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Pinterest Adopts the Use of Promotional Ads

Posted on March 5, 2015 by Hosting

The post Pinterest Adopts the Use of Promotional Ads appeared first on HostGator Blog | Gator Crossing . With over half a million businesses on Pinterest, the Social Media platform is becoming a lot more than just recipes and fashion photos. It’s time to prepare yourself to start seeing even more ads now that Pinterest unleashed new tools for businesses back in June. The “do-it-yourself Promoted Pins” feature will allow businesses of any size to promote their pins on a cost-per-click basis in order to reach more people and get more visits back to their homepage. Pinterest has been testing this program since early May with big brands like Old Navy, Target and Shutterfly, and is offering a sign up for any business to try it when they’re ready to get started.   Competing Against Facebook and Twitter, Subtly By adopting the same principles as Facebook’s ad promotions and Twitter’s promoted Tweets, Pinterest’s Promoted Pins have been touted as “changing the game one pin at a time.” What’s different about their advertisements is that they won’t appear any different than the other posts that interest you. If, for instance, you’re browsing new cocktail recipes you won’t see an ad for JcPenny’s, instead you’ll see pins from companies that deal in mixology or interesting cocktail glasses. Many have reported this as a noticeable benefit simply because the ads won’t be pestering potential customers by appearing in random categories. Pinterest is already such a product-and-image driven environment that users have been embracing brands long before any advertising was thrown into the mix.   Building Off Rich Pins Back in June we talked about standing out on Pinterest with Rich Pins , a change in eCommerce that shared pricing information and availability. Rich Pins also came with analytics and options to receive pricing alerts. Promoted Pins will only add to these features, with promises that pins will appear first in search results and category feeds on both the web and in mobile apps. If you aren’t on Pinterest already sharing your products, the time has never been better to join. Currently only select businesses are receiving the option to promote but getting started now will prepare you when the time comes.   Your Pinterest Board and Planning Your Pins While the notion of the promoted pins blending in with the rest is great from an advertisement perspective, the pins you’re choosing to designate as promotional should do anything but. Aim to make the promotional pins to be taller than those around them and really draw the viewer in. Customers have always found you on your own Pinterest boards and promoted pins will be no different. Some of the most compelling reasons for businesses to start using Pinterest include: It’s a great place to promote a contest As most users are visually inclined, it’s a great platform to optimize your brand’s image You’re allowed to comment and interact with potential customers Built in SEO benefits with hashtags and keywords Integration of other Social Media sites   So What’s So Promising? Back in April, the data tracking blog, Shareaholic, dubbed Pinterest as the reigning queen of social referrals . Since December it has seen a growth in traffic of 48% and is second only to Facebook in terms of steering Social referrals. In three years of operating there have been 30 billion items pinned and 750 million boards created. Even what once was a heavily female dominated user base has now shifted from over 80% females, to 68.2% female and 31.8% men. It’s become very clear Pinterest has established itself as one of the top marketing tools, and in no time businesses small and large will be benefiting from the use of Promoted Pins. When do you plan on starting? web hosting Continue reading →

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Tips for Creating a Successful E-Commerce Website

Posted on February 24, 2015 by Hosting

The post Tips for Creating a Successful E-Commerce Website appeared first on HostGator Blog | Gator Crossing . Your e-commerce site is flashy; it loads quickly, and you’re selling a decent amount of product. But no matter how good your site is, it can always be better. There is always room for improvement. This is not meant as a criticism of any site, it is simply a fact. Technologies evolve and with them comes room for additional improvement to any site.   Some Suggestions There are certain tips that that will work to ensure that your e-commerce site stays as good as it is, improves drastically, or will serve to benefit your site in some way. As with any suggestion, please don’t take it personally, and remember, I most likely have not been to your site (though I could have!). These suggestions are more like a compilation of different issues I have seen on the e-commerce sites that I frequent and feel that they need addressing so that others can constantly improve. With that in mind – the suggestions: Keep it Simple – as I have mentioned in a previous post, simple is better. If customers have additional questions about your products and services, they will ask (as long as you have a place for them to do so). Do not inundate your customers with information. Most online consumers already have a good idea of what they are looking for and have a basic idea as to what those products will entail. Give a basic description and that’s it. Have a place for them to add the item to the cart, a place to ask questions (like an easy to spot customer service email address or chat support) and you’re all set. Don’t Make Me Register to See Your Items – Seriously, this is one of my biggest pet peeves (and I’m not alone in this one). If your site makes me register to see what you have for sale, I’m either going to go somewhere else to investigate the product (like Amazon) or if I’m really curious and you’re one of the only places selling it, I will sign up with a completely fake name, fake email address, etc. You won’t get my real information, and I still most likely won’t purchase the item from the site that made me do that. Why? Because you don’t need my information. You’re not mailing me something that I bought from you, you’re trying to preemptively gather information on me, and that’s just not cool. Make Your Site Easy to Navigate and Make it Easy to Search – Personally, I’m not a huge fan of Etsy. I dislike trying to navigate through to find the cool stuff. The site is non-intuitive and clunky. I begrudgingly go there anyway, because it’s one of the few places to get handmade items, and I like that. I maybe visit the site once every six months, why? Because it is NOT easy to navigate. If it was easier to find things without having to look through hundreds of pages of stuff, I would absolutely spend way more money there. Thriftbooks.com is another site I would spend more money on if their search was more intuitive. I want to put in a book name or an author and just go. I don’t want to specify half a dozen things to try to find one or the other. Make it easy for me to search, like Amazon or Barnes and Noble and I will spend money all day long. Make it difficult for me and you will get little to no money. This basically goes back to the first point – keep it simple. Don’t over complicate things and you will get more money from consumers.   E-commerce can be rewarding, and it can be frustrating, but the key to making money is, as always, make it easy on your customers to spend money. This is why those little stands next to the checkout line work. Someone sees lip balm or a candy bar or a soda and thinks, man my lips are chapped/something sweet sounds great/I’m thirsty and grabs it. If those items were too difficult to find or too hard to get to, stores wouldn’t make as much on the little items. Your e-commerce website is a virtual store. Make it easy on your customers and they will reward you for making the experience a better one for them.   Image Source: U.S. Media Consulting. (2014). E-Commerce. Retrieved from http://latinlink.usmediaconsulting.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Ecommerce-Latam.jpg web hosting Continue reading →

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Snappy Loves Puppies!

Posted on January 28, 2015 by Hosting

The post Snappy Loves Puppies! appeared first on HostGator Blog | Gator Crossing . Today, Snappy felt the need to speak out publicly about his love for pets of all shapes and sizes, but especially puppies. The mistreatment and abandonment of puppies is a heart-breaking situation, and Snappy wants to do something about it! Austin Pets Alive is a no-kill animal shelter that saves more than 6,000 animals from euthanasia annually. As of this moment, we will donate $5 for every new hosting sign-up via coupon code PUPPYLOVE to Austin pets Alive, up to $5,000. Not only will we be making this donation, but coupon code PUPPYLOVE also carries a 50% discount on all new hosting packages. Help us fight animal abuse and abandonment, while saving 50% off new hosting packages! Get started right now by visiting http://gtrkb.com/puppylove Thank you to everyone who participates in this donation, and thank you to Austin Pets Alive!   web hosting Continue reading →

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Outsourcing: Is It Right For You?

Posted on January 23, 2015 by Hosting

The post Outsourcing: Is It Right For You? appeared first on HostGator Blog | Gator Crossing . Outsourcing is the process of contracting out certain aspects of a business to an alternative company as a means of working to reduce the overall costs incurred by the business. A computer manufacturer may outsource the creation of certain components to another company because it is cheaper for that other company to make them, as opposed to making the components themselves. A government entity may find that it is cheaper to outsource their tech support to another organization as opposed to keeping IT professionals on staff, and a small business owner may decide that it makes the most sense to outsource their human resources department rather than to create one of their own for only a few employees. Regardless of the type of outsourcing being completed or the type of company looking to outsource, there are several different factors that must be considered, outside of the cost, when looking into this decision.   Factors for Consideration The first factor the company needs to look into is cost. The question of whether or not the company will save any money, in terms of their overhead or operating expenses is a key factor in business decisions. If the company will not save any money by outsourcing, then there is really no point in proceeding. If the company will save money through using outsourcing options, the company must then look to factor two. The second factor a company must consider is whether or not there is an available company willing to take on the outsourced role, and whether or not that company is reliable. Research must be completed regarding the validity of the company and, more importantly, the types of checks and balances that the organization has in place in order to ensure the safety of the data they will be handling. Studies have shown that 63% of data breaches occur as a result of outsourcing, and most companies do not even know the breach has occurred, that is, until they are notified of the breach by a third party. (Guess who is responsible for the breach? Not the company being outsourced to, the company who was responsible for maintaining the data in the first place: YOU.) If the company looks legitimate, and if the company does not have any past complaints for data breaches, and if your company can afford to outsource, then go for it. If none of these aspects meet your expectations, however, it’s best to nix the idea altogether.   You are Responsible Always remember, you are the one responsible for the data, regardless of whether or not you outsource a role. If you can’t afford a data breach, chances are you can’t afford to outsource. This is not to say that all outsourced departments or companies are horrible, but rather that there is simply not enough oversight in order to properly regulate this type of transaction as of yet. As the old saying goes: “you get what you pay for;” if you can’t afford the potential consequences of using a lower cost alternative, you can’t afford not to have the standard measures in place.   Image Source: Workhoppers.com. (2013). Outsourcing. Retrieved from https://workhoppers.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/outsourcing.jpg web hosting Continue reading →

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Keep It Simple

Posted on January 20, 2015 by Hosting

The post Keep It Simple appeared first on HostGator Blog | Gator Crossing . Recent studies have shown that the average reading level for the general population of the United States ranges somewhere between a fourth and a sixth grade reading level; studies from several years ago put most individuals graduating high school as reading at no better than a fifth grade reading level. Do you feel that the content being presented to you has been dumbed down in recent years? Are you surprised at the latest arguments regarding whether or not it is socially acceptable for adults to read young adult novels? There’s a reason. The average reading level has decreased drastically throughout the years. When I was in intermediate school, (6th grade), I tested at reading at college level, the highest the test would go; most of my classmates capped out at the same rate, with only a few of them hitting eleventh or twelfth grade reading levels, nothing any lower. In today’s day and age, those who are graduating aren’t even close, nor do they really seem to care.   Why This Matters and How it Affects You It matters for a lot of reasons, but this is neither the time nor the place for a soap box rant regarding the quality of education that students are receiving today. This matters because the majority of content presented on the Internet comes in one of three forms: lolcat, graphic representations, or text. That’s right; most of the information on the internet involves reading. How then can we expect the material that we find relevant, the topics that we find interesting, or the manner in which we convey information to be able to maintain interest, much less be comprehended by the new target markets and audiences that are coming into their best years of buying power? There’s only one thing to do….   How to Deal with It You’ve got to Keep it simple. Don’t go for the thesaurus, don’t try to make your sentences sound more intelligent, and, much as I hate to say it – try to stay away from those compound sentences. Make your content as easy to understand as possible. Make it so that a sleep-deprived and un-caffeinated version of you would have no issue understanding what you are attempting to convey. It’s frustrating, it’s obnoxious, but unless you’re catering to a very specific crowd, like those who subscribe to Shakespeare Quarterly or only those who have received their Master’s degrees (and yes, this is an over exaggeration, but you get the idea), keep it basic. Remember, everything else aside, your goal is to market and sell your product; to do that effectively the average consumer must be able to understand what you are selling.   Image source: https://jumpcloud.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/simplicity.jpg web hosting Continue reading →

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