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    Tapping into success: Which offers the best ROI? Google or Facebook ads?

    Google Ads and Facebook Ads have a longstanding rivalry and when it comes down to your return on investment (ROI), it’s essential to invest in the right platform that will generate ad revenue. A professional digital marketing agency would easily be able to determine which platform would work best for your business, but for those who have been in the game for a while, you may possess enough knowledge to kick things off yourself. Continue reading to learn the differences between these two advertising platforms.  

    Google Ads versus Facebook Ads

    While you were probably drawn to this blog submission looking for a definitive answer, we’re here to tell you that there really isn’t a “best” option, because both platforms perform differently from one another, bringing unique benefits to the table for online businesses. 

    Instead, try asking yourself the following questions before you invest money into either digital marketing effort: 

    • What is my budget for digital advertising?
    • Which platform would better reach my target audience?
    • What stage of the consumer’s buying journey am I trying to make a profit on?

    Since most internet users regularly utilize both of the following platforms, it’s more important to channel your pay-per-click advertising services towards efforts that focus on the age, income range, and lifestyle of your audience. Thus, to increase your ROI it’s important to break down what makes each platform unique before you make your final decision towards rolling with one or both. 

    A breakdown of Google advertising

    As businesses grow and transition to the online realm, customers have more choices now than ever before on where to make their purchases. Although, to be a successful business owner, one must deliver and retain customer interest at every stage of their browsing experience. Thus, many e-commerce companies rely on Google!

    What types of campaigns can you run using the Google platform?

    • Search network campaigns
    • Display network campaigns
    • Google Shopping Ads 
    • Video campaigns 
    • App campaigns 

    Facilitating purchases is one of the many perks of the Google platform, and through pay-per-click advertising services, business owners have been able to approach their audience with the use of industry keywords within their content, only paying for the service when their ad is clicked by the consumer. This technique is an efficient method that’s super popular for those looking to expand their digital marketing efforts. 

    A breakdown of Facebook advertising

    While Google Ads focus on paid searching, Facebook Ads are all about paid social, targeting audience behaviors and patterns to make each advertisement effective and personal. 

    Below are some formats of ads that can be done through Facebook:

    • Video advertising
    • Photo advertising
    • Slideshow advertising
    • Carousel advertising
    • Dynamic product advertising
    • Lead form advertising

    What are the ROI benefits of each platform?

    While both platforms work as channels to utilize pay-per-click advertising services, they also offer different benefits to the business owner.

    Benefits of Google Ads:

    1. You can bid on a number of keywords and get your ads to rank higher, reach new people, and increase your exposure. 
    2. You’re able to earn higher SERP (search engine results page) rankings by creating relevant ads. 
    3. The search and display networks help you to create ads that will appear in search results and generate more leads.

    Benefits of Facebook Ads:

    1. Consumers are always sharing information about themselves on Facebook (interests, beliefs, hobbies, etc.) and you can use this to collect data on your target audience.
    2. Once you have collected a database of people that are likely to be interested in your products or services, you can import it into Facebook and target those people using your ad campaigns. 
    3. Earn sign-ups, sales, subscriptions, follows, and leads. 

    Which platform are you most excited about? Drop a comment below to compare with other readers. 

    Social media marketing vs. brand community marketing

    As much as today’s consumers seek individuality, they also have a very instinctual nature to want to find a sense of belonging with the purchases they make. This is why creating brand loyalists through online presence and word-of-mouth has become one of the largest growing forms of client retention. Naturally, social media platforms have tapped into this by offering people the chance to engage with their favorite brands and build upon these relationships by engaging with other like-minded shoppers. But have you ever heard of the term, “brand community marketing” and how it works alongside social media marketing

    What’s the difference between social media marketing and brand community marketing? 

    Social media marketing involves the utilization of an assortment of social platforms and websites to promote the sale of a product or service. Otherwise known as a form of e-marketing or digital marketing, the development of a social media marketing strategy helps business owners to connect with their online audience, build larger brand awareness, increase their conversion rates, and drive more traffic to their website. 

    On the other hand, a recent development in the realm of digital marketing is brand community marketing, which is when a community is formed based on attachment to a product or service. In fact, connecting to consumer behaviour is one of the most important elements of digital marketing, allowing there to be a communicative relationship between brand, individual identities, and culture. 

    How are they connected? 

    The arrival of the digital age has facilitated an opportunity for two-way conversations between brand and consumer, and while this online media landscape has expanded over the years, audiences are being swamped with information daily and it has become more complex to navigate. 

    Forging a strong, meaningful and long-last bond with the consumer lies within the brand community — those who have an affinity towards the brand after engaging with their product and now share a sense of purpose, passion, and values that are inspiring them to constantly seek connections through interactions both online and offline. 

    Starting a quickfire conversation about your brand can be challenging, but with community members recommending products and swapping stories, much of your social media marketing content can be showing off your community’s support and managing this emotion-building engagement rather than creating it all from scratch. After all, brand community marketing offers a wealth of insight that can be repurposed to boost customer appreciation of your brand and ensure that they keep coming back for more. 

    How do brand communities assist your social media marketing strategy?

    If a community thrives through the empowerment of your products or services, it means that you possess a great advantage to better target and connect with your audience. Consider the fact that most members that are showing their attitude towards a certain brand are likely digital natives who have grown up with access to the internet and social media available at their fingertips (ages 16 to 25). However, while this age group is likely the best demographic to set up within your brand community, retention focus can be achieved among other groups with the help of early access to price promotions, special offers, and sales, especially as more and more users venture within the realm of social media and online shopping. 

    So, if you’re an e-commerce business whose primary focus is to build up your brand loyalty rather than simply focusing on driving sales transactions, it’s time to transform your social media marketing strategy using the roots of brand community marketing! 

    Did you find the above topic to be a refreshing addition to our weekly submissions? Drop a comment below and let us know your thoughts and if you can think of a topic we haven’t addressed, include that as well!

    How to properly plan for your Halloween marketing promotions

    The spooky season is in full swing and with All Hallow’s Eve approaching, you should be orchestrating a digital marketing strategy that embellishes all the chills and thrills of your business. While this autumnal holiday doesn’t involve gifting presents, consumers love a company that decorates their websites with festive charm, and even better, plans some ghoulish promotions to show off their holiday spirit! Below are some ideas that you can use to spiff up your online marketing. 

    Send out a spook-tacular newsletter

    For those of you who are equipped with an email list and customizable template, now is the time to use newsletters as a means for showing off your Halloween spirit. Whether you decide to slot in some products that embellish a ghoulish charm or you simply host a seasonal promotion with access to an exclusive coupon code or discount, whatever you’re offering should encourage shoppers to carry out purchases and skillfully align with the season. 

    If you’re unsure of how to get started consider hire a digital marketing professional to carefully craft your Halloween email. If you don’t possess a list or an email design, it’s likely too last minute to have this task completed by Halloween, but you can look to other upcoming holidays and have a web development professional ensure that you’re sorted with everything your website needs. 

    Host a chilling contest on Facebook or Instagram

    While there are tons of opportunities for your business to utilize social media to gain consumer attention, Facebook and Instagram are great channels for visual promotions. So, as one of the best ways to engage with your audience, we recommend hosting a contest to sanction the start of the spooky season. This could include elements where you ask your customers to submit photos of their favourite Halloween-related activities, carved jack-o-lanterns, or party foods and the chosen winner would receive a special discount code to use towards their next purchase. Be sure to include rules such as, “must follow all of our social media accounts”, “must like this post”, and “must share this post” for bonus ways of gaining traction.  

    If you need help coordinating a contest promotion as part of your October digital marketing strategy, speak with a social media expert to get started! 

    Are there other ways to expand on your digital marketing strategy for Halloween?

    Since our favourite grim holiday is only 25 days away, we wouldn’t recommend making too many changes to the development details of your website. However, there are some small transformations that would make it rather eerie-sistable. 

    • Offer treats with each order: Whether the treat you offer is a bag of candy or a small gift bag of sample products, shoppers love receiving seasonal goodies with their purchases.
    • Live stream your haunted shop: If you’re one of the many e-commerce business owners who also possesses a brick and mortar store, be sure to decorate for Halloween and live stream what it looks like on your social channels. 
    • Get spooky with your product or service names: This change, while subtle, makes a world of difference to potential and recurring customers when they’re perusing your website. 

    What other ways in the past have you marketed your business for Halloween? Drop a comment below to share with our readers. 

    Mistakes to avoid when writing your own web copy

    One of the most effective ways to reach a new or prospective audience is by putting words to screen or paper. Aside from capturing consumer interest, copywriting is an artful way to deliver important messages that will appeal to the reader’s needs and desires. Although it may seem rather simple to effectively communicate professionalism and intrigue, there are so many ways in which sentences can be read and without a marketing professional on your team, who knows what mistakes you could be presented with. 

    Writing for everyone instead of targeting your copy

    Our individual needs and interests are unique to our personalities and since we’re all attracted to a variety of products and services, it’s important as business owners to orchestrate website and advertisement copy that will translate to the audience that you’re hoping to target. The primary goal of copywriting is to render essential communication that appeals to a mass audience. This could include offers, discounts, and promotions, industry-relevant news, or company updates. However, while the transmission of the information is necessary, it’s more significant that it resonates with its targeted crowd and sparks a positive reaction that motivates the prospective shopper to take action. So, instead of writing a generic paragraph to appeal to everyone that could potentially read it, write for those who’re already well-immersed in your market.

    Focusing too much on the promotion of products 

    While you should use both online and offline spaces to market your business’s products, it’s one of the biggest pitfalls that business owners get consumed by. Yes, good copy should capture the attention of potential customers, but focusing too much on the “thing” you’re selling isn’t as aspiring as the emotional connection to your brand that your audience craves. That’s why you should remember to use writing as a way to attract attention to the aspirations of your company, including the products and services, versus just listing their attributes. 

    Impressing yourself rather than the audience

    One of the many drawbacks of writing your own copy is remembering to take a step back and look at your product or service from a different vantage point. You obviously already love, admire, and believe in it, or else you wouldn’t have invested the time and effort into your company’s operation. So, it’s key to focus on speaking the language of the consumer, investing the time and resources into listening to their questions and concerns, and know what they’re looking for on their buying journey when you’re crafting compelling copy. 

    Trying to do it all yourself

    Unless you’re a trained expert, one of the biggest mistakes that business owners make is trying to write everything themselves. Professional copywriting is a skill that takes time and practice, and even after many years of application writers will still split up their tasks and have others review and edit their work. This is because we tend to oversee our mistakes, and with timelines and pressing delivery schedules rushing writing assignments, it’s very easy for inaccuracy. 

    What’s the best way to combat an oversight in your e-commerce marketing? Hiring a professional to craft high-class copywriting that can communicate the values of your business, of course! Working with a writer has never been easier, and many are happy to lay out a content-plan and clearly communicate what their future writing strategy will convey. 

    Are you ready to talk about content strategy? Drop your email below to start a conversation. 

    Three things we learned from last month’s SERP glitches

    For those who’re well enveloped in the world of digital marketing, you likely caught wind of Google suffering a massive indexing glitch last month. Since this bug dejectedly impacted the search quality among users for many hours, it’s worth discussing how this kind of disruption can affect business owners and those who work alongside companies performing their digital marketing services

    What does the term “SERPS” refer to?

    Search engine results pages (SERPS) are web pages that are served to users when they search for keywords using a search engine, such as Google or Bing. The user will enter their search query using specific terms and phrases, upon which the search engine will load and present them with a SERP. 

    Each SERP is very unique, as many search queries are performed on the same search engine using the same keywords at the same time. This is also because virtually all search engines will customize the experience for their users by presenting SERPS based on a wide range of factors aside from their search terms, such as the user’s physical location, browsing history, and social settings. This ensures that users get a more intuitive, responsive experience because while two SERPS may appear identical and contain some of the same results if you look closely, they will often feature subtle differences that might better appeal to that searching user. 

    Why SERPS matter for SEO

    If you’re looking to find out “why SERPS matter for SEO”, then you’ve come to the right blog. Think of SERPS as a search engine optimization (SEO) opportunity that shows users your site’s value by offering them passage with a clickable title and inviting page description. 

    Since the order of the pages that appear in the SERPS are determined by a complex algorithm that’s formulated by the search engine used, it’s easy to see how SEO is important. The search engine will judge each website based on a variety of factors that help to determine the relevance and value it shares to the searched phrase or keywords. Often, search engines will also make changes to their algorithms and offer users some insight into how the update impacts SERPS, to allow them to make changes and have a competitive advantage over other businesses who’re also looking to strike an appearance on page one. 

    What did digital marketing experts learn from August’s SERP glitches?

    On Monday, August 10, 2020, the SEO community noticed massive ranking changes in Google’s search results. While it initially appeared that Google updated its algorithm, it was way too far off to not be a glitch. Google confirmed that it was a bug and that it would be a few hours before search engine results were back to normal. Needless to say, while defects in the system are uncommon, they do happen, which is why your SEO team needs to be prepared for the potential of future glitches.

    Three things we learned from last month’s SERP glitches:

    • Beware of your analytics: If you’re checking your analytics and notice that Google’s organic search traffic experiences a huge shift from the day prior, you should remember that bugs happen and disregard the reporting instead of creating unwarranted stress. Keep in mind to follow up the next day to see if the glitch has been fixed. 
    • Rankings change: Search engine rankings are changing all the time, especially on a popular search engine like Google. If it happens on a large scale, assess online to see if they’re any reports from other SEO experts. 
    • SERPS matter: While you likely already know the powerful impact of appearing high on Google’s SERPS, now you better understand how the loss of traffic, new customers, and potential revenue greatly impact the success of your business. Investing in SEO really does matter!

    Was there anything else worth mentioning? Drop a comment below if there was something important that we missed.

    Popular trends in the realm of digital marketing that continue to stay relevant

    In today’s evolving digital landscape there’s an assortment of big business tactics that have proven to be beneficial to e-commerce companies. While generating results can be a challenge at first, many businesses are choosing to showcase a variety of digital marketing techniques to continue to flourish in their trade, and some of these popular trends are expected to remain relevant in the digital marketing industry for quite some time. 

    Digital influencing is becoming more common

    While some large-scale e-commerce brands have the budget to invest in a celebrity influencer, most can often use the funds towards another professional digital marketing service. However, it’s important to know the power of digital influencing as a business owner and how it can be useful when utilized by smaller influencers that have built their own community followings.

    For example, while it’s unlikely that you will be able to afford a celebrity like Steven Tyler as your brand’s digital influencer, that doesn’t mean that you can’t find a micro personality that possesses an impressive following. In fact, some of the best ROI on sponsored content comes from local superstars! Instagram is one of the best social media platforms to outsource a digital influencer, allowing you to check out their content and ensure that they would be a good fit that aligns with the values of your company. 

    Podcasting is continuing to grow 

    For those of you who don’t know, podcasting is a steaming application of spoken word digital audio files that a user can download to their personal devices for easy listening. Overwhelmingly enough, this form of broadcast has skyrocketed in popularity, with more and more businesses utilizing this technology as a form of digital marketing.

    As an e-commerce company, here are some things to consider before creating a podcast: 

    • Try talking about building your brand: Take a humorous or professional stance and establish yourself as an authority on the topics you discuss. 
    • Educate your current customers: Discuss industry-relevant news in an attempt to attract new clientele and answer the questions your current shoppers may have. 
    • Consider having a sporadic podcast: Unless you have a professional digital marketing agency handling your scheduling for you, consider podcasting once a month to provide some comfort to those loyal listeners. 
    • Take questions and offer answers: The ultimate goal of your podcast is to have customers tune in to what you have to say and if your content is important and interesting, consumers will feel that they’re in good hands with your in-depth, descriptive conversations. 

    The development of an intuitively designed website 

    While elements of web development and design have immensely changed over the years, the majority of business owners understand that a good website is needed to successfully market their company online. After all, what’s the point of investing in the strategic efforts of search engine optimization if the landing pages the visitors are directed to are slow and lack a positive user experience? Since a poor web design can cripple your digital marketing efforts, decreasing leads, conversions, and even your current customer’s trust in your expertise, when you hire a professional digital marketing agency to thoughtfully create your web content, consider the benefits of web design as part of your budgeted investment! 

    Which of the above popular trends do you feel is most useful in digital marketing? Drop a comment below to compare your opinions. 

    How Black Friday and Cyber Monday will change amid coronavirus pandemic

    While shopping holidays like Black Friday/Cyber Monday may look a little different this year, it doesn’t mean that you can’t utilize the months leading up to the infamous weekend to properly prepare your business to meet the demands of consumers during the pandemic. After all, this new normal has been great e-commerce business traffic and online conversions!

    What impact has COVID-19 had on businesses? 

    At the start of the shutdown, many small to large-scale businesses were forced to conduct mass layoffs and dig deep into their pockets due to their financial fragility. Since then, the economic impact of COVID-19 has only grown, leading to company closures as the take-up rates and fear of contracting the virus have kept consumers out of their stores and saving for a future rainy day. This major economic shock, even with the help of government aid, has devastated the retail sector, alongside arts and entertainment, personal services, food services, and hospitality. While it has been a few months since, remaining businesses are still feeling the aftermath amid this global crisis, and the uncertainty of when or if their operations will be able to return to the normalcy of pre-coronavirus is still unknown.  

    What are the consumer’s expectations? 

    While the famous saying, “business as usual”, is merely a form of marketing designed to assure customers that operations will be conducted the same as they always have, amid the pandemic, this marketing phrase has undergone some re-thinking to not strike the wrong tone with consumers. 

    Right now, while purchasing products and services for personal use or gifting is still shoppers want, they also want a company that aligns with their current values. This means that prospective customers and returning shoppers expect you to regularly update your business procedures for upkeeping provincial/state regulations and maintain your communication with them by providing comforting words to encourage them that shopping can be continued safely. 

    Are you doing your part but need the help of a professional digital marketing agency to do more? 

    Here are some suggestions on what they can assist you with to meet your consumer’s expectations:

    • Educate the public using brand authority. 
    • Highlight more sales and ways to obtain discounted products. 
    • Bring people together on your social channels to help bridge the gap that has been imposed through physical distancing. 

    More shopping will be done online

    Some big-box retailers like Wal-Mart, Kohls, and Target have already decided that they will remain closed this year during the annual shopping weekend with many more to follow as the greenlight for high-traffic, in-store shopping remains on hold. However, while you can’t bank on brick and mortar shops to shop the deals of Black Friday/Cyber Monday, you can be sure that online retailers will be stepping up their game to make this year’s shopping experience one to remember. 

    If you’re the owner of an e-commerce business, here are some ways that you can reap the rewards of Black Friday and Cyber Monday amid the coronavirus pandemic

    • Start building a cohesive search engine optimization strategy (SEO) to improve your search rankings. 
    • Attract buyers by hyping up your sales event using company social channels.
    • Run pay-per-click ads based on messaging that proved high-performance and appealed to your target audience in the past. 
    • Send out a vibrant email to your subscription list to ensure that they know what type of promotion you will have and which item(s) and service(s) will be on sale. 

    For those who need assistance getting off the ground and running or simply prefer the expertise for such an important e-commerce shopping weekend, it’s worth hiring a professional digital marketing agency to handle your online affairs and set the groundwork for some successful conversions. 

    How does your brand plan to keep up with the new normal? Drop a comment below to share with other entrepreneurs.

    An in-depth technical SEO audit is more complicated then you think

    The primary goal of search engine optimization (SEO) is to add value to your website by improving your site’s rankings in search results. But beyond that, the purpose is to attract more traffic and convert those potential customers into leads. That’s why conducting a technical SEO audit is a major deal! The following blog offers a little insight into what Trek Marketing may do during your technical SEO audit, as well as some suggestions for those who’re experienced enough to orchestrate one themselves. 

    What’s a technical SEO audit? 

    This form of digital marketing analysis is the process in which all of the technical aspects of your website’s SEO are checked to determine which fixes and improvements will allow search engine bots to better find your pages and website. Since search algorithms and online technologies are frequently changing, it’s a good business practice to perform a technical SEO audit every four to five months to ensure that you aren’t losing traffic to your competitors. 

    When should a technical SEO audit be performed? 

    Ideally, businesses should perform two to three in-depth SEO audits a year, with mini-audits in between, to guarantee that they’re able to reap the benefits of their SEO strategy. So, since a technical SEO audit is important for your user’s experience and website rankings, it’s important that your website is functioning properly and sending positive signals to Google to attract traffic. 

    While there are several technical SEO elements that you can check on during your audit, the first thing you should do when performing this time-consuming task is to ask yourself the following questions: 

    1. What are my overall business objectives? 
    2. Who is my target audience?
    3. Do I/will I have any business partnerships?
    4. How often is my website being updated? Do I have a web development company working on this?
    5. Will I be working with an SEO consultant? Will I need the SEO work done for me?

    After the above questions are answered, you will have a better understanding of your business goals and will be able to hire a professional or dive into performing your own technical SEO audit.

    What’s included in Trek Marketing’s technical SEO audit service?

    Our SEO specialists work on both on-site and off-site to meet the SEO needs of our clients. This included page layout optimizations, finding and fixing broken links, public relations, and innovative content creation. That being said, a technical SEO audit must first be conducted before we’re able to determine where your paid hours would best be spent. 

    Audits are bucketed into three separate categories:

    • Technical aspects: Crawl errors, indexing, and hosting
    • Content: Keyword research, competitor analysis, content maps, and metadata
    • Links: Backlink profile analysis and growth tactics

    To complete the above process, the client must provide a list of passwords and vendors to allow the SEO specialist access to third-party analytics tools, webmaster tools, website backend access, social media accounts, and more. 

    Are you experience enough to perform a technical SEO audit or would you prefer the assistance of a professional? Drop your opinion below to start a conversation.

    Exceed your marketing goals with these digital strategies

    We all know that marketing is the process of communicating value to customers and many tools help to aid the development of your online strategy. As a savvy e-commerce business whose purpose is to always look for ways to connect products and services with consumers, the opportunities to boost your awareness and credibility are endless in the realm of digital marketing. That being said, here are some cost-effective ways to effectively engage with your target audience.   

    Invest in more time spent on social media engagement 

    If it isn’t already, social media should be an essential part of your business marketing strategy. The diverse world of social platforms helps you to reach out and stay connected with your customers, increase the awareness of your brand, as well as boost leads and sales. So, not only are you better able to improve your company’s image through social influence, but it also aligns with your desire to invest in some low-cost digital marketing strategies

    Customer satisfaction plays a vital role in the continued success of your business, which is why social selling has proven to be a great way to reach new and recurring customers by posting relevant content mixed up in between sales and other promotions. The best part is that you’re able to try out various social media channels to determine which platforms reach your target audience and which are disadvantageous for your brand’s demographic. 

    Are you well-versed in visual or auditory storytelling?

    People are drawn to different types of advertising, including magazines, radio, television, billboards, and social endorsements, however, one thing all of the following examples should share is the ability to create an expressive, meaningful story. Regardless of what product or service you’re trying to sell, audiences value content that’s entertaining, informative, and either audial or visually appealing. This means that you should be focusing your attention on low-cost digital marketing strategies that can meet the continual needs of your customers, and there are so many professional services that can you help. 

    At Trek Marketing, we tell your brand’s story in a variety of ways by servicing low-cost digital marketing strategies such as PPC Advertising, Search Engine Optimization, Email Marketing, and Blogging. All of the above strategic digital elements involve carefully creating either content or visual elements to draw in your audience and boost conversions. So, if you’re looking for a service with a return-on-investment (ROI) that you can count on, let’s have a chat about getting you on board with some professional digital marketing services. 

    Looking for other ways to enhance your campaigns?

    If you’re a larger scale business, it’s possible that you already have the above services on-the-go, which is why we have a few more suggestions for those who’re furthering their company goals. 

    • Consider starting a hashtag campaign.
    • Look for new customers on search forums by proactively building relationships. 
    • Promote case studies to advertise on your business webpage. 

    Do you know of any other low-cost digital marketing strategies that may help prospective business owners amp up with advertising? Drop a comment below to share with our readers.