We’ve established that SEO takes a long time, but it helps to know why
It is important to understand when you will start reaping the benefits of your SEO strategy. While the era we live in has become one of instant gratification, SEO does not fall into that category, which makes it very easy to become impatient or lose hope.
A comprehensive SEO strategy won’t work right away. If it does, it’s likely down to black hat SEO tactics – an approach that, if taken, will lead to your website being harshly penalised by Google and other search engines.
White hat vs black hat SEO
White and black hat SEO refers to the tactics used to implement your SEO strategy. The former, also known as ethical SEO, is the approach that optimises for humans first and is rewarded by the search engines as a result. The latter, however, will leave your website penalised and no longer visible on search engines as it goes against search guidelines.
Black hat SEO focuses on a search engine audience rather than a human one. While its techniques will lead to a short term boost in your site’s visibility, it will only land you in Google’s bad books as the search engine realises that foul play has been used.
White hat SEO, on the other hand, is the total opposite. It uses techniques approved and recommended by Google’s own SEO guidelines and targets a human audience rather than trying to outsmart search engine algorithms. For lasting results, it is important to always use white hat SEO tactics when implementing your SEO strategy.
The 4 C’s impacting your SEO timeline
Competition
There is a lot of competition out there, in everything – and especially in SEO. With so many websites in the online realm vying for attention, getting yours seen is going to take time.
Remember that the sites visible to you and other users have probably been in the game for a while. Since you’re just starting out, it’s okay to be playing catch up. Figuring out your SEO strategy and how your competitors are making it work will take time.
Changing algorithms
The thing about search engines, and Google especially, is that they are constantly evolving. Having become increasingly more intelligent, they have begun to interpret new information with a much more human gaze.
This means that an SEO strategy can no longer appeal only to a robotic, unfeeling audience (search engine algorithms) – it must also appeal to a human one.
The continuous growth of search engine algorithms can put a damper on what might once have been a flawless SEO strategy. This means that it is important for your strategy to be ever-evolving and always aware of algorithm changes.
Content
Content takes time to accumulate and with SEO, it must be uploaded regularly in order to start improving site visibility. Creating, uploading and publishing content all takes time, and for a search engine to index your new content, it takes eVen longer.
The best content is that which is equally SEO-focused and engaging. If what you have to say is of interest and beneficial to your site visitors, they will likely keep coming back for more. Repeat visitors – as well as new visitors – to your site will help to improve your SEO score and get Google to notice you sooner.
Cost
With more money comes more opportunities to pour resources into a profitable marketing strategy. And with more marketing aVenues available to you comes a higher chance of driving visitors back to your site.
Increasing traffic back to your site through click funnels, social platforms, paid advertising and other non-SEO related channels will lead to more organic traffic. In turn, this will work to boost your overall SEO score and get you climbing the search engine result pages.
The turtle wins the race in this one
Executing an SEO strategy that works will take time. It will take patience, perseverance and the implementation of legitimate techniques. A comprehensive SEO strategy will require you to adapt to changing algorithms, watch your competitors and conduct regular performance reviews.
Because if it was easy, anyone could do it. And when it comes to SEO, the turtle beats the hare, every time.
Get your free SEO audit report today >
An engaging social media feed should be both unique and trendy
Coming up with original and engaging content for social media can sometimes feel like a job in itself. As a business owner with an already packed schedule, thinking up new ideas for your social posts can be tough.
In reality, there are so many ways that you can bring captivating content to your audience. From repurposing old content to researching current trends, the ideas are already out there. All you have to do is make them your own.
Make it personal
People love when you make social media personal. Use a live stream to capture moments in real-time. Take a ‘behind-the-scenes’ look at eVents, projects and everyday tasks in the workplace.
Feature your employees, showcase your office space and share your favourite places, poems or work perks. People want to see real, genuine people, and that is something you can provide for them across your socials.
Repurpose old content
Repurpose the work you have already done. Pull segments from old blogs or clips from videos and recreate them into quotes or GIFs. Using these repurposed pieces, you can create new social media posts that link back to the original content.
Run a competition
Everyone is a fan of freebies. Running a competition is a great way to showcase your products, reward your followers and gain new ones.
Wherever you post your giveaway, be sure to read over the legalities before proceeding – you don’t want your competition post to be removed because you didn’t follow the rules.
Get influencers involved
Influencers have a lot of power in the digital world. As the term suggests, their ‘influence’ is far-reaching, effective and profitable (to both them and you!).
Rounding up some influencers and having them promote your brand, write a guest post or take over your social media account for a day will get people talking about your business. Remember to work only with those who share your values and genuinely love your products.
Inspirational quotes
Sometimes it takes someone else to put our own feelings into words. Sharing an inspirational quote – either from a role model or by using one of your own – can connect you to your followers on a deeper, more meaningful level.
Customer photos and guest posts
If you have customers loving your brand, talk about it! With their permission, post a photo of them using your product or reaping the rewards of your service.
Having legitimate customers promote your brand and providing a space for user-generated content will build trust with both your existing and prospective audience.
Tips and tricks
Educating your audience is an excellent way to keep them interested. You can do this by recording how-to videos, crafting step-by-step tutorials or writing listicles of your top tips and tricks on any giVen subject.
Focus on the topics that you’re an expert in. If you own a plant nursery, post a how-to video on identifying weeds in the garden. As a clothing brand, write about must-have accessories for a night out.
Talk about trending topics
Be unique, always. If you are interested in discussing a trending topic, add your voice to the conversation in a way that sparks a new idea or perspective. International Women’s Day? Highlight the women in your workplace. World Nutella Day? Make a day of it in the office and go live.
Remember that trending content is time-sensitive, and if you do choose to highlight it in your posts, make sure that it is still relevant when you do.
Imitation is the highest form of flattery
When all else fails, remember that you can always glean inspiration from the ideas of others. See something on your social media feed that you like? Why not try reinVenting it in your own, imaginative way?
Inspiration is everywhere, if only you know where to look. Share posts that inspire you and give credit where credit is due. Curating social media content doesn’t have to be boring, and it certainly doesn’t have to be hard.
Make it fun. Make it fresh. Turn your social media feed into something that you enjoy scrolling through, and others will enjoy it, too.
Need help with your marketing strategy? Get in touch >
If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em
The digital world is taking over and we can either reject it or run with it. We recommend running with it.
A strong online presence can lift your business profile in so many ways, from building trust with potential customers to outperforming your competitors.
If your online presence is lacking or you haVen’t yet moved your business online, you could be losing out on droves of potential reVenue.
The world is online. It’s time you were, too.
What a strong online presence can do for you
Build trust
Retaining current customers and finding potential new ones is all about building trust.
By investing in your online presence, you will have more opportunities to engage with your audience and showcase your brand.
Users will want to browse not only a website but also your other online platforms, like social channels, to see who you are and what your business stands for.
Proving to them that you are human and active in the digital world will make them much more likely to trust in your offerings.
Visibility
With a comprehensive SEO strategy, your visibility on search engines like Google will skyrocket.
If yours is one of the first sites to appear in a user’s search results, you will have a higher click-through rate and capture more potential leads from people searching for the products and services that you offer.
If search engines trust your site enough to display it as one of the first on the results page, then users will trust it, too.
Getting Google to like you takes an investment in your online presence, one that you should always be willing to make.
Appeal to potential new customers
Are your socials updated regularly? Is your website interactive and easy to use? Do your blog articles engage, inspire and inform?
These are the questions that you must ask yourself. Because if the answer is no, users won’t want to waste their time browsing or engaging with your digital platforms. As a result, they would also be less likely to engage in your products and services.
Appealing to new potential customers (and retaining current ones) means revamping your site and investing in your online presence.
If you can create a user-friendly, unique and captivating experience, potential new customers will be knocking down the proverbial doors of your business.
Outshine your competitors
Staying ahead of the online game means staying ahead of your competitors. And investing in your online presence is the way to do that.
Leaving your competitors in the dust means working towards a digital presence that outshines them.
Boost your brand and your business by offering a website that gives the user everything they need.
An online presence that encourages current and potential customers to stay connected will make yours the business they turn to in times of want or need.
It’s 2022 and time to strengthen your online presence
The digital world is here and it’s time we catch up with it. Now is a time of connectivity and with so many people browsing the internet daily, potential consumers are everywhere.
Strengthening your online presence is an investment that pays off in the long run. This new decade brings with it the chance to build a digital foundation that keeps consumers coming back for more.
Looking to improve your online presence? We can help >
SEO is a long-term game. But you can still use short-term tactics
In the world wide web, ‘SEO’ has sometimes been reduced to nothing more than a buzzword with no real relevance.
Those who saw it as more are now reaping the benefits, where others (and their businesses) have faded deep into the dark recesses of the web.
Crucial for getting your website found on search engines like Google and Bing, SEO enables people, businesses, communities and the like to have their voices heard.
Most of us have become accustomed to the much-repeated adage that SEO is a long term strategy and it takes time to see results. While that is true, there are some short term tactics you can employ to speed up the process.
Upload new content regularly
Content is a key factor in ensuring that your SEO strategy works. Uploading new content regularly is the best way to do it.
Your on-page SEO focuses on integrating keywords strategically throughout web copy, as well as blog and media content.
If you upload content on a regular basis, you will have more opportunities to integrate keywords and increase your site’s visibility on Google.
Speed up loading times
Slow loading times will have users clicking away from your website before the landing page has eVen had a chance to load. As a general rule of thumb, any giVen page on your site should load in no more than 3 seconds.
As users, we are becoming increasingly more impatient. Our dwindling attention spans make us quick to click out of sites that aren’t immediately captivating.
If your website speed is not optimised, users won’t hesitate to leave and never return. With so many other sources of information and entertainment at their fingertips, why would they?
Whether your loading times are being impacted by large image files or faulty coding, speeding up your website should always be a high priority.
Update old content
Improving your SEO performance isn’t just about uploading regular content. The old content, the stuff already filling up the site, is also important.
Tie new keywords into the old articles and web page content, and make sure that what you wrote about then is still relevant today. If it isn’t, rework it until it is.
This could mean making minor tweaks to blog posts, editing the alt text on old images, or completely rewriting your About page. Whatever the case, keep all of the content on your site in line with your current SEO strategy.
Pick up your social media game
Making your presence known on social media is a great way to direct potential leads back to your site.
Post regularly to ensure that your profile remains relevant and visible. Interact with other social media users including both your followers and the accounts that inspire you.
While increasing your following can be helpful in the long run, the first and most important step is to increase engagement. By crafting interesting and unique content, your followers will want to engage with you, learn more about your business, and recommend you to others.
Boost your SEO using these short-term strategies
Getting found on Google takes time, it’s true. But by incorporating these tactics into your SEO strategy, it might not take as long as you think.
Get your free SEO report today >
Building a website is like doing a puzzle: everything has its place
But it’s only a very small puzzle, because web design, web development and SEO are the only pieces. And it’s also a very complex puzzle because after separating the three, you realise that each piece is a puzzle within itself.
It’s like the movie Inception. Dreams within dreams within dreams.
The point is that when executed correctly, web design, web development and SEO all fit together in a very smart and strategic way. To get your website working properly, you have to put the pieces in the right place.
The relationship between web design, development and SEO
A functioning website that delivers a positive user experience requires expert integration of web design, development and SEO.
Popular websites are most often the ones that don’t require any effort to use. If a user can arrive on a page and start interacting with it immediately and without difficulty, they are much more likely to stay on your site – and much more likely to convert to a sale.
Make sure it’s mobile friendly
Every person and their dog has a mobile these days, and it’s important that you cater to their digital needs.
Making your website mobile-friendly means being able to reach people when they’re out and about – and not only when they’re on their computers at home.
Optimise your content
All of the content on your website must be optimised. Not only that, but it must also be clear, coherent and easy for users to read and digest.
Optimising content means writing informative, attention-grabbing articles and general web page copy that is sprinkled with strategically placed keywords.
Is it easy to navigate?
Web design enables you to create a user flow that is easy for potential customers to follow when they land on your site.
Developing the functionality is what allows them to move from page to page with ease. If your website offers a simple user experience, it is more likely to have increased session times and lower bounce rates.
Loading times
In this age of instant gratification and short attention spans, website speed is everything. You will have approximately 2 seconds to capture users – any more than 3, and half of your visitors will abandon ship.
To speed up loading times, image, audio and video files need to be condensed. Code must be written correctly as well. Page speed doesn’t just affect users; it affects Google, too.
If your site speed is slow, Google will crawl and index fewer pages, which means that you’ll end up with less visibility in the search engine’s page results.
Web design, development and SEO go hand-in-hand
To build a website that functions smoothly offers an enjoyable user experience and shows up on Google (or other search engines), your web design, development and SEO need to be effectively integrated.
The team at Ven can build your site from scratch >
The effects of COVID-19 in 2020
This new strain of coronavirus, known as COVID-19, is the word on everyone’s lips. On the not-so-busy streets, in the once-bustling cafes and the now-empty public transport system, COVID-19’s effects are being felt everywhere.
As a small business owner, you could very well find yourself faced with the confronting question: how do I stay in business?
These are unprecedented, trying times and it’s important to map out and understand your best course of action. Now is the time to be proactive, take rational steps and avoid falling into the hysteria trap.
How to prepare your small business for the potential impact of COVID-19
Because everyone is talking about it, we’re sure you don’t need a history lesson. But that being said, this is not the first virus to have hit the global population, hard.
Business can be much like a wave – it will ebb and flow in intensity and success no matter the economic or global implications.
Over the centuries, staying afloat during a virus outbreak was a difficult thing to do. However, with the advances of the 21st century in healthcare and technology, business owners today have more power than ever before.
Stay up-to-date on COVID-19 developments
It is crucial that you educate yourself daily on news of COVID-19 as any rising or shifting developments could impact your business.
By simply being aware, you could preVent any unexpected challenges and keep your business a step ahead.
Turn to your community
In the face of COVID-19, we’ve seen many people turn to fear rather than respect and unity. This has been evident in the empty supermarket shelves and altercations over something as basic as toilet paper.
Just a few short months ago, we were all coming together to help those affected by the bushfires, and it’s important to help your community again now more than ever.
Rather than excluding and isolating those around you, share with them. As a business owner, you can create a safe space where people know they can get what they need, and that everything will be distributed fairly.
Hope for the best while preparing for anything
It’s better to take extraordinary, almost obsessive precautions and stay safe than to do nothing and face what could be fatal consequences.
In life and in business, it is important that you map out a plan as to how you will overcome obstacles and continue on eVen when that might feel impossible.
If it turns out that all you did was overreact in your preparedness, at least you can laugh about it later!
Move your business online
With the onset of self-isolation and employees transitioning into remote work, the influence and potential of the digital world is going to skyrocket.
If you haVen’t already, move your business online. And if you’ve already gone digital, invest in your online presence. Making sales means making sure that your target audience can find you when perusing the web.
Stay safe and be kind to your neighbours
COVID-19 is impacting the world in a very real way. Never before have we seen a pandemic such as this and the most important thing that we can do is remember who we are.
Be kind to your neighbours, to your friends and family and most importantly, to strangers. Share what you have where you can and work together to find a solution where you can’t.
Check out these links for more information on COVID-19:
For us, it’s business as usual! If you have any enquiries about going digital or ramping up your online presence, we’ll be more than happy to chat. During this time of social distancing, we’re also happy to set up a video meeting rather than an in-person one. Oh, the wonders of technology!
Talk to us about taking your business digital or improving your online presence
A brief overview of how you and Google view your business differently
The difference between your eyes and Google’s: yours are sentient. That means you see things with emotion. And as clever as Google is, the search engine – and others like it – doesn’t do feelings (yet).
Because of this, Google looks for different, less obvious things in order to make your website rank.
4 things you might not care about, but Google sure does
1. Title tag
The title tag is the clickable headline displayed on the search engine results page. It’s arguably the most important part of ranking on Google because it’s one of the first things the search engine reads when looking at your site.
The first 65 characters of the title tag are what Google cares about most, so be sure to include at least one keyword there.
Make sure every page title is different and not packed so full of keywords that it doesn’t make any sense. Remember – Google cares about readability just as much as users do.
2. Meta description
Google looks to the meta (page) description after reading your page title. While it doesn’t considerably count towards your ranking, the search engine still wants to see that you have added a description for your users.
Keep the length around 160 characters and make sure it’s easy for both users and search engines to read. Write a description that’s both compelling and relevant to the page content – it will help to increase your click-through rate!
3. Image alt text
When uploading images across your site’s pages and blog posts, you have the option to include additional information through the image alt text (alternative text).
Because search engines can’t physically see your website, they will read the image alt text to understand what the displayed image looks like.
Use this to your advantage by incorporating keywords into the alt text of every single image on your site.
4. Content
When it comes to content, you and Google are on the same page. Users love content and so does your search engine!
There is no such thing as too much content. In fact, Google loves a blog loaded with long-form info/inspo. The only catch? It has to be quality content.
Writing a whole lot of rubbish that’s overly stuffed with keywords isn’t going to help your site. To get on Google’s good side, your content has to be of high quality, lightly sprinkled with keywords and uploaded on the regular.
It’s all about the little things
As you can see, Google has a different perspective on your site than you do. While you both care about the content, you probably don’t approach it in the same way.
Taking off your human goggles and putting on your Google ones will help you to see things the way that search engines do.
And once you can see your website in a different, more algorithm-esque kind of way, ranking higher on Google will be a much easier task.
We can help Google see your site the way you do. Talk to us >
Digital marketing works – when done right. So what’s wrong with yours?
Digital marketing can come in many different forms, from SEO and content marketing to Pay-Per-Click and EDMs.
While some of your campaigns may be performing well, you could find that others are dragging. Or, if there’s a cog missing somewhere in the digital marketing machine, they might all be underperforming.
We understand the frustration small business owners experience when digital marketing campaigns aren’t working. We’ve compiled a list of 3 issues to assess and readjust in order to better capture potential customers.
3 reasons why your digital marketing isn’t doing what you need it to
1. You’re targeting the wrong audience
If your target audience consists of 40-something-year-olds with families to feed and mortgages to pay, your content shouldn’t be crafted for Millennials who flat-share and think that owning a plant is too much responsibility.
Why? Because though these Millennials may increase traffic to your site, they won’t be the kind of traffic you want.
If they’re not interested in your product, it’s unlikely that their visiting your site will lead to conversions. In fact, it’ll probably just lead to a higher bounce rate.
Because Google – amongst other search engines – takes user engagement into account when ranking sites, this could adversely affect your overall performance in the search engine results pages.
Capturing leads and driving sales means directing targeted traffic to your site – the kind that needs your product and will do whatever it takes to get it. You want to target the people that are looking for what you offer, as that will be the audience more likely to convert.
2. You have unrealistic expectations of success
After pouring your heart and soul (and money) into a digital marketing campaign, it’s easy to assume the best. Like, how could it not go viral when you’ve put so much time and effort (and again, money) into it?
As with life in general, unrealistic expectations can leave you feeling disappointed if they aren’t met. When starting out on a new digital marketing campaign, it’s important to define the realistic results you expect to see before pushing it live.
And remember, patience is a virtue! Successful digital marketing campaigns – just like good cheese – can take time. Your business is going to be around just as long as you are (if not longer!), so it’s okay to invest time into your campaigns.
3. Difficult SEO Competition
Because Google’s intelligent (and somewhat dastardly) algorithms are always changing, it can be hard to keep up. Throw in fierce competition at the same time? That sounds like an exhausting task.
If you’re finding it hard to rank on Google, it’s time to reevaluate your SEO strategy. Are you using relevant keywords? Do you upload new content regularly? Is your site properly optimised?
Whatever the problem, there is always a solution. Whether you educate yourself on SEO or hire an agency to help, improving your ranking (and your digital marketing campaign) is possible. You just have to believe (and do the work)!
Now is the time to look at your digital marketing campaign with fresh eyes
If your digital marketing campaign(s) is underperforming, now is the time to do something about it. Analyse the data you have to see what’s working and what isn’t.
Whether it means starting from scratch or reworking what you’ve already got, you can improve your digital marketing performance. All it takes is a fresh-eyed review of your work and the will to move forward and grow.
We‘ll help improve your digital marketing performance >
The coronavirus outbreak will affect Australia in more ways than one
With the global tragedy of the coronavirus taking its toll on many people, it also has much further reaching repercussions.
As a result of the coronavirus, Australia is seeing a significant drop in international travel as well as the scaling back of outsourced manufacturing in Chinese-based factories.
This impacts Australia – and the world – in more ways than one. And finding our footing during this time means turning to local businesses to help support our larger Australian brands.
As Australia’s dollar drops, the country turns its gaze inwards
The Australian dollar is the weakest it has been in 11 years. Having tumbled to the lowest level since the global financial crisis of 2007-2009, it is currently sitting at 66.50 US cents.
While this drop was not caused by the coronavirus, the infectious disease is affecting the Australian market in other ways – and it could cost the country $12 billion in exports.
This is where your small business comes in
EVen though the dollar is dropping, it’s not all doom and gloom! As history has shown, some of the most powerful businesses in the world began during times of hardship.
Burger King started out following the end of the Korean War. During a time when everyone else was busy worrying about inflation, founders Kieth J. Kramer and Matthew Burns decided to sell some good old American fast food instead.
Walt Disney began right in the middle of the Great Depression – and look at them now! One of the world’s largest media conglomerates, it beat the financial crisis odds and stuck around to tell the tale.
So now is not the time to sit quietly, but rather to take action. As Mark Zuckerberg famously said, “The biggest risk is not taking any risk.”
Because what if your small business becomes the next cutting-edge conglomerate?
The dollar may be falling, but the potential boom for local business is rising
Amid warnings of a recession and the prediction that billions of dollars will be lost in exports due to the coronavirus outbreak, local businesses now have the potential to step up and provide for consumers where larger businesses no longer can.
As the dollar continues to drop, big brands will be turning towards small, local businesses for help. And as an alternative to American-sourced goods, small businesses will have the capacity to deliver food, clothes and general goods at a cost more affordable to all.
It’s time to take a stand
As Australia navigates this turbulent time, large businesses that once outsourced their manufacturing to other countries will now be looking to local businesses for help.
And here’s looking at you, pal! With everyone from big brands through to neighbourhood locals knocking on your storefront door, you’ll have the opportunity to provide for people in a way that you might not have been able to before.
The Australian economy is unbalanced, yes. But all hope is not lost! Because your business could very well be the one to recentre it.
Everyone’s talking about UX writing and we want to tell you why
Though it’s been around for a while, UX writing is the new buzzword hitting the digital space.
The term ‘UX’ stands for ‘User Experience’ and focuses on exactly that – the experience a user has when they interact with your product in the online realm.
It’s all about providing meaningful and purposeful online experiences for customers, potential customers and (because we don’t discriminate), eVen indifferent passers-by.
What is UX writing?
That being said, UX writing does lean more towards pre-existing customers or regular users of products than to people who are just browsing.
General web page, blog and sales copy aligns more with the marketing side of things than UX writing, which goes hand-in-hand with the overall UX design.
UX writing covers copy for buttons, error messages, menu labels, Ts&Cs and security announcements. Also known as microcopy, the main goal of UX writing is to guide users around a product and encourage them to interact with it.
There are four key ways in which UX writing differs from copywriting. Here’s how:
1. Using a designer’s perspective
Being a UX writer means thinking like a designer. The overall user experience must be taken into consideration, including things like aesthetic, spacing and functionality.
UX writers adopt a problem-solving approach in order to iron out the creases and create a microcopy that works.
2. A focus on user experience
As we’ve already established, UX writing is all about the user experience. It examines user needs, customer feedback and business goals to deliver an easy to navigate digital product.
A good UX writer will listen to all of the factors that come into play, accept feedback openly and adapt their work to best suit your customers’ needs.
3. Copywriting sells, UX informs
Copywriting across your website or application creates a platform upon which you can better sell your product. It educates potential customers and new leads on the benefits of what your business has to offer.
UX writing, on the other hand, informs your current and ongoing customers about using your product and enables them to easily interact with it.
4. UX microcopy is subject to ongoing change
Microcopy works best when used in conjunction with feedback from users. This feedback can often lead to ongoing changes in order to accurately capture the right turn of phrase.
Engaging and enticing microcopy comes from testing what works and what doesn’t; figuring out what does can mean a train of continuous change.
Why do you need UX writing on your website?
Providing a positive user experience for your customers is all about relating at every touchpoint.
Depending on your target audience, you need to use language that they understand, can relate to and ultimately, that encourages them to interact with your product.
UX writing is an important part of the design (and overall website build) process. For your business, it could mean the difference between losing customers and gaining customers.