Picture

BLOG

Want to learn more about how to have an effective website?
Let us enlighten you
WEB DESIGNERS WHO CARE
  • Home
  • About
  • Services
    • Website design
    • Digital Marketing / SEO
    • Lead generation websites
    • Copywriting
    • Social media
    • Video
    • Domain registration
    • Corporate branding
    • Printing Services
  • Packages
  • Portfolio
  • Contact
  • Areas
    • Brentwood
    • Havering
    • Redbridge
  • Blog

What is a lead generation website?

25/2/2019

0 Comments

 
Picture
There are websites that get found by people who have never heard of that business before. They stumble across these sites when they are searching for a solution to a problem or a question. These websites attract new visitors. These visitors are potential new clients, if they find information that is useful or engaging. So whether you are looking to build up a distribution list, your want to inform people of your services or have products to sell, a lead generation website is what you need. If these visitors go on to make an enquiry, through a contact form, email or phones call, and they provide their contact details and permission to get in touch, then they become a lead.

Having a website designed to bring in new contacts in various ways can pay itself back many times over. Watch the video or read more about how beneficial a lead generation site can be for your business.
​

​Call Perfect Layout Digital Marketing, if you need ways of generating new leads for your business. Call us on: 01708 578 015.
0 Comments

Why isn't my website bringing me in leads?

29/10/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture
Are you failing to get leads from your website? Does it feel like a ghoul has hijacked business leads? Are you scared about this ever-changing world of digital marketing? Well, Perfect Layout are here to rescue you from your nightmares as we explain how Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) works. If you put in place these strategies, you will see your ranking improve. Are you ready to handle more leads coming to your business?
 
If you’re serious about wanting people to find you through a Google search, Search engine Optimisation (SEO) must be at the top of your priority list. You won’t be able to generate leads for your business if nobody can find you.
 
So, what happens after someone makes a search? Here is the likelihood of someone clicking on a link, depending on their organic positioning.
 
Breakdown of Google Click-Through Rates in by position
Position 1 – 20.5%
Position 2 – 13.32%
Position 3 – 13.14%
Position 4 – 8.98%
Position 5 – 9.21%
Position 6 – 6.73%
Position 7 – 7.61%
Position 8 – 6.92%
Position 9 – 5.52%
Position 10 – 7.95%
A field of hay and a solitary hand is held up in the middleBe the first to be found in your field
That means if you’re not number one on the page, you just missed out on a fifth of potential traffic. Most people won’t even click on the second page of the search results. If you are wondering why other websites are ranking higher than you on Google. It is because they are making a concerted effort to work on their SEO.
​
The good news is that it's never too late to start...you just have some catching up to do.
There are techniques and strategies that you can apply to get you going.  

The following 17 tips will increase your chances of getting ranked higher on Google searches.

​1. Optimise your site for mobile devices

Long has the tablet and smartphone been around. They have taken over as preferred devices to search on when compared with a laptop. If your website design is not mobile friendly, you are going to be penalised. Why? Because Google recognises whether your site is mobile-friendly and ranks sites accordingly. Your website must be optimised for mobile users. If this means investing in a new web design, it will be money well spent. Ignore this tip at your peril.

2. Make sure your site is readable
Is the language that you are using on your site, written with your customer in mind?  If you want people to visit your site and spend time there, speak in a way that they will understand. Don’t try to sound too professional. Write your content in clear and simple terms. Use short sentences. If you are not sure if your content is readable, use the Hemmingway App. It highlights where your content isn't working as well as it could be. 
 
3. Format your page
When designing your website, take time to think about the layout for each page. Make sure it is neat, logical and uncluttered. Consider things like your font size and typography. Use coloured text, bold font, and italics sparingly. Consider using bullet points and checklists to make it easy to scan through your content. A clean design and format will improve your organic ranking.
 
4. Encourage people to stay on your site
How much time do people spend on your website per visit? If your site has fresh information, it will keep visitors on your page longer and this can be achieved in various ways, as outlined below.

six clear glass mason jars filled with juice on black table
Keep the content on your website fresh
5. Produce high quality content
There is no substitute for great content. Quality content created for your audience will increase site traffic. How often do you update your website? To encourage visitors to return you need fresh content. The more traffic to your website the more you will increase its popularity. Your content needs to be high quality, recent, and relevant.
 
6. Start blogging
Blogging is great for your business. It’s an outstanding tool for lead generation and helps you engage with visitors that come to your website. If you can create a group of loyal readers, you can get lots of traffic to your site on a regular basis. Blogs that incorporate good SEO practice, such as links, increased readability, and keywords, all positively impact on your search engine ranking.
 
7. Use keywords
Keywords play a major role in ranking. Brainstorm your sector. How do you think people will find you? 'Plumber in Romford', vs 'Central Heating Company in Romford' or 'Emergency Plumber in Romford'. There are so many ways people may look for your company. Now you need to include these 'keywords' into the content of your site. But do it sparingly. Keyword stuffing is frowned upon by the search engines and you will be penalised.
 
Keywords should fit naturally into sentences:
·       Include them in your header tags
·       Include then in image captions
·       Include the use of long-tail keywords, (three or four words that make phrase)
 
If your keywords match their search, your website will have a greater chance of getting ranked higher.
​

8. Break up your content with header tags
Headings are another way to help improve the user experience. They break up the content and make it easier to read. If your website is big block of text, people are going to click off your website. If you’re not using headers, try and incorporate them within your content now.
 
​9. More than words
Your website shouldn’t be only written words. Break up the pages with relevant, high-quality pictures. Consider also adding videos, slideshows, or audio to your site. This improves the user experience, as not everyone enjoys just reading.
 
Also remember what we said about the time people spend on your site. Videos, for example, can extend significantly the amount of time spent on your website. If that happens, it will boost your search ranking.
10. Optimise your images
Pictures and other images are not only visually great for your website. But when they are optimized properly they can improve your SEO ranking.  Make sure you do the following:
 
Resize your images. Huge images can slow your page loading time, which can hurt your ranking. Use your images to sneak in keywords by naming them accordingly. Add keywords in the title of your image as well as the caption or description.
 
11. Include internal links
Internal links direct visitors to other pages on your website. Not only are you encouraging the reader to find out more about what you do, you are keeping visitors on your site for longer and reducing your bounce rate.
 
12. Use outbound links
When you are writing a blog or have content that researches a topic, link to sites you have used for information or that go into further detail. Connect your facts to the data source with a hyperlink back to them. When you source something, try to ensure that it is the most recent information.
 
13. Create anchor text properly
If you ever type 'Click here for more information'. STOP. Start creating relevant links within the text. 'Click here means nothing to the search engine. “Central Heating Installations” is rich with keywords. It will improve your search engine rankings, as well as the ranking of the page you are linking to.
 
14. Provide appropriate contact information
Have you ever struggled to find the contact information of a business on a website? This should never happen. All your contact information should be easy to find. Make sure you have a footer on every page of your site that includes your Name, Address and Phone number, otherwise known as the NAP.
 
15. Sharing is caring
Every business and website need to be active on social media. Your SEO ranking will improve when people share links to your website on social media. If you encourage social sharing as a regular part of your SEO campaigns, you will see a difference. Include social sharing icons on all your content and share links on your social media pages.
 
16. Title Metadata
Title metadata is the page title displayed at the top of a browser window and as the headline within search engine results. It is the most important metadata on your page. Make sure your site has this section filled in.
 
17. Description Metadata
When you see the results in organic search there will be a title and a description. This description metadata is vital to encouraging visitors to click to your site.


Conclusion
Search engine optimisation isn’t going away. If anything, it is getting more sophisticated and complex and is an ongoing job that needs focus and attention. This blog contains a long list of actions but don’t be put off! Write these actions on your to-do-list and go through them week, by week. Every improvement you make will stand your website in good stead.
 
Monitor your results monthly. Checking your traffic and search ranking will help validate your SEO strategy. It will also highlight areas on your website that need more attention. Who knows, by working on these elements, you might claim that elusive number one spot! It's all about outsmarting your competition. That’s what we at Perfect Layout Digital Marketing are working on every day with our clients.
 
These are only a few of the many methods for improving your search engine ranking. If you want to learn more, we recommend that you visit: Improve your performance on Google Search or give us a call and speak to our friendly team. Call 01708 578 015.
 
​

0 Comments

I want my website to bring in more customers. Can I optimise my website myself?

30/7/2018

0 Comments

 
woman looking puzzled and next to her the words question of the week
Simple answer - YES! Whilst there are website design companies like us that optimise websites for a living, undertaking this role is something that you can do yourself. For example, designing a landing page that’s built for leads doesn’t have to be an overwhelming nor time-consuming exercise. By simply looking at examples of some of the best converting lead generation websites, you can learn precisely what works and why. If you want to attract visitors who have a strong intention of ultimately using your services, your landing page will have to have plenty of good content, quality links and authority.
the internal working of an engine and the words across the bottom reads search engine optimisation, SEO
​
​
14 Top tips for optimising your website…

The following steps are proven to increase not only conversions, but also your site's trust factor and presence. For good optimisation of your website that will help generate more customers it's worth considering the following...
​

Top tip 1 - add forms to the pages that get the most traffic
To begin with, conduct an audit of where most of your online traffic and outreach comes from.
Here are some of the most common places that a business might get visitors from:

Email Marketing - traffic might come from users who click through to your website from one of your emails that you have provided.
Social Media - traffic might come from users who engage in a campaign through one of your social media profiles linked with your website.
Live Chat - traffic might come in the form of users who reach out to your customer service team through a live chat window on your website.
Blog Posts - traffic might come from your highest-performing blog posts.
​

Top tip 2 -  start with a basic CTA on your homepage
If your homepage's design is what catches a person's attention, the CTA (Call to Action) is what keeps it. Your homepage sits at the top of the marketing funnel and should therefore offer either a free trial or subscription to a recurring campaign, such as a newsletter. Consider including one of the following CTAs on the front of your website:
 
  • 'Subscribe to Updates'- Invite them to subscribe to an email that notifies them of industry trends and product updates.
 
  • 'Try Us for Free'- On your homepage, have your product available to try for free for a limited time using a CTA and form where you can collect their names and email addresses. At the end of each active product demo, kindly follow up with the user to find out what they thought of it. This will be very beneficial for improving your site.
​
A book that is standing on its end and the front cover is blue with a yellow bulb in the middle and above it reads be creative
Top tip 3 - offer ebooks for download on specific blog posts
Another way to generate interest in your business is to create blog content that promotes an ebook or whitepaper, wherein your website visitors can learn more about the same topic they have just read about on your blog. We are always writing about the importance of blog posts and keeping content on your site fresh and relevant and this strategy is where lead generation meets search engine optimisation (SEO).
 
To start, conduct keyword research on a topic that's relevant to your industry, and create a group of blog posts around this topic. Then, draft a report that delves much deeper into this topic. Package this report into a PDF that your blog readers can download using their name, company, and email address.

Are you getting this down?
image of a womans torso in an orange checked shirt sitting down. she is holding a note book and taking notes.
Top tip 4 - develop a live chat service for your website
To generate leads though live chat, audit your website to see which pages your visitors spend most of their time on. With the right development resources, you can install a live chat tool on the pages where customers need the most assistance or information. ​This allows you to practically collect and log insight on their product needs while answering their questions.
 
Top tip 5 -  personalise your calls-to-action
Personalised calls-to-action convert 42% more visitors than basic calls-to-action. Visitors who see website pages that remember them from an earlier date are more inclined to stick around and start a conversation with you.
 
Top tip 6 - make your videos speak to the user
Online videos greatly increase conversion rates for a wide range of industries (particularly e-commerce websites). The highest performing videos speak to the user rather than at them. Online users who viewed a product video are much more likely to convert over users who simply viewed an ad.


Top tip 7  - use action oriented words when describing your offers
Using action-oriented words in your offer (such as, ''feel'' and ''get'' etc.), places the customer in a pivotal role as the one receiving the benefits as opposed to simply imagining them.
 
Top tip 8 - featured image
Every great post has a great image. This makes the post more attractive, both on your site and in the social streams when it gets shared. This is your chance to explain concepts visually with informative charts or diagrams.
 
Top tip 9 - descriptive header
A descriptive header is good for visitors and good for search rankings.
 
Top tip 10 -  social sharing buttons
Make it easy to spread the word. Share buttons can appear at both the top and bottom of the post, or even as a “sticky” element that follows them as they scroll down the page.
 

Top tip 11 - try to avoid cookie-cutter site templates
It is best you avoid any cookie cutter “all-the-work-is-done-for-you” website templates. Instead, consider investing in the best possible website that you can afford, and make sure you make the purpose of each page clear, up front, so that the designer can tailor it to generating leads.
 
Plug into these ideas!
Image of a little light bulb that has legs and arms, plugging itself into a wall and the light coming on.
Top tip 12 - evidence, data and social proof
Add evidence of your legitimacy and the value of your services. This may include examples, statistics and research.
 

Top tip 13 -  personality, values and your story
Talk about your values, your origin and why this work is important in order to make this a page that sets you apart.
 

Top tip 14 -  nurture your leads
Place leads into a workflow once they fill out a form on your landing page so they don't forget about you. Deliver them valuable content that matches their interest. Lead nurturing should start with relevant follow up emails that include great content.
 

Finally, take a look at your website. How do you think it’s doing against the above points? Call us today so that we can discuss how we can help you put in action what you currently have missing.
​
0 Comments

How can I tell if my website needs some TLC?

23/7/2018

0 Comments

 
Question of the week banner with an ostrich head looking at you
​Last week, 13 July, Christine Huntingford from Perfect Layout Digital Marketing was invited to give a presentation at the Havering Chamber of Commerce and Industry (HCCI) breakfast meeting, where members and visitors attended. She thought long and hard about what to talk to them about and decided to make it an interactive session with the participants and let them know in 10 minutes, after a few simple checks, whether their website was working well for their business and whether their website and digital marketing need some real Tender Loving Care (TLC).

Firstly, to get a sense of their initial thoughts she asked the following questions:
  • Do you have a website?
  • Is your website generating you regular leads, either through phone calls, emails or contact forms?
  • Was your website was redesigned and updated in the last 12-18 months?
  • Are you happy with your website provider?

This gave everyone a moment to reflect not only if were they genuinely happy with their current service, but also to validate if this was a way in which they were bringing in customers.
​
Now we know its all very easy to think that everything is fine with our website, but how do we really know? Well, these next simple tasks can reveal whether your website is working for you. You can do this for your site at any time.
Screenshot of Perfect Layout PowerPoint title slide





​Task 1
Open your search browser for the internet and look for your business, by type and location. Please don’t type in your company name but instead type in say ‘Accountants in Romford’.

Is your company is listed on page one?

If it is that’s great news. Potential customers have a chance of finding you and calling up your business.
​

For those of you that didn’t appear on page one, you may need to think about how to improve the content of your website to help you to be found.

Task 2
Whilst before you were asked not to type in your company name into the browser, this time, do exactly that. For example, for our Company it would be, ‘Perfect Layout Digital Marketing’.

Can you see the Google My Business (GMB) listing for your business? Can you also see photos, posts and full details about your company? Do you have reviews?

If it’s a ‘yes’ for all of that, that is excellent! You are on track with taking full advantage of GMB’s latest updates and features.
​
If you didn’t, Perfect Layout can help you either set up a Google My Business, or help you enhance what you already have there.
​
​Task 3
Keeping the page that you had open for task 2, now scroll down the results page, do you have your business listed in external directories? Such as Yell, Thomson, Netmums, or any online directory for your sector?

If you have more than 3 external directory listings, you are doing well, these connections on external sites help give your website relevancy and demonstrate that you are an active business.
​

If you are not  listed on any external directories, it is recommended that this strategy is employed in order to help your business get found.

​Task 4
Does your website have a blog section? If it does, was the last post published within the last month?
If this is you - congratulations! You are doing a good job of sharing news about your company’s activities and products to your community.

If you don’t, get in touch with Perfect Layout about the benefits of a blog, which can help your website rank better.
​
Photo of Christine Huntingford presenting at the HCCI breakfast meeting July 18
So to recap: If you are not on page one, in organic search it is because your website’s content isn’t strong enough against your competitors.

Google will be penalising businesses that don’t have a GMB listing. By the way, you can do that too in Bing on Internet Explorer, which we recommend too.​
Being on external directories can improve your online visibility with prospective clients.
​

Having a blog section is an opportunity to update your community on what you are doing and makes your business more authoritative.

​In the second half of the presentation we introduced an alternative strategy for phone-based businesses who don’t have the money to invest in a new website or redesign of their current website -  but need to be earning more money and secure new customers.

To clarify, a phone-based business is when people would call you as their primary way of contacting you, rather than via email or walking into your business premises.

L
et’s imagine the following:
Our client, a dentist, gets some enquiries from his website, but he would like more. His family is growing and they need a bigger house, but what he is currently earning isn’t quite enough to be able to move, just yet. He doesn’t have the money to rebuild his website and invest in keyword-rich content.

However, as a phone-based business, he has the option of securing potential customers through a customer generating website that’s run by a digital marketing agency. This website will generate new contacts specifically for his business by creating a new website free of charge. It will be found organically on the top pages of search engines and could bring him that extra revenue that he is looking for. From these new clients there’s a high likelihood of them becoming repeat customers, who will visit for check-ups, as well as the need for ad hoc additional treatments. Fabulous recurring revenue for years to come.

It’s a no brainer – so where's the catch? It’s simply a matter of paying a small fee to the digital marketing agency for each enquiry that comes via that website.
​
If this has struck a chord with you and you would like your business to build up its client base and recurring customers, give us a call today to talk about whether your niche would suit such a website.

01708 578 015

    My website needs some TLC

Submit
0 Comments

Which social media platform should my business be on?

16/7/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture
​For many businesses, social media is an indispensable tool for finding and engaging with customers, improving sales, advertising and promoting products and services as well as gauging trends and offering customer service.

Social media has a significant role in helping businesses as it:
  • facilitates communication with customers thus enabling the blending of social interactions on e-commerce sites.
  • offers the ability to collect information and thus helps focus marketing efforts and market research.
  • helps in promoting products and services by enabling the distribution of focused, timely and exclusive sales and coupons to would-be customers.
  • can assist in relationship building, such as through loyalty programs linked to social media.
​
While 76% of direct sellers use social media for promotional purposes, 55% use it for recruiting new distributors and 42% use it for reactive purposes. Consumers are the most popular target for social media, followed by distributors and communities. Social media has evolved into a driver of strategy, and will become even more important in the future as customer relationships are improved and  developed by listening and reacting to concerns. The transparency created by social media is enhancing trust and ethical organisational cultures. In addition, consumer brand communities are emerging that are increasing brand value.
Picture
Picture
1 – Facebook
This is easily the largest social networking site in the world and one of the most widely used.

Facebook was perhaps the first that surpassed the landmark of 1 billion user accounts.

An average Facebook user has 180 friends.

Apart from the ability to network with friends and relatives, different Facebook apps can be accessed to sell online and market or promote a businesses brand and products by using paid Facebook ads.

Facebook has incredible insights about their users and can target very specific demographics with very specific ads. Facebook ads are shown more regularly to advertisers who are willing to pay more than other advertisers targeting the same people.

This creates a bidding war and makes advertising campaigns that focus on a small niche more profitable.

Number of active users per month: approximately 1.7 billion 

  • It shouldn’t come as a huge surprise that Facebook is in the number one position on the list of social media sites used by businesses. With 1.5 billion daily active users, Facebook is the most widely used social platform with 2.167 billion users as of January 2018.
  • Whether your business goal is brand awareness, website traffic, lead generation, or online conversions, Facebook should (and more than likely will) make a notable difference in reaching your goals when used properly.
  • Facebook’s wide user base and demographic of users is the main reason it’s at the top of our list; almost anyone can find their target audience on this platform and get in front of them.
  • Facebook’s advertising platform is by the far the most developed of all of the social media platforms (out performing Twitter and other channels that have been around a lot longer!).
  • On Facebook, you can target by age, gender, employment, interests, purchasing behaviours, relationship status and so much more! This gives you the power to target your exact audience and put your ads and content in their newsfeed where they are already scrolling.
  • If you’re wondering if Facebook is for you; our answer is yes. There are only two instances when we may suggest another platform over Facebook: the first being if you do not have a social media advertising budget, and the second being if your type of business is prohibited to advertise on Facebook based on Facebook’s ad policies (i.e. a vaping or tobacco company etc.).
  • It can be difficult to get organic traffic on Facebook, but doing giveaways and other contests can help. Be sure the giveaway is relevant to what you're selling. You want to attract the ideal audience, so don't give away something random; give away something that your ideal buyer would want.
  • Facebook allows you to create events as part of your business. You can invite anyone to these events, and pay extra to promote them to a targeted audience on Facebook. Events can be a smart way to engage your audience and turn them into customers.
Picture

Picture
2 – Instagram                                                
Instagram was launched as a unique social networking platform that was completely based on sharing photos and videos.

This photo sharing social networking app thus enables you to capture the best moments of your life, with your phone’s camera or any other camera, and convert them into works of art.

This is possible because Instagram allows you to apply multiple filters to your photos and you can easily post them to other popular social networking sites, such as Facebook and Twitter. It is now part of the Facebook empire, with 1 billion registered users.  

More than 80% of Instagram’s community lives outside of the U.S.

More than 300 million users check Instagram Stories daily.

Number of active users per month: 500 million approximately

  • On Facebook, you have to pay for advertising campaigns to grow your followers and increase the reach of your page and posts. On Instagram, you can grow your followers organically and therefore grow the reach of your profile and posts organically as well!
  • This makes Instagram a great option for both businesses with and without an advertising budget.
  • Instagram is also a visual platform, as you can only publish posts that include photos and videos (as opposed to posting copy without a visual element to it). This works to your advantage as a business since people remember 80% of what they see as opposed to what they read or hear!
  • If your business wants to capture a young audience and has the ability to create high-impact images, you should make this platform a priority.
  • Instagram is owned by Facebook, so they have a lot of the same features and ad targeting options, which makes it a great option for brand awareness and engagement. Be careful, though - Instagrammers expect high-quality imagery that tells a story. Posting stock photos isn’t going to work. If you don’t have a visual product or access to quality photographs, try a different platform.
  • Like other social channels, businesses have the option to advertise on Instagram. There are three formats for advertising:
  • Photo ads: These look like regular photo posts, but they have a Sponsored label above the photo. They also have a Learn More button in the bottom right corner under the photo.
  • Video ads: Like the photo ads, these look like regular video posts, but with a Sponsored label on top.
  • Carousel ads: These ads look identical to photo ads but feature multiple photos that users can swipe through.
  • Instagram is best for business to consumers (B2C)
  • TOP 10 INDUSTRIES: Travel and Hospitality, Fashion, Health and Wellness, Arts and Crafts, Food and Beverage, E-commerce, Beauty, Photography, Auto, Event Planning
Picture

Picture
3 – Twitter     
This social networking site enables you to post short text messages (called tweets), containing a limited number of characters (up to 240), to convey your message to the world. With the growing craze for online shopping, Twitter makes it possible to promote your business and  shop directly through tweets.

More political leaders use Twitter than any other social platform. 276 heads of state, government and ministries in 178 countries use Twitter.

68 million monthly active users are located in the U.S.

262 million monthly active users live outside of the U.S. (roughly 80%of all users).

42% of Twitter users use the site daily.

8% of US Companies use Twitter for marketing purposes.

74% of Twitter users follow small businesses to get product updates.

Number of active users per month: 330 million approximately

  • ​Twitter is one of the older social media platforms (created in 2006) and it has 330 million monthly active Twitter users. You can post photos and videos along with character-limited copy, but Twitter is most known for its feed of real-time updates. Is the term “live-tweeting” ringing a bell now?
  • Twitter is also great for engaging new potential customers through its use of hashtags. Similar to Instagram, you can search a hashtag and find other posts from consumers and businesses alike that have used that hashtag.
  • This means that you can find consumers searching for something that your company offers and vice versa!
  • For example, if you’re a car wash company, you can literally find people tweeting about how they need to get their car washed depending on how they’ve used hashtags in their tweet. You can then tweet them with a discount for your car wash, and you will most likely get a new customer.
  • Twitter’s value lies in its ability for your posts to go viral: the more people share your posts and “retweet” your content, the more followers you will attain. You also retweet people who have many followers to increase the likelihood of them following you back. 
Picture

Picture
4 – Google+    
Owned by the tech giant Alphabet (Google), this interest-based social networking platform enables you to stay in touch with people by sharing messages, photos, videos, useful links to sites and so on. It is estimated that it has a total of 2 billion registered users.

It also extends support for video conferencing through Hangouts and allows businesses to promote their brands and products through Google+ business pages.

Top 5 countries using G+ are USA, India, Brazil, UK & Canada.

Number of active users: 395 million approximately

  • ​Google Plus, like YouTube, is another social media platform that is owned by Google. Unlike the other social media sites for business on this list, Google Plus can play a role in boosting your SEO rankings organically on Google.
  • Posting on Google Plus regularly will not only expose your company to its 395 million monthly active users, but is also helps Google get smarter at knowing what your website is about, and what it should rank for on Google!
  • There’s one business sector in particular that can’t afford to ignore Google+. Google+ is a favourite with tech industry people and engineering types. This is reflected in the top brands on the platform: Android, Chrome (perhaps no surprise that this list includes top Google services) and Mashable. This audience favours photos, videos and long posts compared with a Facebook audience that likes shorter status updates.
  • And of course, Google+ offers an unprecedented opportunity to get face to face with your customers via Hangouts.  
Picture

Picture
5- LinkedIn
LinkedIn is easily one of the most popular professional social networking sites or apps and is available in over 20 languages.

It is used across the globe by all types of professionals and serves as an ideal platform to connect with different businesses, locate and hire ideal candidates and more. It also boasts over 500 million members.

The more precise demographical data about people you are connected with is usually behind a pay-wall (a tool to monetize digital content securely and efficiently) such as on LinkedIn. 171 million users are based in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The U.S. has the largest national user base (146 million members), followed by India, China and Brazil.

49% of college graduates use LinkedIn.

45% of adults making more than US$75,000 per year are on LinkedIn.

More than 46 million students and recent college graduates use LinkedIn. They are the networking site’s fastest-growing demographic.

Number of active users per month: 250 million approximately

  • ​LinkedIn has 250 million monthly active users, most of whom are in the working world or close to it.
  • Because LinkedIn is considered to be a social media platform for business, people often include more accurate information about their employers, job roles, work email addresses etc., than they do on other social media platforms that are utilized more for personal use.
  • LinkedIn’s advertising platform is not as advanced as Facebook’s in terms of its campaign functions, but it does give you a lot more job positions to target than Facebook does. This can be crucial if the bottom line of your business is dependent upon targeting specific businesses or job titles.
  • LinkedIn is best for business to business (B2B) or business to consumer for employment.
  • TOP 10 INDUSTRIES: Financial, Employment, Science and Technology, Legal, Manufacturing, Marketing, Education, Professional Services, Health and Wellness, IT.
  • TARGET AGE AND GENDER: 25 – 45, both men and women.
  • If you are B2B, the main social media channel your business should be on is LinkedIn. Why? Four out of five LinkedIn members drive business decisions, and LinkedIn’s audience has 2 times the buying power of the average web audience.
  • LinkedIn is a great platform for finding top talent and painting yourself as an industry leader as well as promoting your business.
  • Because LinkedIn is a professional platform, it's the best place to post job openings and information about company culture. You can join industry-specific LinkedIn Groups to ask and answer questions. This helps your brand, paints you as an industry expert, and brings people to your company's page and website. 
Picture
Love them or loathe them, social media platforms are a must for all business owners to use. Denying your business a presence on the right social media platforms could lose you leads, revenue and repeat custom.

If you are overwhelmed with where you should start, give Perfect Layout Digital Marketing a call to see how we can help build the right social media strategy for you.

Speak to the team now
0 Comments

July 09th, 2018

9/7/2018

0 Comments

 
Photo of coffee cup and chocolate croissant
Photo of Christine Huntingford, Perfect Layout Digital Marketing
Christine Huntingford, CEO, Perfect Layout Digital Marketing will be one of the guest speakers at the Havering Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s (HCCI) breakfast meeting this Friday (13 July). She will talk about how businesses need to invest in their website and digital marketing; in order to stay ahead of the competition. Breakfast meetings are free to members and guests are welcome too.

As a local business owner, it is likely that your days are filled working with for your customers with your specialist skill-set. If you are lucky to have a lot of referral work, it is likely that one day rolls into the next and one week into another and before you know it, that promise that you made to yourself that you will update your website, or that you will post more often on social media, falls to the way side.

If you are one you one of them, now is really is a good time to take stock and find out if what you are doing is really working for your business?

Ask yourself: when was the last time you really looked at your website? Does it really work for you in the way that you want it to? (- i.e. are you getting leads from it). Do you know how easy it is for potential customers to find you? Is your social media activity where it should be?

We all know that there is more that we can, and should, do. There are simple and relatively quick things that you can do that can make a big difference to your visibility online. Some elements cost you time, not money. And those that do cost money, can be scaled to what is affordable for you.
​
Havering Chamber of Commerce and Industry logo

​Come along on Friday 13 July to the Havering Museum in Romford and join the members and guests of the Havering Chamber of Commerce and Industry to hear Christine share ways for you to check if your website is easily found (or not); your website is the foundation of your digital marketing strategy and if that isn’t right, that is where you need to start first. From there we can build the blocks to ensure that you are engaging with potential customers on a regular basis.

​The meeting starts at 7:30am for networking and the speakers will be presenting between 8am and 9am. There is a further opportunity to network until 9:30am.
​Guests welcome: £10 on the door.
0 Comments

​How can I make my website more user-friendly?

21/5/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture of yellow balls with face expressions drawn on them. Happy face is in focus.
There are good websites and there are bad websites. If you have had a website for a while, but you find that you are not getting much from it, in terms of traffic, leads, calls etc, it could be that people are finding your website tricky to navigate or difficult to find the right information. I know it’s hard, but every six months or so, it is worth doing an audit of your website with, 'a fresh pair of eyes’, to check that everything is relevant and it all still makes sense.

Is it mobile-optimised?
The first thing to check is whether or not your website is on a mobile optimised platform? If not, the search engines will penalise your organic rankings. You will also find that customers, who have to pinch and expand the page to read the text, will more often bounce off to find another website that has a better user experience.
- Check: Is your website built on a mobile optimised platform?

Is your site easy to navigate with clear navigation buttons?
Most websites follow a similar structure which includes, a home page, an about page, pages on the services that you offer and a contact page. It may also be useful to have pages about the areas you serve, a portfolio of what you offer (whether it’s services or products) and even a testimonial page.
- Check: Are your navigation headers clear for a brand new visitor to understand?

Do you explain what you do?
It is all well and good you knowing what you do, but is this clear to your potential customers? If your business is selling products, do they have relevant descriptions that will help minimise the chance of those products being returned? If you offer a service, do you explain, in everyday language, what it is that you offer? When you work in a particular sector, it can become second nature to speak the jargon of that industry. But would everybody be able understand such specific terminology? Also make sure that you have clear headings throughout each page to make it easy to skim read. Often people are time-poor, so make your website a breeze to read through.
- Check: Is your website easy to understand? Ask a friend or family member to read through to see if it is clear to them. Do they have any questions about elements that remain unclear?
​
Picture

Can you add more visual elements to your website?
As they saying goes: ‘A photo tells a thousand words.’ Remember to include high resolution photos (that are saved for web) that convey clearly your products and services. If you offer a service then show before and after photos of projects that you have worked on. Be proud of the transformation that you can achieve.
- Check: What are the photos like on your site? Do you have relevant images that are crystal clear? Blurry photos will convey a slap-dash image of your company.
 
Do you have ways that customers can reach you?
The majority of users will be viewing your website on a mobile device. No longer is it OK to have your phone number only on the Contact Us page. Think about adding your contact details in your footer, so that it is easy to find you. If you are on a mobile optimised platform your web designer will be able to enable phone number hyperlinks, so that visitors can click on your number and call you straight away. Also think about other Call to Action buttons that you could include on each page.
- Check: How you can optimise better user engagement on every page, so that visitors can contact you immediately. Does your footer have contact details?

What are your customers saying about you?
If you are getting positive feedback from clients, then add this to your website. Why not create a testimonial page to enable new visitors to see what your customers think of you. Lots of lovely reviews will more likely result in a new visitor engaging with you.
- Check: When did you last upload a testimonial? Visitors will look for recent reviews, so keep adding them to your site.

Is your logo on your website?
Add your logo to the top left of your pages. The readers’ eyes will read from left to right and top to bottom. So by adding your logo to the top left will ensure that it is the first thing the reader sees. This implants your branding into their memory; making it easier to remember you when they re-visit your site.
- Check: Is your logo positioned in the top left hand corner?

For more user-friendly tips for your website visit Hubspot’s article.
​
Is your website in need of redesigning in order to make it a more user-friendly? Or perhaps you want to take this opportunity to start afresh? Either way, give Perfect Layout Digital Marketing a call on 01708 578 015.
​
Chat to our friendly team
0 Comments

Content is King: but who are the Queen, Prince and Princess in this royal family?

23/11/2017

0 Comments

 
Photo with scrabble pieces spelling out the word Content
The term ‘Content is King’ has been bandied about for many years. It’s something that you may have heard mentioned on one of the blogs at Perfect Layout or whilst perusing the internet for news and top tips on how to make your website attract customers.

So, what does the term Content is King mean and from where did it originate?
The term ‘Content is King’ came from an essay that Bill Gates wrote in January 1996 entitled, ’Content is King’. It was published on the Microsoft website and stated…
 
“Content is where I expect much of the real money will be made on the Internet, just as it was in broadcasting.”
 
Imagine, Bill Gates, the creator of Microsoft computers made this statement over 20 years ago! Did he have a crystal ball? We’ll never know, but his intuition was certainly firing on all cylinders as his prediction has become a reality. Today, content is a huge factor in what drives the internet. It’s what search engines love to find and use to rank a website as an authoritative and trustworthy site - hence content being at the top of the pecking order when it comes having a great website.
 
Is content on a site that important?
There’s really no getting away from the
fact that having interesting, informative, content on your website is great news for your business. Think of it this way, you wouldn’t buy a book entitled: ‘How to create a great blog’ if the ideas contained within it was not about blogs and full of grammatical mistakes.
 
It’s the same with a website. Nowadays consumers aren’t solely surfing to buy a product or service. They want to be clued-up, educated or tickled with something that will draw them in to press the buy, subscribe, like or recommend button, and ultimately come back for more. The right content on a website can help a business achieve these things – but it can’t do it on its own. That’s where the rest of the royal family come into play…next up, ‘The Queen’. 
​
​
Photo with English money
So, what is the role of the Queen?
My thoughts are that having great content is not a stand-alone facet of getting customers to a site. There has to be a strategy behind the content to ensure that it’s relevant and directed at the right customers at the right time.

The content that’s being offered should have the right ‘context’ which means offering information that is relevant and helpful to the customer in their current situation. The more relevant a post is to that person’s need, at that point, the more that person is likely to buy that product or service. To fully merge the right context into your content means thinking about what context would be helpful for your customers and then identifying the kind of factual data you need to identify that context.
 
The work of The Queen doesn’t stop there. Her role also holds the title of ‘creative development’. Making your content stand out and really shine amongst the competition isn’t easy. Depending on your niche you will have a particular demographic and age-range that you need to appeal to. Do your research and tailor your content to appeal to them.
 
I believe that the final role of The Queen (such a busy lady!) is that of ‘distribution’. What platforms are the best to get your content seen by those that need to see it? Nowadays, there’s a plethora of social media platforms that can be used to get your content seen by the right people. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest and Google+ are just some of the ways in which you can distribute your content directly to the people that want to see it.

So, during the planning stages you will need to think about:

  • what your content will contain
  • how it will be worded
  • identifying who its appeal will be aimed at
  • and how it will be found

And last but not least…The Prince and Princess

Image of two frogs
Whilst there’s little written about the off-spring of this royal family, I’ve taken the liberty of identifying who they are and the role they play in keeping the King on his throne.

The key to ensuring that your website, and the content contained within it, are working optimally, are Web Designers – surprise! They may also go under different Marketing titles, but I’m writing this blog so have the freedom to be biased!  
 
If you are unable to write content like a King with the right context and undertake all the other tasks included within the role of the Queen, the Princesses within this company can assist you to:
  • position your business as an expert
  • improve your search engine ranking
  • acquire and retain customers
  • generate (blog) traffic
  • generate new leads
Good content is not enough because everyone has good content. You also need to promote it, understand how to get it out there; reach new audiences and then make sure the traffic that you do get converts into a subscriber or customer.

Be inspired to… think and write creatively
My husband has a beard. Not a mo
ustache, goatie or bit of stubble – he has a full-grown cave man beard. It suits him. It draws him attention and makes him stand out from the crowd for his unique style.
 
These days, having a business online can be difficult to master. Depending on your niche, getting a foothold amongst your competitors can be a daunting task. You have to think outside the box, be unique and have the equivalent of a really big beard (!) to draw customers in.
 
We are accustomed to writing content and thinking outside the box when it comes to promoting local online businesses. We write content that’s relevant, interesting and full of keywords that will get you seen by the right audience. The key is to making the text sound natural, interweaving an outline of your services and products into the content all the while helping you to stand out from the crowd.

What role do you think The Prince and Princess play in this royal family?

0 Comments

Bespoke Curtains & Blinds in Chadwell Heath seeks to expand customer base

15/3/2017

0 Comments

 
Screen shot of website called Bespoke Curtains and Blinds. Picture of a grand window that is dressed with beautifully draping curtains.
Bespoke Curtains & Blinds in Romford, used to be based in North West London. With many existing clients and referrals still coming from that area, the business owner decided that by creating a website, she could attract new clients closer to her premises, as well as the Home Counties.

Perfect Layout Digital Marketing worked with the owner, to understand the industry and wrote all the content for the site. it created specific location pages within each of the counties to ensure that her site would be found in organic search. Within a week of the site going live, her first local lead called through.
0 Comments

Perfect Layout Digital Marketing creates a new website for Romford Hypnobirthing

1/2/2017

0 Comments

 
Screen shot of website called Romford Hynobirthing of pregnant lady lying on her back on grass with her swollen tummy exposed.
When a local hypnobirthing instructor set up her business, she was not aware of the importance of search engine optimisation and the use of keywords; in not only her site and but her url.

Whilst having a successful website under the business name Magical Baby Moments, she felt that having a second website, specifically called Romford Hypnobirthing would help her with local search.

Both sites are on page 1 of organic search, for key terms such as ‘Romford Hypnobirthing’ and ‘Hynobirthing in Romford’. This success on the search engines isn’t by luck, but instead because of tools and techniques implemented to deliver these results.

By adding these factors to her business, there has been an increase in local leads being generated from online searches.

If your business is struggling to be found online call Perfect Layout Digital Marketing today on: 01708 578 015.
​
0 Comments

Perfect Layout Digital Marketing serves local businesses in Essex and London

19/9/2016

0 Comments

 
White background with black question marks on top. Laptop in the middle open with hands typing.
Perfect Layout Digital Marketing is based in Romford, Essex and helps local businesses to grow and develop their business through optimising their digital presence.

Is your website optimised for mobile?
If your website is a few years old, it might mean that your site isn’t optimised for mobile. How can you tell? Take a look at your website on a mobile device (phone or tablet). If it doesn’t automatically fit the screen and you need to expand the text in order to read the small font, then your site is not optimised for Google, which may harm your rankings.

Would you like more leads?
If your business is a little slow, think about how your website is performing. Do you get a lot of leads directly from your website or social media channels? If the answer is ‘not many’, then it could mean that your website could do with a makeover to ensure that the content on it and the keywords that you include are improved. We can help you with that.

Digital Consultation
We sit down with each and every business owner to find out how their business operates in order to find the right digital solution for them.
​
Our mission is to help local businesses expand and grow, if this is you, then give us a call on 01708 578 015.
0 Comments

    Topics

    All
    Blogging
    Branding
    Calls To Action
    Client Case Studies
    Content
    Data Protection
    Digital Marketing Strategies
    Domain
    Emails
    Google
    Guest Post
    Interview With...
    Lead Generation
    Meme
    Mobile Responsive
    Networking
    Organic Search
    Pay Per Click
    Professional Email Address
    Question Of The Week
    Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)
    Seo
    Social Media
    Video
    Website Design
    Website Maintenance

    RSS Feed

Picture
Picture
Picture


Perfect Layout Digital Marketing
Suite 104, 12 Southend Arterial Road, Romford, Essex, RM3 0BX

Website designed by Perfect Layout Digital Marketing

Hours

M-F: 9am - 5pm

Telephone

01708 578 015

Email

hello@perfectlayout.co.uk
Copyright © 2018 Perfect Layout Digital Marketing
All rights reserved | 
Blog policy | Privacy Policy
​Photography by Cyrus Mehta
Website Design | Digital Marketing / SEO | Lead Generation Websites | Blog and Copywriting | Social Media | Video
​
Domain Registration | Corporate Branding | Printing Services
  • Home
  • About
  • Services
    • Website design
    • Digital Marketing / SEO
    • Lead generation websites
    • Copywriting
    • Social media
    • Video
    • Domain registration
    • Corporate branding
    • Printing Services
  • Packages
  • Portfolio
  • Contact
  • Areas
    • Brentwood
    • Havering
    • Redbridge
  • Blog