Consumers Are Changing the Landscape of Search-Based Advertising
Search. We all use it. Whether you’re on Google’s homepage or in your Facebook toolbar, searching for exactly what you want is something we do without even thinking about it. Believe it or not, search is changing and improving drastically every day because of the consumer’s application of the search feature. But what does that even mean? Well, when I searched SEO on google, I got a pretty great definition: search is the bridge between intent and the experiences the world wide web has to offer. (See what I did there? Search, the unsung hero of internet advertising).
Let’s get to the nitty gritty here, why does this matter? Everything I’ve talked about in 2016 plays into this idea. Digital assistants are the new hotness; Siri, Cortana, Echo allow consumers to essentially have a conversation with the internet. Consumers don’t want to type a word or two into a search engine and hope for the best anymore. They want to express their specific question/desire and get specific, direct results. An example: when you type into your search engine “6 month old toys” your search engine intuits that you want to know about toys for a 6 month old child, not toys that are 6 months old.
BUT WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?! One possibility is movement away from keyword search focus and toward a more interactive search that is more specific and more targeted to YOUR needs, desires, goals, etc. As a business owner this is significant as you work to build that theoretical bridge between potential customers and your site. Marlin CS is working to stay ahead of the game in this exact way, maximizing our clients’ exposure to search engine users. This game is changing every day and we’re here to keep you at the forefront!
Bing Tests Linking Search Engine Ads to Social Media
We are always discussing social media integration in advertising your small business. Bing has taken it to a new level. If you look at the graphic above, note the “Find more” that’s circled. When your ad comes up on Bing, a potential customer will be able to see your Facebook page, Twitter handle, Instagram, or whatever social media you prefer to use for your business.
Why does this matter? Bing is looking to bridge the gap between traditional web advertising and business’ use of social media to appeal to potential customers. If you are active on social media, this could significantly impact your access to new clientele. Consider the benefit of direct traffic to your Facebook page where you regularly update photos, interact with customers, and build relationships. It is an opportunity to streamline your advertising and social media in the hopes of increasing your visibility on both mediums.
This is truly in the test phase, and Bing users are encouraged to contact Bing if they are interested in joining the social media link test. They’re also soliciting feedback so if this is something you’d like to see become permanent, let them know!
What’s Coming in 2016 – Rising Advertising Costs
Advertising will always be the name of the game. And competition is the name of the advertising game. Combine those two and you know what we have? Demand, increased cost, and willingness to pay it. In the grand advertising scheme, online ads are at the lower end of the cost spectrum but these continued increases in price will likely force some small companies out. Online advertising historically has given small businesses an opportunity to get their name into the conversation while staying within their limited budget. If costs continue in this fashion, small business will struggle to stay in the game. Getting the most out of your money will become more and more important to your advertising budget and Marlin will be here to help you navigate the landscape.
What’s Coming in 2016 – Siri & Cortana
If you watch television or have an Iphone, you know Siri. You may talk to her a lot, ask her questions, or use her to maximize your hands-free smartphone use. But do you know Cortana? Cortana is Microsoft’s answer to Siri. It allows non-Iphone users to experience the same digital “personal assistant” as Siri. Let’s take this a step further, let’s talk about Amazon Echo. Echo is a standalone piece of technology that looks like a little wifi speaker. But it is so much more. The Echo is aimed at creating a smart home. Seriously! You can ask Echo questions just like Siri or Cortana, play your music library, turn on and off all compatible electronics with your voice, or even play an audio book.
What does this mean to you? As a small business owner with a web presence, why should you care about Siri, or Cortana, or Echo? Because part of these new technologies is their ability to utilize search engines when you ask them a question, and just like us, these “assistants” are looking for the best, fastest answer. That’s where we come in. We spend a lot of time discussing search engine optimization (SEO) and pay-per-click (PPC) advertising here at Marlin. They are two of the best strategies for internet marketing and a major focus in our work. Building on these established strategies, Marlin is ensuring your web presence remains at the forefront of internet marketing. The difference is how we do it: we make sure your business information is easily accessible for these digital “assistants” rather than blindly funnel people to your website. Let us take your website into the new realm of internet search engines.
What’s Coming in 2016 – Mobile Domination
The smart phone/mobile revolution leaves me feeling like a broken record sometimes but that doesn’t change the fact that it’s happening! According to Google mobile traffic overtook desktop traffic in TEN countries. We’ve been pushing for our clients to ensure their websites are mobile friendly for a long time and now it’s crunch time.
Desktop traffic is dropping and mobile-focused online marketing is taking the lead. Last year Google ran an algorithm update that got the catchphrase “Mobilegeddon”, essentially pushing non-mobile friendly websites to the bottom of their search results IF they showed up at all. While the end of the world apocalypse warnings didn’t quite come to fruition for non-mobile friendly sites, it doesn’t change the fact that they have fallen behind the times and are quickly losing ground in the advertising arena.
Obviously we want your website to dominate the search engines for anyone in the market for your product. That’s where Marlin comes in. This is our business. We work to make your website the absolute best it can be and the most accessible it can be to any person in the market for your product. Let’s get started!
What’s Coming in 2016 – Video Ads
Commercials have always been the top of the advertising pyramid. Half the fun of watching the Super Bowl is commercial breaks. It’s the one time in our TV watching lives we don’t want to fast forward to get back to our show. Of course those commercials cost the advertiser millions and millions of dollars so that’s not really an option for most of us, is it? Welcome to 2016, the year of the video ad. Video ads are nothing new but 2015 was such a big year for Vines and the idea of amateur video that it is impacting legitimate business advertising.
We all know YouTube but did you know that Facebook now has videos? You can even create a profile video instead of profile picture! Google is getting into the game, too. What does this mean to you, a small business owner? It means you can create short, informative videos for your client base and they’ll be comfortable with them AND more interested in receiving them.
Video is becoming mainstream and easy to do on our own. Smart phones, tablets, laptops, desktops, actual cameras (gasp!), and video cameras are all geared towards easy sharing on the internet. You can improve your relationship with your client base with regular, short videos reaching out to them on a personal level. Let Marlin help you make this leap in your web presence. We believe in this so much we use it on our website also!
What’s Coming in 2016 – Apps!
2016 Here we are, beyond Back to the Future! It looks like it’s not the year for flying cars, but I think we’re still in for some fun. We’re going to start the new year off with a series of blogs touching on our expectations for the next 12 months.
First, let’s talk apps. It seems like every time we set foot in a store (particularly a restaurant), or shop online, we’re invited to download the app for faster, easier access to the product. Apple uses the app in their commercials: “There’s an app for that.” I look on the main page of my smart phone and I have a folder of apps for everything from my baby monitor to banking, cheap gas to my calendar.
Why are apps becoming such a strong focus? Millenials. The Census Bureau estimates there are more than 80 million millenials in America today. I think we can all agree that the millenial mindset is quite different from the rest of us. Selfies, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat and that’s just off the top of my head. This generation of Americans spends the majority of their time on a smartphone, a tablet, or a laptop. They are ALWAYS connected and always looking for the quickest, easiest way to utilize their technology.
What this means for you and your business. It’s time for even small business owners to start looking at apps as part of their marketing plan. While your site being mobile-optimized for convenience on a smart phone, apps can do the same things and in a more convenient, smooth manner. Marlin does apps. We’re here for you and want to help you move your business forward. So let’s gear up and take the app step!
Google Adds Call-Only Ads…..
On February Google introduced call-only campaigns, a new and easy way for businesses to reach potential customers by prominently showing your phone number, business description and call button — right when people are searching.
People are living their lives online and engaging with your business in new ways. With smartphones in hand, consumers are increasingly looking for products or services while on the go and then placing a call right away. In fact, 70% of mobile searchers call a business directly from search results.
If you have already setup a new call-only campaigns in AdWords, you’ve probably noticed the phone verification piece to prove the phone number is associated with the business that’s advertising. Google has announced that verification will also be rolling out to all call and location extension phone numbers starting in June 2015.
Phone numbers that haven’t been approved will be listed as “Unverified” or “Unverified phone” in the Ad extensions tab.
To get phone numbers verified, you’ll need to take one of these steps.
•Have the phone number being used in the extension listed on the website (in text)
•Link your AdWords and Google Webmaster Tools accounts.
•Add your AdWords conversion code snippet to the landing page in your ad.
Note: If you’re using 3rd party call tracking you can still use options 2 and 3 to verify your numbers. For current Marlincs clients, our team may update your account’s verification status on your behalf.
If your phone numbers aren’t verified, your ads will be disapproved. Again, this goes into effect June 2015.
Source: MarlinCS Blog
Mobile Presence: A Brave New World
Happy New Year! For my last post of 2014 I thought I’d touch on one of the most ubiquitous pieces of technology in our world today: the smart phone. It feels like we’re being overrun by mobile devices, from smart phones to tablets. Today’s smart phones are running such high level operating systems they have become one of the best places for businesses to reach out and interact with their customers. Web design companies have a new level of importance in this mobile friendly world. Your website must translate to smart phone internet surfers in order to maximize your footprint. In fact, large companies have made this jump quite smoothly and quickly. Small businesses have lagged behind on this technology leap.
Statistics show the number of smart phones GLOBALLY is growing at unprecedented speeds. Keeping in touch with people is now just a small part of our mobile phone usage. Think about what you can do with your smart phone: make purchases in a store, get on an airplane, deposit checks, take pictures and load them to social media (the selfie. Who saw that coming?) Along this new line of thinking is the opportunity to communicate with your clientele. Many of our clients utilize email newsletters for their customers. Have you considered text messages? One of my favorite sushi restaurants in Jacksonville texts out their specials at least once a week. And it works. I have changed my plans more than once for them.
Regular websites don’t just magically work on a smart phone. It’s critical that your web design company is capable and prepared to develop your mobile site in addition to your regular computer-based site. There are so many opportunities created simply by developing your mobile-friendly site. Research has proven users are discouraged from a company if their website is difficult to navigate from a smart phone. Another unexpected benefit to a good mobile site? Improved search engine rankings. When someone conducts a search on their mobile phone search engines will provide them first with sites that will work on their smart phone.
I can’t overstate how important your mobile presence is in today’s smart phone world. From search engine optimization to online purchases to dinner reservations, the mobile world is becoming a larger and larger part of the web design business plan. Start 2015 with a bang and get your website ready for mobile users! Give us a call and Happy New Year!
Source: MarlinCS Blog
Why does your business need an engaging web presence?
Believe it or not, the World Wide Web has been around for decades now but a surprisingly large number of small businesses don’t think that they need to have websites. People running small businesses give all sorts of excuses to avoid creating their own websites. However, the benefits of an online presence should not be ignored. Contracting the services of a web design company is guaranteed to change the way an entrepreneur carries out his business.
Business owners should know that buyers today pre-qualify businesses they might work with later. They do this by simply visiting the business website of a company. According to a study done by Hubspot marketing agency, a whopping 78% of internet users find out about products online before initiating a purchase transaction. This figure also applies to people looking for local businesses.
Think about your own purchase transactions. How many times have you searched a product or business online before going ahead to buy something? The Internet is a free source of information which influences consumers. Not having an online presence therefore hurts businesses whether they know it or not. Making your presence felt on the web is not as difficult as it used to. A business in Florida for instance can contact a Jacksonville Webdesign Company to make its name on the Internet. With a website a business will no longer miss out on the most crucial part of business which the getting found part.
Don’t let your competitors get ahead of you
More and more web-savvy companies are coming up and there is a good chance that one of those companies is your competitor. If your competitor is more active than you on the web, you are going to miss out on business. Companies whose products might be worse than yours understand that people are quick to judge a book by its cover. Therefore, if their website kicks your website’s butt, consumers will end up buying from your competitor. You must be picky when choosing a web design company. A local, plugged-in, experienced St Augustine Webdesign firm is better than an obscure company operating from God-knows-where.
Control the conversation
Whether or not you have a website, there are likely some conversations on the Internet regarding your business. Even if you have never hired a Jacksonville Webdesign Company to make a website for you, your web presence is already there thanks to your customers. People now leave reviews of businesses on websites such as Google review, Trip Advisor, and Yelp. Social media is another place where you cannot prevent people from saying whatever they want about your business. Even thought you can’t control what people say, you can respond to things said about you and potentially develop or improve relationships with your customer base. You can respond to reviews about you and introduce product improvements to fix previous negative feedback. You can only do such things with a website of your own. Let Marlin help you break out of the crowd and create your new website today!
Source: MarlinCS Blog
