Globalisation has done wonders for many businesses. The development of global technology and delivery solutions has resulted in many businesses being able to open their doors to a much wider range of consumers. And consumers have access to a much wider range of products and services . Lead times on global shipping and air-freight continue to decrease as new distribution channels are optimised around the world. If I order something from America to the UK, I can typically expect it to arrive within a week or two.
When using Ad Management software such as Google Ads or Microsoft Advertising, selecting global audiences is an easy step built into campaign creation. For Google Ads, the steps of exactly how to target foreign audiences can be found here.
Finding success through Google Ads in foreign locations is dependent on a number of factors. Sometimes, merely sticking your ad copy and keywords into Google Translate isn’t enough to replicate results in foreign markets. Even in other countries that speak the same language as you, you may find your ad success vary. If this is the case, don’t worry! Using this simple tool can help shed some light on why your ad copy isn’t as effective in other countries.
The further you spread from your hometown or country, the more differences you might see in peoples’ behaviours, cultures, wants, needs, art, music, work habits – the list goes on. Therefore, your ad copy should be reflective of the cultures and behaviours of your target audience, not on your own. In 1984, Geert Hofstede wrote a paper about cultural differences in other countries. Later, this has been developed into a handy online tool for analysing the differences between cultures. He categorised 6 dimensions of culture:
– Power Distance (the extent to which the less powerful members of institutions and organisations within a country expect and accept that power is distributed unequally)
– Individualism (the degree of interdependence a society maintains among its members)
– Masculinity (The fundamental issue here is what motivates people, wanting to be the best (Masculine) or liking what you do (Feminine))
– Uncertainty Avoidance (the way that a society deals with the fact that the future can never be known)
– Long Term Orientation (the degree to which society maintains the past and tradition, or looks to evolve to present challenges)
– Indulgence (the extent to which people try to control their desires and impulses, based on the way they were raised)
By understanding what impact these metrics have on a culture, we can start to apply them to our foreign ad campaigns. Let’s take a look at the differences between the United Kingdom, and the United States.
On the whole, the two look very similar across the 6 metrics. This is expected, as the United States and the UK share a lot of western culture influences, music tastes, films, and strong political connections.
But understanding the differences where they are present could mean the difference between a conversion or not. If you’re providing a service for example, we can have a look and see that the United States scores lower on long term orientation. This indicates that the USA has more of a focus on short-term results, more frequent performance reviews and this also drives individuals to strive for quick results within the workplace. You may therefore wish to update your ad copy to focus on these insights – What are the instant benefits of your product, what the value of return is, and how it makes them come out on top of the competition.
Let’s take a look at another – Germany.
Whilst the obvious difference here between the UK and Germany would be in language, translating ad copy should also reflect culture differences, not just language.
If we again look at the long term orientation score, we can see a stark difference between what the US scored and what Germany scored. Utilising the same ad copy in Germany as proposed in America, we would expect to see less success in Germany. This is because German culture is oriented around the success of the future. Therefore, Ad copy suggesting long term success, organic growth and consistency of results from a product or service would probably be seen as more attractive, trustworthy and better value than what may be interpreted as flash-in-the-pan short term success.
When looking at the uncertainty avoidance metric, we can see that Germany has a much higher score than the UK. As a culture, this means that the UK on the whole is much happier to wake up not knowing the specifics of what the day has to offer, happy to be more adaptive as new information is presented, and in work terms are happier to accept loosely detailed plans and information. Germany, however, prefers to be more detailed and insightful – be it in thinking, presenting or planning: the systematic overview has to be given in more detail. What does that mean for a business advertising through google ads into Germany? Ad copy should be more descriptive, outcomes of using a product or service should be clearly listed and prices transparent.
Even marginal changes in ad copy may greatly influence the success of campaigns targeting the world stage, or influence consumer perceptions of your products or services. By leveraging the differences within cultures, you may just push yourself ahead of your competition.
In a mere two years, I have held my own in an industry that I intermittently despise, all while nurturing my unwavering passion for design. Here are my insights on why these seemingly contradictory paths can converge harmoniously. This my addict’s story of the first two years in design and how I feel about the industry now I’ve seen it for what it really is, after only breaking into it at the age of 35.
Six years ago, I found myself hunched within the grimy confines of a crack house, waiting my turn to hack despair through a glass cylinder. The flickering lights of passing cars accentuated my swollen, bloated face. How did I end up there? And how did this utterly insane journey lead me to a life dedicated to design, devoid of addiction?
Fate, coupled with unwavering determination, slung me into an industry where previous creative encouragement was scarce. Neither school nor home fostered my fiercely creative spirit. Instead, it spilled chaotically throughout my youth, manifesting as mental indulgence and drunken scribbles on my bedroom walls. My life plummeted through multiple rock bottoms until I reached a precipice where I had to choose between death and taking control of my destiny. On the 27th of December, 2016, I made the decision to change my world.
The voyage ahead was wobbly as hell as I climbed aboard my makeshift raft of sobriety. My initial endeavours faltered, leaving me back on the same lonely island I had been stranded on for so many years. I had underestimated the enormity of the challenge I had undertaken. After another year of stumbling aimlessly, seeking solace in sporadic chugs of cocaine cider inertia, I reached my breaking point.
In a strangely desparate moment of internal creative intervention, I scraped together whatever funds I had and bought a cheap DSLR camera. Those funds should have been used for rent, but I am eternally grateful they weren’t. It was at this pivotal moment that my desolate landscape transformed from a blizzard into a serene lake. Darkness gave way to light, almost instantly, like a camera shutter on a blinding summer day. I had reached a point where I had nothing to lose (not that I had much before), and my mind, once clouded by substance abuse, became malleable and receptive to self-belief.
Lost and self-destructive, lacking paternal guidance and faith, I had frequently misused my rudder, burning it as firewood instead of allowing it to steer me towards my intended destination. But now, I had found my calling from within. Months passed, and my adoration for creative freedom blossomed. I taught myself Photoshop, which propelled me towards a design degree in Bristol, seemingly by chance, all while running across the Somerset levels with my camera in tow — it was a truly wonderful time in my existence.
Im going to be honest, my journey has been partially fuelled by spite towards the pretentiousness and banality that permeate marketing and advertising agencies and the art world as a whole — the very places that appear to be the epicentre of cool and the ultimate destination for most designers. Through my varied experiences — some positive, some mediocre, and some downright horrendous — I can confidently proclaim that these agencies are destined for obsolescence, and I am here for it.
To elaborate, these establishments squander valuable resources, fail to adapt to new leadership, undervalue their own talent, lack genuine connections, and suffocate creativity with excessive micro-management. Designers within such agencies often find themselves stagnating, rarely exploring new avenues of design thinking beyond the confines of their workplace. This stagnation is a massive problem, as designers and creatives become consumed by busyness and chaos and at the end of the long workday, they fling open the office doors with glee and proceed to the pub, where they aim to obliterate the last remaining brain cells of the day in a flurry of ice-cold frothy pints, and i don’t blame them. All of this is done in an attempt to ease the stress caused by the mind-numbing work they had to endure.
The real stinger though, all of these issues could have been avoided if the head honchos had taken the initiative to establish well-defined processes. With such processes in place, high-quality work could be delivered on time and with minimal stress whilst simultaneously reissuing creative licence back to these now fatigued artists and creators.
I don’t revel in the potential loss of jobs as these agencies and studios evaporate. Rather, I firmly believe that the truly exceptional individuals will always thrive, and it is in this context that agencies seem unsustainable. As we venture into a future that values quality over quantity, our focus shifts towards forging connections through the craftsmanship of dedicated designers operating on a smaller scale. Just look at Studio Sutherland, a two-person studio that recently picked up three pencils from D&AD. Whether you agree or not, such meaningless achievements do seem to indicate a shifting landscape.
Throughout my design journey, I have encountered disheartening aspects within the marketing and advertising industry. Despite their outward facade, the inner workings and top-tier decision-makers are plagued by constant changes of mind, shifting goalposts, and a seemingly odd pleasure derived from endless revisions. The attitude of “it’s your job, so do it” resonates deeply within these agencies and the corporations they serve, gradually eroding one’s passion for the very thing that brings liberation — an insidious paradox, a catch 1.618 if you will.
It’s quite remarkable how in some agencies, it feels like you have numerous bosses all chiming in with solutions to design problems. However, while it’s true that there can be multiple creative routes to solving these issues, the process of reaching the desired outcome should be clear and defined, rather than a barrage of “insights” coming over your shoulder from anyone and everyone in the office. I’m not suggesting that good ideas only come from creatives; quite the contrary, I believe that everyone on the planet is inherently creative and has unique ways of solving problems. However, once a clear direction has emerged, it should be you, as the creative professional, who guides the process, rather than the very people who hired you to be creative. This approach is undermining and counterintuitive, yet it seems to be prevalent in most agencies I’ve worked for. It’s no wonder then that the irony lies in the fact that while graphic communication on the surface may appear polished, the complete lack thereof behind the scenes leaves the final projects hanging at 75% of their true potential. This is a disheartening reality, not only for us designers but, more importantly, for the clients we serve.
There also exists a frustrating hypocrisy within agencies that proclaim their commitment to equality and fostering positive change while subtly exuding an invisible mist of pressure to work late and produce. As someone who has grafted on construction sites and endured some frankly awful office jobs, the enchantment of design remains ever-present in my mind. I still perceive myself as a tradesman, alongside many of my peers, constructing bold and captivating designs that provide joy while prioritising functionality and effective communication.
In my design journey, I have experienced some lovely moments within advertising agencies. However, as time went on, the glossy veneer began to fade, revealing a different reality that led me to choose a different path. While I cherish the connections I have forged and the talented individuals I have worked alongside, it all ultimately circles back to the same underlying issue — the pervasive air of arrogance and the relentless pressure to proclaim one’s greatness, which ironically undermines the very essence of creativity.
The enchantment of marketing agencies and design studios, with their reputation for being at the forefront of trends and innovation, is marred by a sense of exclusivity and cliquishness. This prevailing attitude breeds an atmosphere of self-congratulation, where being “cool” takes precedence over the authentic pursuit of creativity and genuine connection.
In reality, the pull of working on FMCG campaigns or catering to worldwide brands loses its lustre. The intrinsic appeal that initially captivated me and many others gives way to a sense of disillusionment. The truth is that the coolness factor is a façade, obscuring the reality of the creative process and the individuals who steer the ship.
I have come to the realisation that true creativity thrives beyond the boundaries of what is considered “cool” or popular. It resides in the realm of authenticity, originality, and the courage to challenge the status quo. As I part ways with the confines of marketing agencies and their superficial sheen, I embrace a different approach — one that is rooted in genuine connection, meaningful impact, and the pursuit of artistic integrity.
In this new chapter of my journey, I am guided by the knowledge that the path to true fulfilment in design lies not in the corridors of hip Bristol marketing agencies. Instead, it rests in forging genuine connections, embracing humility, and being true to oneself. So, while marketing agencies and their cool cliques continue to boast their self-proclaimed importance, I find solace in seeking a different kind of cool — the coolness that stems from genuine passion, creative freedom, and the courage to follow my own path.
Furthermore, within many agencies, a lot of individuals either forget their origins or emerge directly from the sheltered cocoon of university, where inflated self-importance festers. The primary beneficiaries of this delusion are the business-minded individuals at the top. Stripped of the embellishments, they are simply men and women driven by self-interest, despite their attempts to convince us all otherwise.
To make it clear — I bear no grudges or neither have any ill will toward this reality. In fact, I strive to secure a prosperous livelihood, for myself and for my loved ones. However, the fundamental distinction lies in the fact that my success will come at my own expense, not at the cost of others.
Design should embody a spirit of genuine collaboration, fostering an environment where creativity flourishes, ideas are nurtured, and true innovation takes root. The future of design lies in the hands of those who value craftsmanship, meaningful connections, and the pursuit of excellence over profit.
As I reflect upon my transformative journey from addiction to design, I am fuelled by an unwavering determination to forge my own way, unburdened by the constraints of pretentious marketing agencies and the fading relevance of traditional advertising. The industry is shifting, embracing a future where personal connections, authentic relationships, and the pursuit of artistic integrity take precedence over corporate agendas.
I am but a humble tradesman, armed with the tools of creativity and driven by the desire to build a world where design transcends the superficial and leaves a lasting impact. So, let the factories churn out their cookie-cutter campaigns, for I am resolved in my quest of craftsmanship, pure expression, and the freedom to shape a design landscape that resonates with the very core of my being.
My work for Turf Games 2023 — Things happen when you keep turning up for yourself.Having started the process in 2021, they join around 70 other companies in the region who are committed to making business a force for good.
B Corp Certification is holistic, not exclusively focused on a single social or environmental issue. To achieve certification, a company must:
saintnicks achieved a score of 88.9, but as with any company to gain the certification, they acknowledge that this is just the beginning of a commitment to do even more.
“We’re incredibly proud of the work we’ve done to become B Corp Certified, but we’re just getting started. We’re committed to continually reviewing our standards across the board, to not only maintain our efforts, but improve them.” said company Director, Chris Price.
“We’re very proud to be working with some brilliant clients, who are also committed to making positive changes to their business, so it’s a journey we’re going on together.” Price added.
Read more about the journey to becoming B Corp Certified on the saintnicks website.
To receive a successful return from your link-building efforts, it’s important to ensure effective outreach lists are created targeting the correct publications and bloggers for the client. Without an effective outreach list, you may not receive the number of high-quality backlinks you hoped for. Websites with higher quality backlinks from authoritative sites are also likely to rank better, therefore it’s important the outreach lists are created to deliver on increasing the number of offsite links.
Here at Varn, we use a range of tactics to ensure outreach lists created for our clients are successful in increasing the number of backlinks, so when outreach is performed clients see an increase in rankings for relevant landing pages.
An outreach list is defined as a list of contacts that can be journalists, publications, influencers, independent bloggers, and magazines. It’s one of the first steps when conducting outreach because the list will include prospects you wish to work with. This can include hosting content about a PR campaign, product reviews, and guest posting. It’s vital to also bear in mind the target audience for the publication as well as its domain authority, and trust/citation flow.
Here at Varn, we use a software called Buzzstream to help us search the web using appropriate keyword search phrases. Not only does the software allow us to search the web for PR-friendly publications to reach out to, but it also gives us the ability to reach out to our lists and send automatic follow ups.
Buzzstream also helps us to select sites that have a good domain authority (DA), a search engine ranking score that predicts how likely a site is likely to appear on SERPs. In most cases, we set a filter at 20 and above. If the website’s domain authority is on the lower side, the intention is that over time the domain authority of this site will grow organically.
Here are a few key considerations to take into account when creating effective outreach lists for digital PR.
It’s important to consider your client’s target audience when putting together your outreach lists. Of course, strong links from good quality websites bring the SEO benefit, however the traffic may not be relevant to your client, and the publication may not post your content at all.
For example, if your client is in the watersports industry, targeting watersport bloggers and publications will not only increase the likelihood of a reply, it will drive relevant traffic back to your client’s site which can build brand awareness as well as a higher conversion rate.
This is a really important step when building your outreach lists because if you are asking bloggers to review products, you need to ensure they are open to receiving items in exchange for a review.
The obvious way of doing this is to browse their site yourself to see if they receive gifted products, however, there are other ways you can narrow down your search in Google, as well as outreach software like Buzzstream.
You can search for an exact match by putting a keyword in quotation marks. An example could include: Lifestyle Blogger [‘PR friendly’]
The screenshot below shows two keyword search phrases on Buzzstream, and how you can narrow down your web search:
If you are creating an outreach list for guest posting, it’s important to ensure the targeted websites accept guest content. Some websites have specific guidelines to follow also.
Building warm prospects increases the likelihood of your content being posted, and you can add them to outreach lists for future clients. For example, bloggers will be open to review multiple client products over time. If a blogger decides your campaign isn’t suited to their blog audience, they may know a blogger who will be a good fit and give you their contact details. This helps increase the quality of content being posted to relevant sites.
If you would like more advice on creating effective outreach lists for Digital PR, get in touch with a member of the Varn team today.
Global leaders in procurement and supply chain management, Efficio are the largest independent consultancy in the world. With this sole focus for more than 20 years, their specialist consultants are equipped with the expertise and technology to dig deeper, innovate faster, and deliver greater efficiencies for clients.
Talisman Sparro has played a critical role in Efficio Consulting’s repositioning and rebrand programme, delivering an impact that has helped the company stand out as the only remaining independent, specialist consultancy in the procurement and supply chain consultancy marketplace. With Efficio’s unique approach to delivering sustained client success at the core, Talisman Sparro has helped to shape a comprehensive strategy that has driven internal engagement and reflected Efficio’s ambitious growth plans.
The “Partners in Progress” brand platform developed has resonated with both clients and employees, driving engagement and building a strong internal culture. The rebranding programme delivered has overhauled Efficio’s branding, messaging, and positioning to be more contemporary, modern, and appealing to a broader audience.
Our support included:
Google Search Console is a valuable tool for understanding your website’s performance on Google Search. At Varn, we use it almost daily for a variety of search-related tasks for our clients; take a look at some easy ways to use Search Console for SEO to get started with the tool. Recently, Google introduced a new feature called Bulk Data Export, which allows users to export their Search Console data into BigQuery. This enables you to access historical data and combine it with other data sources, to perform advanced analysis and gain deeper insights into your website’s performance and search traffic. In this blog post, we will explore the benefits of Search Console Bulk Data Export and how it can enhance your SEO strategy.
The introduction of Search Console’s Bulk Data Export feature has opened up new possibilities for in-depth analysis. By exporting data from Search Console to BigQuery, we can leverage the capabilities of this powerful tool to uncover trends, patterns, and correlations that may go unnoticed in the standard Search Console reports. This enhanced analysis can provide a more comprehensive understanding of website performance and inform actionable SEO strategies.
The process of setting up bulk data exports is straightforward and user-friendly. However, there are a few too many steps to include in this blog, so visit the full setup instructions from Google for more detail. You will need to open your Google Cloud Console on your desired project. Enable BigQuery by accessing APIs & Services and selecting the relevant options. Next, you can grant permission to Search Console to export data to your project through the Admin section. Finally, in Search Console, navigate to Settings and locate the Bulk Data Export option for your property.
Once the data export is successfully set up, you can begin extracting valuable insights from your Search Console data within BigQuery. With the ability to run complex queries on large datasets, you can identify trends, evaluate performance over time, compare different data sources, and gain a deeper understanding of your website’s visibility and search traffic. These insights can guide strategic decisions to optimise your SEO efforts and drive organic growth.
While the Bulk Data Export feature is free, it’s important to note that there are costs associated with storing and manipulating data within BigQuery.
The introduction of Search Console Bulk Data Export brings a wealth of possibilities for advanced analysis and insights. By integrating Google Search Console with BigQuery, we can unlock the potential of their data and gain a deeper understanding of a website’s performance on Google Search. Embrace the power of Bulk Data Export and harness its capabilities to propel your website’s success on the search engine results page.
Need some help with BiqQuery, Google Search Console, or understanding how to turn raw data into actionable insights that will feed into a powerful SEO strategy? Talk to the team at Varn for friendly, expert advice.
We’re all a little bit obsessed with acquisition; it’s drilled into us from birth and stays with us until the day we die. From Pokémon cards and soft toys to clothes, art and tech – we progress through a natural arc of ownership in our lifetime. The truth is, we usually look to upgrade our belongings before we’ve squeezed every bit of value from our existing ones.
And we’re guilty for doing the same in the marketing bubble: often, we prioritise growing eCRM databases before we engage the contacts that are already in reach. But when acquiring a new customer costs five times more than retaining an existing one, there’s a compelling case for making the most of what we already have in front of us (Invesp, 2018).
It’s easy to forget that existing customers are the ones positioned deeper in the sales funnel. These are the contacts who have already experienced your brand in some capacity; they know the role that you can play in their life. Which begs the question: why have my contacts lapsed? Often, customer apathy is the primary reason for inactivity.
An overworked cliché, but a true one nonetheless, is that your database is a flowerbed, and you’re holding the garden hose. So, for dramatic purposes, let’s imagine we’re in the second week of drought. Your flowers are wilted, and the soil? Bone dry. In your absence, your contacts have become idle and unenthused. Any avid gardener knows that chucking buckets of water on a flowerbed in this state will cause the soil to repel it, instead you should sprinkle the surface lightly to encourage gradual absorption. The same applies for your marketing, if you relentlessly continue to push hard sales-led messaging upon your lapsed eCRM contacts, they will only reject it.
Take a more considered approach. Whether it’s a virtual gift card, an email to a live event, or a simple message to say we haven’t heard from you in a while, a softer approach is the most likely to warm inactive customers to your brand, ahead of overt promotion.
If you’re in a position where you have a chunky list of email addresses, and not a lot else, then it’s time to start building. Whether it’s a poll or survey with a gift or promo code for their next order, this is a great opportunity for you to understand how users are interacting with your brand. But first, you need to be sure of your objectives. Do you want to understand how satisfied customers are with your product? Are you trying to establish the customer pain points to optimise your service offering? Knowing the purpose of your research is fundamental and will help you to structure your questions and analytics accordingly.
Once you have constructed and sent your re-engagement email, the next step is analysing the results. Pay attention to any clear patterns and use them to tag specific customers with common themes. In case you’re not convinced, MailChimp research shows that segmented email campaigns have an open rate that is 14.31% higher than unsegmented campaigns.
Using historic data, it becomes possible for brands to track browsing behaviour, purchase history, and previous engagement to tailor communications from specific customer actions. And doing so holds impact. Over 59% of customers claim that personalised content impacts purchase decisions. In the long run, this can help brands to grow stronger relationships with their customers, increase loyalty, and ultimately drive revenue growth. By identifying and segmenting different groups within your database, it becomes possible for brands to fine tune the content within email sends to resonate more clearly with the audience at hand.
Take Nike, for example, a global conglomerate operating in more than 30 major markets: from sports to lifestyle. A track runner from Osaka and a fashion enthusiast from New Mexico will engage with the same brand in two very different ways. While the runner will be most invested in the performance-related benefits of the garments, the influencer will likely be drawn in by aesthetics, limited edition colourways, and exclusive brand collaborations. This can be reflected in granular segment-specific sends, with tweaked products, ranges, visuals, and tone.
This isn’t to say that marketers should forget about scaling mailing lists. Growing your current book of eCRM contacts and delivering content to your existing audience should happen in tandem, in fact, it’s beneficial. When you are making efforts to re-engage existing contacts, and growing a database simultaneously, you can be safe in the knowledge that you’re doing everything in your power to increase acquisition and retention.
When it comes to customer acquisition, engagement, and retention, we’re experts in the field. Drop us a line today to see how we can leverage email to maximise the value from your contacts, no strings attached.
Discover more industry insights and opinions at saintnicks.uk.com/insights
In the current digital era, a successful online presence is essential for any e-commerce business. However, having an online store alone is insufficient. Your e-commerce website needs to be highly ranked in search engine results to draw in potential clients and increase sales. E-commerce SEO can help in this situation. In this article, we’ll examine the best methods for optimising your online store for search engines, which will ultimately boost its exposure and boost sales.
E-commerce search engine optimisation (SEO) is the process of improving the website and content of your online store to increase exposure in SERPs (search engine results pages). Your e-commerce website will be more visible to potential clients who are actively looking for the goods or services you provide the higher it ranks in search results. Increased visibility results in more qualified leads, increased organic traffic, and eventually, better sales and revenue.
Any effective SEO plan for e-commerce must start with rigorous keyword research. When a person searches for a certain good or service on search engines like Google, they enter terms and phrases known as keywords. You may begin optimising your website to rank for these particular search queries by choosing the appropriate keywords that are pertinent to your e-commerce firm.
Make a list of prospective keywords associated with your products or sector to start. To obtain information on search traffic, competition, and related keywords, think about utilising tools like Google Keyword Planner, Moz Keyword Explorer, or SEM Rush. Aim for a mix of broad keywords with bigger search volumes, coupled with extremely relevant and particular long-tail keywords.
Not got the time? Check out our affordable SEO packages.
The following stage is to optimise the on-page components of your online store after you’ve created a list of target keywords. When it comes to user experience and search engine rankings, these factors are crucial. The following are a few key on-page components to pay attention to:
For e-commerce enterprises, it’s essential to pay attention to technical SEO aspects in addition to optimising your site’s on-page components. Technical SEO makes sure that web crawlers can successfully access, index, and comprehend your website. The following are some important technical SEO issues for online stores:
When it comes to enhancing e-commerce SEO, content is crucial. High-quality, pertinent, and interesting content not only increases organic traffic to your website but also motivates visitors to browse around and make purchases. To improve e-commerce SEO, some content methods are as follows:
To increase your e-commerce website’s authority and search engine rankings, you must build high-quality backlinks to it. But it’s crucial to concentrate on obtaining natural, pertinent backlinks from reliable sites. Among the tactics for link building that work well are:
For continued optimisation and improvement, regular monitoring and analysis of the results of your e-commerce SEO activities are crucial. Track critical performance indicators like keyword rankings, conversion rates, organic traffic, and bounce rates using programmes like Google Analytics and Google Search Console. Key areas to think about include:
Putting into practise efficient e-commerce SEO methods is essential for improving your online store’s exposure, bringing in visitors, and generating sales. We are aware that not every online retailer has the time or knowledge to pull this out. To learn more about how we can help you improve SEO for your e-commerce site, get in touch with us right away.
Want to learn more about SEO? Check out our beginners guide to SEO or sign up for it below!
When setting out to understand a little more about a brand, a visit to the company website is nearly always the first port-of-call for stakeholders. Often dubbed as the ‘shop window’ to an organisation, a website should clearly communicate your brand’s raison d’être, offer a clear user path, and most importantly, outline your company offerings in the best possible light. And while the process of delivering a gleaming new website is often an exciting one, the launch is only the beginning.
To guarantee that your website performs to its best ability, and to stay relevant among your site visitors, it’s crucial to view your website as an ongoing project. It’s not simply a question of UX/CX updates; reviewing CRO, your goal completion, tackling outdated content, dead backlinks, and poor SEO are all contributing factors to a poor online experience for customers, which can be detrimental to your sales drive and to your brand. The good news is that these are all easily avoidable consequences, assuming you tend to your site with care. To keep your website ticking over nicely, we’ve compiled our top 6 areas of focus for web optimisation…
You should always maintain clear strategic direction with your interface, mapping out the best possible user journeys. Without directing visitors to the right areas on your website, you’ll encourage high exit rates, U-turns, or rage clicks (Hotjar, 2022). Not only does this risk conversions or other goal completions, but it can devalue the brand that you’ve worked so hard to build. Put yourself in your users’ shoes and try to experience your website with a fresh pair of eyes. Is it hard to find key information about your brand? Does the site make checkouts, downloads and forms as easy as possible? Could you improve legibility?
Websites don’t just end at launch; they need to be maintained, optimised and tested. Having the correct analytics tools to visualise quantitative and qualitative data is important, but only when you are tracking the metrics relevant to your business. There’s no one-size-fits-all when it comes to quantitative analytics platforms, but the key metrics that marketers should be tracking are:
While quantitative research is useful in identifying data patterns and numerical trends, it’s important for marketers to understand users’ attitudes, beliefs, and motivations. This is where qualitative data can help fill in the gaps to make more informed decisions with your quantitative data. Popular qualitative research methods include:
By combining quantitative and qualitative methods, it becomes much easier to understand your customer experience. Ultimately, this helps to highlight pain points and identify the content that resonates most with your brand’s audience.
A great way to ensure you’re optimising your website is by running A/B testing (sometimes called split testing) across variants. Before implementing significant updates, you might want to consider running an A/B test to justify your decision making. Netflix leads by example in this area. Unique to every user, they pool together data to produce a final homepage outcome based on behaviour and preferences. Todd Yellin, Vice President of Product at Netflix, confirms that the brand runs 250 A/B tests each year to test the different versions of the design. These tests also consider the ways in which users search for films and programs on the app (Wired, 2018). With a highly detailed level of tracking and various testing in place, Netflix’s success is entirely reliant upon data. Regularly implementing the variations from the results optimises the user experience.
It’s not uncommon for users to arrive at a website only to be deterred by complex language, over-stimulating features, or a lack of useful information. These websites tend to garner large drop off rates, with marketers left trying to figure out where they slipped up. This nearly always occurs when a website is built without a defined content strategy in place. Markets are ever-changing, and branded websites should reflect this. To stay top of mind, content needs to be relevant, useful, and findable. Marketers need to audit and refresh existing content on an ongoing basis, factoring in current trends and wider business objectives.
SEO is often an afterthought when it comes to website builds. This is usually down to the fact that organic search rankings can take time to bear fruit in contrast to paid activity. But with 53.3% of all website traffic acquired through organic search, SEO should be a core consideration during, and after, a website build.Regular SEO activity can elevate your brand and take you to the top of search engines, surpassing your competition. The key to successful performance and conversion of your website is a content strategy that considers a user-friendly experience, with digestible information for both the user as well as search engines. (Search Engine Journal, 2022).
Whilst they are undoubtedly two separate entities, marketers should make sure their SEO and PPC strategies are aligned, and both have high prominence on their marketing agenda and budgets. On average, 5-10% of your revenue should be spent on SEO activity. (Search Engine Land, 2022).
Read more about our top tips to optimise your organic search in our blog here.
Top performing websites don’t just need to look good, they need to be functional too. Ongoing website maintenance is required to keep your website running. This can be achieved by making sure your website is safe and secure, and that links and tools aren’t broken. It may seem simple but often brands focus on the launch of a new website and forget to check in on performance once it’s live. Some CMS updates can be relatively straight forward, but you’ll benefit from an experienced digital team to manage, monitor and prevent or react to any technical issues your website may encounter.
As a fully integrated agency, we build sites that talk the talk and walk the walk – from design to optimisation. If you’re looking to take your website to the next level, drop us a line today – we’d love to have a chat.
Discover more industry insights and opinions at saintnicks.uk.com/insights
What qualities should an app design company have? For every client, the response is different. It takes dedication, time, and talent to turn your concept into reality. Take into account the following advice to locate the ideal match for your objectives:
A reputable mobile app development company should have an extensive and detailed portfolio that showcases their expertise. You can evaluate a company’s design objectives and execution by looking at its previous projects. You can tell if they are compatible with the goals of your project by carefully analysing their portfolio.
For any reputable app design company, effective communication techniques are crucial. They should be able to offer insightful commentary and feedback while you should be able to communicate your needs and expectations effectively. A successful partnership requires a relaxed atmosphere and frank communication. Without good communication, the enterprise can face serious difficulties.
In addition to a portfolio, references from clients can shed light on an agency’s work ethics and prior experiences. Examine their former clientele and gauge how satisfied they were with them. This study will help us comprehend the agency’s dependability and expertise.
Identify the goals that you want your app to achieve. While some companies offer a more thorough strategy that encompasses the full development process, others offer aesthetics and visual design as their primary areas of expertise. Select a company that shares your requirements and vision.
Define your expectations and the needs of the project in a clear brief. Even if a firm has experience working with difficult design briefs, your project may have special requirements. Make sure the organisation has the resources, expertise, and knowledge to meet your unique requirements.
Think about the agency’s project management methodology. While some companies may use freelance designers or divide up jobs among their team, others may offer a more personalised service with a single point of contact. Select a company whose procedures fit your criteria.
While selecting the ideal app design company may seem difficult, it is essential for the success of your project. To find the perfect fit, do extensive study and thoroughly consider your options.
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