Tag Archives: gator-crossing

Infographic: The Secret Art of Digital Marketing

Posted on August 1, 2013 by Hosting

Properly marketing something in the digital realm can seem elusive and mysterious.  There’s multiple avenues that must be simultaneously tracked and measured in order to ensure you are doing an optimal job, and getting the most bang for your buck.  The following infographic reveals The Secret Art of Digital Marketing: Click image to see a larger version The Secret Art of Digital Marketing via HostGator Continue reading →

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What You Need to Know about Google’s New Dynamic Remarketing for Merchants

Posted on July 25, 2013 by Hosting

Imagine going to a store you love and having employees from the store follow you around for the rest of the day making purchasing suggestions based on the products you looked at. They’re always on hand to show you that pair of shoes you were lingering in front of or that MP3 player you were thinking of purchasing as a birthday present. No matter where you go, these employees are a constant reminder of items that are back at the store waiting for you. While this might be a bit annoying in real life, Google offers a subtler and much more effective advertising method called Dynamic Remarketing . Dynamic remarketing displays customized ads to visitors based on the part of your website they visited. If a visitor was browsing tennis shoes on your site, then Google will pull the information for those shoes from your website and place it into a dynamic ad that the user will see when visiting another site in the Google Display Network (GDN). Using dynamic remarketing on your website makes it much more likely that users will come back and make a purchase. Google’s Dynamic Remarketing program offers Google’s brand of search retargeting to all users with a Google merchant center account. This is a powerful tool for boosting revenue, as it keeps interested customers in the sales funnel longer.   How It Works What makes this technology dynamic is that it tailors ads across the web based on your visitors’ activity on your website. Basically, you add a tag (a snippet of code) to your site, along with a parameter for the product ID and a few other customer parameters. When someone visits your website, the tag automatically adds them to a list based on their activity and keeps track of them via a browser cookie. When the user visits a different website in the Google Display Network, then the tag uses the product ID to pull the product image, name, and price to the dynamic ad.   Features Auto-optimized layouts: Choose to customize your ads with your brand characteristics, or just upload your logo and let Google select the most optimum layouts for the user and device. Products recommendation engine: This feature chooses the best mix of ads to display to users in groups of one, two, four, or six. It selects products based on popular choices on your website, what items the user was closest to purchasing, and the items that are most frequently purchased together. Real-time bidding algorithm: Calculates the best bid for each impression. The system drives each bid up or down in real time based on expected performance.   Advantages Affordable: Before Google Dynamic Remarketing, search retargeting was closed to smaller operations because of budget restrictions. Unlike other search retargeting programs, Google Dynamic Remarketing has no minimum spends. This makes it a great choice for small to mid-sized businesses. Effective: Google maintains more targeted information on users, thereby allowing marketers to bid to specific demographics according to characteristics like age and gender. More control: With Dynamic Remarketing, you can control what sites you show up on by bidding up or down on specific sites, or choosing not to appear on them altogether. Large potential reach: The Google Display Network reaches 80% of all internet users worldwide, and includes spots on Youtube, Blogger, and Gmail. Choice in Pricing Models: You can choose either a PPC or CPA pricing model, and Google will optimize your campaign for clicks and/or conversions based on your business goals.   How Soon Does It Start Working? A remarketing list must have at least 100 cookies on it before it can display a related ad on the GDN. A list for Google search ads must have 1,000 cookies before it tailors users’ search result ads. Visitors are added to your lists within seconds of their arrival on your site, and there is no maximum number of cookies a list can contain.   Tips for Your Dynamic Remarketing Campaign In order to use the service, you need to link your Google Merchant account with your Adwords account. Note that you can link multiple Adwords accounts with your merchant account. After running one or two campaigns, use what you’ve learned to create your own custom lists. This will allow you to better target your visitors and optimize your bids for future campaigns. For example, you may want to create lists for users who view specific product categories, or a list for frequent visitors to your website. You can add the tag to specific pages of your site, or place the tag in the footer of your website for it to work across all pages. Use Google Tag assistant, a free Chrome extension, to check whether or not you’ve correctly added a tag to your site.   Like most PPC programs, there may be a slight learning curve associated with Google’s Dynamic Remarketing.  Dip your feet in with a carefully-controlled spend and optimize your campaigns as you generate data in order to get the best results from this new program. Now, we want to hear from you.  Have you started using Google’s Dynamic Remarketing program?  If so, share the impact it’s had on your business in the comments below! Continue reading →

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15 Ways to Expand Your Brand’s Authority

Posted on July 23, 2013 by Hosting

Having trouble standing out in your industry?  Tired of fighting against bigger brands when it comes to market share?  It’s time to expand your brand’s authority! Any of the following techniques can help you to gain an edge – no matter how crowded or established your field may be:   Idea #1 – Release a whitepaper Whitepapers are research-based document that educate audiences on specific subjects.  Create a good one with your brand’s name on it and you can be sure it’ll be sent far and wide on industry social channels.   Idea #2 – Write an ebook Either write your own ebook or hire a ghostwriter to develop something you can put your name on.  Give it away for free and watch your brand’s authority soar.   Idea #3 – Develop an infographic Infographics are highly shareable.  By creating your own (whether by hiring a marketing agency to do so or by using infographic creation tools ), you’ll get your name out within your industry.   Idea #4 – Launch an email crash course Educational email courses are a great way to build brand authority as they’re free and highly attractive to potential customers.  As an added bonus, they’re easy to develop using traditional email management services or technique-specific programs like Drip .   Idea #5 – Start an educational YouTube channel People love video, but truly great internet videos are few and far between.  You don’t need to spend a fortune to create a good video, but releasing a channel that’s packed full of informative, engaging videos is a great way to attract brand attention.   Idea #6 – Release a podcast Though simple, podcasts can be incredibly popular – especially amongst listeners with long commutes.  Create your own business-branded podcast and you’ll have direct access to prospective customers’ minds for as much as an hour at a time.   Idea #7 – Sponsor a social media contest Everybody loves free things, which is why social media contests tend to attract so much attention.  Spend a few hundred dollars on a great giveaway item and tie contest entries to some type of social participation.  Within a few weeks, you’ll have more brand interest than ever before.   Idea #8 – Interview an industry expert The great thing about interviewing industry experts is that they come with their own built-in audiences.  Use Skype to record a video interview with your chosen expert and then post the resulting clip to your website.  Your profile will increase by association and you’ll experience a flood of inbound traffic from the expert’s promotions.   Idea #9 – Connect with journalists Journalists are always looking for great sources for their next projects – you can be that source!  Join a service like Help a Reporter Out and you’ll be entered into a database from which journalists pull expert sources.  Just one interview in a major news publication can do a world of good for your brand.   Idea #10 – Get a book deal  If you fancy yourself a talented writer and have a good story to tell, a high profile book deal can be a great way to boost brand recognition.  Obviously, this isn’t the easiest path to walk, but if you’re successful, the brand-building results can be huge.   Idea #11 – Speak at industry events Want to put yourself in front of a room full of your peers and be granted automatic expert status?  Sign up to speak at industry events.  Not only will you expand your brand’s authority, you might even be paid for the privilege!   Idea #12 – Sponsor industry events Not the speaking type?  You can still use industry events to boost your brand’s recognition by sponsoring panels, sessions, gift bags and more.  To do so, pick an event that’s highly attended within your industry and get in touch with the event’s organizer for more information on sponsorship opportunities.   Idea #13 – Create your own industry event Of course, if you’ve got the time and money to do so, you can always create your own branded industry event.  It’s a major undertaking, but it’s guaranteed to boost your company’s profile.   Idea #14 – Volunteer at industry events One last way to leverage the power of industry events is to volunteer.  It isn’t glamorous work, but it will put you in touch with a number of influential people.  Once the event is over, they’re sure to remember your good works.   Idea #15 – Add a charitable initiative TOMS has it “buy one, give away one” shoe sales project.  Warby Parker donates one pair of glasses for every set sold.  Getting involved in a charitable initiative isn’t just great for brand-building – it’s great for the world at large.   What other techniques have you used to build your brand?  If you have other recommendations, share them in the comments section below! Continue reading →

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More Gator Art

Posted on July 19, 2013 by Hosting

It’s been a little while since we shared some good ol’ gator art with you. We received this drawing from a customer following us having assisted them with a support issue.  They were so pleased with the resolution that they emailed us this one-of-a-kind, hand-drawn image of a gator apparently drinking a cocktail on an island.  Of note are the nice boat there in the background, which likely served the cocktail to the gator, as well as the beautiful sunset that really brings the whole image together.  The artist did not sign their piece of art, so we can only thank them anonymously:   From time to time, as seen in our Office Art series , some of our own staff will get a creative inclination and produce some impressive HostGator-themed art.  One of our support staff created the following shirt, featuring a blinged-out Snappy!   Let’s take a closer look at this shirt, as it truly is a remarkable piece of bedazzle-y craftsmanship: We would love to see any HostGator-themed art that you produce!  If you’re feeling gator-art inspired, please send us your creations at feedback@hostgator.com ATTN: Blog and we can share your art with the world! Continue reading →

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How to Optimize Your Bing Local Profile

Posted on July 16, 2013 by Hosting

Most potential customers find their local businesses by sitting down to search online. They often do so by searching for their city and the type of business they’re interested in. For example, if they live in San Francisco and need the help of a contractor, they are likely to search for “San Francisco contractors”. More than anything else, this is how users are currently finding their service providers. As a result, it’s very important to make sure your business is well positioned to rank highly in the search engines for these specific keyword phrases. When discussing search engine optimization, many companies focus on Google to the exclusion of all other search engines. Still, traffic to your website is important, no matter what the referral source is. That’s why making sure you optimize all your profiles – including your Bing Local profile – is so important. So if you haven’t already, sit down and take the time to optimize your Bing Local profile in order to drive traffic to your website using the following tips:   Claim Your Business Listing It’s very easy for businesses to set up listings that they never visit again. This can make it difficult for search engines and customers alike to determine which businesses are still in operation – or whether the information on the page is even accurate. Claiming your business listing is an easy way for you to verify that the information on your page is correct and that you’re an active participant in your business. While you’re doing this, make sure to add a branded image to your profile and to verify that your business information is indeed correct. Check that your address, website URL and phone number are all accurate so that you can really get the most out of your Bing Local listing.   Set Your Hours of Operation Bing Local has a great feature that allows businesses to set their hours of operation. When you’re open, an icon appears on your listing indicating you’re open. This lets customers know that they can call or visit you right away and receive an instant response. Especially if you’re open for more hours than your competitors, this is a great way to get an edge in the marketplace.   Strategically Add Categories and Specialties Adding categories to your Bing Local business profile can help you to rank higher in search engine searches. Be sure your listing includes what category your business falls into. From there, be creative in adding all the possible descriptions for your business. For instance, if you’re a lawyer, you’d want to add the individual categories for lawyer, attorney, legal, legal services and more. From there, look at your firm and any additional services you offer. If you have a paralegal, add that to your categories as well. This ensures that, however potential customers search for what you’re offering; you have a great shot at showing up in the search results.   Develop Citations In order to rank well in Bing searches, it’s important to have citations and inlinks incorporated into your profile. These citations can include links to sites like YP.com, Superpages.com, Yahoo! Local, Manta, Judy’s Book and more. Sites known as vertical directories – like Restaurants.com, Dentists.com, Contractors.com, etc. –can also help add to your citations and inlinks. These sites are great ways to drive traffic, but they also add power to your Bing Local profile. In essence, every link your business has adds to its credibility with the search engines, earning you higher rankings. It’s worth noting, however, that in order for these citations to truly help your business profile, they should be filled out fully and accurately.   Incorporate Deals into Your Profile Bing appears to have integrated with Groupon so that adding information on any deals you’re currently running can add oomph to your profile. You can also directly add deals into your profile through the Bing Business Profile. This lets any deals you’re running be offered directly to those who have found your profile through search. This is a great way to help convert leads into sales directly through your Bing Local profile. Optimizing your Bing Local profile is a great way to rank higher in Bing searches. This is important when it comes to driving traffic to your website and – ultimately – cornering more of your target market. As search continues to become more important for local businesses, knowing how to and taking the time to optimize your Bing Local profile can make a major difference for your company’s success. Are you currently using your Bing Local profile? If so, how has it helped your business? Continue reading →

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