When you sell, you survive. Sales are how business gets by. Next year, eCommerce sales will increase to $4.88 trillion globally. A large reason why is SEO.

Search engine optimization is about getting visibility in the cutthroat world of the internet. Competition is always learning. New digital marketing trends are on the upswing. SEO has not gone away.

SEO gets you noticed. It helps you convert prospects into customers. It gives a business momentum. SEO = sales.

SEO best practices have changed a lot over time. If you don’t know what works for SEO in 2020, don’t worry. We’ve got it covered. Here are the best SEO strategies to maximize sales and increase revenues.

This Article Will Help You Increase Sales With The Best SEO Strategies 2020

The #1 determinant of a successful SEO strategy is quality of content

More than anything, have great content. If sales are driven by value, content is where you contribute most.

A prospect searches the internet for a product or service. They eventually locate different social media profiles, articles, and websites. A prospect is looking for answers to their questions. Developing content that answers questions, that’s smart.

If a prospect lands on your website and you have the best, most relevant, and most engaging content with your blog or website, there’s no reason to visit anywhere else. They stick with you. They build a relationship with you. Before long, you’ve got them. Here are some content forms to consider for your SEO:

 Blogs and articles.
 Infographics.
 Videos.
 Podcasts.
 Animations.
 eBooks.
 How-to guides, education, and general information.
 Product reviews.
 User-generated content.

Content is a vehicle. It is free information and value a customer doesn’t have to pay for. Conversion-driven, shareable content is what to aim for.

Choose your SEO keywords right and use them frequently

Keywords don’t have the pull they once did. They are still crucial though to an SEO strategy prioritizing maximum sales. It’s ultimately up to you to find what keywords are best. Once you have your keywords, use them:

 Content blogs and articles.
 Website page titles.
 Website pages – service pages, product descriptions, etc.
 URLs.
 Headings.
 Image descriptions.
 Video descriptions.
 Metadata.
 Emails.

Look at short-tail keywords. Long-tail keywords. Local SEO keywords that include city, region, province, or country. Over 50% of all search queries are four or more words. There’s less competition for these phrases and they carry higher conversion rates.

Is your on-page SEO the best it can be?

On-page SEO strategy accomplishes a number of objectives. It prioritizes a user-friendly site. Search engines more easily index your pages. Your search engine ranking is likely to increase. Essential user-friendly elements like visuals are also maximized to include an SEO approach.

What’s the best way to approach on-page SEO – well, it depends on the design opportunities available to you. There are some critical areas though to get right. Here’s a basic 7-point guide for best on-page SEO.

1. Create title tags that are original, descriptive, and which include SEO keywords.
2. Do everything you can to increase page load speed. This is a major SEO ranking factor. Faster page load times also mean reduced bounce rates.
3. Alt-text for images should be filled in with keyword-optimized text. Make it direct yet descriptive. Search engines will use what you write to interpret what’s in the image, classifying it accordingly.
4. Every heading should be optimized with keywords and a relevant description.
5. Link site content with internal links. This is to create a web of relevant, engaging pages. From a user perspective, it also improves navigation. To search engines, this helps with indexing.
6. URLs should make sense, be direct, have keywords in them, and be easy enough to read and type.
7. The meta description should be written to include keywords and direct, detailed information.

Can I use social media marketing to grow my SEO reach?

SEO is about search engines. This doesn’t just mean Google. Social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram have search engines as well. They work from the same principles of keywords, high-quality content, and value.

When we want to find interesting content, over 79 percent of us turn to Facebook. Reach audiences where they are. SEO and social media marketing have synergy. They work in combination, supporting one another.

Sales should happen naturally. If you give a customer the information they’re looking for and access to purchasing the product or service they want, you don’t have to push hard. SEO and social media work from this perspective. Sales pitches are spam. Information is most valuable. Human, authentic interactions matter most.

Does my online reputation affect my SEO or online sales?

Reputation matters. Online reputation management is to control what others see on search engines when they search for your business. It’s an underrated yet key SEO strategy.

Let’s say, you’re a restaurant. Someone puts you in Google. The first things that come up are hundreds of Yelp reviews complaining about the food, service, and price. If you’ve recently engaged in a public argument with a customer on Facebook or Twitter, that might come up as well. New prospects are seeing this. Do you think anything else you do with your SEO is relevant with your reputation being what it is – absolutely not.

Monitor your brand online. If complaints are showing up, you will want to resolve them quickly. Here are a few things to remember when managing your online reputation.

 Always be professional in every public post or customer interaction.
 Set in your schedule a time to regularly review online reviews.
 When negative reviews happen – and they will – respond calmly, quickly, and professionally.
 Encourage people to write positive reviews with every purchase.

Is local SEO the right strategy for my business?

Local doesn’t have to mean ‘city’. It could mean province or state, region, or even country. Geography is ultimately what we mean by ‘local’ in terms of how it applies to SEO.

Over 30 percent of all searches have local intent. This means someone searching for ‘digital marketing’ is using ‘digital marketing + city’ as their keyword. Deciding on keywords, using city name and region help you be found. Unless you’re operating globally, local SEO is the right strategy for every business.

What’s the best SEO smartphone strategy to reach customers on their mobiles?

Laptops and desktops are out. SEO algorithms don’t focus on them anymore. Why should you? The most sales online happen across smartphones and mobile devices – eCommerce or otherwise. That’s where to look at for maximizing revenues.

On smartphones, think of user behaviour. They open emails, browse social media, and use a variety of search engines from Maps to news apps and more. Tap into this. Get your business registered on every search engine. Use the power of SEO to give you visibility across mobile platforms.

You may want to consider starting an email campaign, an SMS marketing campaign, or using social media marketing to target smartphone users. Your SEO footprint has got to extend to smartphones and other mobile devices. Mobile-friendly strategies work.

Some quick facts about SEO marketing and sales

 93 percent of online experiences begin with a search engine.
 81 percent of people use some form of online search before making a larger purchase.
 Leads from search engines have a conversion rate of 14.6 percent, compared to outbound marketing with only a 1.7 percent rate.
 78 percent of location-based mobile searches result in a purchase offline.
 18 percent of location-based mobile searches result in a sale within 24 hours.

Make a splash. Pursue strong SEO strategies. See your sales climb. Cut through the scarcity of placements on search engines. Get on the first page, up to the first result. Do it today with Unlimited Exposure.

Source: https://unlimitedexposure.com/basic-digital-marketing/1134-this-article-will-help-you-increase-sales-with-the-best-seo-strategies-2020.html

Even expert social media marketers sometimes don’t want to admit to themselves when something’s not working.

Why a strategy on social media isn’t working often can be tied to one or more truths. Despite changes in algorithms, platforms, and social media trends, some things just stay the same. Every brand needs to hear these. Here are some social media selling truths you can use to sell more, create more followers, and get more from your social strategy.

21 Social Media Selling Truths Every Brand Needs to Hear

Your presence isn’t guaranteed sales

Creating a profile and making some posts doesn’t equate to success. Social media selling is science, art, and adaptability. You’ve got to move quick, be smart, and be willing to change what you’re doing according to what’s working.

Takes time to build foundation

Creating a haphazard account, you aren’t going to generate massive numbers instantly. Every profile is like its own small website. It takes time to catch eyes, get followers, and get some momentum. Once you do though, you can see a lot of growth. Like with any new business, no one hits peak revenues on day one. Invest the effort to learn, adapt, and maximize the opportunities in new environments.

Users want authority and thought-leaders, not duplicates

Brands get complacent on social media. They simply repeat what others have done, no unique thinking involved. Users follow thought leaders. They want reliable information from brands they trust. Instead of selling, selling, and selling, focus on communicating something unique and in establishing your authority as a thought-leader.

Social media is a relationship-creator, not a sales generator

No one wants to be ‘sold’. Social media works best when you’re cultivating a relationship, as opposed to selling. Create the relationship and sales will follow. We are inundated daily with marketing. Be authentic. Be real. Someone following your brand or interacting with you likely already are aware of what you’re selling. You don’t have to hit them with a sales pitch.

Interact regularly on social media

You don’t build a relationship by talking to someone once every six months. Communicate regularly with followers. Be genuine. You don’t want the conversation to feel forced. If you don’t have a reason to check in with someone, don’t. A public social media post is sometimes just enough. Remind your followers you exist and that you’re available to answer questions. Be your most natural self, give useful advice, and be helpful.

Serve before selling

Give value. Serve your social follower before assuming it’s time to call on them to convert. Following an account is a way to opt-in. It shows interest. It doesn’t mean, “Please sell me something now.” Serve them up value, no obligation required.

Be consistent

No company takes a ‘week off’ social media. The brands who are consistent with their posts, interactions, and social media customer service are 40 percent more likely to hit social selling revenue goals. Stay connected and consistent. Consumers notice this.

Find success when you give more, receive less

Sharing and commenting is what social media is all about. Give more than you receive. Sometimes, when you’re not getting results on social media marketing, give a little. Comment on others’ posts, consider joining relevant communities, and engage more with those that are commenting on your posts.

Keep your social media profiles up to date

Ensure your profiles are filled in, up to date, and that you’re easy to contact. If it appears like you’ve rushed filling in your profile or if it’s not complete, this gives a negative impression to a prospect. It’s got to look direct, clean, and crisp.

Update your social media images with offers

If you have seasonal offers or promotions, show it off on your social media. Create your own banner ad for your profile. Make people excited about it! Be careful not to replace key brand images though, such as your logo.

Competition is fierce

You’re not alone on social media. You’ve got to outdo the competition. It can take a lot, sometimes. YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram are where most of the competition sits. Although social media is fertile ground for sales and selling, if you’re not ready for the next level, you’re in the wrong place.

Cross-platform social media marketing

Few of us are on only one social media platform. Your activity shouldn’t be limited to only one, either. Cross-platform social media marketing is a must. Consider Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, TikTok, Snapchat, and others. Get the word out. Maximize your reach by being social media available.

Each social media platform has its nuances

Instagram doesn’t work like Twitter or Facebook. Every platform has its feel. Assuming the same strategy is going to work across all is a recipe for disaster. Instagram, for example, is very playful whereas LinkedIn is professional. Think about the tone of the platform when you’re posting thoughts, emotions, and information.

Personalize before sending your message

Before you reach out to a follower, do some research. A one-size-fits-all pitch doesn’t work on social media. It registers as spam. Segment your followers. Know their demographics. Use their name in any messaging. Treat them as more than a number.

The followers you have are more valuable than the followers you don’t

This can be tough to hear. The objective of so much social media marketing is to gain likes and followers. It’s six times more expensive to find a new customer than it is to retain an existing. A similar phenomenon occurs in social media. Just because someone is following you today, unfortunately, doesn’t mean they will continue to do so.

Are you easy to contact – you should be

If someone has taken the time to write you a message, they’re no doubt expecting a reply. If getting in touch for a follower is complicated or challenging, that’s a negative. You could lose that follower if they feel ignored.

Define a social media post schedule

Post regularly. Have a schedule that you follow. Ensure information is being posted at the best time. Certain times of day, for example, are more conducive to sharing and comments. Be consistent. Execute.

Be ready to change and evolve

Social media marketing strategies change every year. On top of that, you have real-time data showing you what’s working. Stay on top of social media marketing trends. Take the opportunities available to you. Some trends only come once.

Track analytics and make adjustments

Social media analytics exist to give you insight on a given strategy. If your analytics are telling you change is needed then make it happen. Don’t tie yourself to a strategy that isn’t producing numbers. Making adjustments is a good thing.

Exercise patience when it comes to social media selling

There is no shortcut or hack to social media marketing. Use the tools available to you. Employ smart strategies. Then give it time. It may take a few weeks to a month before significant differences start to happen. In some cases, it takes longer.

Consumers prefer social media over a lot else

Social media is preferred by a lot of consumers over TV. They prefer it over phoning customer service. Social media is where they spend the most time on their smartphones. They go to it for family interactions, entertainment, news, and general information. Checking in on social media is routine. Businesses have the opportunity to find their way into this routine. The more human, valuable, authentic, and emotional your social posts are, the more you’ll stand out. The more you will be remembered. The more followers you will get.

Are you looking for a way to increase your social media likes, shares, followers, and sales – Unlimited Exposure is where to look. See revenue gains you didn’t even know were possible through social channels. See record results. Give us a call. Let’s make those numbers count.

Source: https://unlimitedexposure.com/basic-digital-marketing/1133-21-social-media-selling-truths-every-brand-needs-to-hear.html

Happiness and joy. Sadness and tears. Anger and frustration. Emotions invoke a response. They motivate action. When we build marketing on emotion, it connects!

Think about it. The most meaningful purchases a person makes are based on emotion. The products, brands, and companies we connect with most deeply on are an emotional level.

Emotion is in the art of storytelling. A brand tells a story and it humanizes them. Even a customer who might not see value or who may not understand how a product relates to them can connect with an emotional story.

This article will help you build emotional storytelling that allows your brand to connect to target consumers.

Why Is Emotion Important to your Digital Marketing – Authentic, Real, and Human Emotion

What is emotional marketing?

It’s easier for digital marketing to be successful when you’re using storytelling themes and emotions. This is because emotional marketing is designed to motivate an audience to do four things – notice, remember, share, and buy. These 4 KPIs are how we measure whether such a campaign is working or not.

What are the best emotions to use in emotional marketing?

The four basic emotions used in communications are happy, sad, angry, and fear. That said, emotions exist on a spectrum. Here are more emotions – more specific ones – that can help you gain some insight into how to structure your marketing.

 Admiration.
 Adoration.
 Amusement.
 Anxiety.
 Awkwardness.
 Boredom.
 Calmness.
 Craving.
 Disgust.
 Excitement.
 Horror.
 Interest.
 Joy.
 Nostalgia.
 Relief.
 Romance.
 Satisfaction.
 Surprise.

One will find not every emotion resonates with a given audience. Emotional storytelling only resonates when you’re speaking directly to your audience.

Who is your digital marketing target audience?

Every brand has a target audience. Who is yours? To determine what emotion is most likely to produce a response, you must know who your audience is.

Look to your favourite brands for inspiration. We all like brands that are an extension of our style, personality, or identity. Mirroring a customer’s lifestyle with an emotional story, this is what loyalty is built on.

How will my customers know what I’m selling if I’m just telling stories?

The audience isn’t stupid. McDonald’s commercials are never selling Big Macs and fries. They advertise customer stories, from young people to parents, families, university students, and children. Coke and Pepsi take the same approach.

Some might say, those brands are different. They’re established. People already know what they’re selling. You’re right. Your cue to the product or service may need to be more obvious. It doesn’t have to be the centerpiece though. You don’t have to beat your audience over the head with what you’re selling – this is key.

How do I inspire action with emotional digital marketing?

Emotions can be negative or positive. Anger is negative. Joy is positive. Sadness is negative. Ideally, you want to steer clear of negativity. It doesn’t serve a purpose in helping you derive a response that benefits your brand.

This doesn’t mean though that you can’t have emotionally-driven digital marketing that’s angry, frustrated, or sad. If you’re going to go there though, spin it into a positive. If your marketing’s supposed to be angry or sad, give your consumer an action to cure the negative emotion or inspire positive action.

For example, ‘x’ makes me angry. If we did ‘y’, we can change ‘x’. If you do ‘y’ right now, you won’t ever have to worry about ‘x’ again.

Negativity is a tough tone to take. It’s something every brand will want to be careful with. You don’t need negativity, anger, or sadness for an emotional story. You don’t want your brand associated with negativity. Always ensure your marketing’s focused on positives or positives derived from negatives.

What’s the most popular type of emotional digital marketing?

Inclusive, inspiring digital marketing is the most popular emotional content. Audiences love inclusion. They want to feel inspired. The best marketing is future-forward and shares stories of perseverance, accomplishment, talent, and objective-driven behaviour.

A great way to inspire is by doing something positive for society. Is your brand connected to a charity – if so, make it known. If the environment is your passion, consider using ‘cause-based marketing’. This is when you market your brand as connected to a social cause. Donating a percentage of sales or using fair-trade ingredients in a food item are examples.

You want your customers to feel good about giving you their money. If they know they’re contributing to goodwill, locally or in greater society, that’s a good thing. This further connects a brand emotionally to the customer.

When it doubt, love

Love is represented in digital marketing in a big way. Love is emotion and arguably the most common. Consider how the following examples can be worked into your emotional digital marketing campaign.

 Your first romantic love in high school.
 The love between grandparents who’ve been together for decades.
 The love between parents who are so busy taking care of the kids they’ve forgotten to show each other affection.
 Love towards a pet.
 Love towards one’s self.
 Love towards a friend, giving them a hug and helping them through a tough time.
 Unconditional love from a parent to a child.

Identify your audience persona. To some degree, we’re all driven by love. Create content that gives love back to the customer. Remind them of the love they have. Represent the way they love in a way they might not think about. Love is a very positive and powerful emotion to work your digital marketing around, and is arguably the safest bet to place on emotional-driven content.

Have you structured your digital marketing around common milestones?

The universal experience of being human. Your target audience has had several common happenings between them. Use these common milestones in emotion-driven storytelling marketing.

 First kiss.
 First date.
 Graduating from high school or university.
 Your first day of school.
 Job interview.
 Getting married.
 Being let go.
 Job promotion.
 Getting the cold or flu.
 Disagreeing with our parents.
 Birthdays and anniversaries.
 Feeling stressed.
 Grocery shopping.
 Feeling tired and in want of sleep.
 Sexual desire.

Focusing on common human experiences taps into memory, nostalgia, and real events your audience can relate to.

In life, we all face a set of trials and tribulations. Use these to your advantage. Celebrate them. Celebrate being a human being! This takes a brand further away from being seen as a corporation or business and represents something meaningful.

More reasons to use real, authentic emotions in digital marketing

As if you didn’t already have enough motivation to play on emotions in digital marketing messaging, here are some facts, statistics, and info about emotional marketing we think you’ll want to know.

 The part of the brain that processes emotions does so in 20% of the time it takes for information to be processed cognitively.

 Brands using marketing ads that have an ‘above average emotional response’ see an average 23 percent increase in sales.

 Emotional storytelling plays a key role in viral videos and social media posts. It’s been described by researchers as a ‘deciding factor in virality’.

 Consumers emotionally connected to a brand are worth twice the value than the average customer.

 When a consumer has a positive emotional association with a brand, they are 8.4 times more likely to trust them, 7.1 times more likely to purchase more, and 6.6 times more likely to forgive a company mistake i.e. customer service, delivery time, etc.

Make your audience react. That’s where emotion comes into play. Emotions are like colors. Marketing needs color. Otherwise, you’re working in black-and-white and in this day and age, that’s plain boring. Are you looking for results-driven digital marketing in Toronto? Contact Unlimited Exposure today.

Source: https://unlimitedexposure.com/basic-digital-marketing/1132-why-is-emotion-important-to-your-digital-marketing-%E2%80%93-authentic,-real,-and-human-emotion.html

It’s more effective than any blog or article. It has more impact than a professionally-done infographic or photo. We’re talking about video marketing.

Years ago, you had to spend tens of thousands to film video and then buy ad space for it. Technology’s made it possible to launch a video marketing campaign for as little as $100 or less.

Creating videos for digital platforms on smartphones as well as YouTube and Facebook is a science and an art. You want to capture attention and you want your content to get shared. Fortunately, users are looking for videos every day to watch.

To maximize a video marketing strategy, there are a few basics you’ll want to get down. Just because the distribution channels exist does not mean users are chomping at the bit for your videos. Here’s how you get noticed, clicks, shares, and sales with video marketing.

How to Use Video Marketing to Create Videos for Smartphones, YouTube, Facebook, And More

Who is video marketing for?

ANY business can use video marketing. It’s not a marketing approach specific to anyone. Construction contractors, lawyers, car dealerships, nail salons, dentists, and more. There is significant value in video. The sector doesn’t matter. Users want video.

 64 percent of small businesses say video marketing is their most effective form of digital marketing.

 In 2019, over 81 percent of small businesses used video in their digital marketing campaigns.

 96 percent of Internet users in North America last year watched a video, usually on YouTube, to learn more about a product or service.

Your video thumbnail is your first impression

Before they read your title, a user’s going to see your thumbnail. This is a still image representing your video. Your thumbnail should be powerful enough to get someone to click. Look at memorable video thumbnails on YouTube in your category of business. See the colors they’re using. See what videos are getting the most clicks.

Let’s say, someone’s made a search. Your video’s come up fifth down from the top. A user isn’t carefully going through each video looking for the most relevant one. They’re scanning thumbnails. You have a half-second. That’s it. Create a thumbnail that teases, engages, and provokes a click.

How do I optimize the content of my video?

If your video’s crap, no amount of keywords or money thrown at it is going to help. Make the content great. Be creative in its design. Also, recognize most consumers will be viewing it on a smartphone.

A small screen size is way different from a flat-screen or computer monitor. You want to frame video shots simplistically. A lot of detail will be lost on the screen of a smartphone. Ensure lighting and sound are properly captured. Also, the length of the video counts. For your target audience, define the best length of time your video marketing should be.

A lot of us assume a user’s on their smartphone and they’re on the go so they want a shorter video. This isn’t always true. Some of us lie in bed and watch videos on our phones or tablets. Length can vary. Some video types are best at 3 minutes or less. Then, there are other forms of video marketing at 7-10 minutes and even longer. Consider the possibilities.

Is there video marketing SEO?

Use video marketing SEO in the title, description, hashtags, meta-descriptions, and more. SEO is detail-oriented. Do not ignore it. It’s oftentimes the keywords you choose to use in the title or hashtag that make all the difference.

Your video should have an SEO-friendly title. Keywords should be spread throughout. If appropriate, incorporate the keyword into your video thumbnail. All this extra work will help a video show up in search results and give you exposure.

How do you promote video marketing on social media?

Every social media platform has video marketing features. This doesn’t mean to use them. In several cases, it can be more advantageous to host your video on YouTube and post it on accounts as a link.

That said, if your social media numbers are delivering, hosting video directly on a platform can work well. The actual promotion of the video won’t be any different. You’ll be using keyword-driven posts and hashtags. Take your video and drop it into relevant conversations. Get the attention, views, and clicks. Look for conversations. Look for communities. Get your video featured.

How do I use live video in my marketing?

Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram are great live video marketing tools. With live video, the requirements are a little different. You can make longer content, it can be more casual, lighting and sound don’t have to be perfect, and it’s interactive. You can communicate with users as they post comments on the live video on a platform like Facebook. Here are some amazing live video marketing ideas to get you started!

 Introduce your team.
 Do a live interview with someone.
 Announce contest winners.
 Stream a product launch or live event.
 Go behind the scenes.
 Answer the most common customer questions.
 Host an ask-me-anything.

Integrate your video on other marketing channels

Most videos take more effort to make than a social media post or blog. Maximize value. Incorporate the video on your website and in blogs. Share the video in emails. Re-post it on a schedule on social media when relevant.

What is your video marketing call-to-action?

Every video marketing entry should have a clear, stated CTA. What that call-to-action is can depend on what you’re using it for. Think, what do you want a viewer to do after watching? In clear language, put it out there.

If you’re a YouTuber, you want someone watching your video to like it, share it, and subscribe, hence why the line ‘Like, share, and subscribe’ is the most said phrase on YouTube. If a user appreciates and enjoys the video, they know what to do. There’s no guessing and no confusion.

The same approach can be taken on your brand videos. Here are some common CTAs in campaigns you may want to use in your video marketing.

 Like and share the video to enter a contest.
 Create a user-generated response to your video.
 Order or buy a product or service.
 Subscribe to your social media for updates.
 Pose a question and ask for answers in the comments below.
 Sign up for a webinar or free trial.
 Fill out a form.
 Watch the next video in the series.

How can I make my video marketing go viral?

How to go viral with a video isn’t as easy as a formula of ‘a’, ‘b’, ‘c’, and ‘d’ equals ‘x’. Luck is involved. That said, there’s a lot you can do to give you your best shot at having a viral video.

Keyword-driven SEO allows new users to find your video. A timely trendy topic gives a reason to watch. Something unique and direct which doesn’t make you think is easy to understand. Promoting your video on all social media sites and registering it under the right hashtags, conversations, and communities. All these things count.

Another viral video marketing strategy is to use a micro-influencer. A micro-influencer usually carries between 10,000 and 100,000 social media followers. Their followers tend to be very engaged. Creating videos with micro-influencers or using a micro-influencer to post social links creates conversation around your content.

There’s going to be more video marketing opportunities to come. It’s not going away. You engage, reach, and make followers of more people with video. On smartphones, and social media apps like Instagram and Facebook, reach 1,000s of people in minutes. Expand your audience. Reach people on the platforms and devices they are most likely to use, and with content they’re most likely to want. Get started with video marketing today. Partner with Unlimited Exposure.

Source: https://unlimitedexposure.com/basic-digital-marketing/1131-how-to-use-video-marketing-to-create-videos-for-smartphones,-youtube,-facebook,-and-more.html

Shares spread the word. More people see your posts and with that, you get more leads and conversions. You instantly expand your reach with shareable content.

Every day, 2 million blogs are published. Those articles are shared millions of times on social platforms. That’s a lot of noise to cut through. Shares only help. If you write your content right, maximize effectiveness. If you create share-friendly content, you maximize visibility.

Brands struggle with organic reach. If you aren’t getting the shares you want, find a fix. Change what you’re posting and how. Shares remain the most important target for brand awareness on social media. Here’s where to start with getting more shares on your posts.

How Do I Get More Shares on My Social Media Posts – A Masterclass in Shareable Content

Is what’s trending important on social media?

Trends are tough to set. A lot of them you can’t predict. Thankfully, you don’t have to be a trendsetter to be successful in social media marketing. Follow the trends that are out there. Look at what others are talking about. Create content that says something unique around topics in discussion. From Instagram to Twitter, ‘trending topics’ are easily found.

What do your competition’s social media posts look like?

Sneak a peek at your competition’s social media. Make notes about posts most shared. What’s special – if it’s something their audience likes, it will likely be something your audience does as well. You don’t want to copy directly. Make it your own. You may find videos to get the most shares, or lists, or stories. Note the content type. Note how the content’s structured. Use it as a starting point.

What is the best way to write compelling content?

What compels people – stories. Expressive storytelling in social media marketing makes people want to share it. Every story has a beginning, middle, and end. A simple story is describing a problem, introducing a solution, and showing the value a solution brings. Think of a customer’s experience with a product or service. Picture a problem they have that could be solved by connecting with your brand. Tell that story.

Will clickbait headlines help my social media shares?

Clickbait headlines don’t work. They’re sensational. They over-promise and under-deliver. Clickbait is false advertising. Don’t participate in it. It can have the opposite effect on shareability. Numbers can plummet. Write healthy, attractive, entertaining, unique headlines. Deliver on what you write. Don’t be overly sensational or exaggerate. Always deliver.

How active should I be on social media?

Be active with your followers. React to comments. Discuss questions. Answer social media queries. Content ideas can come to you like this. Look at what your followers are saying. See what resonates with them. On top of that, when you reply or acknowledge, you show users you care about what they have to say.

How can I make a social media post go viral?

Nothing is wrong with striving for a viral social media post, other than viral popularity isn’t sustainable. A viral post will pop a number. This could create momentum that lasts a couple of weeks. It’s not going to do much for you beyond that though. For more social media shares, implement strategies that are going to build long-term momentum. You do this through high-quality, unique content.

How do I write emotional social media posts?

Make your reader feel something. That’s what will get you the most social media posts. Evoke emotions like happiness, surprise, admiration, and inspiration. Positive stories create more shares than negative stories. If a user’s reaction is affected at an emotional level, they’re likely to want to share that with their friends and family.

Can I post social media content that is angry or sad?

Though risky, you can also post content that causes anger or sadness. If you do, offer a way to address it. Give the user a way to turn this energy into something productive and positive. You don’t want anyone to feel dissatisfied or upset after reading your social media post.

Do images help increase the success of your shareable content?

Images attract traffic. Social media is image-driven. Images and videos are more shareable than text. This isn’t to say you shouldn’t use text. Do! Simply combine your text with a visual. A post on Facebook with at least one image generates three times as much engagement than text, on average. Try to incorporate text directly into the image. For this type of content, infographics work particularly well.

What is the best way to make my customer happy they’ve read my social media post?

Validate your audience’s opinion with your social media posts. We all have thoughts on certain topics. Give content that validates a certain view. This gives your audience valuable info they can re-post. It shows their opinion to be correct. Everyone likes being correct. Some particularly enjoy having others know about it. Think about the likes and beliefs shared between brand and audience. Work from an agreed-upon premise. Don’t post polarizing opinions. Pique interest with relevant, truthful, and uncontroversial content.

Will influencer marketing help my increase social media shares?

Influencers generate shares. This is why you want to collaborate with a relevant influencer. Show them off on your social media channel. They’ll help you get put in front of the eyes of their audience. They also give you name recognition to further legitimize your brand in the eyes of yours. Influencer marketing increases the trustworthiness of your content, resulting in potentially significant social media shares.

What kind of incentives should I offer for social media shares?

Big corporations offer incentives for social media shares and they work! Everybody likes a good contest or free stuff. Offer a free gift. Enter them into a contest for a gift certificate. Do a free download of something, promotional discounts, or giveaways. The total cost of an incentive is minimal and the exposure can be high.

How do I not sound like an advertisement on social media?

We see ads all the time. Way too many. Your content shouldn’t read like an ad. This isn’t a sales pitch. Users want something substantial in their social media. They don’t want to be sold to. Promote your brand by publishing posts you care about and that your audience cares about. Authentic information, emotion, and value trumps selling. We can’t say it enough. Don’t sell.

How can I encourage sharing without selling?

When you release content on your website or social channels, encourage sharing. Have share links included with your content. If you make it easy to share, one is more likely to share. A one-click process is ideal.

How important are keywords and hashtags for social media sharing?

Keywords matter in social media marketing. Keywords in titles, descriptions, URL links, and hashtags. Use them. Keywords make it easy for people to find your posts. If new followers can’t find your posts, how can you expect them to follow you – they won’t. Just like you would with search engine optimization, the same keyword research approach applies to social media.

What is some other advice on maximizing social media shares?

 Never use all caps. Be careful about the caps you do use. Don’t overuse.
 Don’t overuse hashtags.
 Post regularly and consistently on a schedule.
 Make every word count. Keep social media posts short.
 Speak authentically and honestly.
 Mix up the type of content you post i.e. text, images, video, contests, and more.
 Re-post user-generated content.
 Post at the best time for shares. This varies platform to platform and industry by industry.
 Percentages perform better than dollar amounts on social media, according to multiple studies.

Do you think you’re doing everything right in social media marketing but aren’t generating enough shares – hire Unlimited Exposure. Compelling shareable content set up right is a made success. Know what to publish, where and when, and invest in real results. See your share count rise!

Source: https://unlimitedexposure.com/basic-digital-marketing/1130-how-do-i-get-more-shares-on-my-social-media-posts-%E2%80%93-a-masterclass-in-shareable-content.html

Influencers are integrated into every social media platform. Instagram has them. YouTube’s filled with these personalities. Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, TikTok, Snapchat, and other sites love influencers.

Have you thought about hiring an influencer for your digital marketing campaign – if not, start. Influencers have a huge reach. They can drastically help increase likes, shares, followers, and revenues. Here are 21 reasons to hire an influencer on your next social media marketing campaign.

21 Reasons to Hire an Influencer Marketing Campaign For Your Social Media

1 – Influencers are more relatable than celebrities

Celebrities live a privileged lifestyle. They can be very disconnected from an everyday person’s day to day. Influencers are considered more trustworthy, authentic, and relatable. Celebrity sponsorships have been happening forever! Leverage the newfound trust in influencers and generate an even higher return.

2 – 4 in 10 millennials say influencers understand them better than their friends

Young people love influencers. They trust them. Corporations don’t get anywhere near that trust. Allow an influencer to represent you. They can deliver your marketing message in the most authentic form. Use them to speak on your behalf to your target audience.

3 – 86% of marketers will use influencer marketing this year

If you want to know what’s effective in digital marketing, look at what marketers are using. Influencer marketing is very popular. Budgets are on the rise. It’s a category of marketing that’s seeing skyrocketing popularity.

4 – 40% of consumers have bought an item on social media after a recommendation

Influencer recommendations count for a lot. Some consumers depend on them. Influencers are very persuasive. More than 40% of consumers have bought a product or service on Twitter, YouTube, or Instagram after an influencer recommendation. Piggyback on the trust of an influencer!

5 – 6 in 10 teens follow advice from influencers

Influencers aren’t salespersons. They give advice and frequently to teens. They’re funny, entertaining, relatable, and real. Compared to celebrities and teenagers, influencers generate 3 times the views and 12 times as many comments. If you want to reach generation Z, choose a relevant influencer on Instagram and YouTube.

6 – 86% of women use influencers for buying advice for social media shopping

If women are your target audience, influencers can be very effective. Influencer posts across Facebook and Instagram are the most popular and preferred. For brands in healthcare, beauty, skincare, and women’s clothing, focus a social media influencer strategy on Facebook or Instagram.

7 – Influencer marketing is the best way to get new customers

Influencer marketing is one of the most cost-effective ways of customer acquisition. They expose you to a new audience. For new brands that don’t yet have a lot of customers, influencers are the quickest way to get instant clicks and conversions.

8 – Influencers are very influential in health, fashion, and beauty industries

Health, fashion, and beauty rely on influencers to get the word out on new products. It’s affordable and it works. An influencer product review can mean $1,000s in sales. YouTube fashionistas are a great resource.

9 – Instagram influencer is growing quickly

Most brands and marketers are increasing influencer spending by double digits. Instagram influencer marketing, in particular, is seeing big increases in spending. It’s a key channel in influencer circles.

10 – Influencer marketing, this year, will become a $10 billion industry

An industry worth $2 billion in 2017 is now a $10 billion industry. This means more influencer opportunities on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and others. As the industry sees evolution, there will be more affordable marketing channels to consider.

11 – 75% of social media users trust what they read on-site

When someone’s deciding on whether to buy a product or not, they rely on the advice of friends, families, and influencers. For millennials and Generation Z, even if you’re an established brand, you may want to get locked in with a long-term influencer strategy.

12 – For every dollar spent on influencer marketing, you earn $6.50

ROI on influencer marketing is high, on average $6.50 for every $1.00 spent. This is only an average. Some experience returns up to $21 for every dollar spent. That’s a significant return. Note the channels with the biggest return on investment for influencers are considered guest blogs and Facebook.

13 – Influencer marketing is more cost-effective than print advertising

Print ads are down. Like way down. Newspapers, magazines, and community papers don’t provide the same return as a local influencer can. If you can find a micro-influencer with engagement in your local area, you’re better off investing in him rather than offline advertising.

14 – Half of customers use ad blockers when browsing the Internet

Internet ads don’t work anymore. Ad blockers make it easy for visual ads to go ignored. No consumers are blocking influencer videos though. Quite the opposite. Influencers are loved. Shifting away from traditional ads can be hard but the rewards are worth it.

15 – 49% of Twitter users rely on influencers for purchasing decisions

Influencer marketing on Instagram and YouTube are expected. We don’t often think of Twitter influencer marketing but it does exist. The community actually is quite large and influential. Regardless of what social media platforms have your attention, each one has its own built-in influencer community with opportunities attached.

16 – Any sized company can use an influencer

Influencers are used by big corporations down to new small businesses. There is a variety of influencers out there, tailored to different demographics and industries. Any sized company can find positive results investing in influencer marketing.

17 – Influencers add a huge boost to your content marketing

Influencers don’t just share products or services. Influencers can also help content marketing campaigns, sharing your blog or website with their followers. If you’re unsure how to get your content off on the right off, a strong influencer-brand relationship can prove beneficial.

18 – Influencers on Facebook have a very wide reach

Some businesses aren’t targeting specific subsets of an audience. Some want a wider reach. For general audiences, there isn’t a bigger platform out there than Facebook. Influencer marketing on Facebook can elevate a brand to the number of likes, followers, and shares wanted within hours.

19 – 60% of consumers have been influenced by social media while shopping

When someone’s shopping at a brick-and-mortar, you wouldn’t think they’re checking their phones. A lot are though. With more people going to Google, social media sites, YouTube, or looking for reviews, that’s your opportunity to catch them with an influencer review. Hiring an influencer, you legitimize your brand and everything associated with it.

20 – Influencers on YouTube make videos you can share anywhere

YouTube is a very smart influencer marketing platform to invest in. You can find lists of Internet celebrities and influencers from all age groups and demographics. You also get a video that potentially spreads across multiple social media sites. Embed the video yourself or see if the influencer’s willing to help share your video on their other platforms. Your reach could go from thousands to millions in a matter of a few clicks.

21 – Purchase intent increases by more than 5 times by influencers

When a person is exposed to brand and influencer posts on social media, this boosts purchase intent by over 5 times. If you’re looking to close a sale with someone undecided or almost decided, going through an influencer delivers a credible marketing message that will mean something to those who hear it.

Are you ready for your own influencer marketing campaign?

Influencer marketing is a powerful and credible channel. Don’t be late to the party. Develop a campaign today that gets you the eyes, clicks, and attention you deserve. If you have a great product or service and the only thing standing in your way to making lots of money is exposure, influencer marketing is your answer. Tap into social media and an audience you might not otherwise be exposed to.

Enjoy a digital marketing campaign you can believe in with Unlimited Exposure! We promise results! We drive brand awareness, generate leads, and maximize your revenues in ways that haven’t been done before. Make money. Make success. Choose UE.

Source: https://unlimitedexposure.com/basic-digital-marketing/1129-21-reasons-to-hire-an-influencer-marketing-campaign-for-your-social-media.html

SEO is just as important today as it was a decade ago. Search engine optimization, aka SEO, is vital digital marketing. If you know what SEO is and you already have a strategy, you might think you don’t need to read this article – wrong.

SEO algorithms have changed a lot in the last couple of years. Mobile sites have priority. Voice search has impacted how sites rank. Some factors are not so important anymore. Elements are always changing around the algorithms that dominate what makes good optimization.

When SEO works, it gets more eyes on you. More visibility for your website. More leads. More conversions, if you set your content strategies right. You build brand awareness and position your website to maximize its potential. Here is what you need to be successful in SEO in 2020.

This Article Will Help You With SEO Strategy Success in 2020

What is SEO?

SEO is the practice of optimizing a website for search engines. SEO helps a website rank on Google, Bing, Yahoo, and other search engines.

When someone searches a phrase that’s relevant to your brand, you want your name to come up. The closer you are to the first result on the first page, the better. To get there, you need SEO. Popular SEO strategies include keyword, content, off-page SEO, and local SEO.

How many SEO search engines are there?

Google is not the only search engine. Its market share has actually been on the decrease, lowering from 91.7 percent in 2012 to 87.9 percent in 2019. Here are some other search engines SEO can help you rank on.

 Bing. This is a Microsoft search engine. It is the default search engine in Internet Explorer and Microsoft Edge.
 Maps. Maps is a Google search engine. It is on every Android smartphone and used frequently by mobile users.
 Yahoo. The Yahoo search engine has been less popular in recent years but still holds significant global market share.
 Baidu. Baidu is China’s biggest search engine. Baidu has over 80 percent of the market share on all mobile searches in China.
 Yandex. Yandex is the most popular Russian search engine in the world. Much like Baidu for China, if you are appealing to this demographic, this is the search engine to use.
 DuckDuckGo. DuckDuckGo promotes itself as a search engine that doesn’t track users, unlike Google and Bing. The search engine generates over 1 billion searches worldwide every month.
 Amazon. Amazon uses keyword-based search. It is one of the largest search engines worldwide. If you sell on Amazon, focus on strong keyword use.
 YouTube. YouTube is a Google-owned search engine with more than 2 billion users. YouTube’s a keyword-based search. Use keywords in tags, titles, and descriptions.

What is the best SEO keyword strategy?

Keywords still matter. They’re crucial to SEO success. Keywords should be researched, carefully chosen, and used at a rate of 1-2% in your content.

Keywords can be words or phrases. When a person types in the keyword into Google to find content, the search engine provides sites using said keywords.

How to search for SEO keywords varies in strategy. Look for high search rates and those with low competition. You want to select keywords from three different categories.

1. Short-tail keywords, such as ‘marketing’.
2. Long-tail keywords, such as ‘marketing experts in SEO’.
3. Local keywords, such as ‘marketing experts in Toronto’.

Once you have selected your keywords, you have to use them. It’s not enough to just include them in content. Use them in URLs, titles, and elsewhere on your website.

What is the best SEO content to use to achieve results?

You can’t have a healthy SEO strategy without content. It counts for everything. Publishing content, any time someone wants to know about your topic, they find you.

Content can’t be like a sales pitch. Content should contribute value. It must be relevant, engaging, and shareable. Here are a few forms of content to use in your SEO strategy.

 Blogs.
 Videos.
 Infographics.
 Podcasts.
 Social media posts.

What is Off-Page SEO?

Around the keywords and content you include on your website, there’s also off-page SEO. This is optimization off-site. The main way to do this is through backlinks.

Backlinks are links on other websites that direct back to you. High-quality backlinks say to SEO crawlers that your site is of value. This helps build authority and helps you rank.

The best off-page SEO backlink building strategies are guest blogging, shareable infographics, and connecting with influencers.

Should I use local SEO?

More people are using smartphones to search. A lot of those searches have local intent. If you operate in a strict geographic region, use local SEO. These strategies will tap into these local searches.

Local SEO uses local keywords, such as ‘marketing in Toronto’, ‘marketing in the GTA’, and ‘marketing in Ontario’.

Another way to emphasize local SEO is to register your business in local business directories. Creating location-based landing pages on your site is also strongly recommended. Register yourself on Google Maps and Google My Business listings.

Why is SEO important for new small businesses?

SEO increases visibility. It makes it easier for people to find you. More than 25 percent of people click on the first search result and nothing past. That’s advertising you can’t buy.

SEO boosts web traffic. More leads. If you have your web design right, this means more conversions. What you want to aim for is to rank in the first five positions on Google. This is where 75 percent of all search engine clicks happen.

SEO contributes to authority. This can mean a lot. It lets users know you’re the real deal. You’re trustworthy. You have something to offer. A high search engine ranking suggests quality and excellence.

An added benefit of SEO is improved user experience. Site usability improves. Customer experiences are more positive. Mobile visitors will have a usable site to work with.

What can hurt your SEO?

SEO algorithms aren’t perfect. They can make mistakes in assessing content. Unfortunately, it’s your website that will suffer if there’s bad strategy involved. Here are some areas that search engine crawlers struggle with.

1. A site should have a proper link structure. When it doesn’t, some pages may not be included in a search engine crawl. When this happens, your rank lowers.

2. Minimize coding errors. If you are lazy with your website design, you can sabotage your SEO strategy. Ensure your web coding skills are up to par.

3. Duplicate pages. Repeating the same content over and over is cheating. That’s how search engines see it. Your website will be penalized if you have multiple pages using identical content.

4. Forms. Search engine crawlers struggle to read the content included in forms. This is why we avoid them unless they’re necessary.

5. Images, audio files, flash graphics, and video. Content that’s not text is not easily read by search engine crawlers. Use meta-data and write descriptions. This will tell crawlers what an image or video is meant to represent.

SEO Trends in 2020

Before we close the book on what is successful SEO in 2020, there are a few trends dominating how SEO is being done this year. Here are what they are and how to use them.

 Google has implemented BERT, a natural language processing model. It analyzes the context and intent behind a query. You can’t optimize for BERT but you can for your audience.

 Visual search is more common. Google Lens, Pinterest, Instagram, and other sites are platforms on which to search for images. Content should incorporate more relevant high-resolution images, optimized with titles, descriptions, and alt-text.

 Voice search. Over half of all online searches this year will be made through a voice assistant. Target long-tail keywords, question-and-answer content types, structured data, and featured snippets.

It’s 2020. Times have changed. Adapt your SEO. The algorithms are waiting to make you a star. Whether you’re targeting locally or the world, Unlimited Exposure can help you. Talk with an SEO expert today.

Source: https://unlimitedexposure.com/basic-digital-marketing/1128-this-article-will-help-you-with-seo-strategy-success-in-2020.html