Are YOU ready for Cyber Monday (11/27/23)

What is Cyber Monday?

It’s fair to say that we all appreciate a good bargain. Whether it’s picking up a new laptop for work, a video games console for fun, or a cloud PBX system for the business, it’s good to keep a watchful eye out for any opportunities to make a saving.

For consumers, though, there’s one day of the year that perhaps stands out from the rest. This is, of course, Cyber Monday. In recent years, this has become a huge online shopping event, where retailers slash prices and offer huge discounts on a range of different items. It provides shoppers with a good opportunity to stock up on cut-price goodies in the run-up to Christmas. [...]  Read More

Does Your Website: Trick or Treat?

Build Trust with Your Website Content Honestly

This Halloween, more children are going to be treated than tricked. Those costumed kids may shout, “Trick or treat!” from your front stoop, but you know there’s no trick, just plenty of treats. Candy. That’s what the holiday is all about.

In the virtual world of the Internet, people still want that kind of innocent simplicity. They expect it, just like the kids on your stoop expect candy. If you’re looking for information on how to make your own chocolate, for example, you don’t have the time or patience to sit through a commercial, you want the darn recipe. And yet many businesses still deliver ads instead of information. That’s a trick. [...]  Read More

Just Another Manic Monday

To quote one of my FAVORITE movies of all-time: ‘Office Space’……….”Must be a case of the Mondays”.

OK……so it’s not (exactly) Monday when I posted this, but it MAY be Monday when you’re reading it.  So, I have two choices today……I can watch 10 hours of Football OR I can worry about the 4 new client meetings I have tomorrow.  My choice:  FOOTBALL!  <not that I don’t care about the business meetings (I do), but IF I’m not prepared by now, then that’s on me.> [...]  Read More

I’m Down with OTT

CTV vs. OTT advertising: what you need to know

With billions of hours of binge-worthy content available at our fingertips, streaming services are making the world go round. And whether it’s down to the accessibility of high-speed internet or the content-binging behavior that we’ve latched onto during COVID-19 lockdowns, the streaming wars have sparked a new innovation in marketing: CTV and OTT advertising.

CTV and OTT explained

Marketers keep using the words CTV and OTT. But do you really know what they mean?

If you’re unsure, then you’re not alone — in fact, the two terms are often used incorrectly. Let us clarify! [...]  Read More

Web GEEKdom: The More You Know

OK………so it’s GEEK OUT time!!

While doing some research, I came across some statics that ‘blew my mind’.  Now, some of these are obvious, but there were A LOT of stats that made me go hmmmmmm.  Take a look and see if any of these do the same for you.

General Website Statistics

1.  There are about 1.13 billion websites on the internet in 2023

While there are 1.13 billion websites in the world, only a fraction of these are actively used and updated. A staggering 82% are inactive, meaning only 200,121,724 of the 1.13 billion websites are actively maintained and visited. [...]  Read More

CSI: Crime Scene INTERACTIVE

5 Things You Should Never Have on Your Website

Your website is like your digital business card – it’s how you make a first impression on potential customers and clients. Or (as I ALWAYS say):  It’s your DIGITAL STOREFRONT.  So, you want to make sure that your website is representing you in the best possible light. To do that, there are some things that you should avoid having on your site. Below, we’ll go over five of them.

 

1. Outdated Information

Your website should be kept up-to-date with accurate information. If a potential customer or client comes to your site and sees that the information is outdated, they may not bother doing business with you. They’ll likely move on to a competitor’s site that has more current information. Search Engines also like an up-to-date website that is constantly creating new content and updating information. It shows the search engines that you are a real website and functioning business.

2. Poorly Written Content

The content on your website should be well-written and free of errors. If it’s not, it will reflect poorly on your business. Potential customers and clients will think that you don’t care about your online presence and that you’re not professional. Take the time to proofread your content before publishing it to avoid making this mistake. [...]  Read More

WEBSITE 101: DID YOU KNOW?

I have to admit……..I was struggling to come-up with a good ‘message’ for this month’s article.  But (after a little research) I found some interesting stats and decided to do it——“Letterman Style”:

#10.   There are approximately 2 billion websites on the internet

The internet is ever-expanding, and there are currently around 2 billion different websites in total.

01 2 billion websites on the internet

………But of that 2 billion, only around 400 million are active

Only a fifth of all of the websites on the internet are actually active. The other ⅘ are inactive meaning they haven’t been updated or new posts have not been updated for a long time. [...]  Read More

NEW Google Analytics is (almost) Here!

Google Analytics 4 Guide: What’s New & Important for GA4? [2023]

Google Analytics 4 (GA4) marks a major shift in thinking about how web and app properties are tracked. Formerly called “App + Web properties” in beta, Google Analytics 4—announced in October 2020—builds upon the foundation of cross-device unified measurement introduced in July 2019.

GA4 is a new Google product that allows for Web and App data to be collected separately, or in one continuous property. GA4 is designed to replace both Universal Analytics (UA) and GA360, which will be deprecated in 2023. UA accounts will stop collecting data effective July 1, 2023, while GA360 accounts will stop collecting data effective July 1, 2024. At that time, GA4 will become Google’s sole analytics platform.

Acknowledging the increasing overlap between web and mobile app development and content—as well as answering marketers’ needs for unified data—Google Analytics 4 seeks to eliminate the need for manual stitching and workarounds between platforms. [...]  Read More

S-O-S?

   implicity  Oignificant?

When it comes to Marketing……..it should be BOTH!!

You’ve probably heard the acronym:  KISS (keep it simple st***d).  Just like in real life – you need to keep this mentality when it comes to your marketing message.  IF you confuse your prospects, they will get confused and will not buy your product or service.

 

 

3 REASONS WHY SIMPLICITY WORKS IN MARKETING

The marketing and advertising industry is constantly expanding. Competitors are joining the race from all directions, and many brands are feeling the pressure to stay ahead with seemingly convoluted marketing solutions. However, simplicity in marketing can be even more beneficial than innovative and complex ideas. According to Siegel+Gale, 75% of consumers are more likely to recommend a brand because it is simple. Here are three reasons why simplicity works so well in marketing. [...]  Read More

Freshly “SQUEEZED”……..Websites

Even IF you are an occasional reader of my blogs, you already know I’m a HUGE ’80’s music fanatic.  So this month’s ‘post’ is about Squeeze pages and Landing Pages.  

The English Pop Group: SQUEEZE was a personal favorite of mine with such notable hits: Black Coffee in Bed, Tempted and Pulling Mussels.  This has nothing to do with the article, but I like making analogies between my post and a rock group.

By now, you must be asking yourself……..(Jeff)……..what is a Squeeze Page?  Let’s begin. [...]  Read More