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May 7, 2020
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Outsourcing Web Development – Tips for Successful Cooperation

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Website Content, Website Design Practices

Outsourcing is contracting work outside one’s place of business. This could be down the street to a local web development firm or offshore to hire people who are expert at various IT domains. Whether it is building a mobile web application, website, blockchain solutions, AI solutions, chatbot, business intelligence application, and many other items you might be interested in. You just need to pick a platform and an outsourced professional will transform your idea into reality. Web development outsourcing can alleviate many responsibilities that might currently fall on your shoulders, which makes this solution particularly attractive to startuppers. Not only can an offshore expert put together a decent website serving your business needs, but also help you scale your venture. Factor in the ability to cut your business costs and enhance service quality, which are other notable benefits of outsourcing, and you’ll definitely want to outsource, too. But how to outsource web development in the most effective way? Below are some tips you want to follow to ensure your cooperation with outsourced IT guys is a success.

Secrets to Outsourcing Web Development Successfully

Everything usually starts out awesome. You have a great vision for your website, you hire a seemingly amazing web developer, and things work out well for you and your project. But eventually something starts to feel off and things that seemed so bright at the initial stage get more frustrating. Suddenly, totally amazing people have been reduced to lobbying insults over email or completely avoiding each other.

Above is a common scenario experienced by lots of businesspeople. So, what can you do so that your web development outsourcing experience won’t become your bitter disappointment?

#1 Set Expectations and Allow for Technical Difficulties
First, you need to make your expectations known to an outsourced specialist and make sure you understand technical difficulties. Things tend to fall apart quickly in your website building process, because there’s a mismatch of expectations and misunderstanding of what is a technical difficulty for different people. So, during your initial consultation with a web developer, you might say you’re looking for a simple website. In your web designer’s mind that means something very specific, while you may envision this “simple website” abstractly, vaguely, or completely differently. So, the solution is to be clear about what functionality you want for your website. At the same time, try to be open to feedback and suggestions from the web specialist.

Read more: Outsourcing Web Development – Tips for Successful Cooperation

May 4, 2020
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The Difference Between Digital Marketing and Social Media Marketing (and Why You Should Care)

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Social Media Marketing

Many people use digital marketing and social media marketing interchangeably. They believe that engaging in different social media platforms is digital marketing, but this is just a part of it.

Digital marketing is an umbrella term that encompasses all types of marketing activities that a brand performs digitally, both online and offline, to promote their services or products. Social media marketing, on the other hand, is one of the channels of digital media marketing. It involves marketing on social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc.

What is Digital Media Marketing?

According to the dictionary, marketing is the action of promoting business’ products or services to make them more noticeable to the people and drive sales. The addition of the word ‘digital’ to marketing means utilizing digital media channels to promote your products or services.

Digital marketing is about the implementation of a variety of customized digital media marketing channels to achieve any of the following objectives:

  • To grow your products or services sales and profits
  • Create your brand awareness and build a strong relationship with your target audience
  • Create and add value
  • Promote your products or services or brand
  • And many more!

Read more: The Difference Between Digital Marketing and Social Media Marketing (and Why You Should Care)

 

April 28, 2020
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Forbes – Three Tips To Help Marketers Prepare For The Post-Pandemic

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Uncategorized
WRITTEN BY: Larry Gurreri
CEO and Founder of Sosemo LLC, an award-winning digital marketing agency that specializes in media buying and search marketing (SEM/SEO).

Here are three tips to help businesses prepare for the post-pandemic period.

Leverage digital marketing to guide the virtual consumer journey.

Consumers are online like never before and that includes business decision-makers, doctors, buyers and administrators. Sales reps are grounded, and in-person meetings are rare. Grocery store buyers, doctors and hospital administrators are overwhelmed.

The way that most businesses have been able to sustain and even succeed in this environment is by providing streamlined, on-demand digital experiences for consumers with limited-time and personal access. Digital experiences aren’t just about presenting information online — though all marketing information should be made available. Digital experiences must also allow consumers to connect with sales reps and place orders remotely.

Digital marketing channels such as search marketing or paid social media should be designed to help consumers navigate virtually through to the point of sale. Digital marketing should not be viewed as a supplement to sales teams, but rather as a virtual guide for the consumer journey.

With so many consumers getting more and more used to working from home, this shift in behavior will most likely continue for the long term. Businesses should use this time to streamline digital experiences and enhance digital marketing campaigns.

Start planning marketing campaigns for the post-pandemic.

With businesses closed and so many Americans home, the future demand for goods and services is certainly brewing. At the end of the pandemic, when stores and restaurants reopen their doors and business networking resumes, there will likely be a resurgence in the economy like never before.

People will be lining up not just to go to restaurants and the movies, but also to go to the dentist, schedule medical procedures and get haircuts. They’ll also want to visit with family, friends, customers and vendors. Businesses will need to prepare for the release of the pent-up demand that has been building.

Having marketing campaigns in place that are ready to intercept consumers at this pivotal time will be essential. Those who wait will miss out on the largest spike in the economic recovery. Search marketing and paid social media are some of the more turnkey marketing channels to activate. However, planning a targeted marketing campaign, even within these channels, often still takes months. Online media inventory needs to be assessed. Budget allocation recommendations need to be determined. Creative assets need to be developed, and campaigns need to be set up.

I believe there will also be a shortage of skilled marketers able to develop these campaigns because, just as demand for restaurant reservations and haircuts will surge, so will the demand for marketing services.

Make sure you have good SEO for your website.

SEO is one of the most cost-effective marketing channels. It includes the process of conditioning a website so that it ranks highly for relevant keyword searches within the organic or nonpaid results on Google.

Content should be developed with target keywords in mind, and websites should be developed in a manner that allows search engines to determine what keywords to rank the site for within the search results.

Even though the coronavirus stimulus package is providing relief across the U.S. economy now, we don’t know what the future holds. In a worst-case scenario, where marketing budgets are cut and media buys are scaled back, having a website that is search engine optimized would be essential. High visibility within the organic search results can remain for some time. Therefore, for long-term security, SEO is pretty much fail-safe.

Conclusion

Though tragic, the coronavirus pandemic has been an eye-opening experience. Businesses can endure, even when cities and states are locked down, through digital experiences fueled by digital marketing. The reliance on digital has never been higher and will likely continue. Many businesses suffered a loss in revenue over the past weeks. However, those that plan to activate marketing campaigns now will hopefully be able to recoup earnings during the economic resurgence, which hopefully will sustain. An investment in SEO now would add additional security.

Original Source…

March 23, 2020
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Why Companies Turn To Digital Marketing To Survive COVID-19

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B2B Marketing, Content Marketing, E-Marketing, Global Marketing, Marketing, News

In the coming months, businesses are going to become more reliant than ever on their digital strategy. Without wanting to sound too alarmist, in many cases it will be the deciding factor in whether they make it through the tough times ahead.

The unprecedented, almost-total disappearance of all channels related to live events and conferences, and the increasing barriers on face-to-face business, pose an enormous challenge. Key to resilience is the development of ongoing contingencies to mitigate against this loss.

B2B companies in particular rely on the annual circuit of trade shows and exhibitions to network and build customer relations. In industries that are not digital-native, they may also be less sophisticated in their digital growth and customer relations strategies. For smaller businesses especially, used to getting new customers through word-of-mouth referrals or on the strength of a hard-won reputation, their loss is coming as a shock.

Larger companies are also now finding themselves in the position of having potentially lost millions through cancelled events. They won’t claw back the hours of time and expense spent on preparations for this year, but insurance and flexible cancellation policies will leave them with marketing budget to reassign. Digital is likely to be the clear winner here, and companies – including ones that may not so much as had a Facebook page before – will need to move into social marketing, content marketing, SEO and influencer-led campaigns.

Of course, this means there’s opportunities out there for the taking, if you are a B2B supplier in an industry that has been slow to adapt to digital marketing. A key factor in resilience is adaptability. If it’s standard in your industry to go out and meet new customers face-to-face before you do business, adapting may mean opening new channels over web or social media platforms where introductions can be made and relationships fostered. In the coming months, your prospective clients are going to be less open to the idea of letting you walk through the door and shake their hand – and no-one really has any idea how long this will last and whether this will lead to longer-term change.

As Scott Jones, CEO of 123 Internet Group, told me “We are in uncertain times, but with the increase of remote working and a collaborative approach, companies are turning to digital channels and embracing the transformation. We have seen a real spike during the last few weeks from companies wishing to create or update websites, launch new e-commerce channels and create social media campaigns focused on home-workers and a real focus on using influencers and SEO to reach new audiences.”

Being confined to the office – or even the home – rather than on the road on sales visits or at events, means marketers have more time to develop digital strategies. This means researching where your customers can be found online, and how different approaches and tactics might impact your success. If your organization previously put token efforts into digital channels – because like a lot of other businesses, you had built your networks offline and that had always seemed to work – now is the time to revisit them. That could be as simple as giving your website and social pages a refresh, or a more innovative approach.

Ratnesh Singh, head of global business at events technology agency Buzznation told me that he found out quickly that clients did not want to lose the networking opportunities provided by the conference circuit. On top of this, they are looking for new ways to spend their remaining marketing budgets. He said, “With our corporate clients, events often consume 50 to 60 per cent of their marketing budgets. They still want to spend that money and they are open to trying something new.

“There’s a window of opportunity here – when things are back to normal budgets will be going back into live events and that’s what they will be spending their time on.

“But if they see the benefits and opportunities that digital channels can offer, this will become part of their long-term marketing contingency plans.”

As well as offering immersive 3D virtual events, Buzznation has also found that businesses wanting to become more sophisticated in their use of live social platforms. Singh said “Clients are turning to Facebook or LinkedIn Live. Often these are platforms they have dabbled with in the past but never fully integrated into their marketing strategy. Now they see value in partnering with companies like us that know how to help them make the most of these channels, to achieve better production values and more targeted campaigns.”

It’s certainly true that the coming weeks, or months – or however long this situation lasts – will be a challenging time for any company that isn’t ready to think about how they will replace the opportunities that have been lost.

As long as businesses approach the shift to digital marketing strategically, there’s no reason why it should just serve as an emergency fill-in, but could carry on providing long-term value when the world eventually gets back to normal. And of course, it would make companies more resilient to deal with any future pandemics.

March 19, 2020
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How To Think About Web Design To Market Any Kind Of Business In 2020

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Website Content, Website Design Practices

If you’ve ever grown your own plants, you know that they tend to grow toward the sun. This makes sense; they rely on the sunlight for sustenance, so they’re going to do everything in their power to make sure that they get as much of it as possible. To use an analogy, the same thing goes for online marketing. Companies want to be able to go in the direction of where their prospective customers are. They’re doing it for the same reason as the plants: sustenance.

Over the years of running an online marketing company, I’ve found that there are some often overlooked marketing techniques that have helped businesses, even niche businesses, to grow. Perhaps foremost among these, web design is a bigger deal than many people realize.

There’s More To Web Design Than Looking Good

So many small business owners often think that the only goal of a website is that it looks great. They want something flashy, eye-catching and attractive. That’s all well and good; it’s even important. However, good web design has many benefits beyond that, too. Quality web design should be easy to navigate in practically every way possible.

Website = Online Storefront

A good analogy is to think of your website as a store. For many small businesses that don’t have physical storefronts, it is, for all intents and purposes, an actual store. When you walk into a store, you want to be able to move around. You want to be able to check all of the wares out — easy access to what you came for, as well as exposure to some items that you might not have realized exist. That’s a well-laid-out store in practically any industry.

Read more: How To Think About Web Design To Market Any Kind Of Business In 2020

March 17, 2020
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SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING TRENDS FOR 2020

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Social Media Marketing ,

The increased proliferation of social media, alongside advances in AI technology, means the capabilities of digital advertising platforms are changing and improving all the time.

Below we run through some of the biggest updates on social media in 2019 and what we can expect looking ahead into 2020.

What changed for social media marketing in 2019?

Improvements to the Facebook Ads Manager interface

Facebook is always making small changes to the design and functionality of Business Manager. But in April of 2019, the Ads Manager interface was redesigned to incorporate a number of new features. They included:

  • New navigational experience in Ads Manager – this update made it easier for advertisers to navigate through multiple ads and ad sets.
  •  Integrated search and filter function – a combined search and filter bar let advertisers search or select filters to find ads, ad sets or campaigns.
  •  Dynamic action bar – now shows only the most frequently used actions, making it easier to determine what changes may have affected your ads.

Introduction of Messenger Ads & Chatbots

AI-powered chat services are popping up on many sites worldwide — it’s never been so important to incorporate them into your 2020 marketing strategy.

Chatbots and Messenger ads empower marketers to give prospective buyers full focus, enabling maximum engagement, and converting them into paying customers.

Read more: SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING TRENDS FOR 2020

March 13, 2020
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Website Design Trends for 2020

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Website Content, Website Design Practices ,

2020 is moving quickly. Already 2 months in and business is not slowing down.

It is time to begin updating your website to meet demands. As the year goes on, new announcements will spike interest amongst new and prospective customers. Be ready to have a high volume of customers browsing through your website at any given moment.

Since it is the turn of a new decade, why not spice things up and revitalize your existing website? Change is always good, especially if it can benefit the flow of traffic your business receives. With that being said, there are plenty of ways you can revitalize the look of your website to keep customers interested in your page.

Maybe it’s time for a new look! No, we are not talking about rebranding, just changing up the interface of your website. You wouldn’t want it looking 2019, that was last year’s trend. It is now time to add a more meat to the bone and keep users and visitors interested with an eyecatching new look.

What new interface will help revitalize my website?

We have the trendiest website looks that you can pull inspiration from!

Website Trends:

1. The 3D Look:

People are attracted to anything that pops out on a website. Through the right 3D animation, you can help potential and returning customers visualize your product or better understand what your company does.

Read more: Website Design Trends for 2020

March 12, 2020
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How Important are Hashtags to Social Media Marketing?

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Social Media Marketing

The modern-day hashtag has come a long way. From its birth name, the octothorpe, to being called the pound symbol used when dialing phone numbers to now being referred to as a hashtag, used to categorize topics on social media, that little symbol has been through a lot.

The hashtag’s first appearance on the web was found on the Internet Relay Chat (IRC) application in 1988. Within the IRC, people could chat with one another about specific topics in channels labeled with hashtags. Example: if you wanted to chat about flowers for your yard, you’d go to the channel “#gardens”. Pretty simple, right?

Well, in August 2007, Twitter user and social media expert Chris Messina changed the history of digital marketing with a single tweet.

Not long after Messina’s now-famous tweet, hashtags started popping up across Twitter and their official use was instituted by the company in 2009. Other social media platforms noticed and soon adopted the hashtag as well.

Do They Drive Engagement?

Nowadays, from a digital marketing standpoint, how are they beneficial? Hashtags help drive engagement by linking consumers directly to brands. On Instagram, they help sort and organize the content posted by the platform’s 1 billion active monthly users. Not only can users search for a specific hashtag in all social media platforms, but on Instagram and LinkedIn, they also have the option to “follow” a hashtag. This allows content from a specific hashtag to pop up in the users’ newsfeed. So whether they’re following or just searching, using hashtags relevant to your brand helps reach consumers who normally wouldn’t have been exposed to your brand’s content.

Read more: How Important are Hashtags to Social Media Marketing?

 

February 13, 2020
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4 Questions to Boost Your Social Media Marketing

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Social Media Marketing

Companies of all sizes today are looking to improve the effectiveness of their social media marketing — and with good reason: Digital platforms are constantly innovating the way that brands are discovered, shared and experienced. The data speaks for itself: The number of worldwide social network users is expected to reach 3.09 billion monthly active users by 2021, and global internet users spend some 136 minutes per day surfing social networks. Many organizations have responded by allocating more resources to digital marketing — technology now accounts for 29% of total marketing expense budgets, according to a recent Gartner estimate, and digital ad spend for 2020 is estimated at about $385 billion.

Yet these numbers are a double-edged sword. Consumers today react to products, services and ad campaigns in real-time through social media, creating new demands on organizations. Generating and sustaining high levels of engagement and enthusiasm online requires clarity around the firm’s goals and values.

Successful digital strategies are not about aesthetics or style, but a fit between what your brand promises and delivers. To develop your strategy, ask yourself the following questions:

Read more: 4 Questions to Boost Your Social Media Marketing

February 11, 2020
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What Is Web Design?

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Website Content, Website Design Practices

Quite often, web design is used interchangeably with web development, but are the two synonymous? In this article, I take a look at what web design entails in a bid to enlighten those who would like to pursue a career in web development and those who just want to satisfy their curiosity on the subject.

Web development and its 3 heads

The web development process generally involves three main phases. These are web designing, front-end development, and back-end development. Each stage is normally done by a person who specializes in that particular phase of development, although there are some web developers with more than one skill. A person with skills in web design, front-end, and back-end development is known as a full-stack web developer.

Not all developers end up as full-stack developers. If you identify with the philosophy that a jack of all trades is a master of none, then you should be content with specializing in one aspect of web development- like web designing.

A web designer plays a crucial role in the creation of webpages. A webpage is a document you access when you visit a website. The two words-webpage and website- are sometimes used interchangeably, but that is a story for another day. So what does a web designer do?

Designing the web…
The web designer creates a layout of elements that appear on a web page. The elements range from text, images to videos.

A logo and favourite icon (favicon), are among images that can be found on a webpage. The logo and favicon are part of a brand. Sometimes the web designer is tasked to design the brand or to ensure that existing images are in a certain format and size for the best user experience(UX). The logo typically appears on the navigation panel of a webpage while the favicon is visible in a web browser’s history and it may also appear on home screens of mobile devices.

Fonts and colours on a webpage are also chosen by a web designer and they usually resonate with the brand. The web designer comes up with colour scheme codes for use by developers later in the development process since colours are rarely referred with their names in web development. The web designer also makes sure that the correct fonts are used. Now you might be wondering what skills should a web designer possess?

Read more: What Is Web Design?

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