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Where Can I get traffic for my website?

Where Can I get traffic for my website?

There are many ways to increase traffic to your website, including:

  1. Search engine optimization (SEO): By optimizing your website for search engines, you can improve its visibility in search engine results pages (SERPs), which can help drive more organic traffic to your site.
  2. Paid advertising: You can use paid advertising platforms like Google AdWords to drive targeted traffic to your website.
  3. Social media marketing: By promoting your website on social media, you can reach a wider audience and drive more traffic to your site.
  4. Content marketing: By creating and sharing high-quality, valuable content on your website and on other websites, you can attract more traffic and build a loyal following.
  5. Email marketing: By collecting email addresses from visitors to your website and sending regular newsletters or promotional emails, you can keep your audience engaged and drive more traffic to your site.
  6. Influencer marketing: By partnering with influencers who have a large following on social media, you can reach a wider audience and drive more traffic to your website.

By Africa Presse

Why Your Company Needs a Defined Brand and Website

Why Your Company Needs a Defined Brand and Website

Have you ever landed on a website and immediately felt confused? Did the copy and design fail to inform you who the company was, what they sold, or why you should buy from them? Or, on the other end of the spectrum, was the website cluttered with contradicting information, sporadic design elements, and unnecessary functions?

This terrible user experience is the result of a poor branding strategy or a lack of a brand in the first place.

As defined by Entrepreneur, branding is _“the marketing practice of creating a name, symbol or design that identifies and differentiates a product from other products.”_Having a strong brand and corresponding strategy can position your business or personal career competitively in your market or industry. Without it, your company and website become another piece of noise on the Internet.

Considering that consistent presentation of a brand increases revenue by 23% on average, it is vital for your business to have a defined brand. And, with 54% of shoppers turning to a brand’s website for product information, customer service, and personalized shopping, a brand website is more important than ever.

The Importance of a Brand

Reviewing the Entrepreneur definition of branding once again, the goal of a brand is to differentiate your organization, product/services, and identity from that of the competition. While effectively positioning your business in the market is the main goal and benefit of branding, it also offers several other advantages:

A Brand is an Experience

While developing this entity for your business, you, in turn, create a customer experience. Everything from your logo to the interactivity of your website is part of the total brand experience. The way your customer support team answers messages, the content published to your company’s social media profiles, the manner in which customers are onboarded for products and services – it all revolves around your brand.

Your brand has the power to construct a one-of-a-kind experience for your customers. This experience is extended through various online channels, in-person interactions with employees, and other instances. When your brand is unorganized or not defined, this customer experience is disorienting and undesirable.

Branding Leads to Recognition

If given a test of the world’s top brands, the majority of us would pass with flying colors. From McDonald’s to the Walt Disney Company to Sony, we can identify the leading brands in seconds. Having a consistent and established brand strategy works to improve customer recognition of your brand. On average, it takes approximately 5 to 7 brand impressions before someone remembers you. Therefore, those first few impressions need to be strong—not scattered!

Plus, as stated by Reuters, 82% of investors believe that brand strength and name recognition are becoming more important in guiding them in their investment decisions.

Customers Trust Brands

Did you know 48% of consumers expect brands to know them and aid in finding new products or services that fit their needs? This is derived from a level of brand trust. After beginning to recognize and interact with your brand, customers will begin to trust your company for their specific needs.

And, 64% of consumers say that shared values are the main reason that they have a trusted relationship with a brand. If your brand is discombobulated online, how will you be able to demonstrate the value of your company/product/services and earn the trust of your target audience?

You Need a Brand Strategy

After establishing your brand, you must devise a brand strategy. A brand strategy identifies the goals for your brand as well as how to best accomplish them using the various components of your brand including language, the logo, and trademarks (also known as a brand standards guide.) While much of your brand strategy will focus on how to appropriately utilize the brand across marketing and company efforts, Hubspot also identifies 7 components all brand strategies must contain:

  1. Purpose: Define your company’s vision.
  2. Consistency: Ensure a seamless representation of your brand.
  3. Emotion: What is the tone of voice for your brand? How should your brand convey emotion?
  4. Flexibility: Identify how and when to pivot, if necessary.
  5. Employee Involvement: Describe how employees can best represent and promote the brand.
  6. Loyalty: Discuss how to recognize and appreciate your loyal customers.
  7. Competitive Awareness: Analyze your competitors and determine how to differentiate your brand.

With a solidified brand strategy, you can move forward with developing and launching a website that represents your brand in a positive, accurate, and consistent manner.

What Every Brand Website Needs

Remember, the goal of your website is to inform customers and entice them to trust your brand. In turn, they’ll convert into paying customers over time. However, an unorganized, chaotic website design won’t do the trick. You don’t want customers to access your website only to be confused!

In fact, if customers cannot find what they want on your website or homepage, 79% will exit your site and search for another website to complete their task. Considering 81% of customers complete extensive research online before making a purchase, your website needs to have the following components.

A Clear Message

Armed with a defined brand and thorough brand strategy, your marketing team will know how to communicate your brand message via the company website. The website copy should be:

  • Clear
  • Concise
  • Informational
  • Entertaining
  • Captivating
  • Aligned with Your Brand Strategy!

Remember, your brand message must demonstrate your company’s values and why customers should trust and purchase from your business.

A Consistent Design

As outlined in your strategy, your website must contain consistent branding and design elements throughout. After reading this article, take time to explore the Wise Host Website. As you navigate to different pages and products throughout our site, you’ll notice everything from the website copy to the illustrations, layout, and photos are persistently aligned with our brand.

It’d be odd if we had an orange page with an entirely different layout all of a sudden, right? Since color increases brand recognition by 80%, our website is fully in accordance with our brand standards which state a specific shade of blue must be used.

Crucial Company Information

When users land on your website, they want information ASAP. Or, they want to know where on your website they can find that information.

For instance, if you own a restaurant, your website visitors should be able to easily find your menu and your hours of operation. If not placed on your homepage, the website navigation should clearly display these page links/buttons.

Information users commonly look for includes:

  • Products and Services
  • Prices
  • Hours of Operation
  • Product Information
  • Company History
  • Employee Bios
  • Store Location and Directions

Forgetting to include such vital information can leave potential customers with a negative impression of your brand. Be sure to place the important details where visitors can find them.

Launch Your Brand Website

After meticulously developing and defining your brand and strategy, you can share it with the world by creating a WordPress website. Remember, your website is a reflection of your brand—not an extension—make sure it follows your strategy to a ‘T’!

Over to you! Why do you think having a defined brand and website is key for businesses?

Influencer Marketing: Is It the Right Tactic for Your Blog?

Influencer Marketing: Is It the Right Tactic for Your Blog?

By Machielle Thomas, Content Manager

In an ever-changing digital marketing world, bloggers and brands alike are looking for the next big way to generate revenue and website traffic. In 2017 (and for the foreseeable future), that tactic is influencer marketing. As reported by a 2016 TapInfluence study with Nielsen Catalina Solutions, influencer marketing content delivers 11 times higher return on investment (ROI) than traditional digital marketing methods.

With such a drastic ROI, it’s no wonder bloggers are jumping on the influencer marketing train, and from both angles, too. Bloggers are transforming their website and marketing efforts to position themselves as influencers, while also targeting and working with other influencers to promote and distribute content.

As a result of the skyrocketing popularity and success of influencer marketing, you may be wondering: Should I become an influencer? Is influencer marketing the right tactic for my blog?

The answer is a resounding it depends. For some industries, blogs, and brands, you’d be crazy not to take advantage of influencer marketing. However, for others, influencer marketing would be a waste of precious marketing funds.

What is Influencer Marketing?

Defined by TapInfluence, influencer marketing is a type of marketing that focuses on using key leaders to drive your brand’s message to the larger market. Rather than send promotional content directly to consumers with traditional digital marketing tactics, such as email marketing and display ads, influencer marketing relies on outside individuals known as influencers to deliver a message.

Influencers are individuals with moderate to large fan followings on top social media and content marketing platforms including Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and YouTube. In addition, many of these influencers operate and maintain a blog.

When a brand decides to use influencer marketing as part of their promotional strategy, they must target, connect with, and properly compensate influencers. Often, influencers will create sponsored content featuring the brand and product/service to share on their respective social media channels and blog.

Why Do Brands Use Influencer Marketing?

In an age where anyone can become an advertiser, we are more skeptical than ever about our online activity and purchases. It has been reported that 96% of people believe the advertising industry does not act with integrity, with 69% of these people attributing their mistrust to the advertisers’ desire to sell more effectively.

With this in mind, we look to our friends and trusted sources for recommendations and advice, as well as for guidance on purchases. In fact, 71% of consumers are more likely to make a purchase based on a social media reference.

When brands partner with online influencers, they are looking to prove to customers why they are a trusted company and product or service. With 49% of people saying they rely on recommendations from influencers when making purchase decisions, it’s easy to see why companies hop on the influencer marketing bandwagon.

On top of online sales, brands use influencer marketing to:

  • Drive social media engagement on their brand channels
  • Gain quality backlinks for their online content
  • Generate consistent website traffic
  • Foster a connection with targeted audiences
  • Improve awareness of a brand or specific campaign

While influencer marketing can be beneficial for both parties involved, you need to determine if it is the right course of action for you and your blog before jumping in head first.

How to Determine if Influencer Marketing is Right for Your Blog

First, let’s approach the question from the standpoint of becoming an influencer.

To become an influencer, you must regularly create quality content on your blog and on social media. On top of developing and distributing content, you need to regularly interact with your audience and generate a loyal following of fans. This is not a small feat.

Plus, you must determine if you have a competitive edge in your particular market or niche. What makes you stand out as a blogger or influencer? Can you carve a place for yourself as an influencer? If so, have at it! Work to position yourself in the market and begin partnering with brands as an influencer.

On the other hand, if you are not ready to become an influencer, you can partner with relevant influencers to improve awareness of your brand and blog. However, while a 2015 Forrester report claims 73% of marketers say they have an allocated budget for influencer marketing, it’s not the best tactic for every blog.

To determine if influencer marketing is the right path for your blog, complete the following steps.

1. Ask “Why?”

You shouldn’t invest in influencer marketing because everyone else is. You need to identify why influencer marketing will be an advantageous marketing strategy to accomplish your objectives.

Are you looking to have influencers share and link to your blog content for search marketing purposes? Are you looking to drive more targeted customers to your blog? Perhaps you’re looking to grow your social media following and share your content with a larger audience. All of these goals can be accomplished by collaborating with influencers in your particular market or industry.

2. Set Goals

As with all online marketing tactics, you must set objectives for your influencer marketing strategy. Goals can include:

  • Increasing your social media following by X% over a specific period of time
  • Improving the amount of website traffic from a specific online source
  • Raising the number of brand/blog mentions online
  • Adding more quality backlinks to your blog link portfolio

Without outlining your goals, you will spend money on influencer efforts without being able to quantify the results. This may lead to short-term gains but not long-term outcomes.

3. Ask if Influencer Marketing Makes Sense for Your Industry

Also, before giving the “go ahead” on influencer marketing, you need to identify if the right influencers for your industry exist. Some industries, such as the lifestyle products and travel industries, are overwhelmed with influencers. These blogs and brands have thousands of influencers to vet and choose from. On the other hand, manufacturing businesses and the pharmaceutical industry will have a harder time finding the right influencers to partner with.

You must also determine if influencer marketing truly makes sense for your industry. Do customers rely on the opinions of influencers before purchasing your products or services? For commodities, certain B2B markets, and other industries such as manufacturing, this may not be the case.

Take the time to research your industry and identify influencers that would partner well with your marketing objectives.

Tools to Help You Win at Influencer Marketing

Should you decide that influencer marketing is the way to go, use these tools as part of your strategy:

Followerwonk by Moz

Followerwonk is a free tool from Moz which allows users to search for Twitter influencers based on a number of filters including topics, followers, and social authority.

UTM Parameters

UTM Parameters are tiny bits of code added to the end of a website URL to help marketers track results. Use these parameters when working with influencers to identify how much traffic their content drives to your website or blog content.

BuzzSumo

BuzzSumo is an in-depth content marketing tool which allows you to research topics, influencers, and so much more. This robust tool helps marketers find ideal influencers based on keywords, hashtags, and social media metrics.

SEOquake

If using influencer marketing for SEO and link building purposes, you’ll want to know more about the influencer’s website. SEOquake is a browser add-on that delivers robust information about websites with a few simple clicks.

CrowdFire

CrowdFire enables users to identify people to follow based on interests, industries, and more. In addition, this tool is great for influencers who need to manage their personal social media following and unfollow irrelevant or dormant accounts.

BuzzStream

As one of the leading blogger outreach tools, BuzzStream is an essential asset for influencer marketing strategies. With BuzzStream, brands can analyze influencers, reach out for opportunities, and manage relationships in one place.

Will You Invest in Influencer Marketing?

So, is influencer marketing right for your blog after all? Let us know in the comments section below.