Month: November 2013

Your Northern Beaches SEO Campaign Can Begin Today.

If you have a website already designed, ideally you want people to easily find you.

There is really no point in having a website, if no one is able to locate it online. That is unless you are an extremely well know brand or business. And, like most businesses in the Northern Beaches, you do need this type of online exposure online!

This is where SEO can help. At Hopping Mad Designs we can turn your website into a powerful online marketing tool you always wanted it to be – we can rank your website on the first page of Google within 3-6 months of starting your SEO campaign. Simple as that – we really know what we are doing when it comes to ranking businesses in the Northern Beaches. Tradies, professionals, retail shops it doesn't matter. Just give us the opportunity and we will show you exactly how good we really are.

We will lift your online profile online for all locally based Northern Beaches keywords. PLUS if you are locally based but want to hit the wider Sydney market we can also help you attract this lager customer base.

A point to note here that will be crucial to the success of your Northern Beaches SEO strategy: you must work with a company that knows it’s SEO. Making any errors at this stage in whome you decide to engage can prove catastrophic for your business.

They must be able to show you work they have done in the past and on top of this, also show you their own SEO ranking for their website – if they cannot do this, then walk away! There are a lot of SEO scammers out there looking to take your money so all I can say is be warned!

WHY USE THE SEO TEAM AT HOPPING MAD DESIGNS FOR YOUR SEO CAMPAIGN?

Social Media Marketing

This is a huge area and most businesses I know in the Northern Beaches have little or no time to manage their social media marketing. Social platforms, like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram are great ways to reach a new audience and sell your product or service. Plus, social media activity around your business is going to help with your SEO ranking, if people are chatting, sharing or following you online.

This may seem like a huge task for a time poor, small business in the Northern Beaches, but  a Tweet a week, or a Facebook posting a day will prove invaluable to your business.

If this even sounds too hard, then leave it to the experts at Hopping Mad Designs. As well as managing your internet marketing, and SEO, we can also handle your social media side of things!

Web Content Creation

Online users search the internet to; find answers or solutions to problems they have or find products or services they need.  Your website MUST satisfy this online consumer, quickly and provide information that is sharp, snappy and very easy to read. Your websites content, whether in text, video or image format must hit the consumer ‘ right between the eyes’ and SELL SELL SELL your business. If it misses the mark, then you can kiss goodbye your potential new business.

Using a SEO and Web Content Company like Hopping Mad Designs will mean that your website will not only look fabulous, but will also SELL your message.

Google absolutely loves fresh, new interesting content, so if you can continually refine, update and tweak your web copy, you will see a massive BOOST in your SEO rankings.

We know what consumers in the Northern Beaches are looking for and have the in-house team of copy experts to make this happen.

Competitor Research and Analysis

If you are puzzled why you always see your competition on page 1 of Google for all the main keyword search terms, the answer is simple. They have obviously been working on their search engine optimisation.
As part of our SEO process, we examine your competitors online movements and will work out exactly what they have been doing to get such great rankings.
If you engage Hopping Mad Designs for your SEO marketing, you will be amazed at how quickly your rankings will start to improve. Over time, you will be matching your closest rivals online for all your main keywords. THIS WILL HAPPEN – THIS IS OUR GUARANTEE TO YOU!

On Page SEO Audit

Websites that are over 2 years old, need to have a full website audit. Sites this old, that have not been updated will probably NOT BE Google compliant and this will have an impact on how the web spiders are indexing the site and in turn how it affects the ranking.
Our Northern Beaches SEO experts will provide a full audit of your current website and make recommendations on ways to improve its performance and conversion rates.
This is going to have a massive impact on your SEO and with a few adjustments to your current website, you will see your rankings improve.

Back Links & SEO.

You MUST have back links from external websites to your website if it is going to rank. At Hopping Mad Designs we use industries best practices to provide 'white hat' back links from other sites that are relevant and highly ranked. Your back linking profile will be the best in the industry, so that once we get your website on page 1  – it will stay there forever – SAY GOODBYE TO RANKING FLUCTUATIONS.

How Much Should I Expect to Pay for my SEO?

This is a very good question and ultimately if you want to get the best results for your business online you have to pay accordingly.

Google over the past year have tightened their rules for ranking websites. This means we have to put a lot more time, effort and research into your business and website if it has any chance of ranking.

Many businesses in the Northern Beaches may be tempted by cheap SEO offerings but in my 18 years of SEO and website design experience, I have never seen a successful result, when costs become the main factor.
Saying this our SEO pricing is absolutely fair and very affordable – call us on 02 9360 8514 and I am sure you will be very impressed by what we can offer you.

Overall, our SEO strategy will give you a better return on your investment than other more traditional forms of advertising.

Oh NO…..I  have a website that is ranking well, but people are not buying from it and sales are very slow!

This happens all the time, so don't feel that your business is the only one suffering from this.
As part of of on going SEO committment to your business we will look at all main landing pages of your website (these are the ones that most people will go to) and look at ways of making sure that when a potential customer lands on the page…THEY WILL BUY FROM YOU. Known as Conversion Rate Optimisation, we make certain that once your site has achieved its desired ranking, buyers will, without any hesitation, make an inquiry or purchase from your site.

Why Hopping Mad Designs?

Simple!

> we will rank you main keywords quickly and once we do, we will make sure you stay there
> we are super focused on customer service and make sure that all emails and call are answered/replied to immediately.
> we take your business very seriously and will do everything that we possibly can to drive traffic to your website. We will make sure you know what is going on at all times and keep you updated on what we are doing.
> we are 100% Australian and we do all our work ourselves. No outsourcing or ofshoring with us – this means that we are totally and completely accountable for all our SEO work. If you have had a past BAD SEO experience and are finding it hard to choose or move forward with another agency please give us a call and see how we are different – I know you will hear this time and time again, with the same old lines, but seriously, try us out and see the massive difference we will make to your Google rankings. There are no contracts so you have got nothing to loose.

Want to turn your website into a powerful marketing machine – THEN YOU NEED SEO!!  CALL 02 9360 8514.

 

 

Statistics show that on average 68% of people will go through the entire site, just to abandon it at the end. Do they get cold feet? Have they got enough money? Are they unsure about product delivery or safety of the site?  There are so many questions that need to be addressed. If they haven’t the money, and they leave the site, then there is little you can do about this. But, as a website owner you MUST be able to control all shopping cart issues that are not money related.

For businesses looking to have that edge, they really need to be asking themselves what can they do to NOT be part of this terrible statistic. What can they do to their website to make sure that buyers stay on the site and continue right through the whole buying process.

Providing the best online user experience is the main critical factor that will determine whether buyers stay or leave your website.

One awesome way the user experience can be enhanced is through the implementation of autocomplete forms.

 

So, what are autocomplete forms?

Autocomplete forms are forms that enable customers to select predetermined values that are existing on the website – these might come in the form of price, quantity, colour or size choices. Basically, the users selects from a dropdown menu and with the simple click of a mouse they have made their choice. This has been around for years but the trend to make this process more streamlined and user friendly is growing.

This process may also be enhanced with the use of imagery or pictures to further sell the product once the pre-populated fields have been selected.

This process MUST be refined and made as simple as possible when one takes into account the mobile phone ecommerce market. Users on their phone need to be able to make a selection from an auto populated database and buy with one click.

This will have a massive reduction in potential buyers exiting your site.

 

Why should companies be implementing auto complete forms?

People hate filling out forms and if these are long complicated forms put in their face just before they are about to buy from you then this is a massive hurdle that needs to be eliminated. Plus these forms should remember the customer. If I have bought from your site is the past, there is no way I am going to fill out and register my details again. I want to be remembered and I only want to fill out forms that have pre-determined fields.

Just like a retail outlet I would expect the business to recognise or remember a repeat customer. Simple respect and courtesy online will have a huge impact on sales.

 

How can auto complete forms be implemented?

Speak to your web developer – they will know what to do. If you have an eCommerce online store then you will need the bare minimum of auto complete forms such as: name, phone number and email address. These details MUST be remembered in the system when you return to make another purchase.

The attraction of autocomplete forms is that it is a simple fix and can take a few moments to implement. Once done this will improve your conversion rate optimisation and overall sales at the check out process. Just try it out and see the results!

Know your readers well

Make certain that you are able to target your client base with a well designed Infographic. Understanding this target audience and designing specifically for them is the best way forward. If for example, you are designing a complex infographic to explain a real estate transaction, make sure that the graphics designed speak clearly to this market. No point designing something that people just don’t get.

Make Sure The Message and Content is Clear

The graphics must match the content and message – once you have worked out the intent of the inforgraphic, stay on this path and do not deviate. It will only confuse your readers.

Statistics Do Matter

If you have something important to say, back it up with proven and measurable statistics from reputable sources. Better still, go to the Australian Bureau of Statistics for a wealth of information – make sure that these are always referenced.

Remove Jargon and Over Worded Sentences

People want to get the information, make their decision/judgement and move on. Keep things simple within the infographic, especially complicated messages. These can be broken down through the effective creation on imagery – after all this is the whole point of the infographic. If you need help with the copy perhaps get a copy writer on board to assist in short, sharp sentences.

Storyboard it First

Use storyboards to create a hierarchy of the message and then implement the graphics only when you are totally happy with the process flows.

Does Your Market Understand It?

Show it to a few intended people before publishing it. If they get it and like it then go for it – if there are any points that need refining then this is the perfect time.

Where Can Infographics Go?

The application is limitless – basically anything print based or on the web.

At Hopping Mad Designs we have designed Infographics for businesses as well as Government Departments. In fact, the demand for this type of servcie is increasing.

 

If you want to get you message out there in a quick and very easy to understand way then call us on  02 9360 8514 and we can discuss how we can design up an infographic for your business.

There are really only 2 contributing factors when it comes to buying from an eCommerce website; the way the products are presented and the descriptions that sit along side these products. The potential buyer has to be enticed by the online shopping experience, and funnelled through this buying process to the check out.

Ideally, the consumer must feel that the experience has been worth it if they are ever going to come back to the website again. Any small hurdles or bumps in the road that hinder this process will result in a rise of what is termed shopping cart abandonment. This is killer for revenue and online sales.

I read in a recent article that there was an every increasing importance placed on the use of mobile phones, videos, sharing links, and social media when it comes to eCommerce transactions. If you, the web owner can start to become more actively involved in these platforms, them sales will naturally grow.

Putting all the above aside, I have also seen some examples that have blown my mind when it comes to the eCommerce shopping experience, and I feel that this is definitely the way of the future and the direction that online shopping will take.

So what is the future of eCommerce?

We have all become very accustomed to the use of video on ecommerce web sites, where people are providing testimonials about the product. But these new Sites are using a new Google tool called Hangouts, to create a virtual and very dynamic shopping experience – it’s quite amazing and its great to watch. Sort of like an interactive shopping channel that you see on TV – the only difference is that shoppers can join the site, login and participate via email, ask questions and have these addressed immediately.

These interactive sites are encouraging users to login and they even offer freebies and giveaways for this type of engagement. Think about it. Perhaps you have a great product and want to engage more with your client base – then this is the perfect way to do this.

At present, this is in its infancy stage, but I can see momentum growing in this arena. If conversion rates are high then this will become commonplace and the buzz will spread quickly. Over time, the way in which eCommerce websites are designed will have more of a focus on this interaction between the consumer and the online store owner – Watch this Space.

Simply put, the quicker a website performs and loads – the more clients and customers will navigate their way around the site; what is often termed as the website’s rate. The higher the rate, the better it is for everyone; especially the websites owner!

There a number of variables to consider as to why a website is not converting visitors into paying customers, but for the purpose of this blog, we can focus on website speed as a major factor in conversion rate optimisation.

 

GREAT WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR WEBSITES SPEED

Improve website speed and you will see immediate results. Reduce image size as an example and see the bounce rates drop down. Your Google analytics will show these improved results. Sign up to Google analytics and get your web developer to pop this into your site for you – simple enough to do and measure.

Remove heavy wordy content – pages after page of information with graphs can have a real impact on the sites speed and download times. Keep information relevant and to a minimum. People have little or no time to trawl over too much on page content.

Old third party software could be slowing down your website. Conduct a site audit and get rid of unnecessary databases of code that is no longer in use.

Are you hosting your website in Australia? Hosting companies and providers can have a massive influence over web speeds. It just might be time that you upgrade your web hosting package to include extra space – this can be a quick win for you and have a drastic impact over your websites speed. It may cost you a bit more but its overall affect is well worth the dollars spent!

Have a chat with your web developer and see if they have any ideas or ways to streamline your current site. In many cases it could be a minor fix or tweak – make that call and get it happening. A good web developer should be able to look at your site and make some immediate suggestions. In fact you can probably look at it yourself and come up with a few good ideas – essentially it's all about getting it to load quicker.

TIMINGS FOR WEBSITE SPEED

Certainly, nobody is going to stick around for 10 seconds waiting for a web page and certainly not a whole website as they trudge around trying to make a purchase with you.

Load times can vary based on the size of the website. But a good measure which Google tells us about is that a website speed should be less than three seconds to load. If it takes longer than that then you are going to see a massive bounce rate and online users dropping off the site.

I know that if I have to wait more than 2 seconds I start to get impatient. So all up a good guide is between 2- 3 seconds.

These figures are particularly important if you have a eCommerce website – you need people to make that purchase and slow inefficient sites are just going to hamper this process.

Statistics released by a credible IT magazine shows that for every extra second that a site needs to load, results in 13% of users dropping off. This percentage increases exponentially as load times increase

Speedy websites that are fast on the information and quick on the check out process will improve overall shopping cart abandonment rates.

Remember this – no one and I mean no one will stick around and wait for each page to download – this is a 100% guaranteed!

At Hopping Mad Designs we get calls for this all the time.

We have people calling us up and saying that their website is not loading fast enough and customers are deserting the website in big numbers. They have a great product or a really awesome service but people are not sticking around long enough.

More often that not this is a very quick fix and something that has an immediate impact – its amazing to see that with just a couple of site fixes how the whole web experience changes.

 Ideally, this should be a continual process – site speed is only one factor in the overall success of your website – content, images, site layout and about 100 other factors need to be taken into account.

If your wesite is not working and you want to improve your sites speed and overall conversion rates then please call us on 02 9360 8514. One call could make a huge difference.

Recent statistics show that many small businesses are using their blog as the perfect medium for content marketing. They are now getting their heads around the fact that blogs are easy to use and an inexpensive marketing tool.

Many small businesses are often lacking in time, money and resources for content marketing, but a recent survey has found that more and more small businesses are employing content creators and content marketing firms to handle this side of the business. They are more likely to be more proactive and hands on with this and social media than larger organisations.

The survey results shows us that 72% of small B2B businesses had a dedicated person in charge of the content marketing and content strategy as opposed to 54% of larger B2B businesses.

What Is The Main Challenge Facing Small Business in Content Marketing?

The biggest challenge facing many small businesses in Sydney and Australia is having a small budget for this. This is because it is a new marketing stream and simply put small business has never accounted for this. Mention content marketing to a business 2 years ago and they do not know what it means. Mention it today and there is a clear budget put aside for this.

Small business will spend on average 22% on their content marketing, whilst only 8% is spent by large business. Im sure that over the coming years things will shift towards bigger business spending more on their content strategy.

Larger businesses will have more time and resources to work with, but small businesses are doing more and investing more resources into their content marketing. The reason for this ( based on a survey conducted by the Aust. Bureau of Statistics) is that this for of marketing, is very affordable and very quick to implement. Plus the results are almost immediate. Larger companies with bigger budgets will invest in other marketing mediums that they are used to and that have proved effective in the past. Again, time will tell if there will be a shift to this new and easier marketing platform.

Want to know more about content marketing  – please call us here at Hopping Mad Designs.

1. Direct Traffic from Clients

Direct traffic usually means people are typing in your name into Google and going straight to your site. This is done for sites that are really well known and trusted. Our analytics shows that direct traffic has more of a higher conversion rate than any other traffic source. On top of this, users were staying on the site longer and going through less pages. Basically, they were there for one thing; to make a purchase. What a great place to be in! 

 

2. Have your Checked your Email Signature?

This was a massive shock. People will go from the emails you send them to your website. So, have a look at your email signature and make sure that it has your web address and social media icons. If you are like me and emailing all the time, then this is a powerful tool to funnel potential customers to your website.

 

3. Paid search (PPC)

No surprises here. Targeted paid advertising on Google, although frightfully expensive, WILL convert into sales. Like direct traffic, users are searching for something specifically and adwords will generate leads and hopefully future sales.

 

 4. Organic SEO

Organic SEO is in my opinion a MUST when it comes to your online marketing. However, it is sitting lower on the converter list due to the fact that your page might come up for non specific searches. To avoid this make sure that your targeted main landing pages are correctly optimised for the search engines; title tags, descriptions, content and website URL’s, must all line up properly if this is going to be a conversion winner. Make sure the web company you work with has a conversion rate optimisation strategy in place so that you can take full advantage of your SEO.

 Search will sit around the 4th biggest converter of traffic. Make sure your pages are properly tagged up including meta titles and descriptions. It is also a good idea to put price points (if they are competitive) in the page title to encourage a click through.

 

5. Customer Referral

Hard to believe but conversion from referrals is quite low. Perhaps they are expecting a better deal than you can offer because they have been referred by a client or friend. The trick here is to get as many referrals as you can.

 

 6. Affiliate Advertising

Affiliate advertising and remarketing does not convert well. Ads popping up when you are on other websites, I find annoying. There are much better ways to spend your money if you are looking at conversion.  Plus users are becoming immune to these types of ads and are basically ignoring them. They may click on it out of curiosity, but this is NOT a good way to drive sales.

 

If you want to know more about how to convert web browsers into customers call us on 02 9360 8514.