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Email Marketing Tips

How To Perform Email Marketing

Email marketing may seem archaic, but is one of the most effective inbound marketing channels and number one conversion avenue.

Email marketing should be a top priority for any business. Over the years, we have noticed a lot of small businesses do not take advantage of email marketing. For instance, all website owners should have an email marketing strategy. Why you ask? Because having the ability to reach hundreds or thousands of potential customers with one click is great! We will provide helpful tips on assisting small businesses with an email marketing campaign and how to convert leads into customers.

 

Begin With Coming Up With A Strategy

Now that you know email marketing is an effective marketing tool, let’s come up with a strategy. Depending on what type of website and business you have, your strategy will vary. For example, an eCommerce website will focus on selling products. Another example, a website that provides services can create an email marketing campaign focused on the services the company provides. Let’s focus on a company that provides a service, more specifically, a chiropractor.

First things first, how can a chiropractor use email as a marketing tool? For starters, what does her patients desire when visiting her office? If her patients want more tips on less back pain, the doctor can write a blog post and provide tips on how to prevent back pain. The doctor can send out the blog post via an email campaign to all her patients. Here’s an example of the doctor coming up with continuous content to promote through an email campaign. The main purpose is to determine what type of strategy will help a business with generating leads.

 

How To Collect Emails From Your Website

Next up is composing an email strategy for the business to collect emails. How do you plan on collecting emails? Businesses can implement numerous ways in collecting emails. For example, an email can be collected on a website, through a contest, or the good ole fashion way of putting out a sign up sheet. An incentive should be provided in exchange for an email. Let’s take a contest as an example. Run a contest on social media, say Facebook. A user provides an email in exchange for an opportunity to win an Amazon gift card. To collect email addresses from a website requires an exchange of some sorts. What can a business provide in exchange for an email address?

For example, a business can provide free samples of the services. We don’t mean giving away the service for free, rather providing tidbits of helpful information the target audience can use. Kinda like this blog post! We’re providing helpful tips on how to implement an email marketing campaign, without giving away the secret sauce. Provide a sample of information in exchange for an email address; businesses want to learn how to be self-sufficient, while you collect email addresses for marketing purposes.

 

Time To Implement An Email Marketing Strategy

Examples have been provided of how you can implement an email marketing campaign. The next step is to implement the strategy. A word to the wise. The beginning stages will be tough. Remember that collecting emails is a marathon, not a sprint. Experiment with different methods of collecting emails. First, try running a contest with a gift card for first place. Second, add an email signup field on the website, provide an exchange of sorts. If an individual signs up give them 10% off a service or product. Lastly, put out a sign up sheet for customers. Inform the customer the sign up sheet is for sending out occasional emails.

We’ve provided a variety examples and helpful tips for you. Now is time for you as a business owner to implement these tips and start generating leads and turning them into customers. Let’s us know what you think about the blog post in the comments section. We love chatting with other like minded entrepreneurs!

google review – girl inputting a review on a laptop for a small business

How To Add A Google Review

A Google Review is capable of amplifying a business’ search listing on Google Search & Google Maps. Let’s discuss the benefits of Google Reviews and how your business can benefit.

Google Reviews, defined by Google, provide valuable information about your business to both you and your customers. Business reviews appear next to your listing in Maps and Search, and can help your business stand out on Google. For example, a Google Review can help a business rank higher on Google Maps and Search. Google Reviews help a business with potential leads by real customers writing reviews. Since reviews help a business with ranking on Google Search & Maps, let’s discuss how to add a Google Review.

WP By Hand – Google Search Result

 

Add A Google Review

For the purpose of this example, let’s say you worked with a graphic designer and wanted to leave her a review on Google. First, determine you have a Google account. Second, log into the Google account. Lastly, head to Google.com and search for the graphic designer’s business. That’s it!

Let us show you how to add a review on Google with a tutorial.

First head over to Google.com or the Google Maps app, if on mobile device, and search for the company. The best method is to write the review on a laptop or desktop.

Google Search Bar - Google Review Step 1

Second, click on the write a review button on the search results page. The Write a review button is located on the right hand side under the business’ information. Refer to the image at the beginning of the post.

Third, determine how many stars the business deserves. For instance, if a business provided a superior end product, give them 5 stars. On the other hand, if a business performed sub par, give them the stars the business deserves and provide constructive feedback.

Lastly, if you didn’t sign into Google, you will be prompted to do so. Fill in username and password. If you do not have a Google account, you’ll have an opportunity to create one. Follow the steps for creating a Google account and then you’ll be able to publish your review.

small biz for wordpress rocks!

Small Business Embrace WordPress

More and more small business websites are jumping on the WordPress bandwagon. We’re hear to explain why.

WordPress is becoming a behemoth of a platform. Of all the content management systems. WordPress accounts for 68% of the market share. To break it down, two out of three websites are using WordPress software. For a platform that is criticized for being insecure. The statistic is telling a different story. We’ll explain why small business owners are choosing WordPress for their website.

So Why WordPress?

WordPress accounts for nearly 25% of all websites on the internet. Yes you read that statistic correctly. The platform started out mostly for blogging. Over the years, WordPress has built a powerful content management system. Oh and the system itself is open source. Meaning the system is free for anybody to use. Let’s discuss why WordPress has become the website platform choice for small business.

Besides the fact that WordPress is a free platform, why are small business owners using WordPress? One of the main reasons is the simplicity of the website’s back end. WordPress provides website owners the ability to control content on the website. The owner can edit text, add imagery, or publish a blog post in a matter of clicks. Empowering small business owners with the ability to control specific aspects of the website is an invaluable feature. The platform is scalable for any size business. WordPress sites range from mom and pop shops to corporate sites like the Walt Disney company. If a conglomerate the size of the Walt Disney company is using WordPress, we’d say it is more than acceptable for small businesses.

There are numerous features that can help a WordPress website grow. Features like plugins add enhancements to the existing website. Plugins range from contact forms, security, website backups, and so much more. We discussed WordPress plugins in another blog post. Highly recommend reading the blog post to obtain a better understanding of how WordPress plugins work.

WordPress is undeniably one of the top website platforms. We highly recommend the system for any size business. Small business can enhance the company’s digital footprint by being on WordPress.

Search Engine Friendliness

Search engine optimization (SEO) is important for any business. Being found on the first page of any search engine results page provides a competitive advantage. We won’t dive too deep into SEO, but the short version goes like this. The WordPress platform comes optimized for search engines right out of the box. All links, the platforms code, and website URLs are optimized for search engines. If you really want to take the website to the next level. You can find a plugin that can help enhance the website’s search optimization. One of the most famous plugins for optimizing a WordPress website is Yoast SEO. The plugin can be configured to optimize numerous aspects of the site. For starters, a web page can be targeted with a specified keyword. The keyword is then scored with a specific color. The color red indicates the page is not optimized, while green translates to being perfectly optimized. The plugin is robust with numerous features. Even with the plugin not being installed, WordPress itself is optimized for the initial stages.

A lot of the SEO technical aspects of the website are already taken care of. The source code on the back end is optimized. WordPress themes are programmed to be search friendly. Good plugins are programmed to integrate nicely with WordPress and search engines. The point we are communicating is WordPress itself is a search friendly platform. The platform allows a small business to enhance the current website.

The WordPress Community

The community that powers WordPress is absolutely amazing. Most, if not all, members of the community are always willing to help. The WordPress community comprise of individuals who are passionate about the WordPress product. If you’ve ever come across the WordPress support forum on WordPress.org. You’ll see there are lots of individuals who try to help one another. No matter how big or small the issue, the community is willing to sacrifice their free time. We’ve adopted customers in the past and have converted customers over to WordPress. Why is this relevant? All WordPress developers, managers, and content coordinators are able to pick up where another company has left off. There are no shortage of individuals, entities, and organizations who work within WordPress.

The community extends beyond the forums. WordPress camps or WordCamps are organized throughout the world for WordPress community members to meet. These WordCamps consist of meetups discussing the future of WordPress. Discussions can consist of new features being implemented. What the future of WordPress holds. Simply a meet and greet with other WordPress advocates. The events take place throughout the year. The community is that large. If a WordPress developer were to leave you. There’s a good chance someone local to the business will be able to assist. Small business owners do not need to worry about finding a replacement.

Conclusion

We discussed why WordPress is such an awesome platform small businesses. How a WordPress website comes equipped with SEO best practices. The WordPress community are a loyal bunch of individuals. If you are not convinced by the article of why WordPress isn’t right for you. Let’s chat in the comments section to discuss your concerns. We have a strong feeling we can turn you into a WordPress advocate like us!