search engine performance. You’ll see more organic traffic, higher rankings, and higher conversions.

Search engine traffic is highly targeted making it easier to turn visitors into paying customers. Additionally, as Google starts to trust you, your brand will have more authority.

Ranking new articles and new pages won’t take years and you’ll gain a loyal following. What’s not to love?

8. Technical SEO

Technical SEO goes beyond page speed and meta tags.

Schema markups, HTML code, and CSS script structure are a few of the more complex aspects. If you don’t know what those are, don’t worry.

You’re not alone.

But, you are in luck. SEO experts have spent years studying the technical aspects of what makes Google tick. They’ll do the dirty work so you don’t have to.

9. Hiring Local Provides a Hands-On, In-Person Experience

Hiring a local San Diego SEO expert does more than keep business in your local economy.

The benefits of working with a local expert include:

• In-person interactions
• Personalized attention
• Understanding of your local market
• Effective local keyword research
• Multiple streams of communication
• Local business connections and network opportunities
• Local partnerships

San Diego SEO Expert Tip: Hire a local SEO expert for explosive business growth.

How to Decide If You Should Outsource SEO

If you answer yes to any of the following questions, hiring an SEO expert will benefit your business.

1. Do you have a website?
2. Do you want to make more money?
3. Do you want to help people solve their problems?

SEO is complicated but knowing when and how to hire an expert isn’t.

San Diego SEO Expert Tip: Don’t wait to hire an expert. Invest in the future of your business. Now.

A Results-Driven San Diego SEO Expert at Your Fingertips

The MAD Group exists to make an impact on businesses and consumers across the world.

They want to help your business thrive through creative marketing, advertising, and design.

When you hire a MAD San Diego SEO Expert, you’re also hiring a business partner and friend who won’t settle for ordinary. Plus, the process is easy and future you will look back and say “thank you.”

Schedule your free consultation using the form below to get started today!

Defining your brand gives your company personality and a unique voice that makes people aware of your position in the marketplace. It creates differentiation in the marketplace and gives you more credibility and negotiating power.

Brand development enables you to attract a specific set of customers that gravitate to your business because of the emotional connection they’ve made with the brand.

But how do you begin developing a brand? Read on for a step-by-step guide on how to build your brand. Here are the top ten brand strategy tips for building a brand.

What is Brand Development?

Brand development was never meant to be created in a vacuum. You don’t just pull out an idea and say, “Hey team, let’s do this.”

Brand development is rooted in a solid strategy based on the core values that drive your business’s vision and mission. Then you link your values to your company goals and your business strategy.

1. Your Business Strategy: Look At The Big Picture

Your business strategy starts with your vision and mission. Think about the problems you want to solve in the marketplace. And how you want to solve them. When you differentiate your brand, it’s easier to grow your business.

Do you want to sell sustainable products that inspire your audience? Maybe you want to manufacture stylish, chic clothing to expectant mothers. Every brand will require depth of thinking and value it brings to your clients.

2. Hone in On Your Target Audience

Sometimes specializing in a target niche enables you to identify your brand and audience more easily. While you might want to sell to everyone, that may be a mistake. It may not attract anyone’s attention if you are everything to everyone. It may seem as a jack-of-all-trades.

To grow your brand, it’s essential to define your target clients. The more you can narrow your target clients, the more laser-focused you’ll make your brand.

The narrower the focus, the faster the results, the more leads you’ll generate, the more orders you’ll receive at checkout. It might take some time to define your target audience. But don’t rush it. It requires concentration and insight.

So how do you define your target clients? It’s all in the research.

3. Researching Your Target Market

To make your brand relevant to your target clients, you need to do abundant research. Research can drive revenue.

The reason: the information you learn about your target clients from demographics, interests, location, pains, goals, and attitudes enables you to create brand advertising that says, “They get me.”

In return, the revenue comes in, your business grows, but most importantly you know where you stand in the minds of your audience.

By understanding your customer’s priorities and perspectives, you resonate with them–and anticipate their problems that you can solve by creating unique messaging that’s relevant to their lives and provides value.

4. It’s Time to Position Your Brand

Next up, you’re ready to position your brand. Show how your brand is different than your competition. When you define the difference that matches your target clients’ preferences, they choose to work with you.

To position your brand, you need to write carefully crafted positioning statements for each market. The is a specific format for doing this effectively. If you need help with this please contact Mad Group to get the most effective advice.

5. What’s Your Message?

The next step is to create your messaging strategy. Your message should be based on your brand positioning. It should convey powerful thoughts in words, pictures, and video.

If you have more than one target client, you’ll need to create a message for each client. Perhaps you’ll vary your messaging based on gender or other criteria. But keep it rooted in your brand positioning.

While your message may vary, your core brand positioning must be the same for all your target clients for brand consistency. Each client may have specific preferences, but your brand needs to remain the same across the board.

You can create an umbrella brand for the company, and then create specific sub-brands for your products or service offerings.

6. Keep Your Logo and Brand Elements Relevant

If you’re doing a company rebranding or forming a new brand, a logo may be in order. The logo and your tagline need to match your brand positioning strategy.

Customers will come to recognize your logo and related visual material. It’s important to communicate your brand personality in these visuals so they can remember your company.

When designing your logo and brand elements, use color, shapes, and symbols that allow people to remember your company and recognize it instantly. Think of McDonald’s golden arches or the Apple logo. Both so easily recognizable.

7. Developing A Content Marketing Strategy

Your content marketing strategy needs to be in line with your brand positioning. Make sure it communicates it in every piece of content you create. Whether a blog post, eBook, video, or an infographic.

Content marketing builds your brand by providing your target clients with informative and engaging opportunities to learn and experience your brand. It’s a way to attract, inspire, nurture and motivate target clients to take action.

8. Building Your Website

Your company website is one of the most essential brand-building tools for your online customers and prospects. It’s the place where your target clients will return to make purchases and connect with you.

Here, you’ll drive new customers through your search engine optimization (SEO) efforts to learn about your company’s offerings. When it comes to a solid brand development plan, an attractive and functional website is a must.

Here are some quick tips for building a website for your brand:

• Make sure the look and feel match your brand. This includes colors and style.
• Tell your brand story on your homepage.
• Create a newsletter on your website for your target client to join.
• Make sure the menus on your site is easy to navigate and is built with a responsive design. So it looks good on all devices.

9. Other Marketing Tools

You can use a variety of marketing tools you can post on your website or on social media. Here are some examples:

Your Company Newsletter

Your newsletter is an opportunity for target clients to discover your brand. Here they can sign up for news, deals, and product information.

Design An e-brochure

An e-brochure designed in line with your brand is another opportunity to get your target client acclimated to your brand. Make sure it’s saved in a PDF format for easy and convenient viewing.

Compilation of Videos

Viewers love videos. They give you the opportunity to let users know more about your brand. Some topic ideas for videos:

• New products and services
• Meet the team video
• Deals and discounts

10. Testing: Measuring and Tracking Results

This last step in developing your brand is to test your marketing through analytics. You’ll learn which blog posts and videos get shared, which emails get opened, and which ads get a response–or get ignored.

Tracking your marketing efforts gives you a good idea what’s working and what needs to be adjusted.

The Bottom Line on Brand Development

Now you know the top ten brand development tips to build a successful brand.

Follow these tips step-by-step to strengthen your brand positioning, establish a brand voice, extend your audience reach, and drive profits.

MAD Group specializes in branding, messaging, and campaign development. Contact our team today to drive your business forward with a brand that aligns with your values and goals.

Digital marketing isn’t just about dropping a tweet or sending an email.

Understanding how you can attract and communicate with customers, clients, audiences involves staying ahead of new and exciting technological developments in the industry.

But are you too busy running your business to know what the latest digital marketing trends are?

If you are, don’t worry–here are the top 5 trends in digital marketing to look out for this year.

1. Chatbots and AI Are Going Mainstream

You could spend every hour of your working day answering questions for your customers, but is that a good use of your time? If you’re hiring agents to do it for you, is that budget is well spent?

Thanks to the expected growth in the use of chatbots, there’s an alternative. The market for chatbots is estimated to reach around $1.25 billion within six years, growing by nearly 25% in that time.

But why are chatbots growing in popularity? What is it about AI like this that businesses are so interested in?

It’s all down to time and labor costs.

These artificial bots will answer customer questions for you, 24 hours of the day, 7 days a week. They can also upsell products for you, as well as deal with any customer complaints (depending on their complexity).

As AI technology has grown, chatbots have begun to sound more like real human beings, too. Your customers are more likely to be satisfied with the responses the chatbot provides, making them a risk-free addition to your business operations.

2. Live Video Marketing Will Become Even Important

The market for advertisers has moved increasingly toward mobile users over the last few years, with over 50% of ad revenue being generated from devices like smartphones and tablets.

For this revenue stream to adapt, new ways to advertise to mobile users have had to be generated. One such revenue stream that’s going to get even bigger is live video marketing.

It’s all down to how youth audiences are viewing their content.

A survey found that 80% of consumers would prefer to watch a live video from a brand or advertiser than read through a blog. Time is short, and video content can be more easily consumed than text.

Live video can be streamed on existing social media platforms, or through emerging platforms like Twitch, the service for gamers.

3. Increased Opportunities for Influencer Marketing

Live video marketing, like any sort of digital marketing tactic, has to have an audience willing to consume the content. It isn’t easy building that kind of user base, however.

Our advice? Cheat. You don’t need to build up your own audience (at least at first) if you can spread your message by using influencer marketing.

Influencers are authentic, trusted, and with an audience willing to absorb and support their message, whether it’s what to wear, what to play, or what to buy.

There’s going to be increased opportunities for you to take advantage of influencers like these in your target niche.

Getting an endorsement from influencers, using marketing channels like Instagram, can help you increase profits as well as develop your own audience if that’s your objective.

4. More Advertising Through Smart Speakers and Voice Searches

Alexa, is it time to start focusing on smart searches as a marketing tactic?

There are now an estimated one billion or more voice searches, either by smartphone or smart speaker, every single month. That’s why you should be focusing on building your ad revenue through voice searches, but how can you go about doing that?

Your website’s SEO will be a great help here. Long-tail keywords in your site content, for example in the form of a question, can be picked up by voice search AI and spoken back to potential new customers.

5. Newer Social Media Platforms Will Become More Important

Just like MySpace and Bebo died early deaths in the battle for social media supremacy, newer social media platforms look to usurp the main players as we move.

While Facebook and Twitter still remain popular, that popularity is waning, thanks to scandals like data breaches and politicized content.

Newer platforms, like Instagram or Twitch, aren’t immune to some of these problems,  but they’re growing–fast. Instagram, for instance, is expected to add almost 150 million more users.

It doesn’t matter whether it’s Facebook, Instagram or Twitter, social media is still going to be a significantly important part of your digital strategy. It may simply mean that you need to focus on other platforms this year.

Go where your audiences are. If more and more users in your target audience are using Instagram, for instance, pivot your focus there.

Not convinced your business needs social media? Then take a look at why we think your business can’t survive without it.

Don’t Forget These Digital Marketing Trends

These digital marketing trends offer a taste of the future for marketing, and the business world more widely.

AI is taking hold, which is why chatbots are becoming a great way to build customer rapport with your customers without the cost of labor. New tech, like smart speakers and live video, offers new digital marketing tools to explore.

Combined with an increased focus on influencer marketing in newer forms of social media, you’ve got plenty to work with if you’re developing your digital marketing strategy for the next year.

Want to bring in some professional help? If you’re based in San Diego, leave us a message and we’ll get in touch to discuss how we can refine your digital strategy for the better.

Remember the time when people claimed that print was dead?

Well, those people were simply wrong.

Sure, without a doubt, we live in a digital age. But print still has its place.

In fact, it’s clear that print media has many advantages when it comes to both news reporting and advertising. For one, research shows that the majority of people feel that print marketing is more trustworthy than other types of marketing are.

The ideal situation for any business owner interested in marketing their products and services is to use the smart combination of digital and print communication to maximize their branding efforts.

In the post belong, we’re giving you a glimpse at the top benefits of a good print media campaign.

Let’s dig in!

Your Print Ad-Reading Customers Will Remember You

According to research, people have a tendency to read much slower when it comes to paper compared with online.

You couldn’t ask for a better situation if you’re using print media. This is because slower reading enables a person to develop a deeper understanding of what they’re taking in.

Apparently, just holding a piece of paper enables the brain to develop connections that boost memory. Print also provides a focused manner of reading. This is because people lay out magazines and newspapers intentionally to read them.

On the contrary, producing a digital ad is a lot like writing about somebody and then having that person jump up from the text and start running around the page.

You may catch your online readers’ attention with ads that move and cover the copy that they’re reading, but the movement can also be a distraction.

This is an issue you simply don’t face with print media.

Your Print Media Ads Will Stick Around

The staying power of print advertisements also makes them extremely appealing these days.

With online advertisements, readers usually have to click on them to read them. Meanwhile, although 70% of people in the United States had social media profiles in 2021, social media ads come and go.

Print media ads, however, stay where they’re placed.

Years from today, when readers sift through their old magazines for nostalgia, they’ll still see the print ads you placed.

Print’s staying power gives you, as a print advertiser, a sense of solidity and strength. Print ads look richer and more believable compared with online ads.

This is precisely why print marketers are usually viewed as being more trustworthy than their online counterparts. And this may become even truer in the years ahead as younger online users — for whom digital ads have become the norm — constitute the largest percentage of consumers.

You Can Likely Afford Print Ads

If you’re a small business owner, you may not be able to generate the funds to advertise on television. In addition, radio ads may not always be recommended.

But, regardless of what their budget levels may be, advertisers can generally find good print options.

Even a small corner boutique can spare some money to place an ad in a local newspaper, which is perfect for reaching most of its target customers.

Print is Very Flexible

Another reason to love print advertising? It’s an extremely flexible way of promoting your products or services.

Whether you’d like to reach a local shopper, a father, a foodie, or a golfer, you can effortlessly target your company’s audience.

For instance, if you’re targeting foodies, you can advertise your offering in your local newspaper’s food section on Thursdays. Or, if you’re trying to grab a golfer’s attention, run an ad in the newspaper on the sports pages on Sundays.

You can also produce ads for magazines, targeting these types of customers.

Plus, if you have to alter a print advertisement at some point, this is much easier to do than changing a radio or television ad, which requires rerecording and reshooting some spots.

Print Helps to Build Awareness

The repeated placement of an advertisement is necessary for it to be effective.

While audiences become less aware of online and television campaigns after they’ve run a few times, the opposite actually takes place with print advertisements.

Print advertising boosts purchase decisions and brand loyalty in a way that online advertisements generally can’t.

Combine Print with Other Marketing Tools

As we mentioned earlier, using a mixture of print ads and digital ads is wise if you want to maximize your marketing impact.

In print ads, you’ll usually see companies redirect their readers to their websites for more information or special offers. Why? Because print is good at motivating readers to go wherever you’d like them to go.

Because all print mediums have unique benefits, it makes sense to tap into the power of them all for the greatest results. So, make sure that your advertising campaign makes use of various kinds of media and reinforces your message in each one.

In fact, experts say that television ads can be even more effective when combined with print vs. online-only advertisements. And if you use all three, the effectiveness is even greater.

With a well-thought-out multimedia approach, you can reach individuals who prefer certain advertising mediums over others. You can also boost your awareness and ultimately increase your brand loyalty.

How We Can Help

You now know adding print to your marketing campaign can give you a huge boost. We can help.

We offer high-quality services designed to help you increase awareness about your company.

For instance, we offer help with marketing, branding, websites, social media and even copywriting. Our marketing services include those for both traditional and digital promotion.

Get in touch with us to find out more about the benefits of print media.

Digital marketing moves fast, with new innovations constantly changing the landscape for brands in San Diego and beyond. As companies prepare for 2024, staying ahead of impactful emerging trends will be vital to succeed amid intensifying online competition. With forecasting from top analysts plus insights from the best Digital Marketing Agency San Diego, here are the 4 biggest trends set to accelerate next year with guides to leverage them now:

AI-Enhanced Content & Advertising

Sophisticated artificial intelligence already fuels popular tools assisting marketers with tasks like copywriting or graphic design. Looking ahead though, expect AI’s applications throughout digital marketing to multiply rapidly. Over 40% of marketers now use AI for content creation in some capacity. And by 2025, AI promises to compose close to 40% of all business content published.

For San Diego brands, this means tapping into AI-powered platforms to simplify producing optimized digital ads and engaging, localized website copy at scale. AI can also enhance personalization by automatically customizing messaging to buyer personas. Work with leading local agencies skilled at integrating next-gen AI tools into strategies driving ROI.

Advanced Voice Search Optimization

Voice-initiated searches via smart devices have grown exponentially in adoption. In coming years, optimizing for voice commands emerges as a requirement for discoverability. Best practices include using natural language around question-based keywords in content while focusing on featured snippets and optimizing structured data. As voice search increases, work with San Diego SEO experts adept at technical enhancements to improve voice search visibility.

Online Marketplaces Overtake D2C eCommerce

The pandemic boom in ecommerce sales has marketplaces like Amazon and Shopify eating up more transaction share. Research shows over half of online spending now goes through these retail platforms, with their share projected to reach nearly 70% by 2025. In this climate, San Diego ecommerce brands must diversify beyond owned D2C channels to reach consumers active on leading retail marketplaces.

Tactics range from securing more page real estate via advertising programs to optimizing branded stores for organic visibility. Companies also need to monitor performance analytics through channels while local agencies can handle marketplace account management and onboarding.

Expanded Retail Media Advertising

With marketplaces playing bigger sales roles, their built-in retail media networks present big emerging advertising opportunities. By next year, networks from the likes of Amazon, Instacart and Walmart will support extensive sponsored placements like Google Ads and Facebook. SD brands ready to test these new networks gain first-mover advantages before costs surge in coming years. Prep by auditing marketplace presence and reviewing retail media options with top performance marketing agencies.

The pace of change within digital constantly accelerates, making continuous adjustments mandatory. Getting ahead of the latest developments with help from leading local marketing experts helps San Diego enterprises maximize online visibility, engagement and conversions headed into a very disruptive 2024. Don’t leave business growth to chance; connect with premier consultants to future-proof digital marketing success. If you partner with a reputed Digital Marketing Agency San Diego, you will be able to dominate digital marketing throughout 2024.

Google processes over 40,000 search queries every second. That translates to over 3.5 billion searches every day. Worldwide, that’s 1.2 trillion searches a year.

Each time someone searches for your product or service, it’s a chance for you to attract a potential customer to your website.

Without search engine optimization (SEO), however, your website won’t even appear in the search engine results.

Google’s algorithm changes every year, requiring companies to come up with new ways to boost their search ranking. With this SEO trend list, you can rise above the competition and attract more customers!

Without it, you’ll fall behind and miss out on potential sales.

Boost your brand, sales, and ROI with these SEO trends for 2022 from your San Diego SEO expert!

The 2021 SEO Trend List

A top priority for 66% of marketers is to improve their company’s SEO and grow an organic presence for inbound marketing.

Why? Well for starters, a search for content is the number one driver of traffic to websites. In fact, it beats social media by over 300%.

With a strong SEO plan for 2022, you can get ahead of the competition and attract more people to your website. Therefore, those visitors can turn into paying customers who come back for more! However, falling behind on the top SEO trends can cause you to fall behind your competitors.

Don’t worry! With this SEO trend list from your San Diego SEO expert, you can give your business the boost it needs. Here are the top search engine trends of 2022.

1. Snippets, Structured Data, & SERP Marketing

Over the years, Google has evolved to give its users a better search experience from the search page. This led to the popularity of search engine results page (SERP) marketing.

After typing a search query into Google, you might see knowledge graphs, quick answers, or interactive results. These can include lists, the “People also ask” boxes, recipes, and more. By providing users with these quick answers, “zero-click” searches are becoming more popular.

In other words, users don’t have to click on your website to find the answers they need.

Instead of losing potential customers, this provides you with an opportunity. Now, you can show readers the value you have to offer straight from the SERP.

In order to display your content on SERPs, you need to determine the user’s search intent. What are your customers searching for? What answers are they looking for?

The job is now to create content that matches their intent.

Identify which keywords will help you gain clicks. You can use your Google Search Console to see what your website visitors are searching for. Then, optimize your website for rich and featured snippets.

You can structure your content for rich and featured snippets by:

• Structuring content using H2-H3 subheadings that address specific queries
• Providing quick, short answers that Google can easily grab
• Researching current featured snippets your competitors are ranking for

For example, you can try to optimize for a “question and answer” box by writing an article that answers a popular customer question. Optimizing for snippets will help you stand out on search pages.

2. Optimize for Voice Search

Between Siri, Alexa, and Google, voice assistants are making their mark. This year, it’s expected that 50% of all searches will start through a voice assistant.

The number of people relying on voice assistants grows every year. As of 2022, 35.6 million Americans used a voice-activated device at least once a month. Meanwhile, one in six Americans own a smart speaker.

With voice search available, people are now searching for content the way they normally speak aloud. For example, a consumer can ask, “Google, where’s the nearest shoe store?” to discover options based on their location.

As we mentioned above, audience research is key.

Determine what your customers are searching for and how they word their searches. Then, use those queries to create new content. Make sure to organize your content with the direct answer to the query at the beginning of the post.

Optimizing your SEO for voice search will help you attract more organic traffic.

At the same time, you’re creating a conversation with your readers!

3. The Mobile Experience

As more people use voice search from their mobile devices, you need to consider a mobile SEO strategy as well. Many of the items on our SEO trend list rely on a mobile-optimized website.

Google uses mobile-first indexing to determine your website’s SERP ranking. In order to optimize your website, you need to make sure it’s easy to use and navigate on smaller screens.

Try using a minimalistic website design.

A cleaner website is easier to use, which will encourage visitors to click around and explore.

4. Wow-Worthy Videos

By 2022, video content will attract over 80% of global web traffic. Videos are an effective, easy way to communicate and engage customers. Many people prefer video content because it’s easy to consume.

Mix up your content strategy by adding entertaining video content.

However, you need to match your video content with these SEO trends. To start, make sure you’re optimizing your content using your target keyword in the video headline and description. Then, consider creating a transcript.

Creating engaging video content can help you utilize the rest of these SEO practices while keeping visitors entertained.

5. CTR & Dwell Time

Click-through rate (CTR) and dwell time are important ranking factors. Both tell Google that users are satisfied and using your website.

You can increase your CTR by adding lead generators such as buttons and forms to your site. Adding video content can give your CTR a boost, too.

Then, determine how you can get people to stay on your site. For example, lengthy blog posts encourage people to linger. Videos can improve your dwell time as well.

However, it’s important to continue providing users with high-quality, relevant content.

Make sure the content you provide benefits your customers. Answer their questions and show you’re there to help. Then, people will want to stay on your website longer and click around for more information.

6. High-Quality Content

With so many digital ads flooding the internet, it’s important you provide your readers with value. Otherwise, they’ll take their attention elsewhere.

One popular SEO trend for 2022 is prioritizing high-quality content.

Google looks for websites that offer Expertise, Authority, and Trustworthiness, or “EAT.” It looks for content that provides users with helpful, timely, and relevant information. In order to provide this content, you first need to know what your customers are searching for.

Make sure the information you provide is well researched. Back up any claims with data and link to the original source. This can help your link-building strategy as well.

Make sure your content follows any easy-to-read structure.

Avoid making your content appear heavily sales-related. Instead, try to educate your readers. Mix up your content by transforming blog posts into videos, podcasts, infographics, and more!

7. Speed & Security

Google wants to provide its users with a safe online experience. As a result, Google’s SEO algorithm looks for websites that are safe and secure.

Make sure your website has an SSL certificate. You should see “HTTPS” in front of your URL. In addition to telling Google (and users) that your website is safe, this can also benefit the overall user experience.

Speed is important to user experience, too. No one wants to wait for a page to load. If it takes more than a few seconds, a user will leave your site and visit a competitor’s.

This can cause your bounce rate to increase, which impacts your SEO ranking.

By prioritizing speed and security, you’re telling Google and your customers that you care about the user’s browsing experience.

8. Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence (AI) is more than an SEO trend; it’s also becoming a norm for the user’s digital experience.

AI allows companies to create personalized experiences for their customers. With AI, you can learn about your customers and what content they value most.

Google’s AI can now organize page rankings based on individual users.

To prepare for AI, create buyer personas. Separate your users by demographics, buying behavior, and interests. Then, make sure to create content that appeals to each persona.

Why You Need Help From a San Diego SEO Expert

Using this SEO trend list, you can boost your ranking and attract more website visitors. Working with a San Diego SEO expert can benefit your business in other ways as well. Here are a few ways teaming up with an expert can help you make the most of these SEO trends.

1. Boost Your Brand

When you rank higher on SERPs, more people will see your company’s name. This allows you to increase brand awareness and recognition.

Ranking above your competitors can also increase your credibility.

After all, most people don’t look beyond Google’s first page. By increasing your SEO ranking, your building your brand and standing out from your competitors.

2. Gain Leads & Sales

In order to use many of these SEO trends, you need to update your website. A fast, secure website that’s mobile-optimized benefits the overall user experience. Then, it’s easier for people to fill out a form or make a purchase on your site.

A better user experience can help you gain leads, which you can then turn into sales. Improving the user experience will also ensure you leave a good impression on customers.

As a result, using these SEO ideas can improve your ROI.

3. It’s a Long-Term Marketing Strategy

Keeping up with the latest SEO trends can get tedious. The algorithm changes throughout the year.

A San Diego SEO expert will keep up with the latest search engine trends for you. Then, they can work with you to improve your site for long-term SEO success. When your site is SEO-optimized, you will continue to bring in leads.

4. Unite Your Marketing Plans into One

SEO gives you the chance to unite all of your marketing plans together. That way, they work in cohesion. Creating a well-thought-out marketing plan will benefit the user by providing a more seamless experience.

SEO and Social

For example, the top social media channels draw over 2 billion monthly active users. In order to properly market your business, you need to spend time where your customers are. To respond to this trend, nearly two-thirds of all U.S. small businesses increased their social media marketing budgets in 2019.

Today, almost 75% of small businesses use social media to promote their brands.

Posting your blog posts and other pieces of website content on social media will increase traffic to your website. As more people read your content, Google will take notice. While social sharing isn’t a direct ranking factor, it does have an impact.

As more people share your posts on social media, you can attract a following and gain more monthly visitors. This, in turn, will show Google’s algorithm that you provide valuable content to an audience.

In order to gain that following in the first place, you need unique, high-quality SEO-optimized content.

As a result, social media marketing and SEO benefit one another.

SEO & PPC

Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising and social media also go hand-in-hand.

PPC ads appear above organic SEO lists on search pages.

By ranking at the top of a search page for specific keywords, you can draw more traffic to your website. Remember, ranking higher on search engines also boosts your brand credibility and authority. Using PPC ads, you can attract more people to your site, which can help you gain more leads.

At the same time, you’re again showing Google’s algorithm you’re a wanted resource.

As a busy business owner, you don’t have time to manage your PPC ads or post on social media every day. That’s where your San Diego SEO expert comes in. They can help determine new opportunities to bring your SEO and other marketing plans together.

That way, you’re creating a seamless experience for your users without stressing out over everything you need to do in one day.

The 2021 SEO Trend List: 8 Trends From Your San Diego SEO Expert

With this 2021 SEO trend list from your San Diego SEO expert, you can avoid falling behind the competition. Instead, reach the top of the SERP page and stay there with these eight SEO tips!

Ready to get started? Contact your San Diego SEO expert today for a master plan!

The paid search landscape is constantly evolving as search engines, advertising platforms, and technologies progress. For businesses in San Diego and beyond, staying on top of the latest pay-per-click (PPC) trends is key to getting the most out of your campaigns. As we enter 2024, there are several notable developments to keep pace with to succeed.

Precision Bidding Takes Center Stage

Platforms like Google Ads are placing more emphasis on precision bidding strategies like target CPA bidding. With granular data and automation powering these enhanced bid strategies, PPC campaigns can hyper-target the right users and drive better conversion performance. A San Diego SEO Company should get fully acquainted with the ins and outs of the latest bidding approaches and implement them were advantageous.

The Rise of Automation

Calling something a “trend” implies it’s emerging, but PPC automation has been an ongoing theme for years now. In 2024, it will become even more entrenched as part of sophisticated paid search strategies. The latest versions of Google Ads and similar platforms utilize advanced machine learning and artificial intelligence to streamline your work from bid adjustments to budget allocation. Even the savviest San Diego SEO companies can benefit enormously from added automation.

CTV/OTT Advertising Offers New Avenues

Connected TV (CTV) and over-the-top (OTT) streaming have disrupted the video advertising landscape. More cord-cutters are moving to internet-based streaming, causing ad dollars to shift accordingly. PPC advertising on popular CTV/OTT services like Hulu, Amazon Fire TV, and Roku will provide expanded reach to target customer groups. Though still a relatively “new” channel, spending in this sector is projected to rise in 2024 as marketers including San Diego SEO agencies embrace the opportunities within streaming video.

Shoppable Ads Enhance Ecommerce

Between the bevy of available ecommerce features offered by the major paid search platforms and innovations in ad formats, PPC for retail brands is getting an upgrade. Shoppable ads that allow users to view and purchase products directly within the ad itself without leaving the search results page make for more seamless buying journeys. As these streamlined paths from product discovery to check-out gain traction into 2024, ecommerce PPC performance stands to improve.

The Migration to Mobile Continues

It’s nothing new to declare mobile’s dominance, but its share of search ad budgets is poised to widen further. As device usage, browsing habits, and shopping behaviors skew mobile-first, PPC investment is following accordingly. Marketing companies in San Diego understand that structuring campaigns with mobile users (and their shorter attention spans) in mind is now simply Advertising 101. Tweaks like expanded text ads, location extensions, callout extensions, and effective mobile landing pages can all help translate mobile searched into conversions.

The Role of Local SEO Strengthens

Google continually enhances its focus on connecting users with nearby businesses to fulfill their searches. As a result, optimizing PPC campaigns for better localization and proximity performance is non-negotiable. Tactics like radius targets, location bid adjustments, local extensions, and brick-and-mortar campaign settings all help drive foot traffic and visibility for San Diego SEO agencies with physical locations. Layering paid search efforts atop a strong local SEO foundation is the best path to reach potential local customers.

Shopping Goes Cross-Border

Retail media advertising with Amazon and traditional ecommerce giants already offers massive opportunity, but cross-border ecommerce opens up untapped potential too. As search behavior spans across borders, international shipping expands, and digital payments advance – it’s easier than ever for US brands to target new global shoppers. PPC managers at San Diego marketing companies planning or optimizing multinational campaigns must emphasize translated/transliterated keywords, multi-currency pricing, shipping strategy, and cross-border compliance to unlock success abroad.

The Multimedia Customer Experience

With shorter attention spans and endless digital distraction, PPC ads now often represent the first touchpoint in a customer journey instead of the last click before conversion. Sophisticated campaigns in 2024 will do more to engage audiences early with multimedia formats like responsive display, YouTube bumper ads, and retargeting via streaming audio and CTV. Marketing companies in San Diego expertly covering the top, middle, and bottom of the funnel through cross-channel integration can expect a considerable advantage.

Performance Max Consolidates Google Offerings

As Google continues funneling capabilities that used to require separate campaign types into a unified Performance Max setup, agency workflows get simpler. Still, the loss of transparency and control associated with the blended, AI-driven Performance Max model isn’t ideal for all advertisers or situations. Even so, all signs point to its expanding adoption throughout 2024. As that happens, San Diego SEO companies will need to carefully assess where it does and doesn’t check the right boxes.

Expanded Audience Targeting 

With walled gardens like Google and Meta gaining so much user data, their advertising platforms allow brands to slice and dice audiences into very precise segments. Expect more expansive audience targeting options for paid search and social campaigns that align to specific buyer journeys. San Diego marketing companies can tailor messaging and offers to various micro-groups based on their stage in the funnel. Lookalike modeling for testing will also grow more powerful with enhanced audience insights. 

Streamlined Attribution 

Understanding the true conversion impact and ROI derived from paid search campaigns gets trickier every year as the customer journey fragments across devices and channels. While still nascent, attribution capabilities native to platforms like Google Ads will streamline cross-channel crediting to illuminate where budgets are best invested. As it evolves in 2024, self-serve attribution reporting will becoming more actionable. San Diego SEO agencies can leverage these insights to optimize ongoing PPC efforts for each client vertical based on empirically validated spend levels and know where to double down. Simpler attribution empowers smarter optimization.

Those are among the most influential PPC developments projected ahead for 2024 that San Diego digital marketing agencies should prepare for. Though aligned to enhance performance potential, they also demand new skills, technology, data analysis, creative, and strategic consideration to materialize ROI. Make sure that you partner with the best San Diego SEO Company to experience the best results coming on your way. 

Business conferences and trade shows are among the best ways for companies to attract new customers and raise brand awareness. Everything from booth design, slogan, branding, and communication matters and can make or break your presentation.

Smart companies know they need to market their trade show appearance to their existing audience on social media, paid ads, and via email marketing. Even then, people may pass by your booth without stopping. Is your booth design too boring or too loud? Is your message not clear enough? Are you or your employees passive?

Once you set up a booth, you can’t just sit back and relax. Your job is to smile, engage in conversations, be knowledgeable about the brand, and get as many contacts as possible.

Keep reading to discover the main reasons why nobody’s visiting your trade show booth and what you should do about it.

It’s Too Plain and Boring

What does your booth look like from the attendees’ perspective? Is it visually appealing or plain and boring? While you don’t have to use bright colors and tons of text to attract an audience, you also don’t want to be ignored. Finding a balance with the design of the booth is crucial for your brand presence.

You can spice things up by having a fun mascot, use games, choose a catchy slogan, and organize a giveaway. Many companies do a trade show giveaway to attract an audience. People love competitions and getting free things, so the prize has to be related to your brand and useful for the participants.

For instance, if you give away a tablet and you sell food, there isn’t a connection between the prize and your product. The person who wins will collect their prize and leave, possibly forgetting about your brand altogether.

On the other hand, if you give away a gift card for your online store, people will flock to your booth. They may brag about their win on social media and when they want to use the gift card, visit your website and engage with your brand.

They Don’t See A Friendly Face

People are naturally drawn to smiling, approachable faces full of enthusiasm and positivity. If you or your employees look tired, bored, uninterested or grumpy, people will walk right past your booth.

If you want your trade show presence to be a success and stay on people’s minds, make sure your people are energized and well-rested. Send them on breaks, keep them full and hydrated, and encourage them to talk to people.

At trade shows, it’s not enough to just show up and wait. You need to be proactive and engage in meaningful conversations. Your main goal should be connecting to people and getting their email addresses or information, not selling your product to just anyone.

Your Communication Skills Are Poor

Once you’ve drawn visitors in, the next part of the job is to keep them interested. If your communication skills aren’t polished and you keep talking about your business and how amazing it is, they’ll leave.

To have people stay and actually engage with you, ask them questions they’ll be happy to answer. Ask about their jobs, interests, hobbies – anything that’ll strike up a conversation.

Be careful not to push with a sales pitch right away. The most important aspect of a conversation is listening to the person carefully so that you know what to offer them as a tailored solution.

This is one of those simple and free trade show booth ideas that’ll keep bringing you foot traffic. If you learn effective communication, it won’t take long for visitors to become customers.

They Don’t Understand Your Message

You know your business inside out, but many trade show attendees will be seeing it for the first time. It’s crucial to send a clear, effective message about who you are and what you’re about.

This is where branding and copywriting come into play. Everything in the booth should represent your vision, mission, and services in a professional, visually-appealing way. The minute you go overboard, people will feel like they’re being sold to and move on to the next booth.

Your Booth Design Is Bad

Setting up a booth takes up a lot of time and money, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t pay attention to the design. Brainstorm booth trade show ideas with your employees and listen to their feedback.

The booth design should be eye-catching, but not too loud and obnoxious. Use natural materials when possible and keep the display signs simple and minimalistic.

If your booth design is of bad quality, people will instantly think your products or services are also bad quality. The visual elements of your booth have the power to attract or deter, so be extremely careful about the booth style you decide to put up.

You Didn’t Market Your Booth Enough

In this day and age of social media, you can’t rely on people coming to your booth to inquire. You need to market the event and your presence at the trade show weeks before you attend. This will help create a buzz among your audience and attract the right people who are already interested in your business.

Make sure to tell family and friends about the trade show and ask them to spread the word. Use all marketing and advertising tactics at your disposal to inform as many people as possible.

Send out email reminders once a week in the weeks before the event. Also, make sure to collect as many emails as possible at the show so you can follow up after.

Make People Line Up In Front Of Your Trade Show Booth!

Trade shows are one of the best places to reach new customers and present your business in the best light possible. To do that, you need an impressive trade show booth that’ll attract people’s attention.

If you or your booth are too pushy in your approach and only focus on your sales pitch, people won’t waste their time listening to how great your products are. If you want to see a line in front of your booth, you need to provide something of value.

Ready to get noticed? In this article, we discuss the best brand building strategies for beginners and share tips on how to implement them effectively.

For the last few years, tourism has grown tremendously. It now comprises 2% of the World’s GDP, and the increasing number of tourists seems to be great news for the industry.

What does this growth mean for the people in travel marketing? The booming market is both good and bad news for travel marketers. It may signal more fish to catch and the potential for faster growth.

On the flip side, it may show more attractive travel destinations for every tourist. That means more competition in the industry. You now need out of the box travel marketing tricks to convince tourists you’re a better option.  

Keep reading for some tips and tricks to help you expand in the market.

Build an Independent Brand

With high competition, you may get tempted to shift your offerings to a specific audience. Sometimes it’s beneficial to brand yourself as a niche destination. That means you can fixate your offers and efforts to a particular group of people. 

Focusing on a single niche also has its downsides. What if your marketing efforts aren’t able to attract your ideal customer? Your tourist numbers can drop. 

Also, you may limit other potential tourists from choosing your place. For instance, couples-only places can prevent solo travelers or families from booking. 

Instead of focusing on a niche, open up to a bigger audience. Segment your business to meet different tourists’ needs. Travel marketing needs to adapt to rising demands. 

Don’t put all your eggs in one basket, embrace independent branding. Open your doors to more global travelers and embrace the dynamics that come forth.

Create a Cohesive Marketing Strategy

Travel marketing is more effective when it’s consistent. You can not flush around a ton of tactics without a centralized strategy and expect results. Cohesive marketing means aligning all your market platforms with a uniform approach.

You can send the right messages to potential travelers at the right time. You won’t jump to any new tactic without referring to your strategy and analyzing what can work. 

Using a cohesive strategy across all the platforms can increase brand awareness faster. It can help to build an image tourists can relate with regardless of the platforms they use. If they go to social media, they can recall they visited your website or interacted with your ads. 

For success in travel marketing, align your messages to prevent confusing potential customers. 

Let Customers and Influencers Tell Your Story

Everything about traveling is a craving to self fulfill and create memorable experiences. Lots of travelers yearn for adventure throughout their itinerary. 

Travel marketing can be straightforward if your location offers something memorable to travelers. Sometimes destinations sell themselves. The better your place, the more positive reviews you can get. Positive reviews are also likely to prompt more people to visit your site.

Travel marketing is all about selling experiences. 72% of people will refer to other people’s experiences when they are searching for a place to go or eat. The stat rises to 80% when travelers want a place to sleep, in which 8/10 of travelers book hotels that have higher ratings. 

If you run an excellent place, you can count on your customers to help with marketing. You can rely on reviews to convince more customers. Or you can ask your customers to tag your place in their social media posts.

If you want more traction, call upon influencers for familiarization trips. Influencers have an active audience that you can use for more awareness. The beauty of this form of travel marketing is people trust other people. 

Reach Tourists at the Right Time with the Right Message 

Travelers are exposed to a lot of content per day so winning their attention may be difficult. Always ensure your travel marketing tactics resonate with them. Create messages that are relevant and fit the context of the audience.

If seasons affect your business, think of new offerings to keep your place in the customer’s mind throughout. Your marketing messages also need to focus on what the customers want. 

Travel marketing calls for agility. Ask yourself if you offer travelers what they want on time? Then tailor your messages to reach travelers when they search for places to visit.

Retargeted ads, customized ads, and personalized emails will be critical to reaching prospects. Data will also be essential in meeting your travel marketing goals. You can use the data in your database. Or source from third parties to create messages that answer each prospect’s needs.                                                       

Maximize on Technology

74% of the Millennials use their phones to research travel destinations. Meanwhile, 66% of them will book trips using their phones. The point is technology has infiltrated many industries. As per the stats, the travel industry is not an exception.

People now want to review, book, or order from the comfort of their living room. With more Millennials into traveling, destinations will need to adopt the technology. Simplifying the customer’s journey will also be crucial in tourism. 

For instance, virtual tours can help people interact with your hotel before booking. VR/AR technology is now accessible in many places. You can increase awareness of your location destination with VR immersive videos. 

Immerse Tourists With Video Stories

Videos attract 7.5 times higher click-through rates that all marketing techniques. The success of videos offers travel marketers a useful tool to share their stories. 

People relate and recall videos more compared to other forms of travel marketing. If you can create stunning videos, you can leave prospects with something to remember for a long time.

Videos need not focus on your destination’s beauty or features alone. You can also live stream on social media to highlight your services and other aesthetics. People trust live videos more than the edited ones. These videos can drive engagement faster and are more memorable. 

What’s Crucial in Travel Marketing? 

There’s a bunch of travel marketing tricks you can use to win more travelers to your destination. Customer-focused tactics that show your strengths and increase recall are more effective. 

Travelers want quick answers and an easy pathway to their destinations. If your marketing strategy provides them with the right solutions at the right time, you can reap from more travelers for a long time. But embrace technology to make your customers’ journey as straightforward as possible.

For more marketing assistance, check out our blog.

Although you can find a high level of creative website design in San Diego, consumers, business executives and business owners need to be careful when considering how effective a website will be when it is launched.

Effective website design in San Diego and across the globe is built on two primary objectives: First, to connect with the viewer emotionally, and second, to be coherent in thought and functionality so that the viewer is prompted to take an action. Believe it or not, most website designers, programmers and business leaders become so immersed in the making of the website that these two basic objectives are forgotten.

It is imperative that your website design works for you, that you lead the viewer through a journey that you want them to take and ask of them what you want of them.

San Diego’s website design is among the best in the country, so when choosing a web design company to build your site, make sure the focus is on your end goals, the personality and character of your audience and your company and the path you want your viewers to take when they land on your website.

Please Contact Us To Get Tips On What To Avoid When Building A Website.

The marketing landscape is changing in 2022 and brands must keep up with the trends, test new advertising methods, and meet the needs of their target market. There are numerous ways to market your business, but the best results come from the most effective marketing strategies for your audience type.

This means you should know your buyer persona well, so you can sell to them effortlessly. Even if the business is new and you don’t have any customers yet, not all marketing tactics will work.

Curious to learn what marketing experts recommend for small businesses? Keep reading to get the best tips.

Create a Marketing Plan

To effectively promote your business online, you need a solid marketing plan. The plan will include everything such as the marketing channels you use, advertising budgets, deadlines, content types, metrics and KPIs, target audience, and market positioning.

If you follow the plan, you’ll quickly learn what works and what doesn’t, and begin to understand your audience’s needs better. You can also tweak the plan as you go, adding or removing aspects you deem necessary.

Leverage Social Media

Social media marketing is the number one way to build a strong fan base and reach potential customers. It’s one of the best ways to post useful content, publish news and updates about your company, and sell your products.

The most important role of social media is building a strong relationship with your customers. With the right strategy, this trust will ultimately translate into sales.

To start, choose only a few social media channels and focus all your effort there. Dive into your analytics next and determine what works for your audience, adjusting the content throughout.

Use Email Marketing

Email marketing still remains one of the most powerful marketing strategies for small businesses. It’s a proven way to generate leads and boost sales directly from people’s inboxes.

Email marketing works because it’s permission-based, which means users have agreed to receive emails from you. However, spamming users with content and pushing them to buy will have the opposite effect and can even result in your website and email address blacklisted.

Before you sell people anything, provide value first. Send them useful articles, tools, videos, podcasts, and any other content they might find helpful. Once you gain their trust, you can send a sales email.

Run Paid Ads

Paid ads are one of the best ways to get brand visibility and reach a wide customer base. Whether you use paid ads on social media or search engines, you can easily choose the target audience you want to reach based on location, age, gender, lifestyle, interests, behaviors, relationship status, and even income.

For example, two of the most popular advertising platforms right now are Facebook and Instagram. Paying as little as a few dollars can reach an audience and send traffic to your website. Use re-targeting to market to the users who have visited your website, as these are the people most likely to buy from you.

Create Useful Videos

Video marketing is the best performing type of digital content at the moment and will remain strong in 2022. YouTube is the industry leader for videos, but Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, and even Pinterest is effective for small business marketing.

There are different video formats to use, such as:

• Long-form videos
• Webinars
• Live streams
• Step-by-step tutorials
• Vlogs
• Product reviews
• Instagram stories
• Animated videos
• Interviews
• Events and presentations

The possibilities are endless, and no expensive equipment is needed to start filming. As long as value is presented to your audience, a decent quality camera is enough to get you started.

Start Blogging

Blogs still remain one of the most powerful marketing methods, which is why you need to start blogging right away. Post on the company website or create a personal blog, making sure to do so consistently.

Blogging is also great for SEO, building brand awareness, and reaching a wider audience. When people find value in your blog posts, they’ll know your products and services are equally valuable.

Creating guest posts for publications and blogs in your industry will help your growth; and using blogging platforms such as “Medium” will help you gain momentum. If you post quality content with extraordinary value and stick to a weekly schedule, people will flock to your website.

Run Free Webinars

Webinars are one of the best small business marketing strategies because they cost nothing to make, and the ROI will be great.

With a free webinar, you should pick a topic of discussion and provide real value to the attendees. End the webinar with a call to action — invite people to sign up for a newsletter, buy a product or service from you, download something from your website, or any other specific action that’ll get you leads or sales.

You can also offer free 15-minute consultations with potential customers. This is a great lead generation method and a way to see what your target audience needs and expects from your services. The key here is to impress everyone with the value you provide so they’ll trust that you are the right choice for them.

Work With Influencers

No matter what industry, there are influencers, field experts and creators that can help you promote your products. Typically, they have a large audience that trust their recommendations, and this is the way you can reach this audience.

Influencers can be Instagrammers, bloggers, vloggers, thought leaders, marketers, and even celebrities. Pick influencers who already use your products or services or have used similar products in the past. It’s important to reach the right audience, not just a large audience, as these are the people most likely to buy from you.

These Are the Most Effective Marketing Strategies for 2022

These are just some of the most effective marketing strategies of 2022 that’ll help you build brand awareness and attract new customers. From good old effective email marketing to working with influencers and thought leaders in your industry, you can grow your business and boost sales with a great ROI.

Ready to put your business on the map? Contact us today to learn about our marketing and advertising packages and let us make your brand stand out from the crowd.

There are several reasons why you might want to invest more heavily in your real estate marketing strategies.

Maybe you’re a real estate agent looking to boost your business and generate more leads.

Perhaps you’re interested in selling a property of yours in hopes to use that sale to buy another house.

Whatever the case might be, marketing your listings is the way to go. Without it, you can’t hope to generate the necessary amount of interest in your property.

Here are several things you should consider adding to your real estate marketing plan, weigh out all of these options for your efforts.

Take Advantage of Social Media Platforms

Social media platforms are an amazing opportunity for your real estate marketing needs. They allow you to reach a broader base of your target audience. 

Platforms such as LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, etc. have all become the major players in Corporate America’s marketing success. There are two ways to go about the social media outlets you use.

First up is for those of you who wouldn’t consider social media a strength. If you acknowledge the fact that social media isn’t your strong suit, then start accounts with one or two of these platforms and learn all that you can.

The other way of thinking is that you should use as many outlets as possible. It’s certainly true that the more social media platforms you use, the more potential prospects you can reach.

However, you need to put forth effort into every account. A neglected social media account does more harm for your business than it does good.

Prioritize Search Engine Optimization

A marketing plan is only as good as the relevancy of the resources that it uses. That’s why so many businesses (real estate or not) are focusing their time on building their search engine optimization (SEO) efforts.

It requires finding a balance on your website between things such as keyword usage, internal links, high-quality content, external links, and backlinking to your site.

Make sure that you’re using white hat SEO techniques so that you stay on Google’s good side. If you start using black hat tactics such as keyword stuffing, the search engine will catch it and push your content down the rankings.

One of the best things that you can do for your real estate marketing plan is to first build a website if you haven’t already done so.

From there, be sure to include a blog in it. That blog will serve as a magnet for generating leads and getting people interested in your property/properties. 

The content of your blog should focus on answering some of your industry’s biggest questions. 

For example, you could answer questions such as “what to expect in the home buying process?” or “Do I need good credit to purchase a home?”.

Always Have Business Cards On-Hand

Who said your entire marketing plan should consist of digital marketing tactics? While it’s true that your marketing should cater to the growing use of technology, there will always be a place for offline tactics.

One of the best offline tactics will always be using business cards with your contact information.

They force you to go out into your community, shake hands, and build relationships with prospects. Without them, you and your employees might get complacent hiding behind a computer too often.

Make sure that you print out enough business cards for you and all your other employees or coworkers. A good rule of thumb is to start out with 100 business cards for each person and see if you need to print a higher bulk next time around.

Then make sure that everyone always has business cards on them. You never know when you could run into a potential client down the line.

For all you know, you could strike up a conversation with another parent at your child’s soccer game. From there, you can exchange business cards and continue to move the relationship towards the point of sale.

Virtual Staging Is Your Friend

People are busy. Between balancing your schedule and your prospect’s schedule, it’s nearly impossible to schedule a time for tours. 

Not to mention that your prospects will make every excuse in the book to try and talk themselves out of scheduling time. For that reason, it’s up to you to get them excited about your property.

Virtual staging software has to be involved in your real estate marketing plan moving forward. 

The software offers so much customization that you can design a virtual tour of your home down to the fabric details of your furniture. 

It’s a great way to grow a prospect’s interest and make your property stick out in their head above all others they’ve seen.

Use Local Pictures

Photos are just as important to your real estate marketing plan as the previously-mentioned virtual staging software, if not more so.

However, too many real estate agents make the mistake of only showing pictures of the house. But the house isn’t the only thing you’re selling to the customer. You’re also selling them on the neighborhood, community, and town your property is in.

Be sure to include a healthy mixture of photos of the house, as well as pictures of local amenities within the neighborhood and town.

Grow Your Real Estate Marketing Plan With These Tips!

Now that you’ve seen all the potential features to add to your real estate marketing plan, it’s time to grow your brand.

Consider all the options at your disposal, set a budget, then start to integrate these features one by one.

Be sure to browse our site for more informational articles on marketing, as well as other topics relating to the subject.

A company can have a powerful message, perfect marketing tactics, and a solid advertising strategy, but without brand awareness—the margin for success is low.

But what is brand awareness?

Brand awareness is the exposure of your company/products and the unity between what’s being sold and how the consumers are engaging.

It takes multiple impressions for a customer to engage in a company’s brand or message. And without a solid branding strategy, those impressions aren’t memorable, turning people away rather than keeping them interested.

Over 89% of marketers say that branding is their top goal. With that percentage only increasing, it’s important to know what brand awareness is. It’s also important to create a strong brand to build both your reach and growth.

First: What is Brand Awareness?

Your brand encompasses your name, logo, messaging, services, and content created and packaged in a way that relates to clients.

But simply having a brand isn’t enough.

Brand awareness is creating a brand that’s both recognizable and relatable. And whether the brand builds a relationship, creates a sense of trust, or simply engages potential buyers, it gives a business an edge over the competition.

Over 64% of consumers cite shared values as the reason they connect with a company. But if these values aren’t being conveyed—through brand awareness, rather than simply recognition—the potential to truly connect with those individuals is lost.

Brand recognition is when a consumer sees the colors, logo, or design and makes the connection with who your company is. The awareness piece goes a step further, giving connection to not only the name, but to the general feeling about a company, too.

The Value of Building Brand Awareness

Building brand awareness directly helps to promote your business, boost your reputation, help you find (and retain) loyal customers, and give you a strategy for introducing new products and services.

If you’re aware of how your business is being perceived and what your audience is connecting with, it will help you become a business that people can trust.

As you grow your business, you’ll learn the value of high impact branding—for example, Kleenex. You’ll hear people say, “I need a Kleenex” simply meaning a tissue, but because of the strong brand awareness of the company, it’s fully beat out all competition.

How to Build Solid Brand Awareness

If you’re looking to build brand awareness, it’s important to highlight attributes that set your company apart. From creating a custom hashtag to being active in the local community, you can easily create something that’s uniquely ‘yours.’

Social Media

An important aspect of brand awareness is social media and creating a unified profile, message, and voice throughout. This makes the step between posts and advertising strategy more natural, too.

Communicate

Finding ways to directly connect with your customers is key. If you’re only connecting when you’re trying to push a sale, your customers will see that. If you’re engaging in conversation through your posts, message boards, question forums, etc. then there are more opportunities for people to get to know what you offer and why you’re the right fit.

Be A Person, Not Just A Company

Another key aspect of awareness is to think about being a person, not a company. You don’t simply want to shove content in your potential buyer’s face—you want to get to know him or her, and you want to share who you are, too.

Along with this is creating a personality. When your company feels human and unique it creates a sense of authenticity that drives consumers back again and again.

Share a Story

Your brand should tell a story. Creating a narrative around who you are, how you started, and what the value of your products/services is will give your business depth.

People connect to stories as they share a more human side to a company (again, think about being a person and not a company).

Offer Some Value

Consumers are inherently selfish. Oftentimes they want to engage with a company or brand because of what’s in it for them. While this isn’t wrong, it’s important (as a business) to connect and offer consumers some type of benefit.

From a free product to giveaways, it’s smart to give your potential customers something. Giving your customers a taste of what you offer will entice them to come back to your company for a future sale.

Understanding and Measuring Brand Awareness

As your business grows, you can measure your brand awareness through direct traffic, through social engagement (both followers and direct engagements—comments, likes, etc.), and through brand awareness surveys that you send directly to customers.

Although some aspects of your branding won’t necessarily be measurable, as your audience builds organically you can see how to directly connect to them to continue your business growth.

Now You’re Ready to Get Started

Although answering the question, ‘What is brand awareness?’ may seem difficult at first, when you understand the value of creating something memorable, relatable, and recognizable, that’s the first step.

From there, implementing strategies for connection and growth will help you create campaigns, advertising, marketing, and visuals that speak to what your company is and stands for.

To learn more about brand awareness and for more branding samples and ideas, click here.

When you think of big names in the industry, like McDonald’s, Nike, and Coca Cola, they all have one thing in common: they all have strong branding that’s instantly recognized by people all over the world.

It may not seem apparent, but branding can be very instrumental in your marketing and can directly affect your sales. In this article, we’ll discuss what brand marketing is and how it can be beneficial for your business.

What Is a Brand?

First, let’s define what a brand is. On the surface, it may seem literal and similar to what cattle ranchers do with their “products.” For example, Domino’s pizza boxes look like dominoes so they’re recognizable from a mile away. This can be powerful just on its own, but in most cases, this just scratches the surface. Beyond visual markings to identify who you are, the world of branding and brand marketing is complex and difficult.

Though a logo can represent your company, it is such a small part of your overall brand. Your brand is about the emotional appeal it has in the hearts and minds of your audience. It is about identity, personality, and business traits, but it is also about feeling, attitude and values. 

What Is Brand Marketing?

Brand marketing leans on the power of your message, personality, and values to capture attention and create loyalty.

In today’s world of competitive marketing, it is not enough to have a good product or great services. Consumers are not as loyal as they used to be, so whether it is good pricing or the next-best-thing, they can be attracted to another brand or company if that brand or company doesn’t have an inspiring message or alluring personality. So when you can sell your brand first, regardless of product attributes, you will be ahead of the game in your marketing. 

Brand marketing connects your audience with your brand so that your prospective customers will buy more, more often, over a longer time period. They will also talk more about you to their peers so that your company’s sales grow more organically.

Why Is Brand Marketing Important?

Brand marketing is important for your business because your success depends heavily on your reputation and trustworthiness. If your brand isn’t established as a trusted leader that is in touch with who you are and what you stand for, you’ll have a hard time convincing people to use your current products or services, much less try new ones you come up with in the future.

Think about brands like Apple. While other brands may be cheaper, you know and trust that Apple for their ingenuity, their cool personality, and their strong values for cyber protection and privacy.

Advantages of Brand Marketing

While you have to make more of a financial commitment to brand marketing, it’ll all pay off in the long term if you do it right. Here are some advantages you’ll get from brand marketing.

Be an Industry Leader

Most industries are filled with stiff competition, so it’s vital you stand out. Customers usually make a mental shortlist of companies they’re considering for a service or product, and you want to make it to that shortlist.

When you have strong branding, you have a better chance to jump to the head of the mental list. When they’re browsing a list of potential companies online, yours may stand out if your marketing is good and your brand is solid.

Better Performance for New Products or Services

When you’ve already established your company as one that’s reliable and trustworthy brands, consumers will be more willing to try out your new products and services. While most would be wary of new things, if customers know they can count on you, they’ll even eagerly anticipate the unveiling or release of your innovations.

Cultivate Customer Loyalty

Customers who feel a connection and emotional relationship with a company have a 306% higher lifetime value. Plus, they recommend the businesses they trust at a rate of 71%, which is significantly higher than the average of 45%.

Based on this information, it’s extremely important you connect with your customers and grow trust. This trust translates into loyalty, which means you’ll have to spend less on acquiring new customers. Instead, much of your business can rely on retaining current customers.

Higher Pricing for Your Products or Services

A strong brand allows you to price your products and services higher. If you develop a loyal following your followers will most often stick with you even if they have to pay more.

If you can position your brand so that associating it with higher pricing means better value and a better deal, it can be a win-win for all. You’ll be able to price your products and services higher without losing out to the competition.

How to Build a Brand Marketing Campaign

With brand marketing, you have to tackle every move from a strategic standpoint. Here’s how to build an effective brand marketing campaign.

Think About Your Company’s Vision and Identity

To establish your brand, you have to think about your vision first. What kind of message do you want to send to the world? Do you want to be seen as an everyman brand, or do you want to be seen as a hero, pushing the industry’s limits?

Your brand’s vision and identity will play a huge role in every visual and verbal element, stylistically and in tone.

Establish Your Target Audience

You can have a strong brand identity, but if you market to the wrong people, you may not resonate with them. For instance, if you want to be a daredevil brand but your target audience is conservative and elderly people, you probably won’t get a favorable response.

Always Be Consistent

Once you’ve decided on things like logos, company colors, and messaging tone, make sure everyone consistently uses it across all platforms. You don’t want to confuse consumers by being a jester on one channel and completely serious on another. The key to branding is consistency.

Get Your Brand Name Out There

Although there are different types of marketing your company can utilize, brand marketing is definitely one to prioritize. It sets the stage for your brand name to be recognized and trusted by people all over the world. Once this happens, then all other aspects of marketing can fall into place.

If you’d like help with brand marketing for your business, please get in touch with us today.

More than half the world’s population is online. Even more people are accessing the Internet for the first time every day, so the chances are great that your customers are online.

You might be wondering, how you can reach them? This is where new media marketing comes in. What exactly is new media marketing, and how can you use it to find your audience?

This guide has everything you need to know.

Defining New Media Marketing

New media marketing is simply marketing that leverages any kind of “new media.”

The term new media usually refers to technology-based communication platforms. Most of these platforms are web-based technologies, like instant messaging and email.

As new technology becomes available, what counts as “new media” shifts. While websites and email were once considered new media, they’ve been edged out by video and social media.

Some people will say new media marketing includes:

• Email marketing
• Social media marketing
• Search engine optimization
• Search engine marketing
• Video marketing
• Pay-per-click advertising
• Content marketing

It may be more helpful to think of new media as digital channels. The term digital marketing overlaps with what’s been considered “new media.” It also continues to include older forms of digital marketing, like email.

Choosing New Media Channels for Digital Marketing

New media strategies often involve more than one channel for marketing. You may want to advertise on Facebook and also start an email campaign for your business.

Some companies invest in PPC campaigns and also work to improve their SEO.

One of the issues facing companies today is the number of choices they have. Many channels work well together, making it difficult to choose one.

SEO, for example, works very well with content marketing. In turn, social media marketing can support both content marketing and SEO efforts.

When you have a limited budget, you may feel as though you need to pick just one digital media channel and stick with it.

Comparing Channels

So, which channel gives you the best return on your investment?

The question is a bit more difficult to answer than you might think. While most new media channels allow you to collect data, it can be hard to determine if you’re getting results.

Take social media marketing, for example. You may measure the success of your campaign by the number of clicks, likes, and shares your posts receive.

Is that actually doing anything for your brand, though? True success is usually measured in terms of growth and sales. You may get a ton of likes, but does it matter if you’re not making any sales?

The answer is: it depends. If your goal is to increase sales, then social media marketing may not pay off. You might want to invest in email marketing or PPC ads, which tend to be better at generating clicks and leads.

If your goal is to increase brand awareness, social media marketing may give you the most value.

Set Goals to Determine Channels

As you can see from the examples, the effectiveness of any new media channel depends on your goals.

It’s important to select more than one channel. Social media can help you increase brand awareness. PPC ads will generate more leads.

SEO may generate more traffic, but only if you’ve invested in great content. Content marketing may increase both your SEO and your social media.

Meet Your Audience Where They Are

Another key to devising an effective digital media strategy is to determine who your audience is and where they are.

A quick look at social media usage will provide some insight. Facebook tends to be populated by older users, while Instagram is used by the younger generation.

If you’re trying to reach people who are over 50, Instagram probably isn’t as important as Facebook. If you’re hoping to connect with B2B (business-to-business) clients, then LinkedIn may be the most important channel.

Every audience wants good content. A great SEO strategy will help you rank higher in the search results. A high ranking helps people find you through search.

People are definitely searching for information. Google handles billions of searches every day. No matter who your audience is, chances are they’re conducting a search at some point.

Email marketing is often useful for the customers you already have. It also works with content marketing, as people may sign up for a newsletter or exchange contact details for information. You can then add these interested parties to your mailing lists and send them offers.

The key is to meet your audience where they are. If someone is checking their inbox or posting on LinkedIn, your Tweets aren’t going to reach them.

Does it Work?

A key question people have regarding these kinds of media strategies is: “Do they work?”

The short answer is, “yes.” The more complex answer is, “yes, assuming they’re handled correctly.”

Companies with good marketing realize the following benefits from new media marketing:

• Increased brand awareness
• Higher traffic to website
• Improved lead generation
• Better lead quality
• Higher conversions
• Better brand visibility

Digital media is attractive because it’s lower cost than traditional marketing channels.

It may also seem easier. You can create an ad on Google Ads in seconds, and sending out an email blast may seem as simple as hitting send.

However, that doesn’t mean these will be effective campaigns. Using digital media properly takes time, effort, and creativity.

Many business owners work with social media marketing companies and digital media agencies. The agency can provide a team of experts who will work with you to craft campaigns that actually work.

A New Marketing Strategy Just for You

New media marketing can be effective, but using it the right way can be a challenge. If you’re not sure where to start, get in touch with the experts. They’ll help you create a strategy to power your business to the next level of success.

In 2021, the millennial generation had the most buying power of any generation in the United States. As a brand, being able to attract millennial consumers is an essential element for long-term success.

Millennials are specific when it comes to what they want from brands. Traditional marketing efforts or having the lowest prices is not enough to win over customers from the millennial generation. They expect more out of the businesses where they are going to spend their money.

Knowing how to market to millennials is an art, but there are a few key ways that you can get your brand on board. You need to start by understanding what millennials want, and then go from there.

Below, we’re sharing a few key tips on millennial marketing that you can incorporate into your marketing strategy. Read on to learn more, so you can start attracting these valuable consumers for your brand.

1. Be Authentic

Millennials grew up in the Internet age, where it was easy for anyone to curate a perfect vision of themselves based on what content they chose to share. Now, as in-demand consumers, millennials are starting to rebel against that. They don’t want their brands to be perfect. They want their brands to be real.

As a brand try to perfect millennial marketing, that means you make your company’s values very clear for your consumer. You need to say what you mean and mean what you say if you want your share of the millennial dollar.

Of course, authenticity means something different to every brand, depending on what your product or service is. If you are a food or cosmetic company, it could mean explaining your ingredients in plain English. If you are a clothing company, it could mean being upfront about where your product is manufactured.

It could also mean owning your mistakes, if and when you make them, in a genuine way. Millennials are willing to forgive brands that have made missteps, so long as they trust that the effort to improve is genuine.

2. Give Them Individualized Attention

There has been a lot written about the unique characteristics of the millennial generation. And while there may be some generalizations that hold true, millennials identify as individuals first and foremost.

If you want to know how to market to millennials effectively, you have to recognize that there is no “one size fits all” type of strategy. Millennials want to believe that the products they buy or the services they use were designed specifically with them in mind. It doesn’t have to be true, but you have to make them believe it is.

That could mean launching an ad campaign with several different elements, each of which could appeal to a different personality. It could mean offering several versions of the same product that could appeal to everyone from first time users to experts.

Even though you are trying to market to an entire generation of buyers, you never want your marketing campaign to make them feel as though they are just one of the masses.

3. Take Advantage of Social Media

In 2018, there were more than 76 million millennials using at least one social networking platform in the United States. That’s a lot of potential consumers. If you aren’t using your brand’s social media platforms to the best of your ability, you could missing out on a lot of their spending money.

Having a social media presence isn’t just about maintaining a company Facebook page or Twitter feed, although that is part of it. Many millennial consumers use social media sites to leave comments or ask questions for brands, so you do need to be monitoring your pages regularly and responding to consumers’ posts.

Marketing to millennials is also about creating moments that they will want to capture and share with their friends on their own social media platforms. You need to give them something flashy and visually appealing that they’ll feel compelled to share with others.

If you have a physical location, think about the design of your space. What aesthetic elements can you incorporate that will entice millennials to come in and take a photo and tag their location for their friends and followers to see?

Even if you don’t have a physical space, that kind of thinking can be applied to product packaging or even customer service. Anything can be an “Instagrammable” moment or worthy of a tweet, so long as it’s unique and exceptional.

4. Have an Opinion

Millennials are typically very politically and socially active. They want to feel good about the purchases they make, which often means aligning themselves with brands whose values reflect their own.

As a company trying to appeal to as many people as possible, this can sometimes feel like a risky step to take. Depending on the type of business you are in, it may not make sense to be overt about your political leanings or to be public with social commentary.

There are more subtle ways to show millennials that are you a socially conscious company. It can be as simple as posting about your company’s eco-friendly initiatives, or sharing photos from the corporate volunteer day.

If you do feel comfortable taking a company stance on important political and social issues, you should expect pushback from some. You may end up isolating one group of potential consumers. In the long run, though, it could be well worth it to attract millennial consumers who will remain loyal to your brand.

Want to Learn More about What Millennials Want?

Trying to market to millennials can be tricky, because millennials demand a lot from the brands they choose to frequent. Their decisions are based in emotion, but at the same time they are very smart consumers who will take the time to do thorough research on a brand.

Figuring out what millennials want is worth it though. Millennials are very loyal consumers, and once they find a brand they love, they have lots of ways to spread it via word of mouth. Without millennial consumers, you may not be able to achieve long-term success.

For more tips on crafting a marketing strategy for your company, please contact us at any time. Did we mention that we are recognized as a top Ad Agency on DesignRush. https://www.designrush.com/agency/ad-agencies

It is all happening in the halls of the corporate aristocracy where each move can vibrate through an industry, a market or even the world. CEOs and other top executives are learning that their most powerful asset isn’t a newfangled product, a savvy merger or even bleeding-edge technology. But it is something much more profound, and often misunderstood: brand strategy.

For years and generations, branding has been associated with logos, jingles, slogans/marketing campaigns and more. Only now, a brand is much more than the “face” of a company. In today’s crowded markets, it’s the pulsing center. The right brand can inspire trust, create loyalty, and turn a business into a cultural phenomenon. And behind the success of every iconic brand lies a brand strategy consultant, the unheralded architect of identity and relevance.

We are in the emotional business not transactional business anymore. Today, brands that dominate are no longer selling products: they sell beliefs, lifestyles and movements.

Who Is A Brand Strategy Consultant?

Think of a Company as an Orchestra The CEO takes the field in front of the orchestra with a baton and conducts… all sections playing together. But who composes the music? Which one manages to put together the big picture, capturing every detail so as to hook the audience and keep them asking for more? Hence, the role of a strategic Brand Consultant–part seer, part psychologist, part detective — the one whose work goes so much further in determining what lies beneath than mere aesthetics or catchy taglines.

It is not an exercise in putting a fresh coat of paint on the marketing, or developing clever taglines. It is about knowing what a company truly stands for — its culture, its uniqueness and its future. We need to think of these strategists, not as brands but rather LEGENDARY EXPERIENCES — establishing bonds that are strong enough to make loyal fans out of them both now and with generations still to come.

All great brands start with a deep and compelling question:

Why does your business exist?

How are you different from the rest of the crowd?

What should a customer, employee or stakeholder feel when they come into contact with your brand?

These are not rhetorical questions; how an organization answers these might color all of the way down to which products reach the market and even what a customer support email sounds like. These answers are now the soul of a brand and dictate all their actions.

Corporate Archaeologists

A brand strategy consultant goes back into a business’s past (its values, culture and history) to find out what the core truths of that company are. It is much the same as a digging, exposing all buried treasures that build a good story.

Customer Psychologists

They play with men’s desires and emotions. These strategists are the ones who understand how consumers think and what really drives us to buy something — and they create messages that reach deep into our subconscious that stick long after we’ve made our purchase.

Cultural Architects

A brand is not a skin; it is an organ. Admittedly — some consultants design strategies in which employees literally become the brand and that authentic attitude spills out of them.

How Disney managed to turn the corner (A Case Study)

Back at the turn of the century, Disney was floundering in the sea. Its magical animated films were eclipsed by the works of Pixar. Even its legendarily bright-line queue areas at the theme parks felt like they’d dimmed. Infuse this with a daring re-imagining of its branding strategy. Disney trebled-down on its claim to be the be-all and end-all of magic/brand, got itself Pixar and Marvel and Lucasfilm, and resurrected as a Death-Starcycle of creativity.

The result? A company revived, transformed even. Disney today is more than a brand, it’s history and confirmation that when a brand reconnects with its essence, spectacular things can happen.

Case in Point: Volvo

While Disney is all about narrative, Volvo is safety. The promise of peace of mind, Volvo is much more than just a manufacturer of cars. This wasn’t a happy accident. On the marketing side, brand strategists decided to position safety as Volvo’s one truth that could reach families, professionals and anyone else who appreciate some security. That single-minded dedication turned Volvo into a brand that resonates around the world, one of countless examples of how authenticity begets lasting brands.

The Essential Brand Consultant

In essence, a brand strategy consultant wants to help more than just stabilize a brand; they want to see success. Stewards of meaning, by their aged faceprint, legacy identities that survive time and become affixed to culture. A flourishing brand never merely vies for space in the market, but instead directly stakes a specific claim on their portion of consumers’ hearts and minds — branding at its core is human connection.

The Best Weapon a CEO Has Is Their Brand Strategy

Brand strategy is not just one more thing on the CEO’s never-ending to-do list- – it is the baton that will lead every component of a company’s performance, like a masterpiece. We live in a time of plenty, surrounded by a myriad of choices and endless distractions from a scrolling society ever ready to utter its brutally candid judgements — thus, sound brand strategy is more than merely useful; it is essential. Let’s break it down.

Finding A Way to Stay Relevant in a Saturated Market

And in the over-crowded marketplace of today, where every product merges into one another as Colors do when you turn down the saturation on Photoshop and end up with an endless beige scroll that seems never to end, differentiation is not just something nice to have — it will decide who lives and who dies. A recent Nielsen survey confirms this with data indicating 64% of customers identify themselves with or purchase a product because of the brand having similar values to their own. Translation? They do not buy products, they buy beliefs.

This isn’t your average brand story (that does include a bit of what you get here), but take Patagonia — legacy outdoor gear maker that could just as easily lean back on its laurels and champion not merely innovation in rugged tools for the wilderness, but an ideal more profound even than that: sustainability. This is not just a slick marketing spin or a whimsical sentence attached to the end of their mission statement; it is, truly and sincerely, the lifeblood of the company. Whether it’s giving profits to the environment or suing the Trump administration over public lands policies, Patagonia is proof that when you stand for something, its as much about growing believers in what you do — rather than merely customers.

The result? Patagonia is not a brand, but it is an entire movement. Customers come in to be a part of the Place, not just buy jackets.

Developing Trust in a Transparent Age

In a world where every misstep is amplified, screenshotted, and shared, trust has become the rarest and most precious currency. Based on the Edelman Trust Barometer, 81% of buyers must trust a brand before they buy from them. A single tone-deaf ad or even an ambiguously shady corporate maneuver can dry up years — sometimes even decades — of consumer goodwill faster than you can say, “PR crisis.

Just think of Johnson & Johnson with their 1982 Tylenol crisis. Confronted with a nightmare scenario of drug tampering that resulted in fatal poisonings, the typical corporate reflex would have been to deny, deflect and diminish. Instead, J&J practiced radical transparency. The brand nationally recalled, introduced tamper-proof packaging and ensured the absolute safety of its customers in their response.

The outcome? It was a template for how to regain your bond and remarkably come out even better off. In sacrificing profits for people, Johnson & Johnson not only saved Tylenol but helped turn the brand into a parable of corporate rectitude.

The CEO’s Ultimate Superpower

Brand strategy is the ace every CEO needs in a severely oversaturated, hypercritical world. It is not just about a lot of making a neat logo and a smart tagline. It is creating an identity so deep, so genuine, that it does not only make the customer select your brand –but they will go out of their way to defend it.

A powerful brand is not just a weapon—it’s the armor, the guide and the war cry that transforms a company from one among many into one that matters. And in the fight for relevance and trust — it is your best friend.

The Evolution of Branding: From Logos to Legacies

Once branding was just about identification. The word processing did some heavy lifting in preparing the copy for the swords and not that of logos, photos, or graphics on which everything pasted. Nowadays, it is about more than just the sale but also the reason a company does what it does. The new age of branding began during the industrial revolution with its utilitarian principles, and has morphed into so much more in our purpose-driven era. Let us delve and know its iconic transitions

The Industrial Revolution: Utility Sales

Branding was about as functional as a factory floor when the 20th century started to cough and hiccup. In the past products had to stand out from a sea of sameness and their focus was on pure functionality. The Ivory Soap ad with the slogan “99.44% pure” was the mic drop of its era— short, sweet, and to-the-point. And in an era when faith in product quality couldn’t be verbally assumed, that purity pitch was groundbreaking.

Two decades ago, branding was not about matters of the heart or mind. Not a nuanced assertion; just one, plain statement: Our product works and it works better than theirs.

The Post War Boom: Selling Dreams

With the advent of postwar, 1950s- era consumerism came branding as cultural tastemaker. The features sale pitch did not suffice anymore brands started selling emotions.

Becoming a Cokeman wasn’t just about the fizzy drink—it was a way of life. Each mouthful would deliver more than refreshment — it came with a ticket to happy, togetherness and the American dream. The ads glimmered with picnics, laughter and sunshine; Coca-Cola was joy itself.

This was the time of lifestyle marketing, when a brand wasn’t just what you bought but who you hoped to become. It turned a product into a path to healing yourself and life, of happier days.

Digital Age: Purpose for sale

This is where branding has incrementally climbed even higher on the evolutionary scale. They have more to lose, they are watched much closer, do people want that? They demand purpose.

Global consumers are now more engaged with societal issues, expecting companies to take a stand on climate change, social justice or economic inequality (dependent on the country), 62% according to Accenture. More snowflakes, more picky about what we buy or where we work, and with music like this… a basic logo and a quick little catchy tag line doesnt quite cut it anymore; brands have to represent something in people’s lives — stand up for values and beliefs, take chances on campaigning causes.

Look at Tesla, which has revolutionized the automotive landscape not only with its stylish electric cars but a purpose — a carbon-neutral sustainable future. There is a tangible purpose, and one that speaks to a generation yearning for meaning. Tesla is not mass-producing cars; it is electrifying a vision — and the consumer isn’t just interested, but lining up around the corner to buy in.

From symbols to stories, products to principles

Branding has shifted from a mark of quality to become the symbol of identity, entitlement and adherance. Now, It’s not about making what a company produces, but a mark on the world. The most impactful logos of today are those still works in progress — formed purposefully by brands that have become legacies.

The Psychology of Brand Perception

Why Great Brands Win: The Psychology Behind Loyalty

The secret to a truly great brand? Understanding the messy nuances of complex, flawed, and ever-changing quirks of human behavior. These brands don’t just sell widgets, they tap in the primal, psychological triggers that drive our every decision, loyalty and want. Here are three of the most potent forces by which we may understand what lies behind brand success, and more importantly, in some cases why there is failure. 

The Halo Effect: Beauty Begets Belief

There is great power in a brand that seems effortlessly right. Like the halo effect would be one bright little spot and that casts a glow on everything.

Take Apple, for instance. Apple’s fixation on smooth, minimalist design can’t just be aesthetic—it might be a stroke of genius when it comes to mindset. It is a bundle of sleekly machined polished aluminum and quasi-reverent unboxing experience, with everything so spryly packed there is an implicit suggestion that the technology inside can be nothing but perfect, even before we’ve hit the power.

Does every Apple product really deserve the hype? Maybe. Millions might argue otherwise, but then again millions don that same halo that glows with the luminance of a fresh iPhone screen.

Tribal Identity: The Brand of Belonging

We humans are wired for connection, for belonging. Truly great brands do far more than simply sell your stuff, they build tribes that care about you and believe in you… so much so it becomes spiritual.

The model for all tribal branding: Harley-Davidson. Customers? No, Harley riders are something different, they make up a movement, defined by the leather jackets and roaring engines., the feeling of freedom in their face and “fuck-it-all” attitude. To them, the Harley logo is not a product but an emblem of identity, a statement of who they are and to hell with what everyone else thinks.

This belonging turns basic customers into true-believers demonstrating that when a brand creates culture, it’s building something far tougher to destroy — a tribe.

The Aftermath of Broken Promises And Cognitive Dissonance

Naturally, branding can be a double-edged sword. This unfulfilled promise is in fact a psychological phenomenon that has upset you — it is called cognitive dissonance, the bad feeling that strikes after our unattainable expectations contrast with reality.

If you want drama, look no further than Volkswagen’s emissions scandal. VW traded on its eco-friendly engineering for years. Then revelations their “clean” diesel vehicles weren’t so clean, either. The result? Years of painstaking transparency and even more careful sustainability-branding had managed to restore at least a shred of credibility for the lab, until this monumental collapse in trust.

It goes well beyond that — it can eat away at trust to the point of total destruction. Talking about it alone is not enough to heal the breach, and healing requires actions — actions that are going to carry with them the potential of big risks.

The Psychology of Greatness

Great brands are not just customer centric, but human centric. They use the halo effect to cast a glow of excellence, they build tribes that breed loyalty, and they walk the treacherous path of cognitive dissonance with honor.

The best brands don’t just understand their customers—they understand their humanity. They harness the halo effect to radiate excellence, they foster tribes to fuel loyalty, and they navigate the perilous terrain of cognitive dissonance with integrity.

Because in the end, great branding isn’t just about selling something. It’s about becoming something—a symbol, a story, a feeling that lingers long after the transaction ends. And that? That’s how legacies are made.

How to Choose the Right Brand Strategy Consultant or Branding Agency?

Choosing a brand strategy consultant is no ordinary hiring decision—it’s a declaration of intent, a signal to the world about the trajectory you envision for your business. This is not a search for the right partner to tweak taglines with and play with different colors in Pantone swatches, this is an opportunity to align your company’s soul with a visionary who can shape your company’s essence into a living, breathing identity Here’s how to find the game-changer your brand deserves.

Industry Expertise: The Insider Outsider

A real brand consultant knows your industry ecosystem better than just any generalist armed with buzzwords. They not only know your market, they exist to speak its language, predict its rhythms and see through its blind spots.

Hiring someone to map the biggest unknown landscape in the solar system, you surely wouldn’t hire just any cartographer? You’d carefully choose a consultant that  personalizes their advice, and creates strategies designed to fit the challenges or opportunities you face.

But beware of the “too comfortable” expert. The best consultants are insider outsiders—steeped in your industry yet unafraid to challenge its conventions. They strike the perfect balance between knowledge and fresh perspective, ensuring your brand leads rather than follows.

Balancing Art and Science: Where Logic Meets Magic

Good branding fits somewhere in the middle, a mystic alchemy between logical progressions and intuition. A top consultant operates without a fixed methodology; they know how to use creativity and analytics like two sides of the same weapon to eliminate noise: to reveal what your brand is really about.

They are the visionaries who tell a story so strong and vivid that it lingers in the hearts of your audience—and the strategists who back it with metrics, market insights, and ROI projections. This balance between art and science transforms branding from guesswork into a masterpiece of precision and purpose.

Find someone who goes beyond the shiny objects and bases it in strategy, drawing the creative sky-high but always staying tethered to how results are accountable.

Team Catalyst: The Spark That Ignites Culture

Branding is a team sport, and everyone in your company needs to be on board. A great consultant is not only a thinker but also a doer, motivator and catalyst of innovation.

They come into a room and light it up… suddenly the skeptical execs are believers, disinterested employees are brand ambassadors to your vision…. Their work does not live in a beautiful presentation, it takes root in your company culture and drives every level of alignment and excitement.

The right consultant doesn’t impose a vision— they cultivate it. They make everyone feel ownership of the brand, ensuring that the strategy they craft is not just a document but a living, breathing mission shared by the entire organization.

The Transformational Partner — Your Brand Strategy Consultant

Engaging with the right brand strategy consultant isn’t about reinventing your logo—it’s about reinventing how far your company can go. It will be a story that doesn’t read like anything you had considered before, and challenges your way of thinking in ways you never thought possible.The right consultant will question your assumptions, hone your story and invigorate your people while crafting a strategy that is part audacious, but also attainable.

The right consultant does more than define you; they define what your business can be. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is what legacies are made of.

Here are several authoritative sources that provide data and relevant insights:

1. Edelman Trust Barometer 2023: This annual report offers comprehensive data on consumer trust across various institutions, including businesses. It highlights that a significant percentage of consumers require trust in a brand before making a purchase.
   Edelman
2. Nielsen 2023 Consumer Survey Report: This report delves into consumer behavior and preferences, emphasizing the importance of shared values between consumers and brands. It provides statistics on how consumers’ purchasing decisions are influenced by brand alignment with their personal values.
   Nielsen
3. World Economic Forum Article on Brand Values: This article discusses the growing trend of consumers preferring brands that align with their personal values, citing surveys indicating that a majority of consumers make purchasing decisions based on shared principles.
   World Economic Forum
4. Nielsen Insights on Brand Promise: This insight explores how consumers’ expectations are met when brands support social causes, highlighting that over half of U.S. consumers purchase from brands that support causes they care about.
   Nielsen
5. Edelman Special Report — Brand Trust 2023: This special report examines the collapse of the traditional purchase funnel and emphasizes the importance of brand trust in driving consumer action, including buying, advocacy, and loyalty.
   Edelman

If you are one of the top companies in your market or area of expertise, it’s most likely because you have provided great value and service. It’s also likely that your closest competitors have done the same. This then brings up an important question: if all things are relatively equal amongst competitors, ie. product, service, price etc.— why should your clients choose you over your competitors? Now, you must think this is a trick question, but it is not. At MAD Group, we believe the emotional connection your clients have with you or your brand, or both, is the differentiator. We irrationally buy Apple computers that are more expensive but don’t necessarily do things better than PCs. That’s because we are emotionally connected and attached to the brand and it’s perceived value to us.

How you get companies to connect with your potential customers is in the messaging as it relates to the visuals that give it context. In other words, your emotional messaging complemented with powerful visuals can connect with emotional trigger points, and thus exude the personality of your brand. This is the likability differentiator that can sway decisions. So, remember the next time when you are writing for technical precision about how well you do things, we urge you to pause and think about how you can write with personality, so you can have a leg up on your competitors and reveal who you really are.

Today’s consumers are wielding their buying power to benefit society and the Earth. This sense of “consumer responsibility” outperforms other purchasing motivations such as coupons, discounts, and sales. That’s why cause marketing works.

56 percent of customers report actively searching out and spending extra money on products from companies committed to social value. They’ll also pay more for organic products and those that prove environmentally friendly.

But what is cause marketing, and how can you make it work for your business? Read on for the insider’s guide to cause-related marketing that works.

The Age of Social Responsibility

Whether you’re a marketer or a small business owner, you probably spend a lot of time trying to show potential customers the value of your products and services. It’s at the heart of how you appeal to likely buyers.

But what if I told you that the majority of today’s consumers care more about personal values than personal gain? Customers now buy with their hearts and their consciences first, even if it means spending extra money.

The age of social responsibility is here. If you ignore it, you do so at the peril of your company. People remain more committed than ever before to leaving the world a better place, and they expect brands to feel and act the same way.

The Bigger Picture

In one survey, 86 percent of Americans reported that they expect companies to confront environmental and social issues. Addressing internal problems within a business alone won’t cut it these days. You’ve got to contribute externally.

In fact, cause marketing often represents the number one differentiator between you and your competition. Instead of shrinking away from current events, it’s time to see the bigger picture. Your brand needs to find a cause and promote it.

It will help your company distinguish itself from the competition. And it’ll help you tell your brand’s story. Today’s consumers seek out companies who see and care about the bigger picture.

Cause marketing lets you see the bigger picture. And it lets you share what your company’s doing to make that bigger picture a whole lot more pleasant and socially just.

Two Kinds of Cause Marketing

You may not know this, but when I talk about cause marketing, I’m referring to two different types. Perhaps the most well-known refers to a collaborative effort between a for-profit and non-profit organization.

But cause marketing can also mean a for-profit company whose marketing is based around a charitable or social cause. These two forms should be differentiated from phenomena such as corporate giving and corporate social responsibility.

Corporate giving involves donations that are tax deductible. And corporate social responsibility refers to little more than ensuring compliance in actions that will have a larger positive benefit.

As you can see, cause marketing involves a lot more than just donating money to a great charity or recycling office paper. So, how do you guarantee your cause marketing efforts work?

Successful Cause Marketing

Cause marketing in today’s consumer climate can prove tricky. Your customers are discerning individuals with the internet at their fingertips. They can research the heck out of a claim, so yours better prove authentic and well-thought out.

As I’ve taken a look at campaigns that work and those that don’t over the years, a couple of patterns have jumped out at me. Successful cause marketing efforts involve:

• Finding a cause related to your brand
• Choosing a cause you feel passionate about
• Doing more than throwing money at an issue
• Placing a heavy emphasis on earned and social media
• Collaborating on multiple levels with the non-profit of your choice

What’s so great about the tactics listed above? Let’s unpack them a bit further to see how they help consumers “buy” into a cause marketing campaign.

Cause Marketing that Works

Customers will feel more comfortable getting behind your cause if it’s related in some way to what your brand stands for. For example, would TOMS be as successful if the proceeds from shoe sales went towards donating space heaters?

Companies that support causes they feel strongly about do better, too. So, make sure that you choose a charity that you and your employees can truly get behind. If your staff are all-in, this energy will shine through to your customers.

Throwing money at a cause won’t impress today’s consumers. Instead, they want a company to collaborate with a non-profit, from money to manpower.

Finally, make sure your cause marketing includes multiple channels and a focus on earned and social media.

Buying Power

Americans understand the importance of consumer buying power to effect change. In fact, they use their dollars to reward companies whose values align with their own as well as punish companies whose values don’t.

Every day, American consumers make important buying decisions, and price has little to do with them. Instead, they seek out and purchase from companies who share their commitment to making the world a cleaner, healthier, more just place.

What’s more, consumers share their beliefs about specific brands with others, magnifying their buying power. More than three-quarters of buyers promote socially responsible companies to their friends, family, and peers on a regular basis.

In other words, consumerism has transformed into a means of activism. People put their money and their actions where their heart is. So should your company.

The Cause Marketing Bottom Line

The most exciting aspect of cause marketing remains that it allows your company and your employees to make a significant difference in the world. Cause marketing lets your enterprise work as a driving force for change, and that’s a powerful thing.

To make your cause-related marketing efforts truly successful, aim for creating a purpose-driven program with staying power. Always strive for authenticity, transparency, and sustainable, long-term goals.

This all starts with selecting the right cause. A strategically selected charity will grow over time and evolve into something much bigger than you may now be able to imagine. For example, just think about General Mills’ “Box Tops for Education.”

Marketing Success Stories

Interested in learning more about how to optimize your marketing efforts? From cause marketing to branding, we’ve got you covered.

Check out some of our favorite success stories for a little inspiration. Or, contact us today to find out what we can do for your business and brand.

The value of good writing goes unnoticed until it doesn’t. In other words, you could read a million perfect memos and never really pay attention to the writing. Once that horrible memo is sent out, though, you can’t take it back.

Bad writing is as embarrassing as it is difficult to follow. It doesn’t stop there, though.

Good copywriting can have invisible effects that ripple all throughout your business. We’ll talk more about that idea in this article, hopefully giving you a greater appreciation for the copywriter in your office.

The Importance of Good Copywriting

Our example of the memo might be a little bit dated. Today, most copywriters write web content that exists on your business’ website or social media pages.

You may think that you have the skills needed to create all of your web content. You very well may have those skills, but are you sure? You could be just like the person who thinks they’re really good at karaoke but clearly isn’t.

Good copy can be convincing, enticing, and set up a positive image for your company. Back in the day, a copywriter would pair with someone in design or illustration to complete the final document to be published.

Now copywriters are expected to have a knowledge of graphic design and web software that can help them make a page look excellent without the help of another professional.

We’re going to break down the value of copywriters into two categories. First, we’ll discuss the benefit that these people can have for your business. Second, we’ll go over the difference between good and bad writing.

What Good Copywriters Can Do

As things in the business world continue to shift online, more and more writing will need to be done. Everything from regular, quality blog content to product descriptions and web copy will be things that you need more and more.

If you look at a high-end company with a good website, you’ll notice that it feels different than your average stop online. In many cases, websites seem hacky, shoddily thrown together and not trustworthy.

Those sites that don’t immediately gain our trust are ones that are significantly less likely for us to make purchases on. A part of that impression is due to good web design, but the other end is the copy.

If you’re reading the front page of a site and there’s a typo, what does that say about the quality of the site? How about in blog posts? Product descriptions?

The reality is that if you notice an error in copywriting, you’re going to have a lower opinion of the website that you’re on. Further, you’ll have a lower opinion of the product or service on that website.

Narrative and Skill

Think about that hastily written, poorly thrown together blog post that you read last week. You had to sift through the text, trying to get what you needed and get out without having to read the whole thing.

The writing was uninterested, you weren’t looking forward to the end of the post, and you certainly didn’t follow any links back to the site’s other pages. That sounds like web copy written by an unskilled writer.

A good blog post will be composed of a solid framework and compelling ideas. A good writer will catch your attention, push the idea forward and convince the reader to do more research or visit the site at the end of a post.

Additionally, they’ll have solid insights into the thing they’re writing about. One quality of a good copywriter is the ability to research and translate information quickly, even if they have never learned about that topic before.

That means having enough information to fill the page with relevant comments without a lot of fluff. Fluff is pretty much the sentence that repeats itself. A lot of writers get redundant when they’re trying to fill space.

Good copy is absent of fluff and only contains relevant information.

SEO Knowledge

Another characteristic of a modern copywriter is a decent knowledge of search engine optimization. Search engines are essential gatekeepers for your web content and users. If you can make a page look good in the eyes of the all-seeing search engine, you’re going to see the benefits in your pocketbook.

But search engines are fickle, picky things. They use algorithms with over 200 search factors to determine which sites land at the top of a search. Things like link development, keyword optimization, content creation, and 197 more elements contribute to whether or not you’ll show up in a search.

Instead of shooting in the dark with your optimization, try to team up with a copywriter who understands SEO to a degree. Even if you aren’t yet producing blog content to optimize, you will be soon.

Ultimately, Results Speak for Themselves

At the end of the day, you’re going to stick with a writer who actually has an impact on the success of your business. Not only will your business benefit from a writer who presents a great image, but you’ll also experience direct results from those blog posts and copy that makes conversions.

When you can see direct sales coming from a compelling call to action at the end of a blog post, you can be confident that you’ve chosen the right copywriter. Poor writers don’t see those kinds of results.

Keeping a person engaged through the entirety of an article is a difficult thing to do, and compelling a reader to make a purchase is even harder.

Want to Boost Your Web Presence?

The value of good copywriting is hard to understate. There are a lot of elements to a website, though. Things like marketing and great design need to come into play before anyone even visits your page.

Dealing with web traffic and graphic design is difficult when you’re coming at it with limited knowledge. If you’re looking to make waves online with a great website, contact us to see how working with professionals can benefit your site.

As a business owner, you’ve identified your goals and objectives that you plan to meet. You could have the best product on the market, yet lack the tools required to bring about success to your company. 

For example, an audience is a one of the keys to triumph, especially in today’s digital age. With that being said, how can you build an audience on your own? A digital ad agency in San Diego offers valuable assets that can bring your company to victory. 

Benefits of Working with an Experienced Digital Ad Agency in San Diego

As consumers transition to online channels, adapting to the online world is unavoidable. This isn’t the easiest transition for a business owner to make. Learning to navigate and succeed in the complicated world of online business isn’t easy. 

That’s why it’s best to work with an experienced San Diego marketing agency. Having a team of qualified professionals in your corner will tremendously improve your business’ operations. 

Because the online world is constantly evolving, it’s important to hire a team of digital experts who’ve witnessed the internet’s evolution; they understand every angle of the world wide web. 

Online marketing consists of multiple aspects including:

• Brand identity design
• Web development
• Packaging design
• SEO and PPC services
• Social Media Marketing 
• Email marketing

Work with an Exceptional San Diego Digital Marketing Agency

The business world is tricky enough as it is. Marketing is your company’s ticket to success, so why not work with a highly experienced digital ad agency in San Diego? 

Individuals outside of the marketing field don’t have access to the same valuable resources as a qualified advertising company. 

There are various techniques and strategies these companies have mastered over the past decade of digital marketing. There are many terms you may have never heard of.

Here are some of the most notable benefits of hiring a marketing company:

Cost-Effective

When you think of hiring extra help with your business, you assume it’ll cost you more than you’re ready to spend. However, the right digital ad agency in San Diego will generate fantastic results, without ridding you of every penny you have. 

Time Efficient 

Trying to navigate the complicated world of digital marketing on your own will not only be costly, but time consuming. Consider the amount of time you’ve spent experimenting with different methods of marketing. 

It’s possible to put an end to the vicious cycle. Hire an online marketing agency that works in your best interest!

Even the best in-house advertising departments seek advice and specialized skills from advertising firms. Many in-house teams are overwhelmed and underappreciated for their day-to-day responsibilities. This is where a local San Diego advertising agency can lend a hand, or tackle big-picture marketing activities. We’re your dedicated San Diego advertising agency that will lighten your load and add perspective. If you have a new product launch; the brand needs to be updated and refreshed; the company is adding new markets or shifting its position in the marketplace; or if you just need to contract out specialized marketers that will work with your team to do what you’re doing a little differently, call Mad Group. Regardless of what it is, our agency prefers to work with an in-house team so your ideas and suggestions will be carried out, and not just sit on someone’s desk unnoticed.

A business with exceptional products and services can struggle to survive in a fiercely competitive online market.

Digital marketing is one of the leading ways to stay afloat long-term. A medium can help you target your ideal audience. With a San Diego SEO company in your corner, you can take your business to new heights.

The marketing experts working behind the scenes can pick your company off the ground and garner a loyal batch of consumers.

When it comes to your website, you need to employ a San Diego SEO company to oversee this approach.

Give your business the expertise or understanding of SEO to produce an effective course of action.

Defining SEO or Search Engine Optimization

Web browser’s ultimate purpose is to deliver relevant information to consumers worldwide. The technique that’s deemed the most effective is search engine optimization, also known as SEO.

A website’s worth to browsers and potential customers can be increased by having skyscraper content and supported components. A website has more chances of ranking on the search engine result page when a web browser finds it useful for the searched keyword or phrase.

What is the importance of SEO?

Wouldn’t it be easier to create a website with top-quality content and naturally have all the necessary engagement rates? But this concept doesn’t work in the real digital world.

Search engines are full of similar websites, and only a handful can reach the top of the results page. Why is this?
For each keyword, search engine crawlers must evaluate the ranking of the websites on the search engine results page. To ensure web traffic

from pertinent keywords in browsers, it’s essential to rely on SEO tactics.

Functioning of an SEO Company

For a better understanding of the functioning of algorithms, digital marketing agencies examine the interaction between search engines with various websites.

A better understanding of algorithms’ operations allows them to enhance a website and ensure its ranking. Every sector has rules and norms; therefore, ensuring that your website follows the correct guiding principles has become a crucial part of the game of marketing. Before developing a plan to boost your website’s ranking, an SEO company should be made aware of your current situation and the state of your sector.

Furthermore, a San Diego SEO company will develop a unique plan to raise the position of your website with the necessary research.
This strategy will focus on aspects that require refinement to produce a comprehensive, helpful, and trustworthy site that attracts a sea of consumers. These strategies encompass the following:

Keywords

An SEO agency will investigate all the correct keyword phrases to assess how challenging the ranking is for each potential keyword pertinent to your goods or services. In addition to helping users find information, keywords help search engines understand the main points of a page’s content.

Content

By converting visitors into buyers, good content promotes sales and convinces browsers that your website’s content is worth crawling. A consistent supply of fresh material that is pertinent to your business’s services and products is offered by your SEO company.

User Experience

Since most traffic is via mobile, your site must provide a positive user experience on all devices. Your San Diego SEO company ensures smooth access and usability for mobile users to have a good experience.

Loading

A longer loading time could lead to a loss of consumers. Users will leave a website that takes too long to load. Your SEO company has the right expertise to find the perfect solutions to this common problem.

Backlinks

Off-site SEO will assist you in amping up your site and boosting consumer traffic. The quantity of reputable and credible websites linking to your company’s online platform is your backlink count.

Conclusion

With the help of these SEO strategies and the right SEO company, you can build a stronger image in the market and increase the number of returning customers. Having an SEO strategy will assist you in creating awareness for your brand.

However, you should also understand that SEO is a continual process that requires time, skill, and patience. Keep in mind that with reasonable efforts comes outstanding results.

Operating a business in a highly competitive field can be time consuming, costly, and difficult to navigate. Often times, business owners lack an understanding of the right strategies and techniques that will initiate success for their company. 

Not to mention, promoting your brand without a recognizable platform is even harder. That’s why digital marketing companies are a necessity. 

Working with the best advertising agency in San Diego means you have the best support system in your corner. 

What Can an Advertising Agency in San Diego Do for Me?

The world of advertising is all about creativity, consistency, and staying up to date with the latest marketing trends. Investing in the best advertising agency in San Diego is the gift that keeps on giving. 

These agencies consist of multifunctional teams that are seasoned in all areas of marketing. The service providers working behind the scenes have significant experience working with a variety of business; they’ve faced all of the hardships, so you don’t have to. 

Time Management 

Time is money. Working with a marketing company is financially efficient, considering it’s saving you lots of time and energy. 

An advertising agency will keep your brand on the right track. They work in an organized fashion that ensures eventual success for your business. 

Organization

For the majority, organization can be one of the most difficult aspects in business to manage, especially when you’re working on your own. This is where a marketing agency comes in.

From time management to the financial elements in marketing, balancing it all can be next to impossible. An experienced advertising agency has a team equipped with the right skills necessary to make it all possible. 

Why continue to struggle on your own? Take a step in the right direction and work with the best advertising agency in San Diego. 

Email marketing services are absolutely important for today’s businesses. Customer retention, building a brand, ROI, and automation are all strong reasons.

In 2022, over half of the population of the world used email. If you’re not using email marketing services right now, you’re not reaching everyone in your target market.

You might assume it isn’t worth it given how much email the average person gets per day, but email plays a big part in your business marketing campaign.

The average ROI for email marketing can be up to 4x more effective than using paid search, social media, or other methods.

Learn how email marketing services can benefit your business and why you should get started right away.

Email Has a High ROI

As we mentioned above, email has an impressive ROI (return on investment) value.

The average is around 42-to-1 which means for every $1 you spend on it, email can earn you around $42.

Using email marketing is also inexpensive because you don’t have to pay for ads. You already have access to your audience since you’re using a contact list. You also know you have their permission to send emails.

If you know how to target your audience and improve your email open rate, email is one of the most profitable methods of marketing. If you’re not sure what your current open rate is, consider investing in email marketing software or services.

It Builds Trust

Email marketing revolves around the idea of trust, making it one way to build a relationship with your customers.

Using email is also a good way to establish a brand voice, and it allows you to keep your messages personal and friendly. Sending emails from time to time not only keeps your customers in the loop but it also establishes credibility.

Tips to Build Trust

Your audience should know that you’re a brand they can rely on. How can you use email marketing to achieve this?

For one, always get permission from the customer before sending emails. They should provide you with their email address voluntarily and should also have the option to opt-out of or limit future messages.

Another key way to build trust is to make the sender clear. You could use a person’s name or your company’s name.

If you promise to deliver emails on a regular basis, make sure you follow through. Keep the tone and style of your emails consistent to make them look more professional.

One benefit of email marketing services is that you can automate the process and stick to a set schedule.

You Can Reach Mobile Customers

Each year, more and more people choose to use their smartphones to access the internet, go shopping, and check their emails. On average, Americans look at their phone every twelve minutes.

Consumers are making the switch to mobile, and you need to keep up.

Even though not all consumers shop on their phones, they may look at your email. If you’re promoting a sale, this is one way to grab their attention and capture their interest.

One key tip to successful email marketing campaigns is to make sure you optimize your emails for mobile devices.

Tips to Optimize Your Emails

You want your email to grab your audience’s attention, but that isn’t always easy on a smaller screen. Here are some tips to keep in mind when writing your emails.

• Watch the subject line length (mobile shows fewer characters)
• Keep it short and scannable
• Remember not all mobile devices display images so make sure the email makes sense even without an image
• Include a compelling CTA (call to action)
• Place the CTA near the top and make it big enough to tap

You should always test your emails before sending them to see how they look.

There Are Fewer Limitations

When marketing on social media, you’re always faced with limitations like character limits. You have to change your marketing message to account for these limitations, which isn’t always easy.

When you use email, you have more freedom. You can write longer messages and create more interactive content. You can also add pictures and videos or links.

You Can Deliver Messages to a Targeted Group

Since you already have a list of subscribers and you know you have their permission to send emails, you can send targeted messages.

Email marketing services let you target a group of contacts that meet certain criteria. When using a mass email service, this helps you pick and choose subscribers that would find your message relevant.

For instance, you could send an email to a group of customers in specific areas of the country. You could also target individuals with specific interests, such as sporting goods.

This is one way to boost engagement, and it’s more effective than sending a mass email to customers that don’t fit targeted requirements.

For instance, you wouldn’t want to send an email to a customer in New York about opening a new store in California. Targeting specific groups of subscribers keeps them supplied with relevant content.

How Investing in Email Marketing Services Benefits You

Email marketing sounds complicated, but it doesn’t have to be. Start with a marketing plan and establish concrete goals that you want to meet.

Investing in email marketing companies familiar with the best practices in marketing can help take some stress off of you.

An email marketing service researches your contact list, creates campaigns, and helps you build leads. You can also keep track of your click-through and open rates.

Taking Your Business to the Next Level

Despite what some people might say, email isn’t dead. It’s one of the most affordable and profitable methods of marketing.

The key is knowing how to create a successful email marketing campaign is to send optimized, targeted messages.

We can help you take your business to the next level by developing a successful marketing strategy. To find out more about our email marketing services, reach out to us today.

There are several misconceptions surrounding SEO, also known as search engine optimization. Even with a top SEO expert in your corner, there are many things to keep in mind regarding this process.

While SEO is an incredible tool that can help you rank higher on search engines, attract more traffic, and even generate more revenue, it’s not easy to maneuver. It’s important to understand the marketing technique before moving forward.

SEO Results May Appear Immediately

SEO is more complex than it appears. Earning a higher ranking on search engines results takes time and work. Mastering the art of SEO requires significant research.

Garnering real results can take anywhere between three to twelve months. Once you’ve established enough authority and online presence, you’re opening the door to a slew of benefits.

SEO Requires Consistency

As mentioned previously, search engine optimization requires a lot of time and effort, as well as research. The marketing tactic requires you to be consistent in order to generate real results.

Every day, the competition only becomes fiercer. With that said, investing in one of the best digital marketing agencies is crucial to the success of your business, regardless of what field you’re in. These companies will assist you with keyword research and other areas of SEO.

Keyword Strategy Provides Organic Ranking Instantly

Google is constantly changing along with the rest of the online atmosphere. As the tech giant evolves, so should your marketing tactics. Keyword-stuffing may not be as effective as it used to be. This is where a top SEO expert comes in.

They’ll keep a close eye on Google’s technological advancements and apply these changes to produce a more effective approach.

More Visitors Trigger Higher Revenue

Although website traffic is necessary to produce higher revenue, lead grade plays a more crucial role in this area.

Your products and services are your company’s superpower. They can turn your website’s visitors into consumers. When your content is appealing to a user, they’re more likely to stay on your website.

Audio and visual material often garners more engagement. It’s also easier for visitors to interact with your brand.

Take A Productive Path to Success

SEO strategies are a commitment of time, hard work, and patience. To obtain incredible results, work with SEO experts who know how to navigate this industry. Digital marketing agencies are the leading source of all-things online marketing.

Did you know that companies who don’t clearly support a good cause are likely to lose their customers to competing businesses that do? We are living in an era of social responsibility where consumers want to make sure the money they are spending is doing more than increasing your bottom line.

If you’re looking for ways to become more socially responsible as a business owner, it’s time for you to start your first cause marketing campaign. There’s quite a bit to learn, but that’s what we’re here for.

So, keep reading – we’ve got you covered.

What is Cause Marketing?

Because of the digital age we are living in, news is shared with much more ease than ever before. This includes events like social injustices, natural disasters and their aftermath, and the practices of new and established businesses.

We didn’t have many options when we made purchases in the past. You simply chose between brands at your local stores without knowing much about the people behind the company.

Now, research is a major part of the buying process. Consumers want to know about the quality of their products, how they are made, and where businesses stand on social issues.

In fact, according to one global study, 91% of consumers said they would switch to a brand that was in support of a good cause if the price and quality were similar. Additionally, 92% of consumers said they’d buy a product if there was a social or environmental benefit attached to it.

These important findings bring us to cause marketing.

Powerful Examples of Cause Marketing

Cause marketing is when a for-profit business inserts a social or charitable cause into their marketing campaign. The for-profit business may accomplish this by teaming up with a nonprofit or creating their own.

One of the best examples of cause marketing is the shoe company, TOMS. When you purchase a pair of TOMS shoes, the company will deliver a free pair to a child in need.

Since this approach brought major success to the brand, it chose to take things a step further. The TOMS “One Day Without Shoes” campaign encourages consumers to post pictures on Instagram without shoes. In this campaign, each photo that was posted resulted in a new pair of shoes for a needy child.

Can Cause Marketing Work for Your Business?

Cause marketing is effective because it makes consumers feel good about the products they are buying. Like with our TOMS example, customers aren’t just happy that they’ve treated themselves to a new pair of shoes, they are also glad to know the shoes they bought will help a needy child.

Often times, people want to donate to charities but get caught up with other financial responsibilities and the good deed goes undone. If donating is built into purchases consumers are already making, they feel good about themselves and they feel good about you too.

So, do you want to know how your business can help make a positive difference through cause marketing? Here are the steps you’re going to need to follow:

Figure Out What You Really Believe In

Cause marketing isn’t a marketing scheme to help your bottom line. It’s most impactful when you truly feel great about supporting a particular cause or nonprofit group.

Take you time and think about an organization you believe in and would like to see do well. Also, don’t be afraid to get your employees involved. Ask their opinions and make the final decision with a vote once you’ve narrowed it down to a few choices.

Everyone will work harder when they are supporting a cause they care about.

Does Your Cause Align Well with Your Business?

Part of narrowing down your list of nonprofits should include determining how well they match up with the purpose of your business. The best cause marketing campaigns are those that align this way because it increases the likelihood of your customers caring for the cause as well.

Let’s look at Olay as an example. Olay partnered with the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery in order to teach women about protecting their skin from the sun’s harmful rays.

As a result, over 9,000 people showed up for free skin cancer screenings.

Don’t Just Donate Money

Of course, it’s nice to donate money to a good cause. But the most valuable donations involve donating time, products, and services.

This can work in many different ways, so take some time to come up with something creative and useful.

Let’s say, for example, you run a restaurant. You can donate food to a local homeless shelter or you and your staff can volunteer to prepare and serve meals at one.

Let the Public Know About Your Partnership

The best way for cause marketing to become a win-win for both parties is to make your partnership public knowledge. To do this, start by tapping into existing forms of marketing.

For instance, let’s say the organization sends a newsletter to its constituents. There should be an area on that newsletter that promotes your business and explains how you two are working together for a bigger cause.

Additionally, you and the nonprofit will need to discuss how you will use each other’s logos and names in your marketing materials.

Create a Unique Marketing Campaign

Once you’ve used your existing platforms to make your collaborative efforts known, it’s time to create a unique marketing campaign with your nonprofit. The campaign should include a call to action that inspires people to come to an event, participate in a movement, or make a donation.

An example of a company that has made this work is State Farm. When they wanted to strengthen its relationship with the African American community, it came up with the 50 Million Pound Challenge.

The challenge was launched with a website that offered support, advice, and educational resources about the ways that being overweight are damaging to one’s health. With the support of the 50 Million Pound Challenge community, over 5 million pounds have been lost.

Need More Help?

Cause marketing is now the new normal, and if your business doesn’t participate, it’s possible you’ll be left behind. If you need more help or advice about your cause marketing needs, don’t hesitate to contact us.

We are here to help you make the most of your marketing efforts.