Strategies to Improve Your Online Presence

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StrategyDriven Online Marketing and Website Development Article, Strategies to Improve Your Online Presence

The world is online, even if your business isn’t. Refraining from having a website, and associated local listings and social accounts is how you remain invisible to all but your locals. Now, this might seem like a great thing, when you’re, say, a local mechanic, but there are people just outside of your neighborhood who could use your services as well, only because you aren’t online, they can’t find you. Improving your online presence is how you’ll be found, it is how you’ll increase business, and it is how you’ll further your success. To improve your online presence, follow these tips:

1. Start (or Improve) Your Website

You need a website that uses cloud hosting. This is how you’ll ensure that you have miniscule chance of downtime, and how you’ll gain full customization options. You need your website to not just look good, but you need it to be fast and you also need it to be on-site SEO friendly. These three traits are what make a website perfect. Google will rank you based on your speed, and users may not go through your site if it takes ages to load. Similarly, you need the website to look great in order to convey professionalism, so that users can trust you before they even know you.

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2. Grow a Genuine Community

Buying followers and likes on Instagram, Facebook, and any other social site is a waste of money. Keeping up the appearance is nowhere near as important as creating an organic, genuine community. You can use social media to increase your website visits and even your sales, but you need to do it the right way. This means crafting bespoke, unique posts with great pictures. It also means engaging with your community at large, before and after they follow you.

A great social media marketing campaign can get you the awareness you need, but you need to respond and be engaged with what your community is saying and doing to be on top of trends, and to nurture these relationships. A repeat customer is more valuable than a one-off sale any day.

3. Get Listed

If you are a local business, you have so many options to be referenced, referred to, and listed. This is great both for the organic hits from these second-party sites, and it’s also excellent for SEO. For instance, if you are a local boutique retailer, you can easily list your business on all directories, like Google or even TripAdvisor. You can also provide your local news agencies of any events you might be holding, since they are more likely to publish a local piece that promotes their neighborhood. This means that you’ll not only gain more traffic from these sites, but Google will rank your website higher due to the number of back-links. Additionally you have to learn local SEO tactics and strategies to increase traffic.

Being smart about your online presence is how you can not only be found by more people, it’s also how you’ll be trusted by more people. Trust, and greater visibility, will lead to success.

7 Effective WordPress Website Design Principles to Follow

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StrategyDriven Online Marketing and Website Development Article, 7 Effective WordPress Website Design Principles to Follow

If you are looking to start a website, or are in the process of redesigning your current website, it is important to understand some effective WordPress website design principles. By following these guidelines, you can create a website that is both visually appealing and user-friendly. We will go over some of the most important principles to follow when designing your website using WordPress.

1. Muted Colors are the Way to Go

In general, muted web colors work best on websites. These are colors that come from the color spectrum that have been slightly “muted” down by adding gray. Bright colors can be too overpowering and distracting on your site, which is why muted colors are often best for your website. Just make sure not to go too extreme in the other direction by choosing only black and white. Also, be aware of color schemes. The difference between a color scheme and color choices is that a color scheme includes more than one color.

2. Resize Your Graphics Well for Online Use

When designing your site, be aware that you will not always be using it on a large screen. For this reason, it is important to resize your graphics for use online. By maintaining the original resolution of your image, you can ensure that it will not get distorted when used on a smaller screen. That way, your users will be able to view the same high-quality image that you intended them to see.

3. Parallax Effects Are Good But Don’t Overdo It

A parallax effect is a scrolling technique that gives the illusion of depth, dimension, and movement. They have been used on many sites to give viewers an exciting visual experience. While these effects can definitely boost the appeal of your website, be careful not to overdo it. Too much parallax scrolling can become distracting and even nauseating for some users. Find a balance.

4. Fonts Matter

Fonts are a very important aspect of your web design in Long Island. By choosing the right fonts, you can create a unique and creative look for your site. There are many great options out there to choose from, so make sure to take advantage of them. Just be careful not to use too many different fonts. Also, keep in mind that a font may look perfect on your computer, but may not look so great when used on another. So always test it out before making the final decision.

5. Think About a Minimalist Design

Another important thing to consider when designing your WordPress website is a minimalist design. This means keeping the site free of unnecessary graphics and clutter. Too much clutter can get in the way of what you are trying to convey. By using a simpler design, users will be able to focus on your content instead of having to sift through a bunch of other stuff.

6. Incorporate 3D Visuals and Illustrations

3D visuals and illustrations are a great way to incorporate an extra element into your site. Whether you use them for backgrounds or overlays, they are sure to give your site a creative feel. Just be careful not to overdo it with 3D visuals since they can become distracting.

7. Be Consistent

Finally, it is important to maintain consistency throughout your website design. This includes everything from the images you choose to use to the color scheme. By maintaining a similar look throughout your site, you can keep it visually appealing. This will also make it more user-friendly for your visitors.

There are many different things to keep in mind when designing your WordPress website. By following some of these critical rules, you can ensure that your site will be user-friendly and eye-catching as well. If you’re looking to design a WordPress website, you can consider hiring a WordPress web design company that will touch on all aspects for maximum effectiveness and efficiency.

How to Use Video Content to Grow Your Business

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StrategyDriven Online Marketing and Website Development Article |Video Content|How to Use Video Content to Grow Your BusinessVideo has taken over the online marketing space. It is one of the easiest ways to connect with an audience and to grow your business. If you are not currently maximizing video usage then you are not using a valuable marketing strategy that can help to grow your business quickly and efficiently.

Using video is one of the best ways to make an emotional connection with your audience that will lead them to purchase your products and services. Here are some of the key benefits your business can derive from using video as part of your marketing strategy.

Increase Brand Awareness

With so many of the major online platforms emphasizing short-form video content you no longer have to produce long overly optimized videos to make an impact. YouTube has introduced shorts, Instagram has reels, Pinterest has introduced idea pins, and TikTok is also a great place to post short-form content.

This is not to say that you should not use long-form videos as well to get your message across, you can create these yourself or use a video production company to help.

Whether you produce long form or short form content it is now easier than ever for you to create videos quickly and easily.

Introduce Yourself

People like to buy from people they know and trust. If you are running a business you need to start using video to connect with your audience.

You can use video content to share the story of your brand. Talk about why you started it and what you hope to achieve.

Show people behind the scenes footage of how things work in your office space to get your products and service out of them. Share with them the hardships or struggles that you are experiencing as a business.

Talk to them about your triumphs, future hopes, and expectations for your business. Sharing in such a personal way will help you to make an emotional connection with your audience. When people start feeling as if they know you, they are more likely to purchase your products and services.

Show How Your Products Work

Often people are hesitant to purchase a product because they’re not exactly sure how it will work for them. You can use video to show your products being used.

You can have customers make videos showing others how they are using a product that they have bought from you. Seeing people just like themselves using your products to make their life better is a great way to push those who are hesitant about purchasing to do so.

Start Filming

There is little doubt that video is an extremely effective way of getting your message out to potential customers and even your present ones. If you have been hesitant to use videos in the past, now is the time to conquer your fears and get on board.

You will not regret it, because you will see exponential growth in your business as you embrace video to get your message across to your target audience.

Everything you Need to Know About Influencer Marketing

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StrategyDriven Online Marketing and Website Development Article |Influencer Marketing|Everything you Need to Know About Influencer MarketingSocial media marketing is one of the fastest-growing and effective marketing tools. With the recent pandemic making people more digitally engaged, influencer marketing has proven very powerful. This is a great way to significantly increase engagement with your products, increase sales and strengthen your brand image. Before engaging in this type of marketing, you need to understand it fully. Hence, the article below has been tailored with information to guide you through influencer marketing.

Influencer Marketing- Explained

Have you ever bought a product simply because it was advertised by a certain celebrity or brand influencer? Influencer marketing is the type of marketing in which a brand collaborates with an online influencer for endorsements and recommendations of their products and services.

Through the influencer marketing platform, mostly social media, the signed influencer uses different strategies orchestrated by the sales and marketing team to reach the target audience. This mode of social media marketing is highly beneficial in generating leads since the target audience trusts and can get a testimonial from these content creators.

Tips to ensure a successful Influencer marketing campaign

Set your goals, budget, management, and strategy

It is important that you clearly define the purpose of your campaign. For instance, is your goal to strengthen and increase brand awareness, increase conversions or push a certain product? With this information in place, it will be easier to determine the strategy you intend to use for the campaign. For example, will you use tutorials, testimonials, or engaging social media trends to push your message? Most importantly, predetermine your budget to avoid any mishaps and setbacks along the way.

Define your target audience

Whether you are the influencer or intend to involve an influencer for your business campaign, you first need to determine your audience. This will help you create personalized content and give a voice and experience that resonates. This way, the people can relate to and bond with your product. Moreover, this can help build brand loyalty. It would help if you were specific about your target audiences, such as age, gender, education level, background, area of residence, and preferences. Keep in mind that there is a difference between a target audience and a target market.

Select the right team of influencers

The primary reason for getting an influencer to run your campaign is for your target audience to get a voice they can trust and relate to. The authentic content creators organically gain a following by creating content, videos, and blogs that the audience can identify with, building loyalty. You need to comprehend the different types of influencers to get an impression of who will best promote your brand with high quality. Ensure that the influencer content is relevant to your brand and genuinely engages your audience.

Problems you are likely to encounter

As lucrative as this marketing move maybe, you are likely to encounter problems in the process. They include:

Misalignment with your brand ethics

Partnering with a brand influencer can sometimes adversely affect your brand’s image. This occurs in cases where they get caught up in scandals. In some cases, they do or say something that triggers negative emotions in the audience, which will then reflect on the brand the same way.

Social media implausibility

Influencing being a lucrative business, some content creators tend to take shorter routes to gain followers. Some buy accounts, while others use fake followers to appear extremely influential. This could hurt your campaign as the audience is not legit.

Final Thought

Ensure you thoroughly research the feed first as you aim to boost your brand and business through such an influencer marketing platform. For effectiveness, ensure you track analytics that shows your progress since you took this step. Remember to check for any rules or regulations surrounding such partnerships to avoid problems. The brand influencer or ambassador should always advocate for your brand and have integrity.

4 Unexpected Challenges of Video Production

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StrategyDriven Online Marketing and Website Development Article |Video Production|4 Unexpected Challenges of Video ProductionVideo production is a fast-paced, ever-changing industry. There are always new challenges to be faced in order to keep up with the latest trends and technologies. As a beginner, you may have many video production expectations that simply do not align with the reality of production. Video production can be a very rewarding experience, but there are also a lot of challenges you can face when it comes to making great videos. Here are four of the many very common challenges that come with video production:

  • Issues with gear
  • Scheduling
  • Budgeting
  • Power

Gear and Camera Issues

When it comes to gear and camera issues, many small businesses struggle. They may have the right equipment, but they don’t have the time or skills to use it properly. Also, if you work in video production, you will most likely face technical issues. These could be as small as a dead battery or as big as a broken camera. Knowing how to handle various technical issues is critical to video production.

Often, when it comes to making great videos, the quality of the gear doesn’t matter as much as the quality of the content. However, many people struggle to find the right gear and set it up. This can be a difficult task, especially if you or your crew are not familiar with the equipment you’re using. In order to save time and money, you need to make sure that everyone on your team is familiar with the different tools and software that they are using. If one person doesn’t know how to use a certain tool, it can delay or even prevent the entire production process.

Scheduling and Communication

When it comes to video production, you need to ensure that you have excellent communication and a suitable schedule in place. You need to be able to communicate your ideas and schedule to your team so that they can make the best decisions for the production of your video.

You may have a pre-planned schedule that you want to follow, but you may not know when a client, or your team, will be able to meet your needs. It’s important to be flexible and work with the client as best as you can. Sometimes people are able to squeeze in video shoots on short notice, but other times they may not be available for a certain shoot. It’s important to be aware of this and make sure that you’re communicating with the client as much as possible. Good communication and scheduling will help you not feel frustrated after filming because you didn’t have enough time or space for something important.

Budgeting Limitations

One of the most common problems with video production is that people don’t have enough money. Just like with other areas of your business, budgeting for video can be tricky. You need to decide what kind of video you want to produce and how much money you’re willing to spend. But then you need to figure out how much time you’ll need to produce it and how long it’ll take you to finish it. This is especially important for shorter videos – like a commercial or a quick overview of your product or service.

It can be challenging to know exactly how much money you need to spend on a project and how to allocate that money in a way that will make the most sense for your business.
In many cases, it’s best to keep the budget tightly constrained in order to ensure that you’re meeting your goals and hitting your targets. This will help you avoid waste and ensure that your videos are of high quality.

Lack of Adequate Power Supply

One of the most common problems with video production is that the power supply is not adequate. Some locations you want to shoot may not have a good power supply to support your equipment needs. Budgets are often affected when the power goes out. Without a power supply, you may have to wait a while before you can start filming again, causing a disruption in your preset schedule and costing you more money in the production process.