raquel08

[raquel08]

Change is afoot! How to keep your website relevant in 2021

By its very nature, web development is an ever-changing field. I’m often to be found reading tech-heavy documents about the latest developments around website creation.

In a world where the big players like Google and Microsoft like to keep things moving along with the way they structure their services, changes are to be expected.

These changes are also driven by how people access their digital world. First, it was desktops, then laptops, then mobiles… Now prepare yourself for a world of wearables and handsfree data access.

All of this means you need to keep your site optimised for the technologies people are going to use tomorrow, as well as being relevant for today’s users.

So let’s dive in and look at the things you should be considering if you are having a website developed, or refreshed.

Progressive Web Apps

There is a good chance you’ve used one of these recently. Gmail is a good example, as is the BBC website. These are websites that behave more like an application on your smartphone. They often do share data and development with an app, and this is a great way to reduce development cost.

Most modern browsers like Chrome and Edge support the technologies to allow this type of website. Visitors like these sites because they are more like the apps they are used to, so they know how to use and navigate the site.

Developers love them because they can access all the useful tricks a smartphone offers. Push notifications, offline access (yes, even for a website) and direct access to hardware like the graphics chip.

The long and short of it is you should be looking at this technology and evaluating it for your business.

Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP)

This is one that Google introduced in 2015. Many, many, articles have been written about how users don’t want to wait for pages to load. Google also doesn’t want internet users to be kept waiting, so they came up with AMP.

It’s essentially a framework for ultra-fast page loading, explaining anything beyond that means diving into crazy amounts of technical jargon. Your website still looks the same, but it’s delivered to the browsers in clever ways to increase speed.

Bottom line, it’s great for users, great for developers, and awesome for SEO. That’s a win/win then.

Voice Search Optimisation

“Hi, Google, What’s the best product to unblock a sink?” Might sound like a strange thing to ask your phone, but questions like this are getting more and more popular. Thanks to the rise of the smart speaker and the ubiquity of the smartphone, voice search is getting wildly popular.

Gartner say that about 30% of searches are now done sans hands. But what does this do to website development? Well if your customers are likely to be using their dulcet tones to search for your product, I can optimise your site for that.

If you want to truly optimize your site for lead generation, calling in the professional website designers in Arvada, CO is always a smart option.

[raquel08]

Choosing a Web Designer – 5 Questions to Ask First

Choosing a right web designing company in Arvada, CO to bring your ideas to life is a tough choice. You want one that gets your style and can make sure nothing is skipped in the process. You should treat it like an interview, because that’s what it is. You’ll be working with this company for several weeks and potentially long term with website maintenance. Be sure to ask the right questions during your initial meetings.

Here are some great questions to ask:

Show me examples of work you’ve done.

The most important thing any company can do when deciding who to work with, is ask for examples of previous work they’ve done. This not only gives them credibility because you can see their work product, but it gives you an idea of their style and potentially capabilities. 

If you need a special function on your website such as event registration or member portal, ask for example websites that have that. If they haven’t done something that you think you’ll want, don’t write them off completely. Ask for other ideas or tasks that are similar that they can show you. If they’re upfront and eager to learn, you could always ask for a discount by choosing them.

Questions to ask: Why it was built in a certain way, what were the challenges, what results have been measured, and how those results met the project’s goals.

Who will I be working with?

Most website designers have the same core skills and knowledge. So if your website doesn’t have any fancy functionality, you may want to decide based on the team. Remember these are the people you’ll be working with.

A meeting with a web-design company is an interview. You want to make sure their business is legitimate, and you want to get a sense for the personality and culture of the company.

Most of all, you need to understand their approach to the unique challenges you’re tackling with your project

In 5 minutes, these 5 questions will tell you more than any hour-long presentation could:

Question 1: What is your approach to usability?

More than any other question, this will help you quickly differentiate between experienced web designers and novices.

Asking about usability will help you understand the company’s focus – namely, whether or not they have the most important thing in mind: the visitor.

A company without a good answer to this may build a site that they like, or one that you like, but that visitors find confusing or difficult to use. You want a web-design firm that thinks at the highest level: user-centered design.

The best people working in web design today will light up when you mention usability. They will be grateful for the question, and they’ll be glad to share their opinions, experience, and the latest research

Best Answer:

“I’m thrilled you asked! We believe in user-centered design, and we conduct usability testing whenever possible. We’re visitor advocates and will defend their interests with concrete evidence and research.”

Question 2: Can you show me examples of projects with similar goals?

Ask for examples of sites with similar goals and features.

Need an event registration tool? Talk to people who can show you one. That way, you can ask why it was built in a certain way, what the challenges were, what results have been measured, and how those results met the project’s goals.

Suppose they haven’t built a similar site before. Are they up-front about it? Do they have any ideas? What challenges would they expect?

Is design your main concern? Rather than searching for a firm with a portfolio piece that seems to fit with your needs, look for a company that can show you a wide range of designs. This indicates a healthy creative philosophy: a company that listens to its clients, considers the brand, and doesn’t take a one-size-fits-all approach to the design process.

Best Answer:

“Of course. Let’s take a look at a few now…”

Follow-Up Question:

Is there a limit to the number of design revisions?

Question 3: Can I meet the team?

This question will instantly reveal if the team is in-house or outsourced.

A lot of companies farm out the various parts of a project. Perhaps the firm you’re considering is a reliable partner company. Or maybe it’s an ad hoc team of freelancers who have never worked together before – and who may not be there down the road.

Or is it a team at all? The “company” you’re speaking with could in fact be one person offering to sell the project, do the analysis, design the site, program it, and manage the server. Is this person likely to be an expert in all those things?

For any site with serious goals, you should look for a team of specialists. If the team is in fact just 1 or 2 people, ask about their capacity to handle your project. Are they going to be busy selling new clients while working on your site? How important is your project to them?

 Best Answer:

“The entire team is in-house and works together on similar projects all the time.”

2nd-Best Answer:

“There is a partner company involved, but everyone has worked together on similar projects.”

Follow-Up Question:

Have team members worked together before? How many times have they done this?

Question 4: What if I want to make changes later?

One of the most fundamental differences among web-development firms is their approach to ongoing changes.

Every website will change over time. Some companies charge hourly for these changes, while others set up a content-management tool that makes it easy, fast, and free to update text, upload images, and add pages.

Best Answer:

“We’re going to set up a tool that lets you (or anyone with access) manage the site. You’ll never wait or get an invoice for basic changes.”

Follow-Up Question:

What kind of changes will cost money?

Even if your site includes a content-management tool, certain types of changes will require a professional programmer or designer. Ask if your content-management tool will allow you to add new forms, change animations, or create new types of page layouts.

Question 5: How will we measure results?

It’s not a bad thing if the answer to this question sounds a little technical.

Listen for terms like bounce rate, unique visits, page views, time on site, inbound links, search-engine rankings, conversion rate, etc. If you start hearing jargon you’re not familiar with, ask for explanations in simple English.

Best Answer:

“We measure unique visitors, bounce rate, and conversion percentage. Our goal is to generate leads, so these are the most important metrics. We use an analytics tool to do this, and we will show you how to track these measures as well.”

Follow-Up Question:

What numbers should we expect?

Of course, there are so many variables that it would be hard for even an experienced expert to get too specific in answering this question. But if a company has done similar projects, they should have at least a general sense for benchmarks.

[raquel08]

Understanding Website Maintenance Service

You know you need a great website design. But what exactly is website maintenance and how important is it for your business?

Website maintenance is literally maintaining your website- keeping it free from error, checking for viruses, data backups, and making sure it is up to date for SEO. You may also consider it as a way of making your website customer-friendly by updating your website content, posting blogs, adding and removing links, posting sales and news, and much more. 

You can avoid a lot of potential problems by doing it religiously yourself or hiring the expert website designers in Arvada, CO who take care of your website just like how you would want to take care of it.

Not many people realize it but website maintenance is very important. In fact, it is a vital part of your business. Your website is the frontline of your business and your website’s health can make or break your performance. Consider your car, for example, you have a regular schedule for its maintenance. You go to the mechanic to have its brake, clutch, or electronics checked. You also add fuel to it regularly. The same thing is needed for your website, just in a different fashion. If we’re not making sense here, you might need to bring your car to a mechanic….

How can you keep your website maintained?

Here are the lists of actions you can do to make sure your website is well maintained.

Allow your visitors to share your content: This is something you need to do upon building your website. If you already built yours, we suggest you go back and do this. You want your visitors to share your content especially on social media because it will create backlinks to your website. Not only that, but it will also open possibilities for other people to see it.

Keep an eye on updates: You need to allow important updates to your website to keep it running smoothly. Keep your content updated as well by adding content that is timely and relevant.

Keep an eye on competition: This might be strange but it is a must. "Keep your friends close, keep your enemies closer" -Niccolò Machiavelli. Keeping an eye on your competitors allows you to understand better the playing field for your industry and make better adjustments.

Make your website attractive: When someone visits your website, whether on purpose or not, it will only take them a few seconds to decide whether to stay or leave. Having an attractive website helps catch their attention and give them the impression that it is worth it to stay.

Why do you need to maintain your website?

Website maintenance is very important to avoid unforeseen problems. Here are a few reasons why you should do website maintenance.

Security: We're not sure how to emphasize this even more. This is perhaps the most important reason for maintaining your website. Your website contains information about your customers and even your own business. So you must protect it at all costs.

Relevance: We all know that Google is the biggest search engine out there and they’re constantly updating their algorithms. Staying relevant and timely helps you rank higher by Google on the search page.

In the news for technology: There will be new helpful technologies available for your website as time progresses and you will find out about them as you maintain your website.

Design: As we mentioned above, having great design gives a good impression to your visitors. You need to keep updating your design to keep up with the latest trend. It's not always the renaissance era.

Your website is a vital part of your business. It is your frontline and it's there to promote you day in and day out. If your website is well maintained and running smoothly, it will be a great asset to you. Do yourself a favor by stepping up and keeping your website as healthy as possible.

Takeaway:

In this day and age, a website is as important as the business itself. Website maintenance is a routine that you should do on a regular basis to keep everything in check.

[raquel08]

Top 5 Free WordPress Plugins for 2021

If you selected WordPress as a CMS to manage your website there may be few questions that come to your mind such as Which are the best free WordPress plugins I should install?  or How many plugins should I use in WordPress ? and so on…. Although there are many plugins available in WordPress that are available for free and the numbers of plugins didn’t need to be counted based on your requirements you can use as many.  As a SEO agency, we feel that there are 5 free WordPress plugin everyone must have on their website in order to enhance the performance.

Digital markets have seen a boost during the pandemic situation since that is the only marketplace that has survived through the global lockdown situation. Every e-store platform has started working on making their sites more user-friendly, secure, and are opting to hire a web designing company in Dillon, CO to make their presence known. 

The availability of a wide range of WordPress plugins often makes it difficult for us to pick the ones that can genuinely help in improving our website’s functionality. Here are the top picks of WordPress plugins that will surely improve your website’s performance:

1.     Jetpack:

Jetpack is crafted by WordPress Experts in order to enhance the performance, security, and design of your website. With JetPack you gain auto site security 24/7. Jetpack security offers you comprehensive WP site security that includes real-time backups, malware scanning, spam protection, and add on features such as brute force protection and monitoring of downtime and uptime.

There are over 52000 plugins available, but you do not need to download each of them. Trying to get hold of all the free plugins can slow down your website and can hinder its seamless working. Why not opt for a plugin that can provide you with diverse functionalities? Kudos to the Jetpack for being there! It is like an ultimate toolkit for your website. It gives your website spam protection, regular backups, SEO tools, and has very affordable payment plans.

Moreover, it will keep your website from slowing down, and despite the additional features, it will make it run rather smoothly. After its installation, you will get a dashboard that will display all the features using the analytics.

2.    Yoast SEO:

Yoast SEO is another plugin in our list which is must-have for your WordPress, Since 2008, Yoast SEO has helped websites to enhance their rankings in major search engines. Yoast SEO offers you a free plugin in order to optimize your content that manages the best of industry standards while writing the on page optimized content. In order to rank high one needs to maintain strong content-driven pages.

Everyone wants their website to be on top of the search engine’s search, and this very tool can help you get there. It aids the process of choosing the right keywords, putting titles and meta descriptions, and optimizing the age according to it. Yoast SEO gives you a detailed description and tips on how to improve and optimize your website as per the latest SEO techniques. You can start optimizing your website right away.

3.    Akismet Anti-Spam:

Akismet Anti-spam extension helps you to check all the comments made on your website pages or blogs and based on their global database it showcase which comments may be spam. This way you don’t need to worry about malicious links made in the comment section.

Unfortunately, spam has become part of our lives. They are unavoidable, be it spam comments or emails, you are bound to fall victim to them. The moment your website will go live, your website will be clogged by spam comments and will ruin the experience of your users. If not dealt with properly, this issue can make your users lose interest—however, thanks to the Akismet anti-spam plugin that can make your life a lot easier. The free version of this plugin works perfectly. Install it right away and enhance the user experience.

4.    WP Super Cache:

A slow-loading website can kill the users with boredom and can make them close the tab right away. To speed up the loading time, you will need WP super cache for sure. A cache is a place that stores the data temporarily. Your browser can store the files from the webpage you have visited earlier and that in turn reduces the loading time of it since it does not need to be loaded from scratch.

WP Super Cache let you create static pages for your website and serve them directly to the user instead of loading the entire PHP scripts. It also provides caching to mobile users. This plugin create static html files from your dynamic WordPress blog. and once the html file is generated your webserver will serve that file instead of processing the comparatively heavier and more expensive WordPress PHP scripts.

5.    Google XML Sitemap:

A search engine always needs a site map to index your website and browse through it properly. Without a sitemap, your website is not going to get a good ranking. Submitting a sitemap is an essential part of doing SEO effectively. Doing this manually can be time-consuming, whereas, having Google XML sitemap plugin can make it a breezy process for you. It let you notify the search engines regularly about the changes and updates in your sitemap. Moreover, when you publish a new blog post, the search engine will be automatically notified about it. This plugin is as cool as it sounds!

Conclusion:

There are multiple free WordPress plugins available, but one must know which one to pick to work rather smartly than bombarding the website with a lot of them, thus, resulting in slowing it down. Make sure to have an expert on board to get proper assistance regarding the choice of the right WordPress plugins for you. The more you focus on enhancing the functionality of your website, the more users you are going to attract, which will further translate to increased profits. By installing the essential plugins, you will be good to go on your way.

[raquel08]

8 Helpful Plugins for WooCommerce

There’s no doubt WooCommerce is one of the more popular platforms for WordPress eCommerce sites. It comes with excellent features that enhance business for both small and big online stores. WooCommerce has certainly proved itself as an easy-to-use open-source platform powering over 28% of all online stores.

The popular platform comes with plenty of free and paid plugins that businesses can use to boost sales, keep visitors engaged, and increase traffic. Whether your clients are interested in lead generation or cart abandonment solutions, there’s a WooCommerce plugin that offers the perfect solution.

TrustPulse

TrustPulse helps your clients boost conversions and sales. The FOMO tool gives social proof to customers by showing them other people who have bought the same products. TrustPulse also allows business websites to target specific pages or products and add notifications targeting customers viewing similar products.

This plugin also allows your clients to access a live stream of customer decisions and detailed reports that can be used to optimise future campaigns.

WooCommerce Currency Switcher

eCommerce sites get traffic from international buyers. This nifty plugin supports real-time currency conversion which allows buyers to get accurate prices in their local currency. This not only helps business-owners get access to a wider market it also provides a better user experience by enabling buyers to make faster decisions.

WooCommerce currency switcher also features flags, shortcodes, four currency aggregators, and automatic currency change based on visitor IP.

YITH WooCommerce Zoom Magnifier

With the internet, some things are not as they seem. YITH WooCommerce Zoom Magnifier allows buyers to zoom in the products listed on the site to inspect quality and detail. Giving buyers the ability to zoom in on products reassures them of the site’s reliability and improves user interaction.

Help your clients boost sales with this WooCommerce zoom-in plugin that also allows sites to feature multiple images. The plugin also features customisable zoom areas and zoom in mouseover.

Paypal for WooCommerce

Paypal has over 270 million customers accounts making it an essential payment option for online stores. This plugin integrates easily with WooCommerce allowing business owners to see all their transaction data and enabling buyers to make purchases more easily.

Woocommerce Dynamic Pricing and Discounts

eCommerce entrepreneurs understand that they need different pricing strategies to boost profits. This often means testing different pricing options to gauge what sells the most. WooCommerce Dynamic Pricing helps business owners manage discounts, pricing, member loyalty rewards, and more.

YITH WooCommerce Wishlist

Using this plugin allows buyers to create a wishlist for items they’d like to get in future for friends and family during holiday seasons, birthdays, anniversaries and more.

Product Import Export For WooCommerce

This plugin allows website owners to save time by importing and exporting items to their WooCommerce store by simply uploading a CSV file.

WooCommerce Direct Checkout

WooCommerce Direct Checkout makes it easier for buyers interested in a particular product to quickly make a purchase. This plugin adds a ‘Buy Now’ button that allows buyers to go directly to checkout. This greatly improves the user experience and boosts sales significantly.

User experience is crucial if you want your eCommerce website to become successful. By hiring professional website designer in Dillon, CO, you can be confident that each visitor will have a great experience using your website and turning them into paying customers.

[raquel08]

SIGNS YOU NEED A NEW WEBSITE

Have you ever been to a website that looked old and out of date? You probably left that site pretty quickly and searched for another business.  Today, technology and branding play a huge role in our decisions.

In the 90’s you were ahead of the game if you had a website, didn’t matter what it looked like.  Not anymore.  Websites today are so much more: Nicely designed, easy to navigate, engaging, mobile responsive and much more.

IS YOUR WEBSITE MOBILE RESPONSIVE?

Over 20% of Google searches are performed on a mobile device, and when it comes to local searches, more than half are performed on mobile devices.

According to Econsultancy, 62% of companies that designed a website with mobile in mind saw increased sales

Google prioritises websites that are mobile responsive over other sites.  There are some simple ways to check if your site is responsive.

shrink your website browser to see how it looks at different sizes

use free online tools to check: Responsive Design Checker

take the Google Mobile-Friendly TestGoogle Mobile-Friendly Test

YOUR WEBSITE IS BUILT IN FLASH

Stop now and rebuild your site if you want to get found! Flash is now over 5 years old and will not help your business get found online. Your website will not be visible on iPhone and iPad as they don’t support flash, but also major search engines like Google, Bing and Yahoo will not be able to read your site, so you won’t be able to be found when someone is searching.

SEARCH RANKINGS ARE LOW

This could be for a variety of reasons. You may need an update, refresh content, add new content or work on SEO.  Google prioritises high-quality content.  Every now and then we are asked to do some SEO on websites and they are simply too old that any work that was done and investment into SEO won’t have any return or positive outcome.  If this is the case, we recommend getting a new site built that is SEO Friendly.

LOOKS OUT OF DATE

Does your site look old and out of date?  Is the copyright date in your footer very old?  Websites have changed over the years, this site alone has gone through a revamp recently after it was first built 5 year ago.  People now want a clean design, easy to navigation and get information quickly.

According to a study by ResearchGate, 94% of people say that websites with good designs are more trustworthy.

Have a look at Apple’s Website 20 years ago vs Today:

IT’S SLOW…

According to KISSmetrics, 47% of consumers expect a web page to load in 2 seconds or less, and 40% of people will abandon a website that takes more than 3 seconds to load!

You may not need a new website, contact us for a site review and we can advise. There may be some simple updates we can do to help speed up your website speed performance.

YOU HAVE CHANGED YOUR BRAND AND BRAND POSITIONING

Your website is one your biggest business assets.  Does your website represent your business properly?  Is it in-line with all other brand touch points?

It may need a redesign if it doesn’t reflect your brand. And if you are thinking of redesigning your current website’s look and structure in 2021, then connect with the experts of a web development company in Arvada, CO to get the best web development services.

CAN’T EASILY MAKE CHANGES TO THE CONTENT ON YOUR WEBSITE?

When websites were first built, you needed a website design software like DreamWeaver to design and create HTML to upload to your website.  In order to changes content to your site, you needed to use that same software.  If the CMS system that you use (the website platform) is too hard to manage, it shouldn’t!  You should be able to easily update your website content in order to keep it current and up to date.  Most websites today come with content builders which make it easier for you to update the website such as Divi and Visual Composer on WordPress.

YOU LIKE YOUR COMPETITOR’S SITE MORE THAN YOUR OWN!

If this is the case…. start working on rebuilding your website.  If you like their website more than your own, chances are that your buys will too and you are losing out on potential business.

Here are some samples of websites we have revamped – the before and after rebuild.

After reviewing your site, do you think it needs to be rebuilt?  Or not sure you need a new website?

[raquel08]

WHY SHOULD YOU SWITCH YOUR SITE TO HTTPS

Why should switch your site to HTTPS?  In this blog post, we explain what HTTPS is, the benefits and the top 4 reasons why you should switch your website over to HTTPS today!

What is HTTPS?

You will notice some websites are HTTP:// and others are HTTPS://. So what is the difference?

Hyper Text Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS) is the secure version of HTTP, this is the process where data such as credit card information is sent from the user’s browser and the website it’s being sent to. The ‘S’ at the end of HTTPS stands for ‘Secure’.  The security encrypts the communications going from your browser to the website.  HTTPS is typically used to protect highly confidential information such as credit cards and shopping order forms

You will notice in your browsers (such as Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Chrome), when you are on a secure HTTPS site you will see a green padlock icon in the address bar indicating that it is secure:

Note, HTTPS sites help make your site more secure, but there are still vulnerabilities.  You should still have other security measures in place to secure your site such as installing WordFence if you are using WordPress.

You will require an SSL Certificate – What is an SSL certificate?

To change your site from HTTP to HTTPS you will need to contact your hosting provider and ask them for an SSL Certificate.

When you visit a website that has HTTPS in the url, the website will send its SSL certificate to your browser.  This certificate will contain the public keys to enable a secure connection between your browser and the website.  This connection is a unique secure connection between you and the website.

All communication (e.g. shopping cart, contact forms etc) on a regular HTTP site are considered ‘plain text’ which can be read by any hacker trying to get information from websites. This is particularly important when providing any banking details or sensitive data across the web.  With an SSL certificate an HTTP connection, all communications are securely encrypted.

Are HTTPS sites only for websites with a shopping cart?

Typically in the past, most people thought HTTPS was only for shopping sites and protect credit card information. A lot of businesses haven’t switched over as it was not a priority, until now.  Now, the recommendation is to have ALL websites using an SSL certificate, even if you don’t have contact forms.  And we will tell you why you should switch your site to https.

WHY SHOULD YOU SWITCH YOUR SITE TO HTTPS?

There are many reasons why we should all be moving our sites over to HTTPS.

Here are 4 important reasons why you should activate HTTPS today:

1.  Browsers will now be showing HTTP sites as Not Secure

Emily Schechter from Chrome Security Team has advised that as of January, Chrome will communicate HTTP pages as “Not secure” if they have password or credit card fields. In October 2017, chrome will be showing ‘Not Secure’ warning to any HTTP site where users enter data on a page, this includes generic contact forms.  This will impact the majority of the websites and is one of the major reasons why you should be switching to HTTPS before October.

In October you will get a warning saying the connection is not secure and you proceed with caution.  This is the message you also get if your site is not HTTPS and has a credit card or password fields:

Eventually, the plan is to show the “Not secure” warning for all HTTP pages, even outside Incognito mode. So don’t wait to get started moving to HTTPS!

2. SEO – It will help boost your rankings

HTTPS sites will give you a good ranking boost and more referrer data. Google now priorities secure HTTPS sites on page one of google searches.  This will boost your organic traffic, especially if you act now and get your site secure, you will probably increase your rankings if your competitors haven’t made the move yet.

Over 50% of page 1 Google results are now HTTPS sites:

The trend will continue to increase and eventually you will see only HTTPS websites on page 1.  This trend is an educated guess, but seeing only 9 months ago the results have almost doubled for a number of https websites, and that chrome will be showing nonsecure websites by the October, we are sure that soon, all page 1 Google results will be HTTPS sites.

When we look at improving SEO, we do a technical audit of the site which includes site speed performances.  In the recommendations, one of the technical improvements we look at is if your site is HTTPS or not.  If it isn’t we recommend switching over as part of the technical SEO review.

3. Trusted by viewers

Visitors that view your site will trust your business more if you have a secure website and will more likely enter in contact details or purchase through your site.  This is important if you have an online store.  By having an SSL certificate, they can verify you are a registered business and that you own the domain.

4. AMP requires HTTPS

What is AMP? “The Accelerated Mobile Pages Project is a type of HTML, optimized for mobile web browsing. Using special code, AMP-HTML designs webpages to load rapidly when clicked in a search engine.”  Google Developed AMP to ensure content loads faster on mobile devices.

Google’s mobile-friendly index has shone the spotlight on AMP (Accelerated Mobile Pages) and will help improve your websites rankings.

AMP content appears prominently in the search results and is designed for the users who go online on a mobile device.

5.WordPress Plugin Recommendations to switch over to HTTPS

Switching over an existing site can be a little tricky. Update all content and links are updated to https otherwise you will get a ‘Not Secure’ warning message.  If you are using WordPress we recommend using these 2 plugins:

Really Simple SSL

SSL Insecure Content Fixer

If you are starting a new website, we recommend setting up the hosting and the SSL certificate at the same time.

If you feel like you need a little help with your website security, then it is suggested that you can connect with the experts of an web development in Company Arvada, CO to get their web security services.

[raquel08]

Website Design Trends to Adapt on Your Agency Projects in 2021

In the last three decades, web design trends have changed consistently. In 2021, more developers are focused on exploring designs that will build a better web and improve user experience. Website owners are demanding designs that stand out and keep users engaged in a busy world.

In industries such as web design and development, the last quarter of the year is an exciting time to reflect on popular designs and those that need improvement. The online environment is ever-changing with both website owners and users looking to website developers in Arvada, CO to create cutting-edge designs. 2021 is the time to experiment with bold styles that attract attention from the masses.

In web design, anything can trend if it wins the approval of a large audience. However, it is more worthwhile to focus on trends that ultimately help users and are easy to incorporate on day to day tasks. So let’s dive into website design trends that will keep your agency ahead of the competition in 2021 and beyond.

White Space

White space helps visitors move through the site and creates a stunning visual hierarchy where no elements are stealing the shine. Often seen in print media, more web designers are using purposeful white space that allows site user’s eyes to glide more easily over the page. White space also aids easy comprehension.

The creative use of white space also allows visitors to sift through and find the important information faster. White space truly redefines minimalism in 2021.

Dark Mode

The web is getting darker in 2021. Most web designers have switched to Dark Mode for all new sites. While it remains a user preference, Dark Mode sharpens the focus on the text. And for web users using their devices at night, this is a welcome reprieve from the usual blazing whiteness.

Dark themes are sleek, ultra-modern, and excellent for power saving. They are also practical for web owners because they make colours and design elements stand out which ultimately contributes to a better user experience.

Smart CSS Grids

Using smart CSS grids helps designers create flexible websites that adapt to the user device whether computer or mobile. This technology allows the efficient organisation of content and boosts user experience. CSS smart grids make the website highly adaptable for all versions of desktop and mobile device screens.

Creative Fonts

Expect bigger and bolder fonts in 2021. As a web designer, you can now use typography to enhance your designs. Many websites use text to convey information and fonts can significantly impact how users interpret and feel about information.

You can also expect more hand-drawn fonts that give websites more heart and soul which captivates the users.

Accessibility

Making websites more accessible to people with disabilities is also set to improve in 2021. Sites that work properly for people who use screen readers and low-vision, and the physically impaired are now a requirement and, in some countries, a legal requirement.

As a web design agency, you must stay updated on relevant design trends each year to add value to your clients. 

[raquel08]

5 Reasons Why WordPress Website Maintenance Is So Important

Having a website for your business is a necessity, as far as most people are concerned, if you don’t have a website, your company doesn’t exist.

A downside to this is that once a company has a website, they expect it to work forever. Unfortunately, that’s not the case. In order to function correctly and provide a user-friendly experience, WordPress website maintenance is vital.

So why is WordPress website maintenance so important?

WordPress website maintenance updates enable a website to run smoothly and be used for its intended purpose. Without these updates, your website could be at risk of security breaches and may not provide a user-friendly experience.

WordPress Core Updates

WordPress is continuously updated in order to stay secure and improve performance for its users. If users want to get the best out of WordPress, these core updates need to be carried out.

Website Security

Website security is a major concern for any business, especially for e-commerce websites where personal details are stored and online payments are made.

Hackers find it easier to access websites that haven’t been updated, putting clients’ personal details at risk and giving hackers the opportunity to prevent the website functioning correctly.

Any vulnerabilities and security concerns are detected and fixed in each version of WordPress by the WordPress security team, leaving the website and consumers constantly protected.

WordPress Plugin Updates

Plugins are used to improve the function of a website and each plugin does something different.

Hackers often breach website security through plugins so it’s vital that these plugins are updated when possible.

Plugin updates enable a website to keep functioning in the way it was intended to and perform at its best ability.

Compatibility

The internet is evolving constantly. Browsers and search engine algorithms are improved and updated continuously and technology is advancing. WordPress websites need to be updated in order to be compatible with these changes.

If a website isn’t updated and made compatible with these changes, it’s likely that the website won’t function correctly.

New Features

WordPress website maintenance updates often include new features.

These features could be used to improve the look or function of a website and without updating your WordPress website, these features are not available.

Not having the latest features available to you gives your competitors a chance to get ahead as their websites may be better and more user-friendly, because of these new features, than yours.

Are you in need of a new website?

If you are interested in finding out more about the WordPress web design and development services, then it is propounded to connect with the professional website developers in Dillon, CO.

[raquel08]

14 Important SEO Tips Every Marketer Needs to Know

Digital marketing is the most powerful form of online marketing in the current era. According to a 2020 statistician.com report of over 4.66 billion internet users, there is no doubt that businesses have a very high probability of generating revenue through online marketing. Thus, search engine optimization is becoming a vehicle to capitalize on this opportunity, as most of the world’s online traffic is generated through search engines. More importantly, Google is the current global leader in search engines, followed by Bing, Yahoo, and Baidu. In light of this information,

The fact that Google likes to update its algorithms is not surprising. They can potentially make 500 improvements over a year. Search engine optimization (SEO) involves designing content so that it appears quite frequently in search results. If you need too many settings, you can forget everything. For example, targeting options to improve organic ranking are no longer present in search engines, although it is an essential element of your strategy to choose the right keywords.

When it comes to finding your customers on the web, you should use SEO to hang on search engines. There are hundreds of ranking signs that help define search results. These include link structure, keywords, and time on site, to name just a few.

If you follow best practices and create quality content, you will be rewarded. If you don’t, expect Google to face the wrath.

Some marketers penalize poor search results as Google mourns low-quality content. Keep that in mind when you start wondering whether to use Black Hat SEO techniques. Therefore, if you want to use an SEO strategy in your marketing campaign, be sure to follow the rules.

Here are some of the most effective search engine optimization tips that will increase website traffic and give your website visitors a better experience.

1. Remove the site that is losing momentum.

Page speed is an essential element in SEO. A slow page will affect the customer and gradually drive people away from buying your service. Page speed is essential for both consumers and search engines. The need for speed seems to be increasing as companies become more aware of attracting leads that target sales through search engine optimization.

2. Configure Google Search Console (GSC).

Google Search Console is an Internet search query tool that helps you track and improve your site’s success. It offers free offers from those who want to participate. This gating is easy to show in the start section.

By placing a meta tag in the same HTML code of your web page, exporting a document to a database, or setting up a Google Analytics or Google Tag Administrator, you confirm that you are an operator or domain administrator. Suggest this strategy several times to gather some information, and you have several options.

3. Link to many other domains with similar information.

Bandhan provides custom traffic that makes the platform a more robust and responsive resource. If people have some reliable contacts, they will develop a positive attitude towards their niche.

4. Compile specific and relevant metadata for each site.

A well-written meta resume is one of the essential SEO techniques that most people ignore. A meta summary is the first segment that users view on Google’s website for visitors to view. This can make it harder for people to get conflicting meta explanations. However, even if they are not automatically followed, you cannot provide an ideal user experience.

5. Use social cues to build momentum.

Social media is an essential component of an SEO strategy, even though it is necessary to generate a crawling signal. If you are trying to have more non-verbal participation, then the laws have not changed. It is a synopsis.

Create valuable content on social media channels to share.

Add share buttons and also give them access.

Run a social media campaign to get more likes.

Mention and link to articles to average and warn social media users or influencers.

6. Constantly create and publish original content to increase your ranking.

Thanks to something that counts as a “refresh variable,” it is more relevant than expected. One of the variables affecting this renewed rating is the search engine results for that particular website, along with specific information. Publishing unique content daily will help you increase your customers, which will bring visitors to your network continuously.

7. Clear titles are important

Headlines are locations by which posts are directed to viewers. They should indicate how important a section or article is. Instead, users will not understand what is expected. Readers like to scan the content, understand what’s at stake, and choose which parts of the content they are starting to read. Heading makes it easy for users to understand and navigate the content. They are also crucial for a consistent user experience and as a connector for page navigation, including but not limited to SEO scores.

8. Monthly SEO Inspection

The SEO company also runs quarterly reviews on your site. It syncs automatically, for example, to see if your page is still active if your anti-malware protection is sufficient, and to keep web page load times longer.

9. Make your site more mobile-friendly.

The idea that you could meet a wider audience was one of the significant benefits of creating a mobile-friendly web page. Networking is possible through sensitive websites, which means that online people are much more willing to post on social media. A responsive web page is a convenient way to improve search engine performance.

10. More relevant pictures, more traffic.

Images are an essential part of the perception of a website. This is important for SEO because Google optimization is specifically UI performance metrics such as conversion rates and the length of information that users spend on a website page. However, photos can also be customized for more specialized SEO support.

11. Update your site regularly

Have you ever visited a website that has not been updated for ten years? Are you staying longer? If you are like most Internet users, the answer is no.

Be active on your website and update your feed regularly. It is almost impossible to see the passive domain ranking increase.

Feel free to update your content. You will see hat-tipped articles all the time that will say “update for 2020” or something similar. You can see how a marketing company transformed the post into evergreen content with a simple update in the screenshot above.

This is why it is so important to analyze your content to find out what is not working. You can update content that is not ranked in search results.

12. Follow Google’s guidelines for website optimization.

Google is continually updating its best practices, so stay tuned. Most changes are minor, but you still need to keep up with the latest developments.

If Google is doing some minor work, such as devaluing URLs with specific keywords, this is something you should know when creating content (I doubt it will. Don’t panic, this is just an example).

So keep up to date with the latest happenings!

13. Monitor the speed of your website

You also need to monitor the speed of your site. Make sure it is fast and responsive. We know that you’ve probably heard this before, but it matters, especially in the mobile world.

You should regularly check the functionality of your site. If you have noticed a drop in your website loading speed, then it is time to find out why. Use tools such as SEMrush Site Audit to analyze load times and find bottlenecks in the process.

You will get a breakdown of the speed and performance of your site. It should look like this: If everything is in order, everything is ready. If you see low load times and low-performance ratings, this is a sure sign that there is something wrong with your site. Check your website’s speed regularly, especially after significant updates.

14. Apply the EAT concept

For SEO, E.A.T stands for Expertise, Authority, and trust. These factors are also mentioned in the Google Guidelines for Search Quality Evaluators.

Google has mentioned that they use third-party search quality evaluators scattered around the world and are well trained to provide feedback to understand what makes the search more useful. You will be entitled to the “overall page quality rating” in sub-part 3.2 of the General Guidelines in Section 3.0. Here are some suggestions for using this concept:

Document with a professional approach to your industry, market, profession, or niche

Get a link to the official domain

Hire experts of an SEO company in Broomfield, CO and provide content with relevant and proven facts.

Keep content up to date

Get feedback

Flash your confidential credential

Get Wikipedia page

Showcase Work showcases your Google experience.

[raquel08]

Paid VS Organic Marketing: Which Strategy Provides Highest ROI

The digital world is at a crossroads. When it comes to spreading your brand like wildfire, no one can believe the best way. Some argue that organic marketing is the best way to reach customers over time. Others emphasize that real results come when you invest, for example, in paid marketing.

According to data from the significant search engine Land, 75% of people say that paid search advertising makes it easier to find the information they are looking for. One-third of respondents say they click on a paid search ad because it directly answers the question they were looking for. 

On the other hand, 70% of the clicks go to regular Google search results. This is an undeniable win for organic marketing: Customers are not always willing to click on an advertisement if it appears they are being sold.

The Internet is ubiquitous in modern life, and search engines make up a large part of its spread …

Now, the word “Google” has changed from a noun to a verb, and people ask you “Google” several times a day. If you wanna to know more about the title of the news, enter it in Google. When you buy a new car, you go to a search engine. When it is time to find the right pair of jeans, you will return to your favorite search engine.

There is no secret in that consumers rely on search engines. Search engines such as Google, Bing, and Yahoo do their best to ensure that their users receive accurate and relevant search results every time. It follows that businesses that provide goods and services to the public or other businesses may want to find out how to get to the top of each search engine’s search engine result page or SERP.

Whenever a user submits a search query, they get hundreds or thousands of results. The most relevant results should appear on the first pair of pages, in addition to which the following results will follow. Moses suggested in 2014 that 71 percent of clicks on search engine results occur on the first page. More recent numbers suggest that this number may be closer to 92 percent. Businesses need to make sure that their website appears among the first results on any SERP.

How can a business ensure that their website comes among the first few search results? This is not a simple case of luck. Instead, the answer lies in using online marketing strategies. The 2 main strategies are organic search marketing and paid search marketing.

Organic Search Marketing VS. Paid Search Marketing

When you search, you enter some keywords. The search engine’s algorithm starts working to find the most relevant search results that contain your keywords. Most of the results you see in search results will be “organic.”

This means that the algorithm has determined to carefully examine the content on a specific website to determine if it is the most relevant to your search, the second most relevant, and so on.

However, before you see these regular or “natural” results, you will see many results at the top of the page. They are indicated by the word “advertisement,” displayed in a frame with an outline. These are not regular search results but paid search results. In other words, whenever specific keywords are entered in the search box, the company pays the search engine to place its ad.

Paid search results can be regularly relevant. However, they may be more targeted towards people willing to shop.

Which should you use for your business? To answer this question, it is useful to know more about these online marketing strategies and their pros and cons.

What is organic search engine marketing?

Traditional search results are compiled using a search engine algorithm. The algorithm analyzes websites on the Internet to determine which are relevant in the current search.

Search engine algorithms processes vast amounts of information in the blink of an eye. Websites with meta descriptions, an appropriate URL, good title tags, reliable keywords, and informational content will rank higher than websites with little information and are less professional.

Companies ensure that their company ranks high in SERPs using good search engine optimization or SEO techniques. SEO in itself is a vast topic, and it takes time and experience to use the techniques properly on a website. This is why many organizations pay big money to professionals to improve the SEO of their site.

However, you do not need to pay for content marketing services to maximize SEO on your site. You can do this by adding great content yourself. Here are some examples of how you can improve SEO on your website:

Start a blog

Add a detailed description of all products and services.

Invite satisfied customers to leave reviews and features

Use photographs, charts, and graphs

Create guest posts on other blogs that link to your site

These are some basic examples of SEO techniques. There is no doubt that it takes time to build good SEO on your website. Now that you can maintain your practice of adding information-rich content to your website, your SERP ranking is likely to improve.

Search engine algorithms want to see that your website is running for a long time. This makes your site precisely as accredited and trusted professionals run it.

Pros and cons of organic search results

One of the main benefits of using organic search engine marketing is the proven effectiveness of this method. Organic search marketing outperforms paid users 65% of the time search marketing searched on their computers. Additionally, research shows that 70 percent of the clicks clicked in SERPs are organic results.

If organic search marketing’s proven success is not enough for you, consider the positive effects of bias. When a website appears in the first two or three SERPs, users are already positively focused on those websites. They automatically assume that your website is in the top 3, so it should present exactly what they are looking for.

What’s more, the use of organic search engine marketing inspires you to create great content on your site. You will find that you are continually adding new, regularly updated content that informs and engages website visitors and improves your position in search results.

The downsides of organic search marketing become apparent when you take on this challenge. It takes enormous time to create great content. Also, your website will rank better if it produces good content in the long term. If you are in a competitive field, it can take months or years in a row to top the search results.

Also, you must allocate resources for organic search engine marketing. By maximizing SEO, you are not selling products or services. Also, you have to pay someone else to do SEO work for you. It is the initial cost anyway.

What are Paid search results?

Paid search results, also known as pay-per-click or PPC advertising, are purchased by companies that want to ensure that their website is better than regular search results.

When a company uses paid search results on Google, they create ads that contain specific keywords. Google has an auction where website owners can bid for a placement based on these keywords. As you can imagine, general keywords make a lot of money, making it difficult for a small startup with limited funds to get into the game.

While the website owner who pays the most for placement is more likely to benefit, Google determines other metrics such as landing page quality and Quality Score to see which customer is ranked # 1.

Pros and cons of Paid search results

The benefits of paid search results are apparent. The fastest and most effective way to ensure that a specific website is at the top is when people enter certain keywords into the search engine.

Of course, buying advertising space is only the tip of the iceberg. You should still deliver well-defined ads and create a great landing page. However, it does not take time and resources that are an integral part of the organic search engine marketing process.

Another advantage of paid search results is their targeting. Each major search engine allows businesses to choose criteria that determine who should see their ads. The more accurate the criteria, the more clicks.

PPC advertisements also make sense because people who click on those ads are usually ready to purchase. In other words, they have already done their research. They click on your ad because they are willing to spend money, and they need a nudge in the right direction to spend on your website.

The downside to using paid search engine marketing is that it only works as much as you pay for it. Unlike evergreen content on your website, your carefully worded ad will disappear as soon as the money disappears. Depending on your budget, this may mean that your paid search network marketing campaign will not last long.

Additionally, research shows that the average CTR for top-ranked ads is seven percent. Only more clicks are found in regular search results.

Why you should go for Organic or Paid search results

What better way to use paid search marketing than organic search marketing? Answer: “It depends on the circumstances.”

Both have their pros and cons. In some situations, organic search marketing comes out on top. In other cases, paid search is the marketing champion. This means that it is wise to use both.

Building strong SEO on your site will always benefit you. This makes your site dynamic, exciting, and attractive. People will come back to see what’s new, shop, or otherwise, chat with you when they like your site. New customers will be directed to your site by search engines with algorithms that tell them that your site is viewable.

If you are continually looking for long term results, then organic search engine marketing is for you. For example, a Blue Tree link building service would have a large number of quality backlinks. These links will accumulate more links and traffic over time, leading to higher Google rankings for your entire site.

Once your pages starts appearing at the top of the SERPs, you can expect them to stay there as you continue to work on your site. Also, you will create a reputable website that will become an asset to your business.

However, there may be circumstances in which PPC is the best option. If your business wants immediate results, then you should buy paid advertisements. The number of website visitors can immediately increase when an ad appears.

Also, paid marketing is essential if you are looking for a target market. With criteria such as geographical location, marital status, age, educational level, profession, and more, you can directly reach a specific target audience that will be difficult to reach with SEO.

Paid search marketing also makes sense when you are running a special event, sale, or event. You should issue this offer as soon as possible because this offer is limited in time, so the option is to use a marketing method that offers immediate re-offers

Organic VS Billable Products: Creating a Balance

If you are in charge of a startup, you want your site to be noticed as soon as possible. That being said, you don’t have a bottomless pocket. This means that it would be wise to start building a fantastic content-rich website as soon as possible and start with other websites in your industry.

At the same time, it is wise to determine which keywords you want to highlight in any paid ad. Doing your research can help you meet your expectations of how much these paid advertisements can be.

Use of paid advertising may also be limited in the first months or years of your company’s existence. However, as your income increases and your marketing budget increases, you will be able to expand your presence with paid search marketing. At the same time, you are building a better website, which will give you the best of both internet marketing strategies.

Conclusion

Both paid and organic marketing has their place in the business life cycle. However, choosing your strategy depends on several decisive factors: not only your marketing and advertising budget but also your market share, customer metrics, and industry status. For those trying to retain a loyal customer, organic marketing is a clear winner. As experts point out, potential customers must generate interest in your product or service before becoming customers. Consistency-based organic interest in content marketing is the surest way to achieve this.

For those who want to get results quickly, paid marketing is a more convenient option. Invest in speeding up your reach and reach a larger audience. It gives you time to spend on other aspects of your business, while paid marketing generates new leads and drives your business traffic. As our panel of experts points out, both strategies have apparent benefits and should be used in tandem. Organic content marketing will help your brand spread in a bustling digital space, while paid marketing will accelerate your success. Need help creating content for your website? Then the experts of the local SEO company in Broomfield, CO can help you come up with content that ranks highly on search engines.

[raquel08]

Web Design Trends You Need To Know About

When it comes to website design, there are a lot of factors that are crucial to the success of your website - functionality, speed, optimising your content for SEO, security and staying on top of current website design trends. But, it also pays to understand the difference between strong design trends and short-lived passing fads. Incorporating a good design trend should have your site looking and functioning for the better. If you opt for a passing fad, it’s likely that it’ll reduce functionality, you'll end up with some website disasters, or a site that looks far too dated than it should in about two years' time.

So, with that it mind, here are the top website design trends to consider if building your website in 2021.

1. Mobile First Website Design

With more and more people are visiting websites via their smart phone, this is not so much one of 2021's website design trends as it is a necessity.

According to a study by Neilsen, during the month of February, 2018, Australians spent more than double the amount of time on their smartphones as they did on desktop, and spent 12% more time on their phones than they did for the same period in 2017.

And it makes sense - whether you’re at home, on the bus, or even at the beach, you’re likely to reach for your phone at some stage to browse online.

‘Mobile-first’ is about designing a website that considers the mobile device user first. By making the website as minimalist, or ‘flat’, as possible, it speeds up the load time. This is highly advantageous for those on a mobile device, but also for those using a desktop.

A quicker load time improves the user experience and customer journey. This will lead to longer time spent on site, and hopefully lead the customer to convert. A faster load time will help with Google search rankings in mobile search too, so you’ll appear earlier in Google searches.

2. Flat or Minimalist Website Design

As mentioned above, with the advent of ‘mobile-first’ design as one of the key website design trends, comes flat or minimalist design.

‘Flat’ shouldn’t mean unexciting website design. In fact, it should be quite opposite.

Flat website design means cutting out unnecessary clutter and over-sized, data-rich imagery, while ensuring content and layout are still eye-catching and engaging and enhancing the user experience. That means being clever with the use of white space, an eye catching colour theme, or geometric shapes. Typography, and the creation of lettering unique to your brand or website will likely gain popularity as the minimalism trend grows. In fact, we have already seen this earlier in the year with Airbnb. They decided to create their own font that would perform optimally across all of their platforms while capturing their brand.

3. Micro-Animations

Micro-animations is the next on out list of 2019 website design trends.

These are mini animations or functional movements that guide the user on your site. Like many of the elements mentioned here, they play both a functional and aesthetic role in website design.

They work by giving your customer visual feedback and providing context, showing them the role of certain icons or navigation points on your site as they click or hover over them. They essentially replace text in a much easier to understand, visually appealing way.

The micro-animation may expand, enlarge, or transform into something else, such as a dot point turning into a tick to show an action is complete, a hamburger expanding to show what they menu will direct to, or an icon turning into a circle and slowly filling to the top to denote something is loading.

4. Video

We just said website design was going minimalist, so how can video be one of our highlighted website design trends for 2021?

Well, it all depends on what you need for your brand. For many businesses, a minimalist site will deliver just what they need to get ahead for 2019. For others, introducing website design elements like video backgrounds could take them to the next level.

Video can be a very successful key component of website design if crafted and implemented well. We've certainly seen the success of video across entire marketing strategies here at Lance Montana.

Video is ideal for showcasing something that can’t be done via still imagery. This might be the way a luxury fabric falls in slow motion, or to showcase the speed and dynamism of a sports car. Video works especially well for luxury brands and lifestyle offerings as it creates a sense of drama and impact. Video backgrounds are also going to be important if your business is, in fact, in videography.

Video as a form of storytelling is incredibly compelling. It can be far easier to get attention or explain a message via an animation or visual compilation than it is through a still image, or even text. Just a few short seconds is enough for a viewer to see something and decide they want to see much more.

Video can also help to keep a viewer onsite longer, and the benefits are two-fold: the longer they spend onsite, the more likely they are to convert. We have seen this in product videos, and the same is true of video in general. Secondly, the more time they spend onsite, the better Google will rank your site in its search queries.

5. Chatbots

Chatbots are the last to make our list of website design trends for 2021.

How many times have you logged onto an ecommerce site only for a small chat box to pop up, along with a speech bubble saying, “hi, can I help with anything?”

They have become an integral part of website design for many online e-tailers. They are drastically shaping the experience their customers are having online. Although not brand new, they have improved rapidly over the years thanks to the advancement of Artificial Intelligence. And, if you've had much interaction with them, you'll have experienced that there is still a way to go.

A chatbot’s role is to provide customer service. They are there 24/7 to guide the customer journey, and to prompt you to ask about any enquiries before you leave the site.

Want to optimize or implement a new website design for 2021 and beyond? Then connect with the experts of the web development company in Clearwater, FL.

[raquel08]

Top Five Landing Page Tips and Tricks

So, you’re running Facebook ads, Google Ads or an email campaign for your latest product/service offer. What happens when a user clicks on the ad? They are redirected to either your website, your Facebook page or a landing page! While directing to your Facebook page and your website can both beneficial, one of the most effective places you can direct them is to a landing page.

So, what’s a landing page? A landing page is a standalone web page that has been created for users to take a specific action like joining a mailing list or purchasing a product.

These pages are very different from other web pages like your homepage as they do not live in the navigation of your website. Instead, they are there to simply serve a purpose for a specific campaign or objective.

Landing pages offer several benefits. They help to increase conversions, generate audience data & insights, grow your email list and boost your credibility.

Below are five landing page tips and tricks to help you make the most of yours!

Match the Message

Is your landing page consistent with your ad or email? For instance, if you are offering 50% off a particular product range, does your landing page promote these products or something completely different? If your ad objective is to obtain leads, does your landing page ask people to input their email address?

Our first landing page tips and tricks is to always match the information or promotion in your ad to your landing page. Your landing page should feel like a natural continuation of the ad. Failing to do this is what we call a message match issue. If you direct your potential customers to a page that contains nothing to do with your ad, chances are they will leave and not purchase anything.

You should also try to match the visuals used in your ad to your landing page. The ad or email campaign that your potential customers see needs to look and feel the same as the landing page. Similar to messaging, if your ad is beautifully designed with high-quality photos, and your landing page is messy with photos that are not only different but pixelated, your audience may not want to stick around. You might look to feature the exact same image on both too.

Matching both design/image and message to your ad will make the customer feel like they are in the right place, and will probably be more inclined to purchase.

Less Landing Page Distractions

Multiple offers, buttons and lots of information on your landing page? You may think that multiple options will equal higher conversions, but this is far from the truth. Distractions can kill your conversions. The last thing you want with your landing page is to distract potential customers from purchasing your product or service.

If your landing page design contains links to other webpages on your website or multiple call to actions, delete them all except one! Your landing page must always have one point of focus or one call to action (CTA). For instance, if your key CTA is ‘Signup to our mailing list’, do not additional CTAs like ‘Download our eBook’.

You should also keep your key information as concise as possible. Large chunks of text are not as easy to digest. To help decide on what information to keep, ask yourself whether or not all the information is absolutely necessary to the customer.

The Need for Speed

Page load speed is very important to the user experience. According to Google, 53% of mobile site visits leave a page if the load time is longer than three seconds. This is bad news for websites, especially since Google also revealed that the average load time for a mobile landing page is 15 seconds. Your bounce rate will be higher, and your sales and traffic will decrease. Luckily, page speed is easy to fix. Our landing page tips and tricks for page speed is to always run a speed audit. You can use programs like Pingdom and even Google’s PageSpeed Insights. These systems will not only show your load time but will offer recommendations on how to reduce your load speed.

Here are some changes that you can make to speed up your landing page:

Resizing your images will save space and load time;

Remove unnecessary pieces of code to speed up your landing page i.e. removing spaces, unnecessary characters and unused code; and

Reduce the number of redirects on your landing page to help the loading speed.

To know more about improving site speed, get in touch the website developers in Clearwater, FL.

Hard and Soft Conversions

All landing pages should focus on increasing conversions. Most strategies will focus on the hard conversion, but it is equally important to focus on the soft conversion.

Hard conversions are often seen as the more traditional type of conversion and offer a clear intent to purchase. They can include submission forms (scheduling demo or trial) and completing a purchase. Soft conversions typically represent an interest in a product/service where a customer seeks more information before making a purchase decision. These conversions include general email inquiries, newsletter sign-ups and downloading a guide, and are useful for capturing prospective buyers’ contact details.

Our tips and tricks for your landing page are to display your hard conversion action as the most prominent option on your landing page and your soft conversion further down. Those who only action a soft conversion may not be immediate converters, but by exposing them to more information (i.e. in a newsletter), they may just end up buying your product at a later date.

Experiment and Test

If you plan on running larger social or GoogleAds campaigns, especially ones that run for a good length of time, it might not be a bad idea to set up split tests for different landing pages. This is known as A/B testing. Conducting A/B testing for your landing page lets you compare two versions of a piece of content with one variation on each. Your test could either focus on your landing page design or alternate copy. The test helps you see what version is resonating with potential customers and gaining more clicks and better conversions. Once your testing period is over, you can direct all your traffic to the best performing landing page.

[raquel08]

6 Easy Ways to Drive Traffic to Your Website

“How do I drive more traffic to my website?”

Good question - and a very common question we hear!

Whether you’re struggling to get people on your website, or you’ve had steady traffic over the last few months that have started to stagnate and you’re looking for some new tactics, there’s always something new to try.

Here are 7 easy ways to drive traffic to your website.

Write Great Blog Content

Writing original blog content on a regular basis not only positions your business as an authority in its industry, but it is also one of the most effective ways to drive traffic to your website. There are several ways to find great content ideas that would be useful to your audience and help boost your website traffic.

Firstly, you need to create content based on questions that need answering.

What’s the first thing you do when you have a question? For most people, it’s heading to Google - and this is the best place to start.

All you need to do is type in a broad topic or question you think your target audience might ask, and a dropdown of suggestions will appear. The suggestions that populate are what people are commonly searching for that contain your search terms

You can also check out your ‘Searches related to …’ results at the bottom of the first page. These are two very easy ways to gather potential topic ideas for your blog or website.

Other ways to drive traffic to your website through blog content is to focus writing trending and evergreen content. It is best to primarily focus on writing evergreen content that is consistently relevant, long-lasting and that will attract potential customers for years.

However, there’s also no harm in watching out for emerging trends and writing blog posts on these topics, but make sure you use a mix of both as your Evergreen content will keep traffic consistently coming back, while your topical blogs may see a spike in traffic right now. We recommend using Google Trends to find any emerging topics and trends.

Target Topics With Search Traffic Potential

Using keywords with high search traffic throughout your blog posts is one of the best ways to drive traffic to your website and achieve consistent, long-term results. Focus on finding high search volume (how many times this keyword is searched for in Google each month), low difficulty keywords (how difficult it will be for your blog post or web page using a keyword to rank on the first page of Google). This combination will provide you with a list of low-competition keywords and topics to focus on. Some great tools you can use to find keywords include Ahrefs, Ubersuggest and SEMRush.

Promote Content on Social Media

Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn play an important role in driving traffic to your website. You can use these platforms to promote your blog posts and other useful pages on your website like a new product or service. First, you need to choose the social media platforms that best suit your business and target audience. Then, you need to make sure that any captions you write and photos you post along with your link are enticing and captivating. Your audience is more likely to click through on a link that makes them want to know more about a certain topic or product on your website.

It’s also beneficial to add social share buttons to blog posts, product pages and images. These buttons make it easy for users to share your content (with links) to their personal audience, giving you social proof while increasing traffic to your website,

Paid Social Media

To increase website traffic to your website or online shop, you need to get your business in front of your ideal customers.

Paid social media ads allow you to create targeted campaigns to the people who are most likely to click through and browse your website or make a purchase. You can get really specific with the people you target based on their age, gender, interests, online behaviours and location.

Lookalike audiences can be used to reach people who look similar to your existing audience. These audiences are formed based on a Facebook custom audience, for instance, your mailing list, website visitors and Facebook users who engage with your page. When you create these lookalike audiences, Facebook finds users with similar demographics and interests to those of your current audience.

The social ad objective, Traffic, has been specifically created to generate more online traffic. This could be to a blog post, landing page or product page. When using this objective, you can optimise your campaign for the following metrics:

Link clicks - people who are most likely to click on your ad Landing page views - people who are most likely to click on your ad and load the website

Utilise Google My Business

One of the ways you can drive quality traffic to your website or online store that people often forget about or don’t know about is via Google My Business. It’s a free tool that allows you to show up for searches related to your business and location. You can share updates, events and offers, all with a website URL from your GMB account. If your listing contains information a customer may need to make their final decision, they might either click on the website link to find out more, or, better yet, contact your business directly through Google My Business.

Send Regular Email Updates

Email has been around for a very long time, but it is certainly a relevant marketing tactic. In fact, it is by far one of the best ways to drive traffic to your website. 3.9 billion people are still daily email users and 73% of millennials prefer communications from businesses via email.

Successful email marketing obviously starts with an engaged mailing list. Simple ways to grow your mailing list include:

Creating a lead generation ad on Facebook - this could involve asking your audience to sign up to your mailing list for a chance to win a prize, to receive a discount code, or to stay up-to-date with company news and offers.

Email pop-ups on your website - we recommend capturing visitors before they leave with an exclusive offer for which they need to provide their email address if they wish to take advantage of your offer.

Add sign up forms to your website - this could be on any page of your website or in the footer.

Once you have a list that is already interested in your brand, you can run email campaigns that drive traffic to your website, or even specific pages of your site. Some key forms of email marketing include regular newsletters, promotional emails, abandoned cart and seasonal campaigns.

A newsletter is something that’s a regular communication between you and your mailing list. Your aim with this type of email is to keep your audience up to date with the latest company/brand news, new products and services, and share tips/interesting information. Ultimately, it’s an easy way to stay top of mind while keeping your audience in the loop.

Promotional emails are intended for special deals, exclusive content and limited time offers. For instance, sending out a Black Friday Sale or Boxing Day Sale email is a promotional tactic. This type of email is perfect for speeding up the buying process. You can make it easy for your customers by directly linking them to the sale section of your site or to a landing page dedicated to your special offer. Remember, catchy email subject lines will increase your chances of email opens.

An abandoned cart email is an automated campaign that is triggered by a website user’s actions. If they are adding items to a shopping cart but not going through with the purchase, these types of emails is a great time to offer an incentive like a 10% discount to encourage people back to your website to make their purchase.

After More Ways to Drive Traffic to Your Website?

If you’ve found some success in these ways to drive traffic to your website but you need help refining your strategy, then it is the right time to contact the expert website developer in Clearwater, FL  can help you.

[raquel08]

Evaluate Your Company Web Color Palette For Accessibility

Unfortunately, visual impairments are widespread. It is crucial to ensure that your brand colors meet guidelines for accessibility so everyone can see and understand the information available on your business website. Don’t worry, there are many tools to assist you with this task.

What is web accessibility?

Website accessibility means that the platform is developed in a way to make it possible for all users, especially those with physical disabilities, to access the content and interact with all the elements on the site.

You can also take a look at this case study on web accessibility for visual impairment.

Why is color contrast important for web accessibility?

Color contrast refers to the mathematical difference between a foreground color (text) and a background color. If the contrast is not high enough, people, especially those with visual impairments, will have difficulties reading the text.

The low contrast is 0.0.

The highest contrast is 21.0 (black over white).

Being aware of how people with different visual impairments see and interpret colors can change how you choose your company brand color palette.

Is my company web color palette accessible?

Use these tools to see if your web color palette is accessible:

A11Y Color Contrast Accessibility Validator analyses the color contrast according to the WCAG 2.1 Guidelines and displays color contrast issues after the analysis. You can either test your web page or test color pairs to see the results.

NoCoffee is a visual impairments simulator Chrome plugin that allows you to layer simulations of visual impairments over the web page. It can be helpful in understanding such vision problems, as low acuity, low contrast sensitivity, colorblindness, visual snow, glare, ghosting, cataracts, nystagmus, and obstructed visual field.

ColorSafe will help you determine color contrast accessibility. All you have to do is to enter a background color and determine the styling of your text. Accessible text colors will be generated in accordance with WCAG Guidelines recommend contrast ratio of 4.5 for small text or 3 for large text which is 24px or 18px bold.

Who Can Use is a tool that evaluates color contrasts selected by you and determines whether the color palette is accessible. This tool brings attention and understanding to how color contrast can affect different people with visual impairments.

How to make an accessible color palette?

Follow these Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) to make your website more accessible to people with visual impairments.

Level AA

For all text, a contrast of 4.5:1 is required, except for:

Large text (24px and larger): a contrast of 3.0:1 is required

Bold text of 19px and larger: a contrast of 3.0:1 is required

Logotypes: no contrast requirements

Decoration text: no contrast requirements

Level AAA

For all text, a contrast of 7.0:1 is required. except:

Large text (24px and larger): a contrast of 4.5:1 is required

Bold text of 19px and larger: a contrast of 4.5:1 is required

Logotypes: no contrast requirements

Decoration text: no contrast requirements

How to build a more accessible color scheme?

Here is a case study on how we created a more accessible brand color palette for our clients.

We tested every color pairs in the existing color scheme and found out that only a few pairs meet the 4.5:1 standard.

Our web designers used the existing colors as a starting point as the purpose was not to choose a new web color palette but to adapt the existing one.

We adjusted saturation and brightness values for each color to get a color with the same hue but the accessible level of contrast.

Make your web color palette accessible!

Use the tools mentioned above to test every color pair in your existing brand color palette against the background of your website. Make sure that all the colors meet the 4.5:1 standard. If no, well, you definitely need to choose a more accessible brand color scheme. 

Not sure if your website and your company brand color palette are accessible? Then it is best suited to contact the team of expert web developers in Clearwater, FL of for the website accessibility audit.

[raquel08]

The Best Website Builders to For Web Developers

The Best Website Builders to using for the Web Developers

Word Press – is easily to use create a website with wonderful design templates, User Interface Kits/ Tools. And easily customize the website tools written in IT languages.

Wix – is it allows web developer users to create a HTML 5 languages on websites and more mobile application developments tools sites through the use in internet.

Square space – is a services for websites buildings and web hosting. Easily fix, organize the websites tools. Web Developers and Clients are use built websites templates to create webpages. It is a desktop application that helps  web developers in Clearwater, FL to create responsive websites. And makes it easily for anyone to create a beautiful web page with drag and drop functionality to create websites.

Methodology and criteria for the website builder reviews

Easily to use a WordPress to develop the web development services. And no more to need a design, pattern , templates , user interface kits or other outside help. Professional High Quality Original Product Services. Be a professional using well in designed websites that effects to your business.

Customer Support is we wanted to know more information about their websites needed it to the customers/clients.

Web Pricing is want to know more information about their project like websites base on their business. And we did not say or ask how much does it cost their project based on our offer to the clients.

The Best domain website are look for those that meet this are:

Quick Search is the one result for your search, the entry opens automatically. And more than one result list is display.

Easily make design is something designs a garment , building, or other object they plan it and does it deliberately rather than by accident.

Simple configuration is relative arrangement of parts or elements such as shape and arrangement a small business computer system in its simplest configure the build of website.

High Quality Customer/Client Services is most profitable customers but profitability can be a little tough to pin down. Customers steers business your way and may even offer some cross marketing opportunities.

Strong Reputations is the general belief or opinion that people having a specific skills or characteristics.

Managing the dashboard is an information managements tool that visually tracks, analysis and displays key performance indicators.

[raquel08]

10 Principles of Good Web Design

Good web design involves more than an aesthetically pleasing appearance.

In fact, a range of professionals with different areas of expertise are engaged in each major decision – when it is done right. We have outlined the 10 basic principles of good web design to address what we consider to be the most critical points in a creating a site that brings in high numbers of conversions.

1. Less is More – Simplicity Rules

Many sites are over-designed, with too many elements on the page, distracting visitors from the purpose of the site. In effective web design, simplicity rules. Not only does a clean, fresh design make the site easier to navigate, but the aesthetics are more appealing and will stand the test of time. It is unnecessary, as well as distracting, to load a site with design features that don’t serve a purpose. What is the purpose of your company website? To direct new business directly into the lap of your enterprise, in volume, keep your design simple so your users can find their way naturally and easily.

2. Innovative but Not Distracting

An impressive design involves creativity and natural talent. Professionals in the design industry understand how to use whitespace. Whitespace, or negative space, is the area of the page that is “empty,” found between graphic elements, images, and text. An innovative use of design elements and whitespace creates a less distracting, more appealing design, and guides visitors where you want them to go. Consider the iconic logos of Apple and Google — unforgettable. Simple, clean design, surrounded by whitespace makes a website more effective. Cheaper, lower quality products often have busy, noisy, ad-oriented designs, and website visitors automatically consider a distracting site to be promoting a lower quality product.

3. Aesthetically Appealing – To the RIGHT Users

You have a specific market segment that is your target customer (or client). The design must be crafted explicitly to appeal to that niche. Research into buyer habits can reveal the type of image, colors, and other design features that are appealing to those you want to reach. Each “buyer persona” has specific likes and dislikes, and research into likes/dislikes are essential. High numbers of site visitors are useless if they are not those who will eventually convert — and buy.

4. Respectful, Honest, and Engaging

Social media has had a significant impact upon communication, both written and spoken. Visitors want to be engaged in a very “human” way. Even the largest multinational corporations have been forced to put a human face on what they do. Every word, phrase, and headline must be respectful of the user, honest, and have some engaging quality that makes it intriguing. As an example, “put your roof to work” would be more likely to get a response than “find a solar installer.” The basic concept is that people want honesty, and appreciate it. Your company may participate in various charity events, or donate time to causes you care about – let them know who you are. Become real.

5. Designed for Usability and Functionality

In website design, usability and functionality must drive each decision – outstripping any other design consideration. To achieve a clear, easy, and ultimately, direct path to conversions, both design and technical issues come into play. Every link must function fast, and every button and call to action must be positioned correctly, demanding as little effort as possible for the visitor to move forward to the next step.

6. Cohesive in Design, Down to the Details

Your enterprise has a unique personality, as an entity. That personality is demonstrated in your service, your history, how you conceive of your mission, and by the actions of every member of your team. Communicating the unique qualities of your business through design involves making every element, down to the details, a reflection of that personality. There are no minor details in a design – every piece must fit together seamlessly, and create a cohesive appearance that serves to support the appeal of your brand.

7. Easily Understood

Site visitors must be able to easily understand every word, phrase, and headline without any confusion. One unusual or less commonly used word or phrase will drive them off. Industry-specific terms that are not in common usage will hinder your appeal. Dense, complex content won’t work. Calls to action that are unclear or hard to find will be skipped – and you have one more lost customer. All site content and each visual element must be laid out clearly and cleanly, with all critical conversion points visible above the fold (not requiring scrolling to find). Any deviation merely creates a barrier to conversion.

8. Design Elements Inspire Users to go Deep

Your homepage must have an initial appeal in design and usability. Every design feature is then developed with the specific purpose to inspire the visitor to find out more – and go deeper into your site, and in the end, convert and become a customer. It takes rare skills to achieve this purpose, as well as experience and insight into user behaviors. Nothing should be left to chance – your design should naturally lead them to where you want them to go.

9. Visual Elements Placed to Focus User Attention

The exact placement of visual elements is a major factor in a successful web design. All design features create an open, inviting path to conversions. Design elements can be explicit, such as arrows, or very subtle. These design elements act as cues that focus visitor attention exactly where it needs to go. Giving the eyes only one design element on which to focus and carefully positioning calls to action are critical factors that must be carefully planned and executed to result in high numbers of conversions. When you are ready to design a new website or redesign an existing site, then it is best to connect with the expert web developers in Clearwater, FL to revamp your website.

10. Emphasis on What Matters Most

What matters most to your website visitors? The essence of your presentation must clearly communicate that your business is the place to solve a specific problem or need. The balance between images and copy are just one part of this process. To appeal to the target audience, emphasis must be placed upon what your customer wants most. For results, it is necessary to research what your customers, as a group, are looking for, and the questions they are asking. Once these needs and wants are identified, you work with these concepts to create a presentation that emphasizes these with color, design, and text.