Old proverbs warn us not to judge books by their covers and remind us that beauty is only skin deep. Despite this, most of us rely instinctively on first impressions to inform many of the decisions we make. It’s wrong of course. First impressions are superficial and can’t possibly convey all the information we need, […]
When a visitor lands on your website, you have a window of just a few seconds to engage their attention and encourage them to stay and explore further. The most effective way to do this is through imagery. Our visual senses process images instantly, conveying a message or emotion far more quickly than written text […]
This post is part of a series on getting more leads and enquiries from your website. Part 1 – Get Inside the Mind of Your Ideal Customer! Do you know what visitors are looking for when they land on your website? Are you clear about what it will take to convince them that yours is […]
When it comes down to it, your website has just two key functions: to generate interest in your organisation and to turn that interest into action. Or, to put it in web-speak – to maximise traffic and optimise conversions. So, when someone finds your website – whether it’s from a Google search, a paid-for advert, […]
What’s the first thing you do when you want to find a product, a business or a solution to a problem? You ‘Google it’ of course, and that’s exactly what your prospective customers are doing right now. So will they find your website? Social media, advertising and other marketing channels are an essential part of […]
It’s a question we’re frequently asked by clients; “How often do I need to update my website?” While there’s no definitive answer – because every business is unique – as a general rule, we recommend that a website should have fresh content added to it at least once a month. If you can manage updates […]
By enabling customers to find your organisation online, and helping to drive traffic to your website through the search engines, your domain name plays an important role in determining the success of your business. Like your company name and your logo, your domain name is integral to your brand identity. We’re going to share some […]
Whatever kind of business you run, it’s critical you optimise the return on your advertising expenditure, generating the highest possible sales revenue for every £1 you spend. But working out where to invest your budget for maximum effect can be difficult, costing you time and money. As the American retailer John Wanamaker neatly summed it […]
Your website & branding are two of your most important marketing tools – we take a look at a recent case study where Mass Media Design helped deliver a brand new look for one of our clients. Client Bang Consulting – a Hampshire-based marketing agency working with ambitious business owners, who want to outsource their […]
We are often asked by clients ‘should I blog?’. Our answer is usually that it depends on several factors: do you know why you should be blogging, do you have something worthwhile to say, and do you have the time to commit to creating interesting and engaging content on a regular basis? Starting a blog […]
Over the past few years, the use of video content online has exploded. More and more websites are using video to engage their visitors, but does it work? What are the benefits of using video? Are there any downsides? Will it work for you? Video accounts for an increasing percentage of online traffic Let’s start […]
Today every business knows that having a presence on social media is essential. Social media builds relationships with your audience, encourages word of mouth recommendation, enhances your brand and draws in consumers. The problem is knowing which network to use. Choosing the right social media channel is vital, and having the resources and time to […]
Audience growth can be an issue for any new business. It not only costs time, money and effort but often offers little immediate reward. Partnership marketing could be the catalyst to jump-starting your brand’s audience growth. Innovate UK have put together a few essential tips to help you make the most of any partnership marketing […]
So, you have a great website and now you need a digital strategy to increase its traffic. You know that Pay-Per-Click (PPC) and Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) are two of the most powerful approaches to generate traffic, but which will work best for you? First up – Pay Per Click If you want guaranteed visitors […]
No matter how well your brand is marketed, if it doesn’t have a clearly defined USP there’s little chance of success. Having a firm grip of what you stand for and what differentiates you from the market is intrinsic to actually making it in the tough world of business. Not only will your unique selling […]
by Nicky Parker Copy, content or wording – all fancy words for the same thing. But what does that actually mean? In essence, it is all the wording you use when marketing to, or communicating with, customers and prospects. That makes it sound pretty simple, but, in fact, it is anything but… Good copy resonates […]
When it comes to grabbing a potential customer’s attention, the title you choose for your new content is crucial. But beneath the surface, there’s a sneaky bit of html code which is even more important – the title tag. Simply put, the title tag is probably the most essential bit of information within the content […]
Me too articles are the bane of the Web today. For each topic or keyword you get myriads of superficial ones. Just follow one keyphrase of your choice on Topsy for a while to see how much is going on. Of course most of these articles are repetitive once you know a few things about […]
Back in April, Google announced that the speed of your website is a factor in how they rank your site. That’s not ground-breaking. If a site is dead slow then it makes sense that people will be less impressed by it and less likely to use it. If they don’t use it then it’s no […]
One of my favourite blogs is Red Cardinal and they have written a great study into how to request car insurance quotes online. With some great screenshots, they’ve shown just how awful some of the major websites make the user experience. Check it out over here: http://www.redcardinal.ie/conversion-optimisation/31-08-2009/how-to-smother-your-prospects-and-kill-your-leads
Take a look at this short piece on the BBC news website. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/hampshire/8108319.stm At the moment it’s the fifth most popular article on the BBC news site and you can be sure that it’ll be picked up in hundreds of other websites, tweeted about, covered in many social media websites and generally talked about all […]
Strange title isn’t it? But it’s about a wonderful story involving a London bakery using Twitter to inform people when they’re just baked a fresh batch of bread. You can get the whole story here: http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5iIgCLG0fRo40rP-hNwT54BwCTIBA It’s a fantastic example of a business looking at how it can take new technology and use it to […]
Recently, I was asked if adding a ‘presenter’ would be a good thing to have on a website. For those of you that don’t know what a presenter is (and I must admit, I didn’t know that that’s what they were called!), here’s a link to the company selling them: www.mywebpresenters.com. My personal opinion was that […]
I’ve been meaning to write about the results from this poll for a long time – I’ve finally got around to doing it today. I’ve been thinking a lot about these results and what surprised me the most is that people are willing to trust search results (which can quite easily be gamed/manipulated) over something […]
Today I want to share an example with you of how powerful a newsletter is at attracting new clients. Recently we launched a new ‘Affordable SEO‘ service especially aimed at small and medium sized businesses. We knew that it was going to be a popular service but we didn’t realise just HOW popular it would […]
Many small businesses are now incorporating blogs into their websites and are seeing some amazing results! What is a Blog? A blog is a website, or an area of a website, that allows you to easily publish your own content. It’s usually much more informal than a business website, with a mix of articles, tips, […]
Today, I was asked the following question: Gregor, we’re listed with ‘XYZ’ business directory but we don’t seem to be getting any enquiries through their website. Also, they have just increased their listing fee by over 70%. However, they claim that being listed on their website is giving us a great SEO benefit. Can […]
One of the most powerful ways to show a visitor to your website how effective / valuable your services are, is through a powerful testimonial. People expect you to say how great you are – but when a satisfied third-party tells them it is massively more effective. When a prospective client sees that other people […]
I have over 3500 followers on Twitter and it’s growing every day. I’m often asked how I manage to do it and the answer is very simple: I give my followers what they want and I interact with them. The #1 mistake people on Twitter make is that they use it purely for their own […]
If you own a website and you want to get more sales than your direct competitors then it is a really good idea to know and understand what your competitors are doing with their websites. By looking at their websites, you can learn all sorts of things that can really help your own website marketing. […]