After a successful summer, we’re sending off our intern Amanda back to college and with a fresh set of skills. Amanda came in wanting to learn more about digital marketing and left with an entire summer of experiences with social media, marketing and even advertising under her belt.
Houzz took off as the Pinterest of the home improvement services industry and has now evolved into an online brochure of tips, articles, photos and worldwide directory of professionals. Due to their large number of daily active users, Houzz is an incredible tool for finding professional services near you. However, as with all service websites, mistakes can be made and opportunities may be missed. Continue reading to see 7 common Houzz mistakes we continuously see with Houzz Profiles and our recommendations on how to avoid them.
Even the most beautiful website imaginable won't be worth it if it's not bringing in business. For most companies, getting found by customers online really is paramount. So how can a business owner make sure that his or her site shows up when a customer does a search? Enter SEO (Search Engine Optimization) specialists. If you’re thinking about hiring a SEO specialist to increase your organic search reach, check if your web design and development team does it first. SEO Specialists are technically-inclined writers who know how to create (and spread) awesome content throughout the web. They also know a thing or two about search engines and keywords. However, most SEO gurus aren't masters of HTML, CSS, and Javascript. Is this a problem? It could be. Not knowing how to design a website can actually put an independent SEO specialist at a great disadvantage. Sure, they could use a DIY site builder instead of building it custom, but there are drawbacks there to consider. What really works is when the two disciplines of web design/development and SEO are implemented hand-in-hand. When a site is built from the ground up with search engine best practices in mind, and it has a ongoing content creation strategy in place, it has a better chance of getting found by customers and generating business. So if possible, try to keep your SEO and your web design and development all under one roof. Here are four key reasons why:
What is Instagram (IG)? For those of you who aren’t using it yet (hint: you probably should be), Instagram is a popular social media tool used for sharing photos and images. It can be linked to your Facebook account, which means double the exposure for posts. And it's not just for friends anymore. It's a way to share company art, promote products, leverage influencers, and build your brand's community. However, a lot of businesses use Instagram incorrectly. We see this all the time and it bugs the heck out of us! More than a few companies totally miss the point. Continue reading to make sure you're not committing any of these photo-sharing fails.
“Can I create my own website?” "Should I use that software I heard about on the radio?" “How hard could it possibly be?” "Maybe I can get my [insert younger relative] to do it?" People inevitably ask these questions when launching (or re-vamping) their business website. Sure you can use an online site builder --- but if you don't have a ton of time, don't have a marketing background, and don't have experience in design, functionality, and best practices --- you'll probably want to invest in a custom web site created by professionals.
(or how the two go hand-in-hand) We get a lot of questions from clients requesting help with SEO. Everyone wants their website to show up in the top position on Google for their chosen keywords. So how can this be achieved?
Today's consumer doesn't want to be bothered. They are on the do not call list, they use DVR to fast-forward through commercials, they don't open junk mail, they use ad-block on their browser. So how can businesses reach people?
We hear this all the time: “But my business is B2B. We don’t need to blog. We reach customers through word-of-mouth, tradeshows, and advertising in industry-specific publications.” That’s great and all, but your company should definitely still be blogging. Here are seven reasons why your company shouldn’t underestimate this powerful marketing tool.
