Unleaded Digital

Curating an effective digital presence for your brand is largely dependent on how efficiently your business’s website performs its intended purpose.

From fast loading times to ensuring high accessibility for a wide range of potential audiences, there’s a lot to consider when building an efficacious and inclusive website to curate your company’s online branding around. To learn more about increasing website usability, and in turn, increasing both profit and levels of engagement for your business overall; read on as we break down what makes a professional website both productive and attractive to possible clientele. 

Embrace a Mobile-Friendly Design

Did you know that over half of all website traffic stems directly from mobile phone usage? That’s right – long gone are the days of desktop browsing; in 2022 it’s all about the fast-paced and convenient world of smartphone utilisation. Making sure that your website is convenient for the majority of its users is absolutely paramount when considering how to offer an enjoyable and efficient customer service experience while boosting engagement. Whether it’s by removing all pop-up ads from your brand’s website, or consistently testing the web page’s response times through a mobile phone, ensuring that you’re staying one step ahead of the competition in this regard is always good practice. 

Remain Inclusive and Accessible 

A major aspect of website usability is rooted in being aware of who is navigating your website, and how to meet their individual needs in the most forward-thinking manner possible. For example, the inclusion of alt texts for all imagery used across your webpage is just one example of a great way to maximise website accessibility, so that screen readers can pick up what is being conveyed without having to use any actual imagery at all. Being aware of these small yet vital tweaks and changes can really go a long way in optimizing readability and user engagement. 

Avoid Slow Loading Times

Potential clients may grow tired of interacting with your website before they’ve even fully started if they have to sit through a long loading screen to access the information they’re looking for. Implementing faster loading times is a key aspect of web design that can truly make or break the popularity of your web page overall. Between minimising image files and browser caching, there are numerous ways to go about decreasing the amount of time your customers have to wait when interacting with your brand online.

Include a Website Hierarchy 

“Website hierarchies” are digital layouts that provide efficient navigation to potential customers who may be trying to find their way around your business’s site for the first time, and they are absolutely essential to increasing overall web page usability. If there’s too much going on information-wise, or the page is too crowded with imagery, clients may get overwhelmed and not know where to click next. Creating a simple, yet effective design across your entire website via a sensical site hierarchy is a great way to combat this possible negative outcome.

In Conclusion

Website usability is a generally overlooked aspect of successful digital marketing, but it is often the defining factor that customers notice when deciding whether to stick around on a web page. Now that we’ve reviewed just a few ways to provide an optimal and advantageous user experience to your digital customers, you should be one step ahead of the curve next time you’re tasked with increasing the amount of traffic that finds your company online.

When it comes to sustaining and growing a successful business, particularly in the digital sphere, the importance of retaining customer feedback can not be stressed enough.

It is one of the only ways to truly examine and internalize what is attracting your key demographic, what they’re happy with and what drives them away. Encouraging an open and honest dialogue with your own customers is obviously good practice for any brand, but showcasing that dynamic to increase potential interest also goes a long way!. Read on as we review some of the key benefits of including a client review page on your brand’s website.

Customer Reviews Add Credibility 

Potential clients are always looking to invest their time and money into brands they feel they can truly count on,  brands that they feel are reliable and consistent with their services – and integrating customer reviews onto your company’s website is a key way to relay that message to your audience. Reviews generally inspire trustworthiness in customers and spectators because the inclusion of them leaves a great first impression; which is, of course, a strong marketing tactic in and of itself.

Emphasizes Your Client’s Voice

Highlighting customer reviews as the main feature of your website shows potential customers that your company is run by professionals who truly know how to listen to their audience. The importance of conveying this message through consistent branding is paramount, as it is one of the key ways to build up a strong and consistent client pool that is based on trust and positive engagement. Customers are much more likely to interact with a business if they know that their needs are going to be heard, prioritised and considered by the brand in question.

Increases Potential Clientele

Customer reviews function as more than just a way for onlookers to read up on previous clients and their past experiences with your business’s services; they can also be used as a way for spectators to keep in touch with your company in general. For example, If a website user is interested in what you’ve got to offer; but is currently unable to engage with your brand, adding them to your company’s “email list” via customer testimonials can often translate into future financial growth and optimal exposure. 

Boosts Sales and Generates Profit

Showcasing customer reviews and testimonials has been proven to increase profitability across all industries, especially in digital spaces. One of the most powerful marketing tactics available to businesses in 2022 is the curation and accentuation of client feedback – nothing can replace tried-and-tested accounts of what it was like interacting with your business and your team, through the lens of a customer. Boosting these testimonies shows the potential clientele that they are guaranteed to have a great experience if they choose to invest in your company’s services.

That’s all for our quick breakdown regarding the main benefits of including a client review page within the promoted features of your business’s website. From boosting your client’s trust to drawing in potential new audiences, the list of benefits is truly endless when it comes to illustrating and stimulating strong client feedback for your brand as a whole.

It’s easy to get carried away and make your new website live before doing the final touches and optimisation. SEO really should be a top priority throughout production, as well as pre and post going live, but many brush past it without knowing just what an effective SEO strategy can do for your site.

Search engines use bots to scan billions of web pages for the information you put in your search query. Google, for example, stores data as a huge index of keywords and phrases that reflect the content of a particular website, it will match these keywords to a search and rank them in order of relevance, popularity and reputation to show to the user. This is where solid Search Engine Optimisation really helps your site beat out its competition, a good strategy can help you:

• Establish Domain Authority
• Direct Traffic to Your Site
• Rank You Higher on a Relevant Search Query
• Improved User-Friendliness

So whilst many may know of the benefits SEO brings, some may not completely understand how to implement it on your website. Luckily, here are a few tips on how to get the most out of your website with Search Engine Optimisation!

Optimise Your On-Site SEO

On-Site SEO refers to the process of making your website search engine-friendly. There are two main sections to On-Site SEO, Content and Programming-based. In terms of content, here are a few things you should consider:

Blogging and Reviews Sections

A blog is the perfect way to keep your website consistently updated in Google’s database, whilst providing insight and knowledge to users on your site. Search Engines favour websites that are constantly updated, every time you post a new blog, your website is refreshed in the algorithm. It also means you may broaden your range of audience within your industry by posting educative blogs that people may search for.

Similar goes for a review section, whenever a review is posted to your website it is updated to show it to the public. Reputation is also important to search engine ranking, the better your reviews, the higher up you will be.

Quality Optimised Content

Making sure any content you post is as good as can be is crucial to the success of your site. Not having your images, plugins and add-ons optimised can hinder website performance and, although it may not affect your SEO or ranking directly, it can increase your bounce rate and reduce traffic which indirectly de-ranks your site.

As aforementioned, there is a slightly more techy On-Site SEO check up to do. This involves making sure the keywords that relate to your business are included in all your H tags, meta description and meta title. These are your first point of contact with search engines, so optimising this can drastically improve your status with Google.

SEO in Your Copy

A much more straightforward technique for SEO is to include your keywords in your website copy. A great example of this is Connect Insolvency, they are sure to use things like; Insolvency Newcastle, Liquidators and Insolvency North East.. and so on. It’s also a great idea to include internal links in your copy, to spread users across your site and increase traffic to your other pages, this also helps with bounce rate. CTAs like ‘Contact Us’ and ‘Find Out More’ do a world of good for customer engagement.

With these tips, I would hope that even the least tech-savvy people could get an understanding of the SEO process and what needs to be done to get the best out of your website, good luck!

Knowing how to market your brand in a way that is compatible with the fast paced, ever-changing environment of the most popular (and most profitable) digital spaces is an absolutely key aspect of consistently sustaining a successful business in the modern age. 

From acquiring SEO technical know-how, to showcasing your brand and your business as the personable establishment that it is on various online platforms, there’s an extensive list of factors to keep in mind when trying to maximize brand exposure through social media usage and internet based exposure. Stick around as we break down four key ways to garner an audience online by increasing engagement and optimizing profit.

Engage with Your Audience 

An absolutely vital part of navigating social media as a business is understanding the importance of producing content that is “clickable” – content that is worth responding to! It’s not enough to simply post menial business-related updates if you’re looking to stand out from the crowd and elevate your company’s future prospects. Curating an online persona for your brand that is engaging and interesting to your target demographic is the way forward, e.g by posting polls, memes, videos and articles that truly speak of the personality and authenticity behind the business.

Utilize Smart SEO 

SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, describes the numerous processes behind making your brand visible through various popular search engines, increasing overall exposure and general popularity. Conducting in-depth research into this practice as a working professional is always a good idea, as utilizing it correctly can take your company to new heights in terms of customer-based expansion. From developing your keyword knowledge to building relevant links within your company’s website, there’s a whole host of ways to increase your brand’s visibility using SEO, through the eyes of the general public.

Embrace Social Media 

Social media is perhaps the most effective – and financially feasible!- marketing tool that businesses have readily available at their fingertips in 2022. Knowing how to traverse it in a way that maximizes exposure and profit for your brand can function as a true booster for your business. Posting audience-appropriate and consistent content to platforms such as TikTok, Facebook and Instagram can attract potential new customers, give your brand a shot at virality and allow your team to make connections with others in your field.

Consider Collaboration 

One of the many benefits of operating a business presence online is the worldwide connection and potential reach it affords your brand, holistically speaking. For example, a great way to truly get through to your key demographic is by working with their favorite public figures or brands to optimize exposure! Collaborating with influencers and companies is a guaranteed way to increase customer engagement, and it may open many doors further down the line for your company in terms of advertising and opportunity for profit.

Now that we’ve covered the basics of how to make the most of the internet as a tool of advertisement, you’re already halfway to diversifying your key demographic online, and cashing in on that continued heightened exposure. 

Though it may seem a little difficult to gain traction at first, producing high-quality content on a consistent basis is a great way to build up the loyal and sustainable client pool that every business dreams of.

In this day and age, we consume advertisements at an unbelievable rate. Unless you stay indoors, don’t use the internet, don’t listen to the radio and don’t watch the television (have I missed anything?) it’s absolutely impossible to avoid.

In fact, in 2007, research conducted by marketing firm Yankelovich, Inc. came to the conclusion of the modern person being exposed to at least 5,000 advertising messages a day. Just let that sink in. 5,000 messages. And this was all the way back in 2007!

So, as a business, how do you utilise this to your benefit?

When looking at your marketing plan, depending on your sector, it may be worth looking into the ‘offline’ aspects of marketing. Yes, adverts on the likes of Google and social media platforms aren’t anything to be laughed at, but how do you grab the attention of someone constantly on the go?

In comes the billboard.

A Short History of Billboards

Believe it or not, the first billboard concept came about in the 1830s. Their popularity grew throughout the 1860s, and then as the century neared to a close, the format of the billboard as we know it was solidified.

The first sector to utilise outdoor advertising and billboards were actually circuses, and if you think about it – it makes perfect sense! What better way of advertising a circus than to create large, bright and beautiful posters to attract the eye of potential visitors.

In the early 1900s, there was soon to be a major shift in the world of outdoor advertisement when the Ford Model T was introduced to the U.S., pushing the idea of advertising along major roadways.

As the decades went on, the humble billboard went on to grow stronger and stronger, carving their place out in not only history but also the future.

Now, there is a wide variety of anything from the method of printing, to the materials used and even the type of billboard. With companies such as WSG Print catering to every type of outdoor advertising, there’s something for every business.

What are Digital Billboards?

It’s strange to think that a concept created nearly 200 years ago is still going strong to this day. But the beauty of technology has meant we have been able to update the old school circus posters of the 1800s and bring them with us as we move into the future.

Digital billboards are billboards that (you guessed it) are digital!

Instead of the more traditional method of printing out a poster and pasting this onto a billboard, a digital billboard features a digital screen than can be updated quickly and easily – without even having to scale heights.

The Benefits of a Digital Billboard

You can choose exactly when you want to advertise

Digital billboards give you more flexibility and freedom compared to the traditional, static billboard. Because digital billboards are capable of holding more than one marketing message at a time, you’ll typically be able to choose exactly when you want your message to show.

For example, if you were wanting to advertise your child sitting service, you would most likely want to show your advert between the hours of 8 am-6 pm in order to target those travelling to and from work, as well as those who might be currently off work after having a baby.

Being able to specify that you only want your marketing message to show between the hours of 8 am and 6 pm means that you don’t have to pay for the 12 hours of airtime that you don’t want to use.

You can make real-time changes

If you’ve ever worked in any form of print or design, you know how stressful it can be when it comes to printing the final product. No matter how many times or how many different people you get to check over the work, little mistakes can still slip through the cracks. Whether this is a typo or a low-quality image – once you’ve seen the mistake, you can’t unsee it!

So what if we were to tell you that we can minimise your daily stress by removing the printing step entirely.

Well, this is exactly what a digital billboard does.

Because there’s no need to spend hundreds and thousands of pounds on printing your final product – it’s not the end of the world if you miss a typo on your digital billboard. Just update and upload! (Although we would still recommend going through your checks!). Yes, you’ve lost time, but you haven’t thrown a load of money down the toilet.

You can tweak specific billboards

This point almost goes hand in hand with the point above. If you’re lucky enough to be in a position where you can place multiple billboards nationwide (or maybe even worldwide!), if you were using a traditional poster billboard, you may get a discount on bulk printing.

However this would mean every billboard would look exactly the same.

Now, this may not be a bad thing, however there may be times when you don’t necessarily want this.

For example, if your business has 5 branches throughout the UK, it would be beneficial for each billboard to advertise the nearest branch. Whether that’s the CTAs you want to tweak or the localised slang (it’s no good having a billboard saying ‘howay the lads’ in Birmingham!) – digital billboards make this simple.

Conclusion

It’s clear to see that billboards are here to stay. They can be effective tools of marketing to target those of us who are constantly out and about, who may not spend much time on our phones.

Having a billboard in a high traffic area means that you know your message is being seen on a daily basis – and combined with the correct digital marketing strategy – could help you launch your business into the stratosphere!

Remote work, at one point, was seen as mandatory due to the coronavirus pandemic, but now as we all return to normal we continue to adopt a home-working schedule, but why? There are certainly benefits to staying at home at least a few days a week as long as you have facilities for it. A number of studies have shown results in favour of remote working, a few key points will be mentioned below!

Increased Productivity

Having read around the majority of articles on the topic, a common point being made is an increase in output and productivity between employees. In a study by a professor from Stanford University, results showed that productivity increased by 13%, giving them almost an extra day’s output per employee, per week.

Better Health

Even pre-pandemic, it was proven that having a flexible job was much better for your health. The introduction of remote working means employees can take breaks in their own space, enjoy a home-made lunch and keep up their usual daily routines. Taking physical health into account also, it can be hard to manage pre-making a healthy lunch, having a long commute to the office and still having the energy for a workout routine.

Happier Work Life

As mentioned above, a flexible work schedule can improve mental health, which reflects in a much happier work life. Work stress can affect family and colleague relationships, but eliminating as many of the arduous parts as possible can make for a much brighter work life. Working away from the office also means you can avoid that one employee that’s just a bit too loud in the morning.

Better Financials

Its reported that the average person can save up to £3200 annually by working from home. There are a number of influential factors:

• Car costs- Fuel, Insurance and Maintenance.
• Clothes- Suits and Smart Clothes are significantly more expensive than what I expect you wear at home!
• Food- Eating lunch at home can save up to £5-£10 a day.

If you have a commute to work, not only are you spending money on fuel, etc. but you are spending 30 mins, for example, unpaid time just to get to the office.

Benefits for the Environment

We all know the situation with global warming and climate change, we’re getting to a point where something needs to change. Remote work reduces greenhouse gas emissions, fuel consumption and air pollution by lessening the need for transport, while also reducing the use of plastics and disposables by home-cooking.

In the end, it can be important to have office time to build stronger relationships with your colleagues, but remote work has enough statistics and research to prove its effects that it should definitely be considered. Finding a balance between home and office work seems to be the ideal solution, the Ying and Yang so to speak.

Just about everyone is on Social Media these days. Ever since the introduction of modern platforms, there have been millions of active users daily. So it’s no wonder that up to 90% of company executives adopt at least one social media channel in their marketing strategies. Aside from marketing, places like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram are unrivaled for boosting your visibility and, if used correctly, can improve your online presence drastically. If you are on the fence when it comes to the use of social media for your business, hopefully this article will shed some light on the benefits that come with its use!

Competitor Analysis

Reverting back to the first paragraph, 90% of company executives opt for social media in their marketing, unless your business is particularly niche, it’s quite likely that your competitors will be on these platforms. This should make some areas of your industry analysis much more straightforward, in that all information on social media is public and free to use. It also means you can research what works for companies in your sector before making your social plans, to further optimise your online presence.

Personalise your Brand

Finding a solid balance between personal and professional can be key to growth on social media, whilst also giving potential customers something to connect with and relate to. Stepping away from a corporate regime and expressing a more laid-back, informal side makes you much more approachable and social media just happens to be the best place to do so. Giving insider information about things like your Ethos, Vision, etc. can strengthen your following and increase your reputation with users that may see your posts.

CRM, Made Easy

The more platforms you can use to connect with your audience the better. Many users like to post their issues on their socials for help or for someone to relate to, this can be an ideal moment for your customer service to step in to help. Not only are you helping that particular individual, but you are publicly expressing care for the users of your service/ product whilst also providing an available solution for others with similar problems, this can build trust and attract others to invest in your business. Take this Vodafone tweet for example.

So if you’re really trying to take your online presence to the next level, boost your engagement and get visible to new customers, social media should be at the top of your list. It’s relatively easy to use and integrate into your website, and if used efficiently can bring a great return.

Digital Marketing is forever evolving, the constant introduction of new technology allows for infinite possibilities of the direction marketing can go. Even right now, there is an abundance of viable marketing solutions that are moderately untouched in the digital world.

Although AI may not necessarily be a new concept, it has been heavily invested into by the tech industry and is developing further day by day. The potential in Artificial Intelligence was seen as far back as the 1950s when Alan Turing suggested computing machinery could solve problems using information and reasoning just like humans, its fair to say its come a long way since then anyway! But how can we use it in marketing? Here’s a few ways to get you started:

Personalisation for Improved Customer Experience (CRM)

AI enables marketers to personalise their communications to a whole new level, data can be automatically collected and processed so each unique user can have their own personal experience. So instead of appealing to a target market, your AI can allow for connections on an individual level, improving your Customer Relationship Management (CRM) strategies.

This personalisation goes a step further with large companies like Google and Facebook. We’ve all been online before and suddenly all you see is the hoodie you looked at last night all over your social media adverts. This is because of a complex AI collecting your individual data and showing you adverts it thinks you would like to see, similar to how Netflix will pop up the shows based on your watch history.

Manage Marketing Content

Thanks to AI and automation technologies, you can easily get analytics to discover what campaigns and strategies work best with your audience. Utilising this allows marketers to produce content that optimally suits their customers, linking back to improved CRM. Some AI can also create content based on these analytics so its definitely worth checking out!

Customer Service Bots

Ensuring all your marketing channels are consistently operated by customer service agents can be complicated and expensive. Machine learning AI has developed fast over the last few years, with virtual assistants like Siri and Alexa leading the charge, chat bots are no exception. The use of a chatbot in customer service not only reduces your workload, but provides a 24/7 response, can be taught specific replies and can direct to further help and paid services if necessary. Some people even prefer getting help from a chatbot!

Search Engines

Search Engine Optimisation is a huge concept, integrated deeply within digital marketing. Artificial Intelligence is heavily involved within search engines in many different ways, here are a few:

• Spell check in the search bar (“Did you mean….?”)
• AI detects patterns in each specific users voice to optimise voice search
• Relevant, Personalised results for each search
• User-specific ad links at the top of the results

In conclusion, AI is heavily integrated with digital marketing, perhaps more than we first realised. It is almost certain that in the near future there will be so many more viable, technologically advanced, marketing solutions to look out for.