The term itself – ‘bounce rate’ – is something of a pun in that it refers to visitors ‘bouncing’ out of your site before they’ve had a chance to properly engage or interact with it.

The relationship between your bounce rate and SEO is an interesting one because search engines like Google don’t actually use it as a metric in determining page rankings – and yet, it affects your rankings nonetheless.

bounce rate for SEO

Bounce rate explained

The bounce rate refers to the percentage of visitors who navigate away from your site after viewing only one page. This means that upon landing on the initial page (whichever one the link led them to), they clicked out of your site before exploring any other pages.

On average, bounce rates can be as high as 60%. If your bounce rate is upwards of 70%, it’s best to review your landing pages to see if there are any underlying or obvious issues that might be turning potential customers away.

Reasons why your website may have a high bounce rate:

How does the bounce rate impact SEO?

Search engines like Google aren’t particularly concerned with your website’s bounce rate.

What they really care about is how many visitors are coming to your site and making purchases, booking appointments or interacting with it in some meaningful way. In other words, they’re interested in user engagement on your site.

If your bounce rate is low, it means that visitors who come to your site are sticking around to explore it further. This is what search engines take note of, and it’s why you should care about how high or low your bounce rate is.

As a general rule of thumb, having a low bounce rate indicates one of two things in most cases: that your site visitors did not find what they were looking for, or that your website is difficult to navigate.

Either way, a low bounce rate will not only hurt your SEO rankings but your conversion rate (whatever that may be for your business) as well.

Reduce your bounce rate and boost your SEO rankings

By identifying and updating any website pain points, you can work towards achieving a lower bounce rate, a higher ranking in search engine results pages and a better user experience for your site visitors.

Remember that your bounce rate is always subject to change. Keep an eye on it and create a content strategy and seamless user experience that will keep users engaged from the moment they click on your site.

Improve your bounce rate with Ven >

What is a meta description?

Meta descriptions are found in the search engine (e.g. Google or Yahoo) results in pages. They are the short descriptions displayed beneath each page link that describe the contents of your web page.

The length of a meta description is subject to change, as Google and other search engines continue to develop and change their algorithms. A good rule of thumb is to keep your meta description length at about 150-160 characters.

How to write an engaging meta description

Writing a meta description is like writing any of the content on your website. It needs to be interesting, easy to understand and of use to the reader.

If the user can find what they are looking for right there in your meta description, they’ll be much more likely to click through to your page, and you’ll be that much closer to converting a new lead.

Character count isn’t as important as you might think

Character count does matter, of course. However, it’s important for you to focus on the content of your meta description just as much as its length.

That being said, you don’t want your meta description to show an ellipsis (…) in the search engine results pages as this can lead to missed opportunities.

While your meta description is optimised for search engines, it is search engines that actually want your content to make sense to humans – which means they’ll take readability, as well as text length, into consideration when ranking your pages.

Incorporate keywords

Keywords should be integrated into all of the copy across your website, meta descriptions included. While incorporating keywords into your meta descriptions is an effective SEO tactic, be sure to avoid keyword-stuffing, which can make the content hard to read.

Make every meta description unique

No meta description should read the same as another. If you don’t want to be penalised by search engines, make sure that each of your meta descriptions is unique – no matter how similar the content might be to another page on your site.

Your content should be interesting and engaging

Having interesting and engaging content can help to drive users to your site. Though the meta description is brief, ensure that the information you include is accurate, relevant and useful.

A well-written meta description can entice users to your site

Crafting a captivating meta description is all about writing what the user wants to read. Remember to provide engaging content that will differentiate you in the sea of results, and ultimately entice new users to click through to your site.

Make your meta descriptions unique and interesting, and show potential visitors just what your business has to offer. Any effective SEO strategy takes time, but it’s never too late to begin. You can start now by creating the perfect meta description today.

Talk to Ven about meta descriptions and SEO >

Email marketing is a great way to engage with your customers

Electronic Direct Mail (EDM) refers to standalone emails and email marketing campaigns that seek to engage your subscribers and, depending on the specifics of the EDM, encourage them to take action.

Email marketing allows you to further engage with your customers through an additional touchpoint, and it’s a great way to drive sales. In 2022, email marketing is just as important as it always has been (if not more) as people move towards shopping and working online.

EDMs should contain the following:

When is the best day to send an email?

Tuesdays and Thursdays have the best open rates.

Tuesday has the highest email open rate of them all. However, it also has the highest unsubscribe rate. So while people are more inclined to open their emails pre-hump day, they are also quick to say sayonara to businesses that no longer benefit them.

To play it safe, we recommend sending your emails on Thursday instead. Open rates are still high and unsubscribe rates are lower. It’s a win-win!

What is the best time to send an email?

6AM. The early bird gets the worm.

The best time to send an email is at 6 AM, about the same time that the working world is waking up. Why? Because a lot of people working 9-5 will check their emails while they’re still in bed. Catch them while they’re fresh, and you’ll be more likely to have your email opened.

Other key times are between 9-10 AM, 2-3 PM and 8-10 PM. In the 9-10 AM period, you can catch subscribers at the beginning of their working day while they’re still open to engagement.

Don’t miss the post-lunch buzz at 2-3 PM where the focus tends to shift from work to personal, making it the perfect opportunity to capture the attention of your subscribers.

Between 8 PM and 10 PM, you can grab their attention once again as readers have more time and headspace for your business’ EDMs before bed.

Improving your email open rate

To make the most of email marketing in 2020, you need to understand how your subscribers think. What do they want to see/read/watch? Do they care about trending topics or do they prefer unique conversation?

Whatever their schtick, you need to align with it. Rework your subject line and preview text to be punchier and more captivating. Create relevant content that your audience wants to consume and personalise emails to make your readers feel heard.

Ready to begin your email marketing journey? Talk to Ven today >

What is UX?

UX stands for User Experience. In the virtual world, this refers to the way that user feels when they interact with your business online. Users can engage with your online business by accessing your website, software or any mobile applications.

Providing a clear and simple user experience will enable users to learn more about your business and find what they’re looking for – all in the same breath. If the experience they have is a positive one, a satisfied user will be more likely to visit again and become a new lead.

Why user experience matters

As a business owner, delivering a straightforward yet engaging user experience should be one of your top priorities. If it matters to your users – to the people visiting your website – then it should matter to you.

A positive user experience will have visitors to your site coming back for more, but a negative one? That will have those same visitors feeling dissatisfied enough to leave your site for good.

What makes for a good user experience?

1. Engage users for longer

With an engaging platform, users will be more likely to stick around and enjoy the simple, interactive process they experience. When your products, services, and general information are easy to find, your audience will dedicate more of their time to exploring your site.

2. Be recognised

Stand out from the crowd – and from your competitors – with a comprehensive and memorable user experience. By creating a design that’s both simple and unique, you will have the power to differentiate your brand and make it easily recognisable to users and search engines alike.

3. Increase leads

Bump up your conversion rate with a user experience that makes an impact. When users enjoy the experience of visiting your site, they will trust your brand and be more likely to invest in it. Capture leads and increases conversions by facilitating a positive user experience.

4. Clean and simple is cost-effective

A website design that is overly complicated will drive visitors away in droves. It will also mean a bigger budget spend on the initial website build.

An easy user experience, on the other hand, is simple and straightforward. Without all of the extravagant and unnecessary extras, it will make your website build a lot more cost-effective, too.

5. Keep users coming back for more

Delivering a positive user experience doesn’t always mean that you’ll capture a lead the first time a new user visits your website. However, what it does mean is that users are more likely to return to your site a second, third or fourth time because they enjoy the experience of visiting it.

User experience is about tapping into emotion

When you facilitate a positive user experience, you do so by eliciting emotion from your users. As visitors browse your site, they will experience certain emotions. As a business owner, your goal is to tap into those emotions in order to best promote your business.

A website build is a straightforward thing

When our clients first come on board, many of them don’t understand the process of building a website – so we break it down for them. We simplify the website building process by separating it out into smaller, simpler steps.

A new website build starts with a spark, and that spark comes from the client. Once you have the idea, we bring it to life. There are three main phases to a website build, under which are certain ‘substeps’. We explain in more detail below.

1. Conception

Step one: Conception. This is the very first phase of the website build, where the client (you) comes to us with their idea and we draw out a plan to make their concept a reality.

Proposal

The very first step of a website build is the initial consultation – one that should usually be free of charge and come without strings attached. This is a conversation where you can outline exactly what it is that you need, and we (your website builders) can figure out how best to help you.

Following the conversation, we will draw up a proposal for you (again, free of charge) that outlines pricing for your website build in its entirety, including design, development, functionality, user experience, and more.

Planning

Once you’ve giVen us the go-ahead, we get started on planning the project. During this stage, you sit tight while we outline what the expected timeline for the project might look like. We plan out each step, from design through to development and testing, and then we send it all through to you.

2. Creation

Step two: Creation. This phase is the one where we build your website and bring it to life. By the end of this phase, you will have a real, functioning website!

Design

Our design team takes your original idea and creates a customised look for your website. In order to do so, we use your web questionnaire (which you fill out during the planning phase) to get a better understanding of your business, what it is that you offer, and how we can best visually represent it.

During the design phase, you will have the opportunity to review the designs we draw up for you and make any requested changes (up to as many as 2 major redesigns) until the design has been approved.

Development

Upon your approval of the design, the development stage can begin! This is where our development team takes the approved design and turns it into a fully functioning website. There’s a lot of coding done during this time, and we fix any unexpected bugs as they come up.

Client review and approval

Before we move onto the final phase, we give you time to review the website as a whole and identify any changes that need to be made prior to launch. This also gives you the opportunity to upload your content if you are writing it yourself.

3. Completion

Step three: Completion. The final phase of your project is all about getting it live and making it available for your target audience.

Launch!

When you have completed your review and the approval process has been finalised, we move forward to the final step of your website build – the launch!

Launching your website means transitioning it over from a staging site (this is only visible to us – you and the agency you’re working with) to the live site, which is visible and accessible to everyone.

Ongoing maintenance

Once the website is up and running, the most important thing is to have an ongoing maintenance plan to cover any unexpected bumps that might pop up.

An ongoing maintenance plan will also allow you to update your website as necessary. Whether it’s fixing a bug, adding in a new feature or adjusting a function, we’ll be here to get it done for you.

Understanding the website process is easy

The website building process shouldn’t be a confusing one, and we hope that we’ve helped you to better understand it. As with anything, building a website starts with the spark of an idea and ends with having brought that idea to life.

Building a website is easy. We’ll help you do it >

Your SEO report gives an overview of how you are performing in the search engine results pages

Implementing a comprehensive SEO strategy across your site is step one. Step two is understanding your monthly SEO report when it comes through.

When you can understand your SEO report, you have a better understanding of the impact that your SEO strategy is having on your site.

Google Analytics Overview

Sessions

This indicates the total number of visitors to your site over a giVen period of time, like a day or a week or a month. All forms of website traffic including screen views, eVent bookings and eCommerce purchases are associated with a session.

New sessions

This indicates the number of sessions by new users. So whenever someone new visits your site for the first time, you’ll know about it!

Pages/sessions

Also referred to as average page depth, this refers to the average number of pages viewed during a single session.

For example, the user might have clicked from the Landing page to your Home page, clicked through to your About page and then left your site, viewing three pages throughout their session.

Bounce rate

This refers to the percentage of visitors who navigate away from your site after viewing only one page. An average bounce rate could be as high as 60%.

If your bounce rate is higher than that, it might be a good idea to check your website pain points for places to improve on user engagement.

Average session duration

The average session duration refers to the period of time that a user is actively engaged with your website. From the moment that they first click through until they leave, their visit is timed and recorded. This allows you to see how long users tend to stick around.

Goal completions

Goal completions refer to the total number of conversions that come from your site. Depending on what your business offers, these conversions could be things like sales, eVent reservations or appointment bookings.

Google Search Console (GSC) Overview

Total clicks

The number of total clicks shows exactly how many times a user has clicked through to your site from the search engine results pages.

Some of these clicks could account for the same user clicking through more than once, while others will be from separate users visiting your site on one-off occasions.

Total impressions

Total impressions refer to the number of times that your website has been displayed in the search engine page results, eVen if they don’t click through to your site.

Average Clickthrough Rate (CTR)

The Clickthrough Rate (CTR) refers to the number of people that come across your link in their search engine page results and actually end up clicking through to your website.

The average CTR is calculated by the percentage of impressions – remember, an impression is when a link to your site appears on a user’s search engine page results – that resulted in a click.

Average position

This represents the average ranking that your page sits at in the search engine. It is based on the highest position that your site has appeared at in any giVen search.

For example, your site might appear as the first link on page 1 of Google (1) or the 10th link on the 10th page of Google (100).

You are now an expert at understanding an SEO report

With all of this new knowledge in your basket, understanding your SEO report will be a breeze. Whether you need to break down session times or analyse impressions and CTRs, you will now have the know-how to get it done.

Get your FREE SEO report today with Ven >

Website not working for you?

An irregularly updated (or incorrectly built) website can result in an array of issues that lead to a negative user experience. When your website isn’t doing what it’s supposed to, both you and visitors to your site will suffer.

Whether it’s down to delayed loading times, an unclear layout, or content that isn’t useful (or all of the above!), there will be a reason why your website isn’t performing well. The good news is that we can help you identify why.

Slow speed

When pages take too long to load, the number of visitors to your site will drop off. Why? Because people don’t like waiting. When users are browsing their phones, they want fast, snappy responses to their searches.

If your website doesn’t serve up these answers quickly, your potential customers will move onto a site that does. The cause for slow loading times could be anything from large image files to a bug in the code or bad hosting.

Confusing navigation

Any site riddled with an overabundance of pages is confusing. When those pages prove too complicated to navigate across, you’ll be left with frustrated visitors who will likely not return to your site.

With too many links, people don’t know where they’re going, how they got there, or how to get back from whence they came. Website navigation should be clear and effortless, and users should be able to replicate their journey with ease.

Poor quality content

Is the content on your website useful? Is it interesting and engaging? Does it educate the user in a positive, beneficial way? If the answer is no, then you will need to take a good, hard look at your content to see how it can be improved.

When content is not engaging or poorly written, you can kiss potential visitors to your site goodbye. SEO-focused content will get you found on search engines like Google, but well-written and captivating content is what will keep users on your site.

Lack of lead generation

While the above factors can each contribute to zero leads coming through your website, there are some other elements that could be causing your lack of lead generation.

Without a clear Call To Action (CTA), a social media presence for credibility, or any displayed offerings, your site will scare away potential customers. Building trust with your audience is a key part of gaining leads, and a properly functioning website can help you to do just that.

Identify and improve upon your website pain points

With your website working for – rather than against – you, you’ll see an increase in traffic to your site, longer session times, and more leads. Overall, resolving your website pain points will help your business grow.

Having a comprehensive SEO strategy means getting your business found

So you’ve created a product, found your niche and built your website. Great job! But what comes next? And how do you bring customers to your (physical or virtual) door?

It’s pretty straightforward, really. SEO is what gets your website – and your brand – found. In these times of the digital dynasty, being found online is a must if you want to grow your business.

What an online presence can do for you

Having an online presence builds trust with your audience and gives your brand a voice. It also provides a platform from which you can sell your products to those who may be further afield than your already established community.

SEO can take anywhere between 6-12 months (and sometimes longer) to start having a real impact on getting your website found. But while it does take time to get there, trust us – it will be time well spent.

The internet is the future

The world’s gone wireless and now, the best any of us can do is to keep up and adapt. If yours is a brand new business, you should be investing in a solid online foundation today. Because tomorrow (or at least, in about 365 tomorrows), you’ll be darn glad you did.

People are spending more and more time on their mobiles and other devices. With the growing use of laptops, desktops, tablets and phones, and with wifi becoming increasingly more accessible, your number one priority should be in using SEO to get you found.

Your competitors already have SEO strategies, and so should you

All of your competitors are already online and employing strategic SEO tactics. In order to catch up, you need to start playing the same game.

The longer you wait to start SEO, the longer your website will remain invisible to search engines and thus, to your potential customers.

If you search for your products and services online and see your competitor appear in the results, it can feel pretty disheartening. But it shouldn’t! Because their ranking on the page is proof that SEO works – and that what SEO does for your competitors, it can also do for you.

Build your SEO as you build your business

Building your brand awareness is about having an engaging social media presence, and aesthetically pleasing website, a great product and positive customer reviews. But without a comprehensive SEO strategy, all of those beneficial elements will go to waste.

In this digitally evolving world, it is crucial that you invest in getting your website – and your business – found on Google (and other search engines). If you can embrace SEO from the very beginning, you will be a step ahead of those who waited too long.

Talk to Ven about your SEO strategy today >

Is dropping the ‘M’ word during COVID-19 a moral misstep?

Marketing is a word that many people probably don’t want to hear right now. With the world’s population facing enforced self-isolation or shelter-in-place orders, the threat of a pandemic and a significant rise in unemployment, the term is likely to be the last thing on consumers’ minds.

But for many struggling businesses, marketing could be the only aVenue they have left in order to survive. The question is, has ‘marketing’ become a taboo term? Or are we still allowed to talk about it?

We think that marketing isn’t something to be avoided. Instead, we believe that its potential to save businesses when they need it most should be utilised and celebrated. Marketing wasn’t a bad practice before the pandemic, and it doesn’t have to be now.

Marketing could be the key to small business survival

A marketing strategy can be a costly exercise eVen at the best of times, and trying to set one up in the middle of a pandemic tends to make the pursestrings feel eVen tighter.

That said, marketing has the power to reach potential customers unlike any other. Without getting your brand’s voice out there – especially as your foot traffic drops – your business will inevitably fall flat, and faster than you might like.

Employing a marketing strategy during these unprecedented times means taking into consideration the following factors:

1. Increase your marketing efforts

We’ve hinted at this already, but let us clarify for emphasis: an economic crisis is not the time to stop marketing your business. Rather, it is time to increase it.

Increasing your marketing during a time when so many other businesses are scaling back will ensure that you and your products are the first that potential customers see, both during and after the pandemic.

2. Allocate a smart budget

Establish a budget that fits in with what your business can afford. If you don’t have much to spend, be sure to research all your options prior to executing any campaigns. There are cost-effective aVenues out there – it is simply a matter of finding them.

In some cases, hiring a professional agency to run your marketing strategy could be the more affordable route. In others, opting for a D.I.Y. campaign might be the better offer. No matter which route you opt for, it’s always important to have a solid idea of your return on investment.

Whatever the case, make sure that the budget you allocate for marketing is an economical one – and that it doesn’t leave you and your business in the lurch.

3. Turn your attention toward other possibilities

Redirect your time, effort and resources towards projects that have a higher chance of bringing in reVenue. Whether you look at finishing ongoing projects or starting new ones, you might find that a clean slate will give you the fresh perspective you need to succeed.

Restaurants that have been closed due to COVID-19 are now investing in and expanding their delivery efforts. Retail businesses that were once only brick and mortar are now moving their products online.

Take a step back and look at your business through a more creative lens. What do you offer? Is there a way you can adapt your offerings to better serve your customers in the current climate? Think about things differently. There is no better time to do so than now.

These are not easy times, but we are in them together

If you have the ability to continue on with marketing campaigns, you are one of the lucky ones. This pandemic has taken its toll on many businesses already, and there are those to whom pursuing marketing is no longer an option.

When reaching out to your current and potential customers, remember to be considerate, understanding and empathetic. It is important to be aware that while we are all going through this together, everyone is experiencing COVID-19 in their own way.

By being open, honest, and approaching your marketing strategy with dignity, people will be more interested in hearing what you have to say. And by investing in your marketing campaigns today, you will put your business in a better position for tomorrow.

Marketing checklist for small business owners

Digital marketing, when done right, has the potential to springboard a business into the limelight where it may not have been visible before.

It doesn’t have to cost the earth, either. If you only have a small budget – or none – to begin with, digital marketing can still hold many opportunities for you. As a small business owner, working from a checklist can help you figure out where to start and what to do next.

Website

Your website is the first place that people will be directed to, so having one that is both alive and accessible is essential. Digital marketing across other aVenues can end up being a pointless exercise if your website itself is of poor quality, or doesn’t exist at all.

SEO

Search Engine Optimisation is a strategy used to boost your website’s visibility in search engine results pages, like those from Google. When done right, SEO works to increase the quantity and quality of valuable inbound traffic to your site.

Mobile-friendly

Think about how much time you spend on your mobile every day. Capturing users who, more often than not, spend more time on their mobiles than desktops, means providing a mobile-friendly platform that is easy for them to navigate.

User experience

A website that is engaging, interactive and aesthetically pleasing is one that visitors will spend more time on, and return to again in the future. Providing an experience that is both easy and captivating is one that users will stick around for.

Content

Content, in this day and age, is key. Without it, users have no ability to learn, visualise or better understand your business and what it offers. Regularly uploading content also helps your SEO performance, and gives visitors a reason to keep coming back for more.

Social media marketing

Marketing across social media is an excellent way to keep your brand top of mind. By building your presence across a network or two (or ten!), you can reach a wider audience than with your website alone – creating a sense of community along the way.

Social media is a platform that encourages engagement, allowing your brand to show off its personality in a connected, genuine way. Whether you opt for paid ads or free posts, a social media marketing campaign can boost your business and increase lead generation and sales.

Email marketing

Email marketing gives you the ability to reach those who have already shown an interest in your business by subscribing to your email list. With so many potential, previous and current customers at your fingertips, the opportunity for sales and future engagement is exponential.

Choose the email marketing platform that works for you. Whether it be a matter of affordability, accessibility or overall capabilities, there will be one out there to suit your needs. Encourage people to sign-up by offering something in exchange, like a free eBook or discount on their first purchase.

Metrics, monthly reports and performance reviews

Understanding how your digital marketing is performing will help you to figure out what’s working, what isn’t, and what needs to change. There are many tools available to businesses that create reports, offer insights and track the performance of their marketing campaigns.

Utilise these tools to better understand the gaps in your digital marketing strategy and the places where you can improve.

Work through your digital marketing checklist with Ven >