Max Oliveira
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How to Integrate SEO and CRO for Maximum Results

Unlock the secret to skyrocketing your website’s success! Discover the ultimate guide on combining SEO and CRO strategies to achieve maximum results.

In this article, I’ll show you how to integrate SEO and CRO for maximum results.

I’ve been working as a digital marketing specialist for almost 20 years, and I’ve found that combining these two strategies is crucial for driving organic traffic and converting visitors into customers. By optimising your website for both search engines and conversions, you can achieve higher rankings and increase your conversion rates.

I’ll share key strategies, tools, and techniques that will help you successfully integrate SEO and CRO. Plus, I’ll show you how to measure and analyse the impact of this integration for continuous improvement.


Key Takeaways

  • Integrating SEO and CRO is crucial for driving organic traffic and conversions.
  • Conducting keyword research and optimising website content improves conversions.
  • Analysing website data and user behaviour helps identify areas for improvement.
  • Implementing A/B testing and tracking key metrics like conversion rates measure the effectiveness of integration.

The Importance of SEO and CRO Integration

You need to understand the importance of integrating SEO and CRO for maximum results.

SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) and CRO (Conversion Rate Optimisation) are two essential components of any successful digital marketing strategy. SEO focuses on improving your website’s visibility in search engine results, while CRO aims to increase the number of visitors who take a desired action on your site – aka conversions.

When SEO and CRO work together, they can create a powerful synergy that drives more organic traffic to your website and converts that traffic into customers or leads. By optimising your website for both search engines and user experience, you can ensure that your site not only ranks well in search results but also provides a seamless and persuasive user journey.

 

Data shows that integrating SEO and CRO can have a significant impact on your business. Studies have found that companies that combine SEO and CRO strategies experience higher conversion rates and increased revenue.

By aligning your keyword research, on-page optimization, and content strategy with your conversion goals, you can attract more qualified traffic and improve the likelihood of conversions.

In the next section, we will explore key strategies for combining SEO and CRO to maximise your results. These strategies will help you create a holistic approach to online marketing that leverages the power of both SEO and CRO to drive meaningful business outcomes.

Optimising Your Website for Search Engines and Conversions

When optimising your website, it’s important to combine strategies for search engine optimization (SEO) and conversion rate optimization (CRO) to achieve optimal visibility and drive more conversions.

By integrating these two approaches, you can ensure that your website not only attracts more traffic but also converts that traffic into valuable leads or sales.

Here are some of my key steps to optimise your website for both search engines and conversions:

  1. Conduct keyword research:

    Start by identifying relevant keywords that align with your target audience’s search intent. This will help you optimise your website’s content and meta tags effectively.

  2. Improve website speed:

    Website load time is a crucial factor for both SEO and CRO. Slow-loading websites not only rank lower in search engine results but also have higher bounce rates. Optimise your website’s performance by compressing images, minifying code, and leveraging browser caching.

  3. Create compelling and relevant content:

    High-quality content is essential for both SEO and CRO. Develop engaging and informative content that not only ranks well in search engine results but also resonates with your target audience and encourages them to take action.

  4. Optimise landing pages:

    Landing pages are critical for conversion optimization. Ensure that your landing pages are well-designed, visually appealing, and have clear call-to-action buttons that guide visitors towards the desired conversion goal.Additionally, utilising A/B testing can help you optimise your website for conversions.

    By testing different variations of your website’s design, layout, and call-to-action buttons, you can identify which elements are most effective at driving conversions.

  5. Data-driven decisions:

    Analyse your website’s data to identify areas for improvement. Use tools like Google Analytics to track user behaviour, such as click-through rates, time spent on page, and conversion rates. This data can help you identify any bottlenecks in your conversion funnel and make informed decisions to optimise your website accordingly.

Measuring and Analysing the Impact of SEO and CRO Integration

You can measure and analyse the impact of integrating SEO and CRO by using various analytics tools and tracking key metrics such as organic traffic, conversion rate, and user engagement.

Here’s how you can effectively measure the impact of SEO and CRO integration:

Use Google Analytics to track organic traffic

By monitoring the organic traffic to your website, you can determine how well your SEO efforts are driving visitors to your site. An increase in organic traffic indicates that your SEO strategies are effective.

This is the first step as driving traffic to your website will generate enough insights of how the visitors are engaging with your content.

Track conversion rate

Conversion rate is a crucial metric that tells you how many visitors are taking the desired action on your website, such as making a purchase or filling out a form. By monitoring changes in conversion rate after implementing SEO and CRO strategies, you can gauge the effectiveness of your strategy.

Sometimes, one topic is great for generating traffic but does not convert. Leverage those pages to test different CTAs (Call to action), sometimes a visitor is not ready to buy but is willing to sign-up for a newsletter. (You can also use this traffic to create a remarketing campaign to this specific audience.)

Analyse user engagement metrics

Metrics like engagement rate, time on site, and page views per session provide insights into how engaged users are with your website. By analysing these metrics and comparing them before and after integrating SEO and CRO, you can assess the impact on user engagement.

Conduct A/B tests

This is really important and allows you to compare two versions of a webpage to determine which one performs better in terms of conversion rate. By conducting A/B tests before and after integrating SEO and CRO, you can quantify the impact on conversion optimisation.

Conclusion

In conclusion, integrating SEO and CRO is crucial for maximising results. By combining these two strategies, you can optimise your website for both search engines and conversions, leading to increased traffic and improved user experience.

Utilising tools and techniques such as keyword research, A/B testing, and user behaviour analysis will help you achieve success in your SEO and CRO integration efforts.

Most importantly, measuring and analysing the impact of this integration through data-driven insights will allow you to make informed decisions and continuously improve your website’s performance.

If you want to know more about how we can help your business increase its online presence and drive more conversions, get in touch to request a strategy call.

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Max Oliveira
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How to Integrate Generative AI into Your SEO Strategy

I’ve been testing a very interesting – and rather popular- set of tools that can revolutionise your SEO strategy: generative AI. If you are not living under a rock, you’ve probably heard of Chat-GPT, Bard and a few other AI solutions.

These tools are evolving fast and getting better in a fantastic pace, and I believe that now is a great moment to start understanding how to integrate these solutions into your marketing strategies, more specificaly on content creation…

With its ability to effortlessly produce cheap and fast content on any topic, it’s tempting to rely solely on AI-generated content as the competition will get harder due to the high-volume of new content being generated.

However, Google has a different agenda. They prioritise user needs and value real-life experience over extensive knowledge. So to make most of it, we can use generative AI as intelligent assistants in the content creation process.

In this article, I’ll show you how to strategically integrate generative AI into your SEO strategy for long-term success.

Key Takeaways

– Relying too heavily on generative AI can lead to low-value approaches.
– Leveraging both AI and human input can create high-quality content.
– Original content boosts SEO rankings and attracts organic traffic.
– Generative AI saves time and effort in generating high-quality content.

Risks of AI generated content

If you rely too heavily on generative AI for content production, you risk creating low-value approaches that may generate temporary wins but won’t succeed in the long term. AI for SEO can be a powerful tool, but it’s important to understand its limitations.

Midjourney – Max Oliveira

While AI can help with tasks like ideation, research, content drafting, editing, proofing, and even SEO optimisation, it lacks real experience and human expertise. Falling into the trap of relying solely on AI-generated content can lead to shallow, unoriginal articles that don’t provide long-lasting value to readers.

Instead, it’s best to use AI tools as intelligent assistants, complementing human creativity and expertise. By leveraging the strengths of both AI and human input, you can create high-quality content that resonates with your audience and stands the test of time.

The importance of original content for SEO

Original content plays a crucial role in boosting SEO rankings and attracting organic traffic to your website. It is the foundation upon which successful SEO strategies are built.

Unsplash – Kaitlyn Baker (@kaitlynbaker)

When it comes to creating content, there are no shortcuts. While generative AI tools may seem like a convenient solution, they cannot replicate the value and authenticity of original content.

Here are three reasons why original content is essential for SEO success:

  • Authenticity: Original content showcases your expertise and unique perspective, establishing trust and credibility with your audience.
  • Uniqueness: Original content sets you apart from your competitors, helping you stand out in search engine results.
  • Relevance: Original content allows you to tailor your messaging to your target audience, ensuring that your website appears in relevant searches.

Now that we understand the importance of original content, let’s explore why you should consider adopting generative AI in your SEO strategy.

Why should you adopt generative AI

There are several compelling reasons to incorporate generative AI into my approach for enhancing search engine optimisation.

Unsplash | Alex Knight – @agk42

Firstly, generative AI tools can save me a significant amount of time and effort in generating high-quality content. With AI assistance, I can quickly come up with new ideas, conduct thorough research, draft engaging articles, and even optimise them for SEO.

Secondly, generative AI can help me address the demands of search engine algorithms. By analysing large sets of data and staying up to date with the latest SEO trends, AI tools can guide me in creating content that aligns with what Google wants and pre-defined frameworks.

This ensures that my website remains relevant and visible to users, ultimately driving more organic traffic and improving my search engine rankings.

What Google wants

Google clearly outlines its expectations for creating helpful and reliable content that prioritises the user experience. As a content creator, it is crucial to understand what Google wants and align our strategies accordingly.

Unsplash – Nathana Rebouças

Here are three key things that Google emphasises:

  • Relevance: Google wants content that is relevant to the user’s search intent. This means understanding the user’s needs and providing tailored information that directly addresses their queries.
  • Quality: Google values high-quality content that is accurate, well-researched, and provides valuable insights. It’s important to focus on creating content that is trustworthy and authoritative.
  • User Experience: Google wants content that is easy to navigate, mobile-friendly, and provides a seamless user experience. This includes fast loading times, clear formatting, and engaging visuals.

Tasks where generative AI can be helpful

When using generative AI tools, you can rely on them to assist with tasks such as ideation, research, content drafting, editing, proofing, and optimising for SEO. These tools offer a convenient way to generate ideas and gather information quickly.

DALL·E 3 – Max Oliveira

They can also help in drafting content by providing suggestions and generating paragraphs. When it comes to editing and proofing, generative AI tools can spot grammatical errors and offer alternative phrasing. Additionally, they can assist in optimising content for SEO by suggesting relevant keywords and analysing the readability of the text.

However, it’s important to remember that while these tools can be helpful, they should be used as an assistant rather than a complete solution. It’s still essential to apply human judgement and expertise to ensure the quality and value of the content.

Conclusion

In conclusion,I believe that integrating generative AI into your SEO strategy can be a useful tool in content creation, but it should not be relied upon solely. While AI tools can provide extensive knowledge, they lack real-life experience and may produce low-value content.

To ensure long-term success in SEO, it is important to prioritise original and user-centric content. By using generative AI as intelligent assistants, we can leverage their capabilities while maintaining a strategic mindset. Remember, AI is a tool and not a strategy.

Ultimately, creating valuable content that meets the needs of users should be the primary focus.

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Max Oliveira
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Latest Google Core Update – What do you need to know

Google Search algorithms had anoter major update in October 2023.
Watch this video to understand how this will affect your website and to know what to do about it.

Google has once again adjusted the landscape of SEO with their latest October Core Update.

If you’ve been wondering why some websites are experiencing shifts in their rankings, we’ve got the breakdown for you:

🔍 What Happened?
Google rolled out two major adjustments affecting how websites are ranked. Depending on various factors, some sites might see a dip in their rankings, while others could experience a boost.

📌 Details of the Updates:

Spam Update: This specifically targets and penalizes content that Google deems “spammy.” It’s all about ensuring a clean, valuable user experience.

Core Update: A broader and more intricate evaluation of your website’s content. This isn’t just about one aspect or another; it’s a comprehensive look at the entirety of what your site offers.

🔑 Key Take-Aways: The ongoing changes emphasize the undeniable importance of a robust, long-term SEO strategy. Reacting to the updates isn’t enough; it’s about proactively ensuring your content is consistently helpful, unique, and tailored to your audience.

Need a deeper understanding or want to evaluate where your site stands? Request an SEO Audit to get a clearer picture.

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Max Oliveira
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How AI is changing the SEO Landscape

The internet as we know is undergoing a monumental transformation, and digital marketing professionals need to adapt to keep pace.

When it comes to search marketing, Google has long reigned as the undisputed king. However, emerging players like Bing and innovative technologies are now challenging this once-unshakable position.

Recent studies suggest that younger generations are increasingly turning to social media channels like TikTok and Instagram as their go-to search platforms. Recently, OpenAI’s Chat-GPT has been steadily gaining traction, taking a notable share of online searches away from Google.

This shift indicates that we may be witnessing the early stages of a major shake-up in the search engine arena.

This week, the stock market sent a clear signal regarding the potential for change, as Alphabet’s stock dropped by 4% following Samsung’s consideration of Bing as the default search engine on its smartphones.

 

 

While Chat-GPT still has some way to go before it gains the trust of users and consistently provides accurate, up-to-date information, its rapid growth trajectory cannot be ignored.

As the digital marketing landscape continues to evolve, it is crucial for industry professionals to stay informed and adapt to the emergence of new technologies and competitors.

With these developments, Google’s long-standing dominance in the search market may be tested like never before, paving the way for an exciting and innovative future.

With all these changes, it is crucial to stay informed and adapt to the emergence of new technologies and competitors. I personally believe that this dynamic landscape presents both challenges and exciting opportunities, as we witness a potential revolution in the search engine arena.

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Max Oliveira

5 SEO Tips for Ecommerce brands

SEO tips for Ecommerce

If you’re an eCommerce business, then you know that online visibility is key to your success. You may be wondering how you can improve your site’s SEO and start showing up on search engines. Luckily, there are a few things you can do to boost your rankings and bring more visitors to your online store. In this post, we’ll outline some of the best tips for improving your eCommerce SEO results. Keep reading to learn more!

Ecommerce SEO strategy

SEO is a critical component of any eCommerce business’s success. After all, if potential customers can’t find your site, they can’t purchase your products, and SEO is especially important for brands that are still building awareness or just don’t have the budgets to compete on paid search.

There are a few SEO strategies that are particularly important for eCommerce businesses. Here are some tips to help you start to get on track:

 

1. Make sure your eCommerce website is mobile-friendly

If you’re an eCommerce business, then making sure your website is mobile-friendly should be one of your top priorities. According to recent studies, as many as 60% of all online traffic now comes from mobile devices, so if your website isn’t optimized for mobile users, you’re missing out on a lot of potential customers.

There are a few things you can do to make your website more mobile-friendly. First, make sure all of your content is readable on mobile devices. This includes making sure the text is big enough and that there are no awkward layouts that will be hard to navigate on a small screen. You should also use a responsive design for your website, which will automatically adjust the layout depending on the device the user is using.

Loading speed matters for search engines and visitors

Another important thing to consider is your website’s loading speed. Mobile users are notoriously impatient, so if your website takes too long to load, they’re likely to leave before they even have a chance to see what you’re selling. Make sure you optimize your images and reduce the size of any files that are slowing down your page.

Finally, make sure your website is easy to navigate on a mobile device. Place important links in an easily accessible location, and avoid using too many pop-ups or ads that will take up valuable screen space.

 

If you follow these tips, you’ll be well on your way to creating a mobile-friendly eCommerce website that will attract more customers and boost your sales.

2. Keyword-rich titles and descriptions for your products

When it comes to product marketing, one of the most important things you can do is keyword research. Keyword research helps you to understand what terms customers are using to search for products like yours, and how often they are searching for them.

You can use this information to optimise your product titles and descriptions, making it more likely that potential customers will find your products when they are looking for them.

Although page titles and meta descriptions are not a ranking factor, proving accurate information with relevant keywords will increase your click-through rates and reduce the chances of having your content changed when displayed on search results.

In addition, keyword research can also help you to understand what features and benefits are most important to potential customers, allowing you to focus your marketing efforts on those features. By taking the time to do keyword research, you can make sure that your products are more visible to potential customers, leading to increased sales.

Product Descriptions

When customers are looking for a product online, they want to know as much about it as possible before they make a purchase. This is why product descriptions are so important – they provide potential customers with the information they need to make an informed decision. Unfortunately, many online retailers overlook the importance of accurate and comprehensive product descriptions, resulting in poor SEO performance.

Product descriptions are one of the main factors that search engines use to determine whether an e-commerce website is relevant to a customer’s search query. In other words, if your product descriptions are inaccurate or incomplete, your website is less likely to show up in search results. Furthermore, customers are more likely to bounce from your website if they can’t find the information they’re looking for.

This example from Nike showcases a good example of how to write an effective product description that does not include target keywords such as racing shoes but also is written to elicit emotions from the visitors.

This means that not only will you lose potential customers, but your website’s ranking will suffer as well. To ensure that your online store is performing as well as it should be, be sure to include accurate and comprehensive product descriptions. Your customers will thank you for it.

 

3. Generate high-quality backlinks from reputable websites

Backlink generation is an SEO strategy that eCommerce businesses can use to increase their website’s authority. One way of generating backlinks involves finding high-quality websites in your industry that are relevant to your business and then reaching out to those websites to ask if they would be interested in linking to your content.

One of the most important things to keep in mind when generating backlinks is that you only want to approach websites that are high-quality and relevant to your business. If you reach out to low-quality websites or websites that are not relevant, you’re likely to get a negative response and could even damage your website’s SEO ranking.

When reaching out to potential backlink partners, it’s important to be professional and courteous. You should explain why you think their website would be a good fit for a backlink, and how their visitors can benefit from the value extracted from your content, which reinforces the importance of creating high-quality content to generate results.

If you’re successful in generating backlinks, it can have a significant impact on your website’s organic traffic. Not only will your website rank higher in search engine results pages (SERPs), but you’ll also see an increase in referral traffic from other websites.

 

4. Optimise your images for Google search

Product images are an essential element of any eCommerce website- they help potential customers to visualise the items that they are interested in buying, and can be a major factor in whether or not they decide to make a purchase.

However, images can also play an important role in your website’s search engine optimization (SEO). By optimising your images for Google search, you can improve your chances of appearing in the top results for relevant keywords, and drive more traffic to your site.

Make sure to get professionally taken pictures that showcases your product in detail. Think about which of the pictures below you fell more compelled to click on the search result.

There are a number of things that you can do to optimise your images for SEO, including using descriptive filenames and alt text, making sure that you have as many high-quality images as possible for each product and ensuring that images are the right size and format.

 

By taking these steps, you can ensure that your images are working hard for you, and help to boost your e-commerce SEO results.

5. Add customer reviews to your product pages

As an online shopper, have you ever been to a product page without any customer reviews? Were you more likely to buy the product? Probably not. customer reviews are important because they give shoppers an idea of what others have thought about the product, and whether or not it’s worth buying. In fact, customer reviews can be so powerful that they can actually improve conversions on product pages.

A study by ComScore found that customer reviews can have a significant impact on conversion rates. In the study, they looked at customer reviews on two different sites: one with customer reviews and one without. They found that the site with customer reviews had a conversion rate that was 12% higher than the site without customer reviews.

Great customer reviews can also increase your revenue – “Consumers Willing to Pay at Least 20 Percent More for 5-Star Service than 4-Star Service”

The power of customer reviews is clear. If you’re looking to improve conversions on your product pages, adding customer reviews is a great place to start. Not only will it give your audience more information about the product, but it will also show them that others have had positive experiences with the product – which can be enough to convince them to make a purchase.

 

Bonus Tip: Offer free shipping on orders over a certain amount

 

Although this is not an SEO tip, offering free shipping is one of the best ways to increase sales for an online business. By offering free shipping on orders over a certain amount, businesses can encourage customers to spend more money on their products.

Additionally, free shipping can draw new customers to try out a brand’s products. In today’s competitive market, free shipping is one of the most effective ways to stand out from the crowd and increase sales. By offering this perk, businesses can attract new customers and boost their bottom line.

So, what are you waiting for? Start improving your SEO results and watch your eCommerce business grow. Need help getting started? Our team of experts can guide you through the process and make sure that your site is primed to rank high in search engine results pages (SERPs). Contact us today to get started!

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Max Oliveira

10 Digital Marketing Trends this Year and Beyond

Marketing is always evolving. As new technologies develop and consumers change the way they behave, businesses need to adapt their marketing strategies accordingly. So what are the latest trends in digital marketing? And where is it all heading? Here’s a look at 10 trends that are likely to dominate in 2023 and beyond.

 

1. Using short-form, vertical videos

In a world where attention spans are getting shorter and shorter, using short-form, vertical videos is a great way to capture your audience’s attention.

Short videos are great for businesses because they are easy to produce, and they capture the viewer’s attention quickly. They are perfect for social media platforms like Tik Tok, Instagram Reels and Youtube Shorts, where people are scrolling through their feeds quickly. All these platforms are heavily invested in this format and they have large audiences that can help you promote your business.

The disadvantages of short videos are that they can be difficult to produce well, with a short life span, and they may not be as effective at telling a story or promoting a product or service.

So keep in mind that’s important also to create some long-form video content to engage with your audience.

 

2. Cookie-less marketing and working with first-party data

With the passage of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in Europe, cookie-less marketing is becoming more and more common. This means that companies can no longer track users’ browsing habits without their consent. Instead, they need to work with first-party data (information that users provide willingly) to create targeted ads.

Cookie-less marketing is a term for marketing that does not rely on cookies to track user behaviour. It instead relies on first-party data, which is data that is collected by the company itself rather than by a third party. This data can be used to target ads and track conversions, among other things.

A few reasons why marketers should care about cookie-less marketing.

First, using first-party data allows you to target ads more accurately, as it is data that you have directly collected from your customers.

Second, using first-party data can help you to better track the effectiveness of your marketing campaigns, as you will have information on how customers interacted with your ads and what conversions resulted from them.

Third, using first-party data can help you to improve your customer retention rates, as you will have information on what products or services your customers are most interested in. Finally, using first-party data can help you to build a more detailed profile of your customers, which can be used to create more effective targeted ads.

There are several ways that you can get started with cookie-less marketing and working with first-party data for your business. One way is to collect data directly from your customers through surveys or questionnaires. You can also use tracking tools such as Google Analytics to collect information on how customers interact with your website. Finally, you can use social media platforms such as Facebook to collect information on the interests of your customers.

Using first-party data to understand your audience’s interests will help you to create better content and generate more value for your leads and customers.

 

3. AI content-writing tools

As artificial intelligence (AI) becomes more sophisticated, we can expect to see more AI content-writing tools being used in marketing campaigns. These tools can help businesses create high-quality content quickly and easily.

As businesses strive to create better content, artificial intelligence (AI) content-generated tools are becoming a more popular trend. Tools such as Jasper can help businesses to quickly and easily create high-quality content that is both effective and engaging.

Jasper is a platform that uses AI to help you create better email subjects, Ads headlines and social media captions. This can be a huge time-saver for businesses that need to produce content fast without writer’s block.

While these tools represent just a small sample of the AI content generation tools available, they provide a good overview of the benefits they can offer businesses.

By automating the process of creating quality content, these tools can help businesses to save time and money while still delivering great results.

 

4. Ethical marketing

As consumers become more aware of how their data is being used, they are also becoming more interested in ethical marketing practices. This means that businesses will need to be transparent about how they collect and use data, and they will need to make sure that their ads are truthful and accurate.

Ethical marketing is not only the right thing to do, but it’s also good for business. Consumers are more likely to do business with companies that they trust, and trust is built on transparency and honesty. Ethical marketing is the future of marketing, and businesses that don’t adapt are risking losing their brand’s reputation.

 

5. Marketing in the metaverse

VR and AR are two technologies that are slowly but surely gaining traction in the marketing world. These technologies can be used to create immersive, interactive experiences for consumers. And as VR and AR become more common, we can expect to see more businesses using them to promote their products and services.

With the evolution of virtual reality (VR) headsets like Oculus Rift and HTC Vive Pro and the investment of $10 billion from Facebook which rebranded to Meta last year, it’s evident that marketing in the metaverse is inevitable in the coming years.

With this promising new possibility, we can expect to see more brands using VR to create immersive experiences for their customers. This could include anything from product demos to full-blown advertisements and gamified experiences to deliver a better customer experience.

To address concerns of safety on transactions within the metaverse, with the rise of blockchain technology, we can expect to see more businesses using it to create transparent and secure advertising and marketing campaigns. Blockchain can be used to track data, ensure accuracy, and prevent fraud.

 

6. Micro and nano influencers

In recent years, we have seen a rise in the popularity of micro and nano influencers. These are individuals who have a relatively small but highly engaged following on social media.

Because they have such a loyal following, micro and nano influencers can be an effective way to reach your target audience when it comes to addressing a specific niche.

With the rise of micro and nano influencers brands have the possibility to test multiple audiences instantly and invest in creating genuine relationships transforming influencers into ambassadors.

 

7. Customer-centric & E-A-T-focused Marketing

As customers become savvier, businesses will need to focus more on customer experience (CX).

Medium shot young people with reviews

This means creating ads and content that are relevant and engaging without forgetting to provide excellent customer service.

Additionally, there’s another push from Google in relation to best practices, and businesses will need to make sure that their website meets Google’s guidelines for eCommerce websites (known as E-A-T).

E-A-T marketing is a term used in Google’s search quality guidelines. It stands for “Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness.” In order to rank well in Google, your website must have high E-A-T.

Google looks at a number of factors when assessing E-A-T, including:

  • The quality of your content.
  • The expertise of your authors.
  • The trustworthiness of your website.
  • The authority of your website.

Following these guidelines will rapidly become a common practice among businesses and brands that want to stay relevant in the future online landscape.

 

8. TikTok Marketing

TikTok offers brands a unique opportunity to reach a highly engaged and targeted audience. The app is most popular among Gen Z and Millenials, making it a great platform for promoting products and services.

TikTok’s focus on short videos makes it a particularly effective tool for engaging users and prompting them to take action.

Additionally, the app’s interactive features allow brands to create dynamic content that engages users on a deeper level with a high potential for virality. Overall, TikTok offers brands a versatile and powerful tool for reaching and engaging new young consumers.

 

9. Text to Image — creating graphics using AI

AI Text-to-image is a fascinating application of artificial intelligence that can generate images from scratch based on a text description. This technology has a wide range of potential applications, from helping artists create digital art to providing a new way for people to communicate.

 

No alternative text description for this image

Image created on Midjourney by Gabriel Alvarado

DALL.E or Midjourney are new AI tools that allow you to create graphics quickly and easily using only your text commands. This tool could be useful for businesses that want to create engaging visuals for testing idea concepts or even using them on their social media accounts or website.

Test your AI image generation creative skills with this free tool: Craiyon

 

And last but not least…

10. Search Engine Marketing:

SEM and SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) remain important, especially with the latest Google updates that reduce indexing of low-quality content making it harder for brands to show up on search results.

Businessman hand touching to search icon bar for seo or search engine optimisation of marketing survey concept by 3d render illustration

Another important aspect that needs to improve is the adoption of mobile-friendly websites and the observation of technical aspects that can impact site speed and user experience. Performing recurring SEO audits will become more necessary to make sure everything is working as it should from a technical standpoint.

Content is still relevant, so make sure to create relevant content including the use of multiple media formats such as text, images and videos to stay relevant and get results from your marketing campaigns.

 

These are just some of the marketing trends that will still be relevant in the near future. What do you think? Which of these trends is your business going to focus on? Are there any other trends we missed that you believe will take off in the next few years? Let me know in the comments.

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Max Oliveira
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How to use search to leverage your business online presence and increase results

Why does search matter?

Search Engine Marketing can be pivotal to overcoming your competitors and making your business succeed in a highly competitive market. Read this article to discover why search matters.

As a business owner, you know that it’s important to stay ahead of the competition, but how can you do that when your industry is constantly evolving?

One way is to make sure your company is visible online, and one of the best ways to achieve that visibility is through search engine optimization (SEO).

By improving your website’s ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs), you can attract more potential customers and outrank your competitors. And that’s why search matters a lot in a competitive market.

 

Building a strong online presence

We have never been so connected and with so much information available in the palm of our hands. We are literally just one search away from any question, and using Google or other search engines is a daily habit for most of us.

That’s why businesses need to have a strong online presence. When people are looking for a product or service, they turn to the internet for information. And when they’re ready to buy, they go straight to Google or another search engine to find the best deal.

Can you imagine how many people are searching for your services right now? That’s where your company needs to be visible – at the top of the SERPs.

 

How to improve your business’s online presence?

One of the main digital marketing strategies to improve your online presence is to invest in SEO. Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of getting your website to rank higher in search results.

 

Search Engine Optimisation is a crucial part of any online marketing strategy, and it can be the difference between success and failure in a competitive market.

 

Technical Optimisation vs Content Creation

The technical aspects of your website are the most visible, but they’re not the only ones that matter. From the technical perspective, you want to make sure your website code is clean and loading fast for an improved user experience. It’s important to make sure your website sitemap is accessible to search engines and that your pages allow crawl and indexation.

Your site’s content is also extremely important for two reasons:

First, it needs to be helpful and relevant to your customers that are in the early stages of the buying journey. Think that they usually have a problem that they want to solve but they are still not aware of the solution.

 

For example, someone might come to your site because they are looking for information on how to fix a broken sink. They might not even know that there is such a thing as a plumber, but they will be looking for helpful content that will teach them what they need to do.

 

If your content is not relevant or helpful, you will quickly lose that customer. However, if your content is relevant and helpful, you have a much better chance of converting that customer into a lead or even a sale.

The second reason why content is so important is that it is the best way to improve your website’s relevance to search engines. If you provide valuable content for your visitors, the algorithm will identify it and reward your website, improving your rankings and generating more traffic to your website.

 

Why do people research online before buying?

There are many reasons why people conduct research online before making a purchase. The most common reason is that they want to be sure they are getting the best possible deal on the product or service they are interested in. They may also be looking for more information about a product or service before making a decision, or they may be trying to compare different options. Whatever the reason, it is important to have high-quality content on your website that will address the needs of these potential customers in all buying stages.

If you can provide helpful, relevant information to these visitors, you are more likely to convert them into leads or sales. However, if your content is not relevant or helpful, you will quickly lose your online authority. Therefore, it is important to understand why people research online before making a purchase and create content that meets their needs.

 

Understanding the Customer Behaviour

One of the key aspects of content marketing strategy is to understand how people behave and create a relevant strategic plan to cover all the possibilities when a potential customer is looking for a solution online.

Identifying relevant queries that your potential customers are most likely to use and including them in your content is critical to success. You can use a number of methods to research relevant queries, including:

 

  • Using Google Ads Keyword Planner;
  • Checking out what topics are being discussed on relevant forums such as Quora or Reddit;
  • Review competitor websites to see what keywords and phrases they are targeting.

 

And most importantly, understanding who your customer is by creating target personas will allow you to understand and identify what are their pain points, search intent and buying behaviour for an effective user journey.

Expanding your reach beyond your website

It’s not enough to just have a website anymore. In order to be successful, you need to make sure your content is seen by as many people as possible. This means expanding your reach beyond your website and into other areas where your potential customers are spending their time.

Some of the most common places to expand your reach include:

  • Social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn;
  • Video platforms, such as Youtube, TikTok and Instagram;
  • Industry-specific forums and discussion boards;
  • Guest blogging on other websites in your industry.

By expanding your reach, you will be able to attract more potential customers to your website and increase your chances of generating leads and sales.

 

Video Content

Although we have mentioned video platforms in the paragraph above, video content deserves a deeper look as it is one of the most effective ways to improve your content strategy.

It is estimated that by the end of 2022, 82% of all internet traffic will be video traffic. This surge in popularity is due to a number of factors, including the fact that people are more likely to engage with and remember information that they see in a video format.

In addition, video content is extremely versatile and can be used in a number of different ways.

 

For example, you could create a product demonstration video, an informative “how-to” video, or even a customer testimonial video.

 

No matter what type of video you create, it is important to make sure that it is engaging and provides value to your potential customers. If you can do this, you will be able to attract more visitors to your website and improve your chances of generating leads and sales.

Key Takeaways

If you want to be successful in today’s competitive market, it is important to understand why search matters. People research online before making a purchase in order to find the best product or service to meet their needs.

To be successful, you need to create high-quality content that is relevant and helpful to potential customers. You also need to expand your reach beyond your website by promoting your content on social media, video platforms, and other websites.

By following these tips, you can improve your content marketing strategy and attract more potential customers to your website.

 

 

If you have any questions or need help getting started, feel free to contact us. 

 

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Max Oliveira

SEO Insights | New2Business Event

seo-presentation

There are a number of ways to improve organic traffic to your website and it is important to focus on those that are most relevant to your business. By creating high-quality content, making your website user-friendly, and measuring and improving your results, you can attract more visitors and convert them into customers.

Read below some of the insights from the presentation given by Max Oliveira at the New2Business Network event in May.

Max Oliveira at New2Business Networking

Happy reading! 🙂

Define clear goals

When creating a strategy for improving organic traffic to your website, it is important to first identify and then set clear goals. Doing so will help ensure that everyone involved understands what needs to be accomplished and can work together to devise a plan that is realistic and achievable.

Define which pages you want to increase the number of visitors and what are the expected actions they should take.

 

Know your customer

Understanding who is your ideal customer will help you determine what type of content to create that will be the most relevant and useful to them. Once you know your target audience, you can then start creating content that appeals to them and addresses their needs.

Some questions you may want to ask yourself when trying to determine your ideal customer include:

  • What problems are they trying to solve?
  • What are their demographics?
  • What are their interests?
  • What needs do they have that your product or service can address?
  • Where do they tend to spend their time online?
  • Creating buyer personas can be a helpful exercise in this process as it can help you to more clearly visualize who your target customer is.

Focus on Experience

The competition for attention online is fierce and one of the best ways to set your website apart is by ensuring that visitors have a positive experience when they interact with it. This means creating a user-friendly design, easy to navigate pages and helpful and informative content.

It is also important to ensure that your website loads quickly and is mobile-friendly as more and more people are using their smartphones and tablets to access the internet.

 

Download our SEO e-Book for more tips on how to improve organic performance.

 

Define clear CTAs (Call to Action)

Make sure that it is clear what you want visitors to do when they come to your website. Do you want them to make a purchase? Subscribe to your newsletter? Download a white paper or e-book?

Whatever the goal may be, make sure that it is easy for visitors to take the desired action.

By creating a website that is enjoyable and easy to use, you’ll be more likely to keep visitors engaged and coming back for more.

Generate High-Quality Content

One of the most important aspects of improving organic traffic to your website is to generate high-quality content. This content should be well-written, informative, and relevant to your target audience.

It is also important to ensure that your website is updated regularly with fresh content to keep visitors coming back for more. A good way to do this is to create a blogging schedule and commit to publishing new articles on a regular basis.

In addition to written content, you can also create other types of content such as videos, infographics, and images to help break up the text and make your website more visually appealing.

By creating high-quality content, you’ll be more likely to attract organic traffic from search engines as well as social media users.

Measure and Improve

As with any marketing strategy, it is important to track the results of your efforts in order to determine what is working and what needs to be improved.

Some key metrics you may want to track include:

  • Number of visitors
  • Bounce rate
  • Time on site
  • Number of page views
  • Referral sources

All this information can be obtained by connecting your website to Google Analytics, Google Search Console and other solutions like Hotjat, which give you access to screen recordings and heatmaps of real interactions.

This will help you understand how people are interacting with your website and where there may be room for improvement. By constantly measuring and analyzing your results, you can make the necessary adjustments to improve your organic traffic over time.

Conclusion:

In order to improve organic traffic to your website, it is important to focus on the techniques that are most relevant to your business. By creating high-quality content, making your website user-friendly, and measuring and improving your results, you can attract more visitors and convert them into customers.

If you would like assistance in implementing these strategies or need an SEO audit of your website, our team at ZBRA is here to help. Just e-mail us at hello@zbramarketing.com for a FREE consultation.

 

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Max Oliveira

Why should you invest in Instagram Stories

How to use Instagram Stories to improve your Digital Marketing Performance

Instagram stories are best used to target followers who are in the middle of your sales funnel, rather than new users who are unfamiliar with your brand. Stories invite users who already follow you to view and engage with your content more consistently. Those who are already interested in your brand can be carried from the middle all the way to the bottom of your funnel through consistent and compelling story content.

You can post new stories daily or even multiple times per day. Because they disappear in 24 hours, stories don’t gum up your followers’ feeds the way that multiple standard social media posts shared on the same day would. It’s generally an acceptable marketing strategy for brands to post consistent and frequent stories for their followers to see throughout the day, increasing their exposure to your brand and encouraging interested prospects to swipe up and learn more.

When creating your social media stories, your content needs to be compelling enough that followers will watch to the end. Your audience will remember stories that evoke emotion or share important, easily digestible information.

You should also consider tactics that will make brief story segments valuable and memorable for your followers. Here are a few concrete ways to accomplish this.

Tips and Tricks Stories

Quick, easy-to-follow tips and tricks make great Instagram story content because they provide value to your followers. They’re also a seamless, natural opportunity for product placement, and they appeal to followers who are between the middle and bottom of your sales funnel. Customers can discover new ways to use your products or services, while prospects are presented with additional or more specific reasons to take the next step or make the purchase.

These types of stories are most effective when you use clear, simple messages and examples. Your followers are more likely to stay for quick and easy-to-digest information as opposed to text-heavy or overly-detailed story content. Understanding the concepts shared in the story shouldn’t require followers to take notes or bring in a lot of outside knowledge.

Lowe’s Home Improvement offers handy tips for their Instagram followers on many home and gardening topics. The story below introduces a new tool that people can use to help avoid under-or overwatering houseplants. Rather than focus too heavily on technical information, the story keys in on the visuals and keeps the message short and sweet. It’s not about explaining everything at this point, but rather just giving users a taste of information, letting them ultimately decide if they want to learn more.

Stories like this offer an opportunity to nurture a relationship and build trust with your followers because when executed correctly, they come across as honest and helpful.

Educational Stories

Sharing educational Instagram stories allows you to keep rewarding consumers with great content, while also providing an opportunity to keep them moving down the funnel.

With an educational story, you can teach something basic and broad about your industry or one that your clients or customers work in. To illustrate, you might create a 15-second story that shows people new industry-specific software that can make their job or an everyday task easier. An educational story can also offer a surprising statistic about your industry, followed by a brief explanation or call to action.

Educational stories also give you space to share how-to’s that feature your products or demonstrate your brand’s knowledge or mastery of your industry. Introducing a new concept or discussing a new trend in the industry can educate followers and bolster your credibility.

As with stories that share tips and tricks, educational story content should be quick, clear, and helpful. Remember, people don’t want to sit through a lecture! Keep your educational content interesting, applicable, and on-brand, as Drybar does in this story about styling holiday hair.

 

Pet food company Royal Canin took advantage of National Take Your Dog to Work Day to provide educational and fun content about dogs in the workplace.

In the story below, they don’t shove their product in people’s faces, but rather talk about related content that’s of interest to their target audience.

Royal Canin’s marketing is typically fine-tuned with a whited-out background and the use of bold red. However, in this story, they offer a much more authentic experience with their brand (though they do use red and white throughout).

Lifestyle or Brand Stories

Instagram stories are also a great place to share more general lifestyle and brand content with your followers. You could post stories that show behind-the-scenes footage from your business or photo shoots, or content that features lifestyle models or influencers using your products in their daily lives.

The key to effective lifestyle or branded story content is entertaining viewers. While tips and tricks and educational videos offer valuable information, lifestyle content can offer entertainment value. You don’t always have to feel compelled to teach. Lifestyle content provides this alternative.

Consider using techniques like humour, aspirational appeal, fictional characters, or personal stories. You can surprise your followers with relevant memes or jokes that they’ll want to tell their friends about. Give viewers a sneak peek at what your team is doing to prepare for an upcoming holiday season, sale, or launch. Depending on your brand’s journey, your followers may even like to see a story about your founder or the company’s growth and development.

Creating lifestyle stories that make your followers laugh, feel nostalgic, or connect with your brand and its values will help guide them to the bottom of your sales funnel.

Footwear company Allbirds has always maintained a strong brand image. They share stories content that simply reinforces the look, feeling, and connection of the brand with their consumers.

Specs and Dimensions for Instagram Stories

Instagram allows you to post story content in 15-second chunks that disappear after 24 hours. Users tap through the queue of stories from accounts they follow rather than scrolling through typical analogue-style posts. This difference in format is often advantageous to brands because users will see a series of only your stories as opposed to a singular post as they quickly scroll through their timeline.

The dimensions of Instagram stories are different from traditional posts or ads. Instead of the classic Instagram square, stories usually take up the entire smartphone screen. This means your story’s content should be 1080 pixels wide by 1920 pixels high, with an aspect ratio of 9:16. Keep these dimensions in mind when creating your content so your stories blend seamlessly into your audience’s story feed.

Stories serve a different purpose than traditional Instagram posts do, so you can’t simply recycle your standard Instagram posts as stories. Because of the temporary, casual nature of stories, followers generally expect to see story content that feels unedited, spontaneous, or intimate. When producing your stories, focus on capturing videos with a more natural aesthetic, as opposed to videos that appear heavily edited and highly styled. Save that content for your posts!

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Max Oliveira

5 Business Tips to Overcome the Pandemic

In addition to its impact on public health, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has caused a major economic shock. But it has also impacted especially small businesses in the UK. This is a short guide with some tips on how your business can adapt and overcome the main challenges of the pandemic.

1. Accept the reality and take action quickly

No one saw this pandemic coming and timing is crucial to make the best decisions. 

Emotions like anxiety and fear are completely normal, but as business owners, we cannot be paralyzed by those feelings.

Implement and update reports in order to gather all available data to support your decisions.

Map all your business expenses, review advertising campaigns and focus only on activities that directly support your business growth.

2. Connect with your customers

Clear communication is crucial to efficiently engage with your customers.

Let them know if you are still operating remotely and offer easy ways to connect with your team using shared calendars and video conference solutions like Zoom.

If you are not operating, keep your CRM updated and use your social media channels to send special offers for pre-orders using vouchers and gift cards.

[Bonus] Create remarketing campaigns to increase conversions and reduce cart abandonment.

3. Map new opportunities

Challenging times call for innovative actions.

Discover new ways to offer your products or services. The first step is to build your online presence with a professional website and using social media.

Keep your website updated and use GMB to list your business locally. Start a podcast or video series in your niche to engage with your audience, start offering online consulting or set up an eCommerce. 

[Bonus] If you are a restaurant, create experience packages delivering a special experience at home. For beauty services, sell online gift cards or consider starting your own line of self-care products.  

4. Cut costs wisely

Before you make cuts, run that through your financial projections.

Making cuts to reduce costs looks like an immediate good decision, although this could be detrimental in the long term, affecting business health.  

Every cut that you make is going to reduce your ability to generate revenue or keep your business going, which is not something you want to be doing right now. Use resources like the financial support offered by the government to help your business.

[Bonus] Traffic is cheaper than usual, use this time to invest in paid traffic to generate leads and grow your funnel.

5. Ask for help

Engage with people in online communities on LinkedIn or Facebook.

Asking for help as a small business owner or entrepreneur can sometimes make you feel vulnerable. However, it’s amazing what neighbours, friends, and strangers on social media will do when you simply and genuinely ask for help.

Don’t be afraid to share your thoughts or ask questions, either to find a new business partner or to validate an idea, there are a lot of professionals that are happy to help and to build true relationships.

If you don’t know where to start, send us a message at contact@zbramarketing.com  and we will be happy to help.

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