Let's face it, the internet is a crowded place. Simply having a website does not mean it will generate leads or drive sales. However, by using an array of marketing channels, you can help your site stand out from the crowd and generate the business you are looking for. Here are 5 essential ingredients of website marketing to help your site succeed.
Website Optimization
Not to be confused with search engine optimization, website optimization is all about site content and site performance.
Unique and well-written site content helps to educate and inform your audience about the product or service you offer. While it's true that you can rank higher in search engine result pages (SERPs) by strategically placing keywords with high search volume throughout the content, it's important that it is not done in a spammy or "keyword stuffing" fashion.
Content should deliver the right message to your desired audience and convey the importance of what you have to offer. Sites that are written just to perform well in search engine results are often penalized and moved lower in SERPs.
Site performance is more about the responsiveness and speed of a website. A responsive website will adapt to any device that it is viewed upon, whether its a desktop, tablet, or phone. Mobile friendly sites have a much better chance of ranking well.
As a matter of fact, Google now uses a "mobile first" assessment of sites when gauging a websites value. In 2018, it's estimated that 52% of all web site traffic came from mobile phones. So it's not hard to understand the importance of having a responsive website.
Website speed has become another important factor for search engines when determining a websites value. Site's that load meaningful content (images, text, etc.) under 3 seconds are given a much higher score and will appear higher in search engine results.
Regarding site speed, consider this graphic from google regarding bounce rate (bounce rate meaning when someone leaves a site quickly and without visiting other pages).
Insuring your site loads quickly is another essential element to helping your site appear higher in search engine results.
Search Engine Optimization
Search engine optimization (SEO) is used to help sites appear higher in search engine results for keywords that are relevant to your organization organically. Organically refers to "free" or "natural" site traffic that arrives via a search engine result page.
It's estimated that Google uses over 200 ranking factors when determining the value of a site. These factors include site content, page load speed, site security, quality backlinks, mobile friendliness, and social media signals, just to name a few. The purpose of SEO is to provide value to as many of these factors as possible on your site.
The SEO landscape is constantly changing based on algorithm updates by search engines and the methods they use to judge sites. That's why SEO is an on-going service to make sure your website maintains or increases it's ranking positions.
Paid Advertising
Paid Advertising, often called Pay Per Click Advertising (PPC), is another method of driving traffic and leads to your site. You've probably have seen these ads appearing above and below search results. They can also appear on other sites that display ads such as YouTube and even on apps on your phone.
As the name implies, advertisers pay when an online advertisement is clicked and results in a visit to a website or landing page. There are other pricing models such as Cost Per Impressions or Cost Per Conversions. Advertisers bid on relevant keywords to have their ad appear in search results and also in other places.
Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising (formerly Bing Ads) are two of the biggest players in the paid advertising world. While many people wonder if paid advertising is effective, Google touts that on average, advertisers get a return of $8 for every $1 they spend.
There can be many benefits to online advertising when set-up correctly. Researching the best keywords to bid on and targeting the right audience are paramount to a successful digital ad campaign. Ad creation and placement also play a huge role in the performance of digital ads.
Campaigns that are not set-up correctly can be a waste of money so we encourage you to hire a professional digital marketer to assist with your paid advertising.
Even with smaller budgets, online advertising can reap huge rewards by generating leads and driving traffic to your site.
Social Media Marketing
The social media world is a great source for attracting potential clients. It gives you the opportunity to actually engage with communities of people who may need your service or product. It's estimated that over 68% of adults based in US have a Facebook account.
For start-ups or businesses struggling to generate organic traffic, social media advertising is an affordable option for attracting potential clientele and building followers.
Perhaps the biggest advantage of social media advertising is the ability to define your target audience with very specific data regarding interests, location, age, gender and much more. By delivering ads only to people who may need or want your product helps eliminate wasted ad spending. There is also a much greater ROI when audiences are defined correctly.
Email Campaigns
Email campaigns through companies such as Mail Chimp or Constant Contact are still a great way to drive traffic to your site. When executed properly, email marketing can generate between $40-$50 ROI on every $1 spent.
Email marketing works especially well when promoting new products, highlighting a sale, sharing an educational blog or simply as a newsletter to help build your brand awareness.
Although it may seem a little odd, email marketing actually can outperform social media marketing, search engine optimization and pay per click advertising as a marketing channel.
The magic of email marketing lies in personalization. Simple strategies such as including the recipients name in the subject line can significantly boost open rates.
The Bottom Line
Simply have a website is not enough. By engaging in any or all of the marketing techniques mentioned above you will greatly increase the traffic to your site and create more profitability for your business.
Parkadoo Digital can help you develop the right marketing strategy for a successful website. Contact us today to get started!
