Author: Chris Draper

Should you use TikTok for Business?

Posted on by

The short answer: Yes, with now 1 billion active users TikTok is labelled as the fastest growing social media app of all time. The app was originally known as Musically, which was used to create short lip sync videos. However over the past 2 years this has developed this further into an advanced video editing tool.

How could it benefit your business?

TikTok is a great marketing tool for business, as it’s easy to gain exposure from relevant hashtags and target audiences. Statistics state that 41% of the market are ages between 16 – 24, which is to do with the growth of ‘Generation Z’. Although this may not be your ideal demographic, it does leave 59% of the market open for targeting your current audience.

Just like any other social media apps that you may already be using, you can follow other users, like and comment on content, and share that content to other platforms.

Video Boosts Conversions and Sales

As many of us know video content can make you some serious profit. Now that there is a rise in influencers, many individuals are charging anywhere from £100 to £2,000 per promotional video post.

Video is showing great ROI and statistically 83% of businesses have said that it has benefited their current growth. The other great benefit of video is that it doesn’t have to be the perfect edit. Some of the most viral videos have been recorded on a mobile phone and even most devices record in 1080p or higher!

Videos less than two minutes get the most engagement because they are short, eye catching and have the clearest message.

How do I start using the app?

To download TikTok you will need to go to the App Store or Google Play Store.

Account setup

  • Fill out your business information, email, phone username etc
  • Complete your bio information – add a short business description
  • Add your profile picture or logo
  • Go to click the “•••” and click ‘pro version’ to add your analytics
  • Start creating videos!

Once you hit 1000 followers you will be able to live stream

How can you promote your business on TikTok?

The best way for your business to stand out is to create fun content. If you are able give advice, show creativity or start challenges you will definitely get noticed on the platform.

Hashtags

It’s very common for businesses to launch a hashtag challenge in order to get their content trending.

Business Example: Last year a hashtag was trending on TikTok called “#businesscheck”. The concept was to explain or show the process of your product or service in 15 seconds.

Multiple businesses got exposure to millions of new people, made more connections and increased overall revenue from one viral video. By simply promoting the video online and adding relevant hashtags, it allowed businesses to tap into their desired target audience.

Online Advertising

It seemed inevitable, and sure enough advertising is now possible on TikTok. There are four ways your business can target users:

  • Infeed Native Content: Similar to snapchat, this video will appear in users home feeds, you can promote app downloads or link clicks.
  • Brand Takeovers: Brands can take over the tiktok platform for the day by promoting banners, images, links to landing pages.
  • Hashtag Challenges: Instead of following others trends, you business can set the challenge and promote a hashtag to go viral!
  • Branded Lenses: Create your own branded lens or filter that users will want to use, and link it back to your page.

Click the link to start advertising on TikTok.

Data Visualisation Trends in 2019

Posted on by

Data Visualisation is a powerful tool for analysing your business data, harnessing the brain’s ability to recognize patterns and shapes. The latest powerful tools enable diagrams, charts and graphics to be created on the web with a speed and interactivity that was unthinkable even five or six years ago. Add to this the ability to draw in the browser in three dimensions and even with virtual reality, then the possibilities are very exciting.

In this article we feature some of the latest examples of Data Visualisation and give you an insight into the tools used to produce them.

Uber Engineering Team

Technology: React, MapboxGL

Uber handles billions of data points every day, and has grown it’s own in-house data visualisation team to make the best use of that data resource. Combining this nab-based data gives city managers and ops teams a real-time visual overview of supply and demand distribution. 
Read more >

UK Road Accidents

Technology: Mapbox, deck.gl

Not the most cheery of subjects, but this demo by Ryan Baumann of Mapbox is a great example of combining mapping with a large dataset to give real, useful, location-based visuals. Using hexagonal mapping and coupled with an interactive UI enables the density of accidents to be mapped very smoothly and informatively.
Read more >

Launch It

Technology: WebGL, PixiJS

It’s worth waiting for the loading messages to clear, as this fantastic interactive spinning world is one of best designed and implemented of it’s type. Produced by designer Shane Mielke was made to support the Launch It book release, giving feedback on where the book can be bought.
Read more >

Free Local SEO Assessment

Posted on by

For our third offer of 2018 #blogmas, we’re offering the chance to have a Free Local SEO Assessment. This report looks at how your website ranks for a given set of keywords, in your area. Local search results can be a useful tool to gain traffic and enquiries.

All we ask it that you use our contact page to get in touch before the end of January and within 2/3 working days we’ll send you a report to let you know what could be improved and those aspects that are being done well. 

Local search results are a great way to market your business through Google or other search engines. Many businesses are suited to local marketing, and with a Local SEO Assessment we guide you through the latest techniques.

Why You Should Consider Social Media For Business

Posted on by

In recent months, social media signals have had more importance in Google’s search results. Some experts believe social posts are now one of the top ranking signals for your website.

Why is social media important?

Social media is important not only to individuals but also small businesses. If you utilise it correctly, it will create many opportunities for you to grow and connect better with your target audience.

Did you know that Facebook has an estimated 2.7 billion people using it every day. They have one of the largest databases across on social applications, also owning Whats App, Instagram and Messenger.

Increases brand awareness

With nearly half of the world’s population using some form of social media, it is now becoming a natural place to share & promote your brand. Social media advertising now gives you a way to target your audience effectively and achieve worth while results.

Values & authenticity

Social media brings real value to your community with content, images, offers and discounts. It now gives you the ability to build real relations with your customers, whilst also allowing you to give someone back to them.

Increases Website Traffic

Whilst posting content is beneficial to your followers, you can redirect your traffic straight to your website. Links from social media to your website are developing as strong ranking signals for SEO. Did you know that your twitter and instagram links can be found in the search results?

Ad Targeting

Online advertisement is one of the most popular ways to generate leads in 2019. It displays valuable data that gives your better insight in your customer behaviour using analytics. Facebook is one of the most cost effective forms of online advertisement and it also provides one of the largest databases.

Whilst ad targeting is popular, it can also be easily spent if small businesses don’t know how to optimise their ads correctly.

Why should you post content?

Content on social media is what makes up the internet. Just like a website, if we didn’t have quality content, we wouldn’t have a working web.

Images & video

Social media started very basic, it used to always be messages and captions updating friends on their daily life. However updated quickly because it gave businesses and users the chance to show their skills through images and video.

32% of marketers say that images are the best form of content, and this is why the photography industry has grown drastically over the past years. Companies are finding it easier pick up a camera and generate their own unique style of content to display their audience.

Video is now continuing to grow in industry, driving customers away from still visuals and directing them to something authentic. Video is also introducing other areas such as augmented reality, 3D photos and drone footage.

Grow a following

Having an audience on social media gives you a better representation of customer loyalty. It demonstrates who wants to continue following your content and also who will return again as a regular customer.

Followers have also given brands trust and strong authority across the web, giving them higher success and growth rate in the long run. Marketers also believe that having a strong follower increases brand awareness by 91%!

Start a social page and build your brand today!

New Year, New Website?

Posted on by

As the New Year festivities fade and we all head back to work, inevitably thoughts can turn to plans for 2019 and how to progress your business. One of the main factors in a sales and marketing strategy has to be to optimise your company’s online presence. We might well be a bit biased – but there are a number of ways we can help you and we’ve outlined some options below.

New website

Most companies and organisations will have a website in place, so mainly we’re looking at a website redesign. Unless branding and logo have changed, typically a second, third- or fourth-generation website just needs to be refreshed, with perhaps a look again at the focus of the content. Responsive design is often a key, to ensure focus is given to mobile and tablet view. Depending on the industry sector, over half of traffic to a website will be on mobile. This also guides us into making sure the content is as clear as possible, with key action points as a focus.

Website Audits & Consultancy

From our basic website audit to a more in-depth consultancy role, we try to use our experience to help you ensure your website or mobile app is delivering the results you need. Focus is given to planning improvements and then measuring the performance over coming months and years.

Digital Marketing

Digital marketing, which includes a wide variety of areas such as SEO, Social Media and PPC campaigns, is the method of marketing your website or app online. With such choice of channels to use, it’s key nowadays to ensure the most effective route is used, and most importantly, to measure the success of the campaign. With analytics and insights metrics available to measure the finest detail of traffic source and flow, it’s possible to accurately show any return on the investment.

2019 and beyond

If you feel that any of the options we outline above may be of use please contact us, we’re always happy to chat through any enquiry. We hope you’ve enjoyed reading some of our #blogmas articles this year, and wish everyone good fortune in 2019.

What we can learn from 2018 Christmas eCommerce reports

Posted on by

When ASOS issued a profit warning just prior to Christmas due to poor online sales in November, many feared that this year was going to be a tough period for eCommerce retailers. With Black Friday falling in that November period, did this mean that other retailers would reflect the performance of one of the UK’s leading eCommerce lights? Was the Brexit effect having a tangible effect on sales and profits?

A good indicator of general retail performance is always how early stores, in the high street and online, switch into the sales period. Long gone are the days of sales starting on Boxing Day. Even in stronger economic times of a few years ago, many online retailers (Amazon in particular), would launch massive promotional campaigns on Christmas Day itself. No sooner had presents been opened than we were busily seeking bargain replacements!

But with some of the big guns such as Next and John Lewis holding off launching sales some confidence grew that the general economic concerns weren’t hitting online sales as much as predicted.

Reports from Next and John Lewis however, have both showed good online sales over the period. Next overall sales were up 1.5% on 2017, but online sales were up a whopping 15.2%, taking many ecommerce analysts by surprise. John Lewis’ figures were up 4.5% in the week to 29th December, but as no separate online figures were released, it’s less easy to assess.

So what can we learn? That online sales, done well, are forging ahead despite uncertainties in the economy and high street concerns.

SEO Trends for 2019

Posted on by

SEO has already been adjusted in 2018 with the new ‘medic’ core update. But now as we move into 2019 we can expect to see some new influential changes to the algorithm.

Why will there be changes in 2019?

As humans we continue to grow with technology and any changes in modern movements. The search engines will have to maintain that standard, and there are two ways this could be affected – advancements in technology like artificial intelligence, and voice recognition and commands through website search.

What will be the next focus for SEO?

Although the core of SEO will stay the same, here are a few things to consider.

Voice Commands

In 2018 voice commands systems such as Siri and Alexa have been on the rise. Google may consider putting this as a ranking factor for websites.

Security

You may want to take a look at your website and see how secure it is overall. We already know that HTTP’s is a ranking factor, but we may have to increase this in the future with threats of cyber hacking and spamming.

Mobile Indexing

80% of the UK population now owns a mobile phone that they use for internet purposes. Any websites that are not mobile friendly or don’t use responsive designs will be in the lower ranks.

Featured Snippets

When you’re searching for a keyword or phrase online might have noticed a snippet of information pop up. This will be used for educational purposes so that users can see and find the answers more efficiently.

Star Ranked Data

Data online that contains a star ranking (1 to 5) will be valued more than normal links. Google will look at users website feedback and may prioritise 5 star links.

Will SEO trends change drastically?

The short answer is no. However, many new SEO trends are likely to pop up, so heres what we need to stay focused on.

The SEO Do’s:

• Continue building high PR links through mentions in top ranking and relevant websites

• Focus on keywords that matter and don’t neglect long tail phrases

• Expand your visual content and remember to use alt text and tags

• Helpful content is a must. Remember it’s quality over quantity

• Make a responsive web design that is perfect on all devices

The SEO Don’ts:

• Keyword stuffing

• Spamming links into text and blogs

• Copying your own or others online content

• Upload large images to the website

3 Exciting Developments on the Web for 2019

Posted on by

Happy New Year! We hope you’ve enjoyed a few of our #blogmas articles this season, and for the New Year we take the opportunity to look forward to a few of the developments on the web that we are most excited about. These may not make a huge impact even this year, but just following any progress is going to give a fascinating insight.

AI & Web Development

 Although Artificial Intelligence (AI) has taken a hold and is used more commonly than thought (think timelines in Facebook, targeted ads), the progress of this technology is going to be fascinating to watch. AI is going to change all our lives, and if harnessed in the right way can be a hugely powerful tool. 

The massive amount of data being stored lends itself to being analysed by AI tools in a way any human can’t possibly imagine. Pure data visualisation is a fantastic tool, but imagine the possibilities if the AI tool could suggest what might happen looking forward, and recognise trends before they happen.

PWA – Progressive Web Apps

This is already a favourite subject of ours, but the blurring of the lines between native mobile apps and web applications is going to be a growing influence in 2019. As more and more APIs are made available to the web browser, being able to access native device features such as camera, file storage and geolocation enables a web app to give a level of performance not before seen.

Having one codebase to build and maintain can be a game-changer for companies looking to develop an app, and that cost saving can make potential projects much more feasible.

Starbucks PWA

Content as King

This is a continuation of a trend that has picked up in the last couple of years, which is to move away from design-heavy website and to put the focus back on the actual content. 

As the web matures there is now a real movement to focus on the content – text, imagery, video – that visitors are looking for, and to reduce excessive clutter on the page which only acts as a distraction.

Focus still needs to be given to any branding and ‘feel’ that a client is looking for, but within a clean, easy-to-navigate framework.

Website consultation and report worth £250 for £99

Posted on by

In our second offer of this years #blogmas series, we’re offering the chance to have an Enhanced Website Audit for £99 + VAT. This includes all the aspects of the basic Website Audit, but also looks further into usability, browser testing and competitor analysis.

All we ask it that you use our contact page to email and let us know the website address before the end of January and within 2/3 working days we’ll send you an audit report to let you know what could be improved and those aspects that are being done well. With an enhanced audit we talk a little through what you are looking to achieve with your website before making the report. It’s not always as straightforward as you would think!

Photo by Fabian Grohs on Unsplash

The Rise of the Website ChatBot

Posted on by

Along with the unmissable Cookie Notice & Privacy pop up, the rise of the ChatBot has been hard to miss on the web in 2018. In our first blog for #blogmas 2018, we put the ChatBot in our top five trends for the past year, and there’s every reason to see this continue through 2019 and beyond.

At first the offer to chat on a website, as a support feature, can seem a little intrusive. A further reminder maybe, that our every move and click online is being tracked. But once you get over that concern, and occasionally even use these services, it hopefully becomes more clear as to how they could be useful when used in the correct way.

Some online chat support is still operated by a live person, and more technical enquiries are often handled this way. But increasingly these services are being replaced by an automated support ‘bot’, that has been programmed to give defined answers to a range of commonly-asked questions. These bots, or ChatBots, are fed questions and answers, and using Artificial Intelligence algorithms, are ‘trained’ to respond to a wide variety of input. 

Currently it’s relatively easy to spot the difference between a ChatBot and a real support person, but as time goes by the difference is going to be hard to spot. As we move through 2019, many companies are looking to use the AI tool as a way of increasing engagement on their website. Remember that all dialog is stored, analysed and in turn educates the ChatBot through machine learning. This circle of learning means that what currently seems quite a crude tool, will over the next few years become increasingly sophisticated.

With the release of AI tools such as Google’s DialogFlow, creating a ChatBot is becoming relatively straightforward. Maybe the question is not should we use these tools, but when do we start?