Internet Marketing Newsletter April Issue #3 |
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In This Month's Issue |
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Painting Thousands of Words – Why videos are the talk of the town
If the internet were a town, videos would definitely be the word on the street. It seems that everybody from industry bods to clients are talking about it, and a whole plethora of companies have started to incorporate them on their websites. But what is all the fuss about, and how can videos be useful for your company’s website? The excitement surrounding the use of videos online began a number of months back when Google Universal, whilst on Beta testing in the US, began to index videos on websites within its main web search listings. This, along with a massive surge in the popularity of ‘you tube’, got people talking and thinking about how they could use the medium of video to a number of different ends within their websites. Since then, we have seen many implementations of video across the internet, including help guides and faq’s, ‘calls to action’, and products on ecommerce websites all being displayed in video form. Why rely on people to read copy on a web page when you can convey all of the information you want in a short video? If a picture paints a thousand words, just think how many words a video can portray! The important thing to remember with videos is that the overall aim is to add value to a user’s experience of a website, and be sufficiently engaging to increase conversion rates. So as long as this golden rule is followed, the possibilities really are endless. To talk to I-COM about how we could enhance your website through the implementation of video, call Kate Silvers on 0870 143 3183.
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Get in Touch 0870 164 2355 Lloyds House |
When businesses go bump in the night…
We’ve all either experienced or heard the tales of businesses who have gone bust during previous economic downturns, and with news of job losses on a daily basis and the media’s current obsession with everything doom and gloom, it’s no wonder that we are all thinking more carefully about where and how we are spending our money. There are of course some sectors that will flourish and benefit during and from a recession no matter what they do - so if you’re in one of these areas, make the most of it. If your business is already starting to feel the pinch however, it is vital that you make sure you are using your resources in the best possible way – especially when it comes to your marketing investment. If you are after a completely trackable, 100% accountable form of marketing, you don’t need to look much further than online marketing. From an online perspective, there are a number of very cost effective ways that you can continue to market your business, even when the budgets are tight… Email marketing – This is a great way to directly target existing or potential customers. You can use it to promote an offer or sale, introduce new products or services, or talk generally about goings on in your company – the options are endless. The cost of distribution is minimal (much lower than direct mail printing and distribution) and with nominal set up costs also, driving targeted traffic to your website can be achieved on the smallest of budgets. Online press releases – There is often a confusion when it comes to online PR, with clients often not understanding the process or the benefits. We don’t charge an expensive monthly retainer for online press releases, they are charged on a one off, as and when basis. If you’ve got a story that you want to get out there, simply tell us about it, we write it up, targeting SEO keywords within the release, distribute it online - et voila. Press releases have a number of benefits that traditional PR doesn’t cover, including speed (we can get online press releases in Google News within 8 minutes) and link building (if another website syndicates your press release, this can act as a free backlink to your website). A mini revamp - Attracting new visitors to your website is extremely important. But it is also just as important that they like what they find and see when they get there. Web users are becoming more and more savvy, and if they are unimpressed by a website’s design or the copy on the website, or they cannot find the information they are looking for easily, they will be off before you can say ‘Welcome to my website’. A couple of new web pages, a change in layout here or some new call to action banners there can make a big difference. And most of all, quick fix options such as these can be achieved quickly and cost effectively. If you are interested in any of the above, or want to discuss SEO or PPC with a member of the I-COM team, call your account manager at I-COM or contact Kate Silvers on 0870 143 3183. |
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Corporate blogs – what’s the buzz?
In the last issue of the Searched-Designed-Developed newsletter, we introduced our company blog to you. The I-COM blog is a valuable resource for information on online marketing, search engine optimisation, web design and website development, all written by I-COM’s very own experienced team. Since introducing the blog to the I-COM site, we have seen a number of positive movements – including an increase in organic search traffic of 38%, and a huge 270% increase in web enquiries within the first month of the blog being live alone. Corporate blogs can be a great contributor to SEO efforts. Because all of the content is related to your business or industry, it therefore tends to have great keyword content. And because it’s unique content, Google absolutely loves it. To speak to a member of the team about the benefits of blogging, give us a call on 0870 164 2350, or visit our page about blogs. |
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New Staff Join Our Ever Growing Team!
We have welcomed five new staff members to our team over the past few weeks. Clair Wescott joins the company’s team of 5 Google Adwords professionals, and David Walsh is the latest addition to the highly accomplished in-house programming and web development team. Our award wining SEO (search engine optimisation) team has also gained two new heads – David Taylor and Frank Melina - to support new client wins. Ann-Marie Whatmough has also joined our Business Development team. The five new staff members round off a successful few months for us as we continue to grow and extend our client base. New client wins include The Kit Team, Puma, the National Obesity Surgery Centre, Aria Technology, the Sellick Partnership and Dreams. “This is an extremely exciting time for us with a great deal of activity in all departments. Not only are we winning search marketing contracts with clients in a vast array of industry sectors, but we are also picking up some great design and web development projects”, says Tim Roberts, Managing Director of I-COM. To speak our experts about how to improve and grow your online presence, call 0870 143 3183 or visit www.i-com.net. |
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