Algorithms are everywhere.
They decide what we see online, they dictate what search engines show us and the content we receive.
They’ve certainly changed the way the world does business and if you’ve spent any period of time online, you’re likely to have seen the term ‘beat the algorithm’ get thrown around. There is a notion, particularly in content terms, that beating the algorithm is what you need to do to get seen.
But how much of this sentiment is actually true?
It’s a somewhat ominous term. The notion of a central intelligence pushing Instagram, LinkedIn and TikTok feeds. A machine that decides what Mob recipe you’ll see on Instagram this evening, what witty social media meme LinkedIn will feed you on your lunchtime scroll.
It’s not quite Skynet. But it is a set of rules and parameters to decide on the following:
1) What content to show to each individual user in their feed
2) How to rank and order that content in the feed
3) When to display that content to the user
Now ‘the algorithm’ looks at a lot of different factors and variables when making these decisions. It looks at users previous interactions, the types of content you’ve been engaging with, post time, engagement signals and the ‘perceived quality’ of the content itself.
So it’s doing quite a lot before it serves you your content.
The goal of the algorithm is to keep each user engaged and satisfied by showing them more of what they want to see… in theory.
But we all use social media and we all know that theory and practice are two very different things. This is why content creators cannot simply rely on techniques that “beat the algorithm” in any particular moment… it’s a mercurial, constantly shifting beast.
Speaking of beasts…. Mr Beast aka Jimmy Donaldson. It might be a name that you’ve heard.
If you haven’t MrBeast is the world’s most successful YouTuber. Over 116,000,000 subscribers and a net worth of around £500million. It’s safe to say he is making the most out of content creation.
Some might say MrBeast is ‘beating the algorithm’ but is he really?
Search for MrBeast and what you’ll find alongside his insanely well-performing content, is adjacent content titled something along the lines of “We’ve stolen the secret to MrBeast content.”
The irony is, that these videos don’t have anywhere near the levels of reach and engagement that MrBeast does. Despite them claiming to have unlocked the cheat codes to the internet and here’s how you can be the next YouTube multi-millionaire.
If it worked, why isn’t everyone doing it?
To actually game the system and ‘beat the algorithm’ would require you to do nothing other than live in the trends section of every social channel, 24 hours a day, reacting and making content totally on the fly.
Now Jimmy Donaldson has the capacity and the resources to do this. But he’s also spent years honing his craft and getting himself into the position he is now. What Jimmy does, isn’t hacking or beating the algorithm, he makes content that he knows people are going to watch.
Jimmy didn’t ‘beat the algorithm’ Jimmy spent years studying virality and learning what content his audiences liked to consume. He put in the hard yards and now it’s paying off.
And that’s the real crux of the algorithm argument… you can’t cheat a content strategy.
Successful content is a skill that is built over years… it simply does not happen overnight.
Of course, you may find the odd piece outperforms or maybe even goes viral – which might happen once in a blue moon. But to build any level of consistency will take time… and patience.
So rather than put your focus into ‘overcoming the algorithm’ focus instead on what your audiences want to see and hear. Play the algorithm and you might have a bigger audience, but is it the right audience?
Build it and they will come, right?
By focusing on creating engaging content that is relevant and valuable to your audience, you will put yourself in the best possible position to build a loyal following.
By using data analytics and algorithmic information, you can make conscious decisions as to what formats and types of content are performing best at any given time. Leveraging data can help you create more effective content.
All roads lead back to making the kinds of content that your audiences want…
People don’t want to watch boring content. It sounds harsh, but it’s true.
They’re too time-poor and bombarded with content from every possible angle. Your content might have the best call to action, but if it’s too dull or not engaging from the outset, the viewers are never going to make it to the stuff you really want them to see.
Don’t be a monolith, engage with your audience.
Don’t disable the comments and don’t leave clear questions and engagements unanswered.
Content strategy is much about creating a community than it is actually creating the content itself. Engaging with your audiences will heighten the likelihood of them remaining engaged with you moving forward.
This is probably one of the few areas where the notion of ‘gaming the algorithm’ is actually applicable. Replying to comments and creating engagements in the chat will actually boost your ratings in the algorithm. If it sees comments, it thinks ‘people like this, I’m going to show it to some more people.’
You might be able to ride the crest of a wave now and then. Jump on a trend, see a spike in engagement. You might, if you’re really lucky, go viral.
But these are temporary. They’re fleeting moments,
Ultimately there is no hack, there are no algorithmic cheats. There is no quick fix. You just have to put in the hard yards.
Navigating a new content strategy can be a daunting task and getting an experienced agency on board can help guide you to create a new content plan that will see success for your brand, so get in touch now
2023 was something of a wild ride.
Google gave us more core updates than ever before, the AI conversation reached a media fever pitch, all the while businesses continued to navigate economically uncertain times.
When it comes to looking ahead to the rest of the year, one thing that we can always be certain of is uncertainty. But embracing change can be a tightrope walk.
On one hand, you want to push the envelope, grow, and embrace new things. But on the other, you want to be cautious and only fully adopt those changes that bring you actual benefits and results.
The only way to be able to manage change is to be open-minded. Be quick to try new things but be even quicker to move on from those that do not serve your needs.
Our annual Communications Trends and How to Spend report explores what’s on the horizon; looking at everything from AI to ESG and sustainability, how client servicing is shifting and why Google’s next core update, might just be its most impactful to date.
The rise of AI over the last 12 months has been nothing short of sensational. But there have been some high-profile blunders, that we all should learn from.
A lot of the discourse around AI has been centred around it ‘replacing’ creatives. But we need only look to Google’s launch of Bard to see that this isn’t, or shouldn’t, be the case.
In being overly reliant on the accuracy of its own AI, Google wiped a huge amount off its share value overnight. This is proof enough that human involvement in the creative process isn’t at risk of being replaced. As Izzy, our content manager explains:
“Despite concerns regarding its impact on creativity, the reception of AI in content creation is largely contingent on how we use it. Creators will have more time to refine their ideas in areas where human ingenuity remains indispensable as AI becomes an ally to tasks.”
AI is where we should be the most inquisitive. Many platforms are now caveating that their results may not always be accurate. Being over-reliant on its outputs may not be best for business.
Video remains king of the hill when it comes to content, that’s not a ground-breaking statement.
But where businesses can and will find greater success, particularly with their owned content, is recognising that production value is not the marker for success, authenticity is.
“There is still a place for larger-scale production and video content. Audiences still want to be wowed by content. But that kind of strategy can’t really be maintained.” Says Simon, our Marketing Operations Manager.
Creating content is no longer about those big, expensive content set pieces. Look at TikTok, we’re now seeing more businesses and corporates taking up the platform. But the big lesson here is not trying to force your will upon the platform.
Those who are leaning into the platform, keeping it low-key and light-hearted are the ones getting noticed… and will continue to do so.
In the longer term, as both potential customer bases and workforces become younger and even more digitally native, this kind of authentic content-driven presence will be the difference maker when it comes to brand loyalty from within and without.
Whatever product or service you’re delivering, client servicing is now up for scrutiny, like it never has been before. As our client services director, Helen explains:
“It’s no longer sufficient to be seen to be helpful, responsive and good to work with. Clients want to better understand the how.”
This could be anything from clients wanting to understand your ways of working. They’ll want to get under the skin of your processes and your best practices. The agency/client relationship now goes far deeper than just service provision.
Shared ethos is now crucial and there’s a new level of transparency, particularly around planning and measuring success, that needs to be considered. Particularly for those seeking to build long-term relationships built on mutual success.
It’s a question that’s been asked many times in the last 12 months.
The search giant usually puts out one core update per year. Last year, they put out four. As our strategy lead, Joe explains:
“A lot of this has been around Google’s ever-impactful E-E-A-T guidelines. Experience, expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness are all key things that content needs to showcase to get ranked highly.”
For a lot of businesses, this was a lot of change in a short space of time. These updates had immediate effects on content and web traffic. Many businesses are still clawing back the online reputations they’d built before these core updates.
But Google is set to roll out perhaps its most impactful ‘hidden gem’ update this year.
“This update will seek to showcase personal opinions on the SERP (search engine results pages), which means that we could see social media accounts getting airtime on SERPs, blog posts being returned, and even forums such as Reddit could get page one visibility.”
At AMBITIOUS we are committed to staying at the cutting edge of our industry,
With our comprehensive approach that follows our insights, ideas and impact model, we have the structure, expertise and services to ensure resilience to market changes. We also recognise that effective and authentic comms can help businesses stay ahead of the competition, in an increasingly competitive digital and traditional comms landscape.
To read our Communications Trends and How to Spend report in full visit: https://www.ambitiouspr.co.uk/trends-spends-24/
B2B and corporate PR and communications specialists, AMBITIOUS is closing 2023 by celebrating two new strategic hires and seven new business wins to round off a year of solid growth for the firm.
With the agency expanding to 27 staff and on track to meet its £1.65 million revenue target, AMBITIOUS has secured its position as one of the largest independent PR agencies in Bristol and the Southwest.
Sarah Woodhouse, Director, AMBITIOUS, said: ‘This year we’ve seen the same challenges as other agencies with a lag between briefs being awarded and work then starting but we’ve had a strong new business pipeline. The ink has dried on seven new contracts in the last quarter of this year alone and together with strong client retention, puts us in a strong position for 2024.”
Based on Oakfield Road in Clifton, the agency has grown from strength to strength with new retained clientsincluding Tunstall Healthcare Group, GlobalGiving UK, Harley Row Clinic, and a short project with UCAS.
Further growth also came from the agency’s existing client base expanding their remit.
Sarah Woodhouse explains, “CEOs are striving to build trust signals with customers and prospects, driving up the need for third-party endorsement. We’re seeing growth from organisations that want to build understanding and earn these trust signals from a range of audiences – and we have a key role in driving these strategic communications. We’ve also seen uptake for our work supporting companies to integrate their marketing and PR efforts.”
AMBITIOUS has made two key hires since September, in addition to four hires made earlier this year. Maria Dickson joins as Marketing Director, a newly created role signalling the agency’s commitment to more integrated campaign activations. She’ll also be leading the agency’s marketing strategy as it looks to expand. Chloe Tonkin also joins as a senior PR consultant and copywriter to support the firm’s growth.
With over 12 years of experience working in award-winning communications agencies and most recently leading all national marketing and social media for Girlguiding, Maria Dickson is a seasoned marketer. Having led UK and global agency teams across consumer, pharma and not-for-profit sectors she has extensive experience in developing and implementing integrated strategies. Her career includes roles at Pegasus (now Evoke Mind + Matter) and Edelman, working with clients such as GSK, Bayer and EIT Health. For the last four years, she led all marketing and campaigns at Girlguiding, including a new brand rollout – the largest in the organisation’s 113 year history.
Chloe Tonkin has over ten years working agency-side across B2C and B2B-focused sectors, in both the UK and New Zealand. Her experience spans technology, FMCG, healthcare, and beyond. She’s worked on campaigns for big-name clients including Samsung, American Express, HSBC, Specsavers, and Unilever. Her primary area of expertise is in traditional earned PR and media relations, but she also has extensive experience in running influencer programmes for clients like Samsung and Dove.
Lis Anderson, Founder & Director, AMBITIOUS, said: “We’re excited to grow our team again this year and welcome Maria and Chloe into the fold. They each bring a wealth of experience to complement our existing team, ensuring that we can deliver the best possible service to clients as we look ahead to 2024.”
“Ensuring we have a happy and healthy team is of utmost importance to us. We’re proud of our growing team and a record of 3.5 years with no staff attrition – a testament to our team culture. We’re excited about the year ahead.”
Interested in working for or with AMBITIOUS? Please email Sarah or Lis at [email protected]
Content marketing has become an essential strategy for business growth. But with so many options available, how do you choose the right content formats to achieve your goals?
This comes down to a question of, what do you want to achieve. Because not all content marketing is made equal.
Before you’ve even made a piece of content, let alone published it. You need to consider a number of factors, from your audience and prospective customers, buyer journeys, timeframes and what you want to achieve from your content marketing efforts.
The most successful content marketing examples are built and grounded in this strategic understanding of a business’s audiences and objectives.
Your content strategy should map to your audience’s buyer journey.
Understanding the different stages and how different content marketing formats and types fit within each stage will allow you to make the most of your content marketing strategies.
At this point, content should inform, entertain and engage. The purpose is to hook potential customers, not to sell to them.
Blog posts, whitepapers, and social media help raise awareness of a problem your product solves. Focus on educating your audience at this stage. This isn’t the place for hard sales and conversion CTAs.
This is where things start to get more information and detail-driven. At this point, a potential customer will be more serious and considered about their purchasing. They may not be quite there with a final purchasing decision, so this is the time to start dialling up the informative and story-driven content.
Videos, email marketing, and social media posts can showcase your product benefits and competitive advantages. Make your content informative and story-driven.
We’re at the the end of the funnel now. Buyers are tooled up and informed. Now you have to give them a real reason, and incentive, to buy.
Free trials, coupons, case studies address final questions and objections. Give decision-makers an incentive to choose you over competitors.
The more versatile your content, the more effective and efficient it will be.
You should not be making content solely exclusive to one channel or output. When you’re planning and putting together your content strategy. Consider how you can ‘sweat your assets’ and create a versatile multi-channel content strategy.
As for what adaptable content is, this can really vary. Hero video content can be broken down into smaller pieces of shareable snippets. This can then be used across all of your owned channels.
White papers and reports can be broken up into blog content and multi-channel social media campaigns.
Don’t put the blinkers on your content strategy. Repurpose, reuse and re-engage.
To ensure your content is shareable, ask yourself if the content gives you a reason to be shared.
Does it offer insight into an issue, concern or problem? Does it ignite the imagination and inspire ideas? Or does it show impact and results that really wow?
Then ask yourself, would I share this personally?
Unfortunately, there isn’t a one size fits all approach to creating shareable content. There is no one winning formula. Every business, every audience and every industry is different.
But fundementally, shareable content is interesting content. So prioritize creating content that is interesting.
Your content strategy should but tuned to your business goals. What is the purpose of your content? What output is it aligned too?
Is it brand awareness, pushing certain products or services, or are you looking for lead generation or driving conversations and engagement?
Don’t just create your content and then try to tack activation and strategy on at the point of delivery. Create content to match the desired outcome.
Analyze performance data to see what content resonates best with your audience. Refine your strategy based on insights.
AB test your content, to trial combinations of copy and creative. Take what’s working, remove what isn’t and learn from your analytics. A data-driven approach helps create a content marketing flywheel, where you continually optimize content for impact.
Even the most creative and insightful piece of content marketing can be brought low by bad timing.
Whether this is trying to come in with a hard-line sales message too early in the incubation period, or being unaware of how external factors, such as news agendas, sector-specific or even global issues, may have impacts on your content… external factors can and will impact your content marketing strategy. So there has to be a certain level of pliability in your approach.
From a funnel perspective. The 95-5 rule tells us that 95% of an audience will be ‘out of market’ and AirBnB learned the hard way, how external events can impact your content marketing.
Content creation is so much more than just pumping out images and videos to the world.
Effective content creation and content marketing strategies are built around goals and outcomes. Simply making content, for the sake of making content, will not give you the ROI you desire. So it’s really important to know your audiences and what kinds of content they are most reactive and receptive to.
You also don’t have to have Hollywood-level production, to create content. In fact, in many instances, a more stripped-back production value is more beneficial than something slick and expensive looking… an iPhone can be a content marketer’s best friend.
But, the most important thing to note… make interesting content.
Everyone is looking for reach, shares and engagement. You won’t get any of this with uninteresting content. You can force all the messaging and calls to action you can in there, but if the crux of your content is boring to your audience, it isn’t going to work.
So, the next time you’re in a content planning session, or strategising for the year ahead before you’ve shot a frame. Think about about what you want to get out of this content, and what would be the most interesting way to achieve this.
Like it or not, the digital age is built around search engines. They’re the beating heart of information sharing online. The visibility and potential success of your digital business relies on them – and nowhere is this more prevalent than with your keyword strategy.
Through keywords, information can be categorised correctly by search engines and other algorithms, for audiences to subsequently find and consume information online. Get it right, and watch as your search rankings climb the proverbial ladder towards greater exposure and readership over time. Fail to focus on your critical keywords, however, and – well, have you ever searched on page three of Google?
Of these keywords, long-tail can often be the most effective to deploy. But what exactly are long-tail keywords and why should you care about them?
There are three types of keywords: short-tail, mid-tail and long-tail.
Long-tail keywords are longer and more specific keywords or phrases used in search engines. These are search terms that users and visitors are much more likely to use when they are closer to a point of purchase. Or, when they are using voice search.
Generally, a long-tail keyword is around three to five words. The longer the keyword, the more targeted it can be.
For example, a short-tail keyword or ‘head term’ could be ‘pizza’. This would have an extremely high search volume and potentially answer a wide search intent. However, it’s also an extremely broad keyword and is unlikely to give you the specific answers you’re looking for (unless you just want to know the dictionary definition of pizza…and who doesn’t know that, right?)
A mid-tail keyword would be ‘gluten-free pizza’. This is more specific. It would see a reduction in search volume, but increased engagement due to its specificity.
Long-tail keywords are even more detailed. This would be ‘Best gluten-free pizza recipes for vegetarians.’ This is a highly tailored and specific keyword designed to better reflect how search engine users make queries.
So why the term ‘long-tail? Because if you were to plot out the search terms from any given month on a graph, it would create a left-to-right curve moving down and across, like an animal’s long tail.
Targeted search phrases match search intent. So, with highly specific and targeted long-tail keywords, you are better at presenting yourself and your business to new audiences and customers.
In the highly competitive keyword ranking ecosystem, the more you can match search intent, the better. This will mean that search engine users can better find your business and your content, over that of your competition.
By using longer, less competitive keywords, businesses can boost their chances of appearing higher up on search engine results pages. This can drive traffic to your website in greater volumes, leading to customer interactions and potential conversions.
If you are unaware of the term ‘matching search’, think of it in the context of user experience.
In shaping and implementing an effective long-tail keyword strategy you are creating an enhanced user experience for your potential customers. This is an indirect user experience, but it can be hugely effective when deployed correctly
Think back to a time when you used a search engine to find a new product or service. Did your location combine with a top-of-page result that immediately matched what you were looking for?
If so, that business has used long-tail keywords to match your search intent, attract your attention, direct you to their website and potentially convert your intent into a sale or a conversation.
This kind of SEO strategy has become even more important, following some core updates from Google.
In March 2023, Google released a core update that furthered the search engine giant’s commitment to returning relevant results from searches.
In short, it resulted in previously top-ranking pages and results taking a significant hit. By leveraging more long-tail keywords, businesses can either re-build their SERP strategy to regain their pole positions, or they can use them to usurp the positions of competitors that have fallen down the rankings.
Long-tail keywords almost always have less traffic, but don’t be fooled into thinking this makes them less effective.
In having less traffic, they are less competitive and will usually come with a much higher conversion rate. Think of this in the same way as your sales and marketing funnel,
– those at the end of the journey are more likely to make a purchase than those at the start.
B2B and corporate PR and communications specialists, AMBITIOUS is celebrating significant growth in the first quarter of its financial year as the firm wins new business and expands its team with several new appointments.
With the agency on track to meet its £1.65million revenue target in 2023 and its team expanding to 25 staff, AMBITIOUS has secured its position as one of the largest independent PR agencies in Bristol and the South West.
Based on Oakfield Road in Clifton, the agency’s expansion in the first quarter of its financial year came from new retained clients. These include Parkdean Resorts, Redirect, E2E, Healix, Swiis and SEL.
Further growth also came from the agency’s existing client base expanding their remit.
Sarah Woodhouse, Director, AMBITIOUS, said: “Demand has come from new and current clients seeking our expertise in Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) communication – supporting companies with benchmarking their current efforts and developing a strategy to communicate their plans.
“Work in the field of ‘employer branding’ has also increased as many sectors experience a skills shortage and the intensity of securing the brightest and best talent becomes a core business objective.
“We’ve also seen uptake for our work in content strategy, creation and marketing – supporting companies to integrate their marketing, new business and PR efforts.”
AMBITIOUS has made four key hires to support growth with the appointment of PR Consultants, Ernestine Allen and Zoe Bagnall and Eleanor Robinson stepping into the role of PR Executive within the ESG team. The agency’s operational team also added Ivy James as Bookkeeper.
Several internal promotions were made this month with Greg Halse promoted to Associate Director, Will Reid to PR Consultant and Liam Britnell promoted to People and Culture Lead to support the development of the agency’s employer branding service.
Simon Boddy has moved up into the role of Marketing Operations Manager to support the agency’s investment in martech and the embedding of tech solutions into agency and client work.
Lis Anderson, Founder & Director, AMBITIOUS, said: “People matter most is at the centre of our business strategy, always has been.
“Our team is our greatest asset and we work hard to provide the best opportunities to progress careers so that everyone feels valued, so we’re delighted to support these latest promotions.
“Every member of the team contributes to the success of the business, no matter what their role and we’re looking forward to what our new hires will bring to the agency on our next stage of growth.”
ON THE UP – Pictured are (from left)- Simon Boddy, Greg Halse, Ernestine Allen, Will Reid, Liam Britnell, Eleanor Robinson and Zoe Bagnall. Photo by May Mower, AMBITIOUS PR.
Interested in working for or with AMBITIOUS? Please email Sarah or Lis at [email protected]
A non-profit, dedicated to connecting, educating and strengthening the tech ecosystems in Bristol & Bath, techSPARK supports freelancers, start-ups, scale-ups, SMEs and global corporations by connecting the best people, companies and investors with opportunities for growth.
AMBITIOUS PR will focus on increasing awareness of techSPARK and its thought leadership. It will support key initiatives, including those that address outcomes of techSPARK’s recently published, inaugural, ‘State of the Community’ board report which highlights the opportunities, challenges and barriers to success in the South West tech space.
techSPARK connects around 35,000 people monthly, through programmes and events. Grassroots community groups such as Bath’s Third Thursdays and Cyber Tuesdays, run alongside investment programmes that have supported over 350+ startups and the curation of a database of over 80 diverse founders and leaders who can speak at events to show how our industry can prosper when inclusive.
techSPARK also runs the annual SPARKies, the largest tech awards outside of London, Bath Digital Festival and Bristol Technology Festival which are growing in national recognition.
Ben Shorrock, managing director at techSPARK, comments: “Ambitious is well known locally for its ability to help organisations get cut through for their messages and enable strategic conversations. We’re delighted that they’re helping us tell the story of a community full of people doing globally cutting-edge research, building impactful businesses, and powering our region’s future economy.
B2B and corporate PR and communications specialists, AMBITIOUS PR recently reported a second year of 50% year-on-year growth, increasing its team by 22% in the process. With 40% of revenue coming from the tech sector, AMBITIOUS PR is the only agency in the South West to be ranked in PR Week’s Top 150 tech PR consultancies.
Sarah Woodhouse, co-owner and director, AMBITIOUS PR, adds: “We give back to the ecosystems in which we are working. Bristol and Bath have a huge opportunity to further develop their tech cluster and the techSPARK team deserves further recognition for the work they are doing to nurture, cultivate and grow the sector.”
AMBITIOUS PR currently works for Bristol-based, Neighbourly and Xledger and Bath’s, Truespeed. Outside of the region, they work for prop-tech businesses, COADJUTE and Redirect; and sport tech business, Play More Golf. AMBITIOUS PR also works for companies engaged in providing consultancy, investment and professional services support to the tech sector including Deloitte, BGF and Albert Goodman.
AMBITIOUS PR is a member of the IPRN (International Public Relations Network) – the international network for independent agencies providing clients with access to a global network of PR agencies.
A timely, well-considered and engaging newsletter can foster engagement, build brand loyalty, drive growth and even drive revenues.
This isn’t to say that newsletters are just relevant for businesses with e-commerce models. In fact, all kinds of businesses can benefit from creating their own newsletters as part of a wider marcomms strategy.
But what does a successful newsletter strategy look like?
The most important part of any newsletter is the content you put in it.
Firstly, the stories in your newsletter must be relevant and timely to your specific audience. Secondly, there should neither be too many, nor too few. Around three pieces of content is generally a good rule of thumb to follow.
Sticking with three pieces of content. One of those pieces should be hero content. This means it takes pride of place at the top of the newsletter itself. Followed by two supplementary content pieces underneath.
How you lay out your newsletter content will greatly affect how your audience consumes your content. A simpler approach will benefit you here.
Try to avoid having your content displayed in long lists. Instead, try to lay out your content so that it can be viewed either in one glance or with minimal scrolling.
Great images with strong captions and CTA links to your website or landing pages are a must. Try not to overload the design with images that are too large or videos and animations. Avoid anything that could potentially be slow to load.
It is highly likely that people will be consuming newsletter content on the move, so you will need to consider the actual size of your mailer. If you’re using mailing software such as Mailchimp or HubSpot, templates will do much of this heavy lifting for you. As well as scaling your output for mobile compatibility.
The old adage that people buy from people still rings true. When you’re sending out mass-email marketing ensure that the sender is a real person and not just a generic marketing or hello@ email address.
Whether or not you include the name of your recipient within that email is a decision based on the quality and organisation of your database. Newsletter software can use macros to populate information. But only if that information exists at source.
If you want to say Hello Sharon, welcome to our latest newsletter, you need to be sure that the naming records within your database are 100% perfect. Otherwise, people will receive emails starting a macro fault code, which really detracts from the personal touch.
When something like this happens, you can be sure that the email isn’t getting read and you may lose a subscriber.
One of the most frustrating marketing experiences for a consumer is to receive an interesting piece of content that you want to know more about. Then find that the outbound links are faulty.
You should include directional links to your website. Get into a habit of multiple test-sending to ensure every link is working and directing the audience to where you want them to go.
With mail marketing, consistency is key. Try to establish a regular frequency and cadence of your comms output without overloading the inboxes of your audience.
Try to establish one regular touchpoint with your audience, be it a weekly or bi-weekly update on the latest news and issues in your industry. Establish that as a must-read and then look to build out other mailers around this.
If you haven’t yet implemented email marketing, and if you’re trying to push a product or a service, avoid doing so with your initial newsletters. Don’t go right in with the hard sell, build rapport through engaging content, then introduce the sales elements.
Once you’ve started, keep up the pace. It can be easy to start with enthusiasm and a flurry of newsletters, only to let the frequency drop and your audience engagement dwindle.
If you’re only starting with a small list of marketing contacts, don’t worry, you can put in place strategies and tactics to help grow this.
Contact forms: if you have a lot of potential client and customer communication coming through your website via contact forms, include a marketing opt-in selection. This is an easy way to build your marketing databases over time.
Social platforms: link up your social media channels to your mailing efforts. If you’re posting thought leader content on LinkedIn, try ending those pieces by calling on readers to subscribe for more insight. On channels such as Instagram include a Linktree within your bio description. Then you can call on your follower base to subscribe via a link in the bio.
Other content: if you’re posting regular thought leadership content to your own website, then include calls to action and messaging within his content. This will help lure readers into subscribing based on your existing and ongoing content output.
Customers and clients: consider how you can build your mailing list from current customers and clients. This can range from having a subscribe button built into your email footers, to proactively canvassing and requesting customers and clients to subscribe.
Use your newsletters to give offers to your audience.
While this won’t directly build your follower base, it can help grow your bottom line with your existing customer base. This could be anything from discounts on a product, a flash sale, early bird discount for an event, or even a new service you might be offering.
Try to keep your offers limited and sparing. Otherwise, you may devalue your overall service in the long term.
Quite possibly the most important thing when it comes to building email marketing, is to test and learn.
You don’t have to, and nor should you, stick to the same formula. If something is working, then maintain whatever it is that is making it work. But don’t blindly stick to things that aren’t. You can afford to be a little adventurous and try new things, but make sure that you’re using your mailing software’s analytics to study your audience’s patterns, and are tailoring your content to this.
Social media can have a direct impact on your website’s visibility on traditional search engines like Google or Bing.
While it doesn’t have the same effect on SEO as with content marketing, social signals such as gaining more followers, likes, shares and retweets can increase your visibility to potential customers by increasing traffic to your site and helping you to rank higher.
In other words, while social media efforts don’t influence SEO directly, they do influence SEO indirectly.
Social media signals are activities that contribute to your page or website’s search engine rankings. Some examples of social signals include likes, shares, retweets and pinning.
Google has never explicitly stated that social signals affect rankings. But there’s no denying that the more traffic you receive through social media networks, the more your material will be shared. This may significantly affect how you rank in Google search results.
The social media platform you choose should be directly related to the type of business you run and your marketing objectives. It should also be determined by where your target audience prefers to spend their time. However, in terms of SEO functionality, the following social media and digital marketing networks offer several advantages:
We’ve established how social media impacts SEO. Now, we can look at ways to boost SEO through social media marketing. Here are four social media algorithms and SEO tips to help boost SEO on social media.
Did you know that social media profiles are frequently shown among the top search results?
Up 75% of customers use social media to evaluate brands before making a purchase. They look for reviews, genuine recommendations, inspiration, high-quality images and brand information. As a result, social media profiles should be optimised as part of your SEO strategy.
Optimised social media profiles can drive your target audience to your account and convert them into customers. Your goal is to make all your content accessible. Here are some easy ways of optimising your social profiles to get results:
Good social media profiles increase trust by giving your brand authenticity. They should be able to teach your target audience everything they need to know about your company in a matter of seconds. Your profile should sound natural, honest and carefully written, and it should showcase your own personality.
Creating and releasing high-quality content is crucial for social SEO.
It can enhance organic web traffic back to your website, improve search visibility and assist you in obtaining quality backlinks.
By distributing long-form content such as a high-quality blog post, written with specific keywords via your social platforms, you can encourage your social media followers to share your content further. This will boost your content marketing strategy and strengthen your social signals by amplifying reach through social SEO.
Be wary though, using too many keywords, otherwise known as keyword stuffing, can be frowned upon by traditional search engines and may have a negative impact on your online visibility.
Traditional SEO stands you in good stead when you aim to create valuable content based on a customer’s needs, so be sure to stick to the most relevant and important keyword clusters.
Search engines and shareable content go together like bread and butter. The more people that engage with and share your content, the wider reach you’ll have on keyword search pages and the better your social media visibility. You’ll also generate more backlinks, or inbound links, and enhance brand recognition.
When you publish content that your audience will want to share, it can help Google with the indexation of relevant searches for your posts. This can lead to more organic search traffic and better Google rankings.
Did you know that the images you upload to your social media accounts can actually make a difference to your social SEO? The act of making the images you publish with your social media posts as SEO-friendly as possible is referred to as image optimisation.
Optimising the images across your social media platforms can improve user experience. Search algorithms also tend to prioritise the images that follow best practices, meaning you could appear higher up in search results, improve website traffic and reach more potential customers.
Here’s how you do it:
Image optimisation across all your social networks is a simple technique that may make a major difference in your social media marketing efforts.
A high-quality image will also boost your overall social media performance. It can improve the appearance of your brand by making it more appealing, intelligible, relatable, and memorable.
One strong tactic for improving your social SEO and social media strategy is to use social listening. This is the process of monitoring online conversations on major social platforms and media networks to learn what your audience is saying about you. It’s also a great way to keep track of your competitors.
Social listening can help you find opportunities for link-building. You may discover that your brand has been referenced on blogs, forums, Facebook pages or news sites. You can find these mentions using a social media monitoring tool and contact the writers to ask them to include a link to your site.
Social listening is an effective method for conducting audience research and learning what people are talking about in your sector. This will help you in discovering new ways to contact your target audience and increase your social media presence.
Social media helps SEO in several different ways. The best method is always the successful combination of social media and search engine optimization efforts.
Babbasa, the Bristol-based social enterprise, which works to transform the lives of young people from ethnic minority and low-income backgrounds, is celebrating 10 years this month.
Since its founding in 2013, the organisation has helped support over 4,000 people across the city of Bristol, spanning over 60 cultural groups, providing mentoring, skills training and recruitment support to successfully advance their professional ambitions through its network of over 500 cross-industry organisations
This incredible milestone celebration comes following the launch of Babbasa’s ‘OurCity203O’ campaign, which is aiming to support young people from low-income households, starting from inner city Bristol, to secure a median salary role by 2030.
Poku Osei, Founder and CEO of Babbasa, speaks of the organisation’s milestone; “It fills me with immense pride to celebrate a decade of Babbasa. When I started back in 2013 it was with a vision to help create a world where young people living in areas of disadvantage are inspired and able to realise their employment and enterprise ambitions – irrespective of where they live, their nationality, ethnicity, gender, race, sexuality, or faith.
“10 years on I am proud to see the thousands of people we have been able to help and how so many of them have developed the skills and confidence to pursue a professional future in roles and industries that interest them.”
Over the last decade Babbasa’s offer has evolved to include recruitment and inclusion services, focused on supporting organisations to diversify their workforce and create inclusive working environments and is now one of the UK’s leading social mobility agencies.
This has included their recent partnership with Bristol Creative Industries to create a city-wide internship programme. The initiative was designed to help young people (18-24yrs) from underrepresented backgrounds into paid roles within the creative sector and has just seen its first cohort of 14 start roles in many of the city’s leading creative businesses.
Poku continues; “While I am proud of the work we have done to date, and the incredible the team and our extended network does every single day, there is still much more to be done.
“The OurCity2030 campaign will be our core focus for the next 10 years as we aim to lift individuals out of poverty, increase representation at the workplace and create new generation of role models for society. It will act as a catalyst for Bristol to become a world class model city for inclusive growth.”
To commemorate the anniversary, Babbasa will be hosting an event as part of St Paul’s Carnival fringe calendar, to celebrate Babbasa alumni and hear about some the amazing success stories from the last decade.
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