Tag Archives: industry

5 Ways to Drive Traffic to Your Website from Social Media

Posted on June 3, 2019 by Hosting

The post 5 Ways to Drive Traffic to Your Website from Social Media appeared first on HostGator Blog . Everyone is spending time on social media. It’s the hangout spot for people to chat with their friends and get the latest updates on their favorite TV shows. It’s also a place for you to attract new customers to your brand. It’s important for people to engage with your website. However, social networks are doing their absolute best to keep people in-platform. But you can change all that! Here are five social media tips for your brand to get people to actually visit your website. 1. Optimize Your Profile It’s very likely for potential customers to learn about your brand on social media before they even land on your website. So, you’ll want to make a good first impression. You’ll need two key people from your team: a graphic designer and a copywriter. The designer will ensure your logo and profile images represent your brand well. You may need to adjust the color schemes or image sizes to maximize your brand’s visibility. Then, work with your copywriter to draft a creative message about your business. You can use your tagline or meaningful saying that will strike an emotional chord with your followers. Here’s an example from Califia Farms . Their Instagram profile shows a clear image of their logo. Plus, the copy sparks curiosity and spotlights their plant-based mission. Lastly, you want to lead people to your site with a link. Experiment with your homepage or a specific landing page. Your goal is to increase traffic and keep your new visitors’ attention. 2. Tease Exclusive Content Consumers love the velvet rope treatment. That’s when a few people receive access to a special offering. It gives people a sense of belonging and labels them as part of the “cool kids” group. Exclusivity can encourage more people to visit your site. Julie Neidlinger , writer, artist, and pilot from North Dakota, provides her perspective: “Exclusivity works because, frankly, people like to be in on the secret. Exclusivity makes people want something. If they can’t have it, they want it all the more. Some of us take a bit of pleasure when others are excluded (though we’d rather not admit that).” Use this strategy to your advantage by only posting links to specific content on your social media channels. For instance, let’s say you did an interview with a well-known expert. You can post the link to the video only on your Facebook account for 48 hours. That exclusivity will motivate your followers to click the link to your site. Another idea is to announce product releases on social media. It’ll prompt your audience to follow you on social media and visit the official announcement page. It’s a win-win for everyone: your fans get the exclusive perk and your brand gets traffic. 3. Engage Followers Directly Social media has earned a bad reputation because businesses like to rely on too many automated processes. This dependence on automation hinders brand engagement. Your customers want personal attention, not a bot sending them a canned response every single time they reply to your social account. To truly get people to your site from social media, you must engage them directly. So, invest in hiring (or outsourcing) a part-time social media manager to craft direct responses to your followers. Whether it’s a potential customer looking for a quick answer or a long-time customer needing assistance, you want someone to provide a unique reply in a timely manner. Footwear and apparel brand Vans offers a good lesson on how to connect with your social media audience. Below the company provides a friendly reply along with a recommended site for the customer to visit. When directing followers to your site, make sure it fits their needs. Matching the right page with their current issue ensures a positive outcome. 4. Connect with Influencers When building your marketing plan, don’t forget the power of relationships. Your team shouldn’t be tackling every task in a silo. Instead, recruit influencers to help you spread your message and get people to your site. Choose influencers within your industry that align with your brand’s values and goals. David Zheng, former contributor to The Daily Egg, offers his insight: “It can be excruciatingly overwhelming to track down influencers…The key to finding the right influencers is to remember that the more you know about your target, the better you can create a pitch that will engage and sell them on your idea.” You’ll want to draw up an agreement highlighting the expectations for the influencer partnership . Will the individual retweet specific posts? Or will the person post about your business three times a week on his account? Moreover, give influencers creative control to develop new social media ideas for your brand. Maybe they can post a series of funny videos or do a takeover on your Twitter account. These innovative approaches will earn your business more traffic. 5. Promote Special Deals A good deal is hard to find. That’s why customers are happy when they find a coupon for their favorite brand. Customers will even go the extra mile to locate a promotional code before purchasing products in their online shopping carts. You brand can leverage people’s need to save money. Start by offering special discounts on your social media accounts. It can be a one-time holiday offer or monthly deals just for your followers. These incentives will get people to your site, and it gives visitors a reason to buy from you now, rather than later. Check out this example below from Letterfolk . On Facebook, the brand is showcasing a special 20% discount on all their inventory for their Mother’s Day Sale. Like any good marketing strategy, don’t overload your customers. You shouldn’t post discounts every day. Also, state any restrictions about the coupon upfront. The last thing you want is followers upset because their coupon doesn’t apply to the items in their cart. Driving Traffic From Social Media to Your Website Social media is all the craze, but you need visitors to come to your site. From profile optimization to direct engagement, there’s an opportunity for your brand to get more traffic. Find the post on the HostGator Blog Continue reading →

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What to Look for in a Web Host

Posted on May 13, 2019 by Hosting

The post What to Look for in a Web Host appeared first on HostGator Blog . In those exciting early stages of launching a new website, you have a lot of decisions you need to make. You need to clarify your brand, choose your domain, and plan out your website’s design. On the long to-do list of getting a new website up and running on the web, one of the most important choices you need to make is what plan and provider to choose for web hosting . Luckily, this step is easier than a lot of the other items on your list. Designing your website and promoting it once it’s live are much harder and more time consuming tasks than selecting a good web hosting service provider. But nonetheless, you do want to take a little time to consider your options and make sure you choose the best web hosting plan for your needs. If you choose the right web hosting service provider from day one, you’ll save yourself the headache of having to migrate your site to a different company later. But if this is your first website, then how are you supposed to know what to look for? Especially if you don’t entirely understand what website hosting really is. We explain. What Is a Web Host? Before we can choose a web host, it’s important you first understand the web hosting basics . Web hosting is essentially the physical side of the web. Every website you see online is made up of various images, media, apps, and other files that take up storage space. While we tend to think of the internet as something that exists outside of physical space, all those files have to be stored in a physical server somewhere. In order to contain all the files that make up your website and serve them up to every person that visits it, a physical server must have a lot of power. For most website owners, owning and maintaining a server that powerful isn’t practical. That’s where website hosting companies come in. Web hosts own a large number of servers that have the power required to provide consistent, reliable service for thousands of websites. When you sign up for a hosting plan, you rent some of the space on their servers. A good web host isn’t just selling that space, they’re also selling their expertise in keeping their technology running smoothly, efficiently, and securely—so that your website runs consistently without problems. Do I Really Need a Web Host? If you want your website published online where anyone can find it, the short answer is yes. Every website needs web hosting because it’s the mechanism that takes the pages you’ve designed on your personal device and makes them accessible to people on other devices across the world. But in addition to making it possible for people to access your site, web hosting companies also offer some important additional value. They invest in the proper firewalls and other security precautions that make your website less likely to get hacked. And they keep experts on staff to provide any maintenance needed to ensure your website stays up consistently. By investing in the right tools and talent to keep web hosting servers functional all day every day, they make sure that your website is available and loads quickly and without problem whenever your visitors want it.   10 Things to Look for in a Web Host To get all the best benefits of web hosting , you need to find the right web host. With so many options out there, a newbie will understandably struggle to figure out how the different providers compare and which criteria are really the most valuable to judge each option by. No matter what type of website you’re launching, these are ten of the most important features to look for in a web host. 1. They have a strong reputation in the industry. One of the best measures of a business in any industry is their overall reputation. When a business consistently serves customers well for years, word gets around. But how do you find out what a company’s reputation is? Look for evidence from third-party sources. Have they earned any web hosting awards from reputable organizations or websites? Can you find reviews of them from tech publications? If so, what do they say? Just as importantly, what do reviews from their actual customers say? A little bit of sleuthing on Google will uncover a lot of information about what people have to say about the web hosting company you’re considering. If it’s generally positive, then you can trust you’ll be in good hands. 2. They promise at least 99% uptime. If your website is for a business, any time it’s not available loses you money. Even if this is a website you’re starting for fun, you risk providing a disappointing experience to visitors and losing followers if they can’t access your website each time they try to visit. The main job a web hosting company has is to keep your website up and accessible online. Every web hosting company will have to do occasional maintenance that will temporarily take your website offline. And if servers aren’t properly maintained, they could overheat or break down, which means more time your website is inaccessible. One of the big differentiating factors in the quality of web hosting providers is how well they manage the types of issues that can take your website offline. In industry parlance, the amount of time a web hosting company guarantees that your website will be available is called uptime, and reputable web hosting companies routinely promise at least 99% uptime. The best web hosting companies go even further, offering 99.9% uptime with a money-back guarantee. 3.  They offer a variety of plans. Today, you’re looking for a hosting package that delivers what you need right now. But you have big dreams for your new website. You hope that in the coming years, the number of people that find your website and become regular visitors will grow. Maybe you hope to continually create new content to add to your site as well. In either case, you need room to grow. Most new websites get everything they need with an affordable shared web hosting plan, but as a website grows in size and popularity, at some point you’ll want to upgrade to a cloud hosting , VPS hosting , or possibly even a dedicated hosting plan . When that time comes, you’ll have a much easier time making the transition if you can stick with the company you choose from day one. An upgrade is simpler than a full migration to a new company. So before you choose the right hosting package for today, take some time to think about what you’ll need tomorrow and beyond and see if your provider has plans to match your future needs as well. 4. They provide 24/7 customer service. When you’re up late at night working on those website fixes you’ve finally gotten around to, the last thing you want is to hit an issue you need customer support to resolve and realize you have to wait until the morning to get an answer. Any time your website has a problem, you want it fixed fast. And you should be able to work on your website on your own schedule, without having to wait on the business hours of your web hosting company’s support reps. So make sure your web host offers top-notch customer support at all hours of the day. Bonus points if they offer a number of ways you can get in touch, so you can choose between phone, email, or live chat based on what works best for you.   5. The price is right. Web hosting is a necessary cost if you want to have a website, but that doesn’t mean it has to be expensive. Simple shared web hosting plans start at less than $3 a month. When deciding on the right hosting plan for your site, keep in mind that web hosting isn’t a one-time cost. Web hosts use a subscription model for billing. Make sure that the cost is something you’re comfortable with moving forward, and that it seems in line with what the plan is worth. While many new websites will manage just fine with the cheapest type of hosting plan, some will find it well worth spending more for additional features and higher bandwidth. Sometimes spending more is worth it, just make sure the value matches the price. 6. Their account interface is intuitive. While the main service web hosts provide is keeping your website published and accessible, they also provide an interface that allows you to do a number of important web management tasks, such as: Domain name management Setting up redirects Managing your SSL Managing your domain email addresses Adding new applications or databases to your website Managing your backups Upgrading or renewing your hosting solutions You don’t want to spend a lot of time learning how to do some of the basic, but important work involved in running your website. Look for a web hosting provider that makes it all intuitive with a good interface and simple processes. 7. They provide ample resources for getting started. Even if the overall design is intuitive, you’re still likely to have questions about how to do certain things with your website. Before choosing your web hosting provider, look into the type of resources they provide to help you learn how to use their products. They should have comprehensive support materials such as tutorials and how-to articles. What’s even better is also having an active support community where you can turn to other people who use the web hosting provider for help with your questions. See if the company has an active forum, in addition to their other support resources and customer service team. 8. If you have a site already, migration is supported. The idea is to find the right web hosting platform from day one, but not everyone meets that ideal. If you’re on the search for web hosting solutions because you’re not happy with your current web hosting company, then you want to find a provider that will help you with the process of transferring your website over. Look into what the migration process is like. Consider talking to a support person there for details, so you know what you’re getting into. If they can make the process relatively simple and painless, then you’ll be able to switch over quickly and get back to focusing on the work of running your website. 9. They support domain name management as well. Web hosting is one of the necessary elements all websites need, a domain name is another. One of the most important steps in starting a new website is finding and registering your domain. And it’s just as important to keep your domain name registration current for as long as you keep your website. While it’s entirely possible to register your domain with a different service than the web hosting provider you choose, you’ll have a much easier time staying on top of domain name management if you keep it all in one place. Make sure your web hosting provider allows you to manage your domain registration and renewals in the same interface you use for managing your web hosting. 10.  They offer satisfactory security options. Hackers and data breaches are an unfortunate part of the online world today.  Every website owner ought to prioritize security. While there are a number of steps you can take to make your websites more secure , one of the best things you can do for website security is choosing a web host that treats it as a priority. A good web hosting company invests in powerful firewalls, includes SSL certificates as part of their plans, and offers affordable security software or other add-ons to enhance your website security. Research the company’s reputation for security to make sure you’ll be in good hands. Bonus Feature to Consider: A Website Builder If you already have a great professional web designer in mind for your website, or have the skills to do it all yourself, then this feature won’t be necessary. But for anyone wanting a quick and affordable way to build a website, in spite of lacking programming skills, an intuitive website builder will make your life much easier. And opting for a website builder from a web hosting provider means you keep all your website management tasks in one place. It’s one less log in to remember and account to keep up with. Choose Your Web Host Today If you’re ready to make your decision and get started with a web host now, consider one of HostGator’s plans. We offer a range of options, so there’s plenty of room to grow. We have a money-back guarantee of 99.9% uptime. We also provide 24/7 customer support and lots of helpful resources to help you get started. And we’re one of the most respected web hosts in the industry, as evidenced by third-party reviews and awards . Ready to learn how to build a website ? Give our experts at HostGator a call today and we’ll help you find the best hosting plan for you and your needs. Find the post on the HostGator Blog Continue reading →

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5 Fresh Ideas for Ongoing Content Generation

Posted on May 8, 2019 by Hosting

The post 5 Fresh Ideas for Ongoing Content Generation appeared first on HostGator Blog . Content generation can feel like an uphill battle in an online space filled with so much content. It’s your responsibility to bring new, engaging content to your audience. By offering a fresh perspective, your website stands out from the crowd and spotlights your business as an industry leader. Unique ideas can come from anywhere. Whether it’s videos or blog posts, take control of your content generation. Here are five resources to spark your imagination today. 1. Read Industry Reports A content idea doesn’t have to appear out of thin air (or endless original research). You can find what you need by downloading the latest industry report. Industry reports are usually long, dense documents that no one likes reading. However, they are goldmines of valuable information. You can transform those insights into an email marketing series to bolster your brand and thought leadership. For instance, explain a key point in the report, add your critical perspective as a business owner, and then send it to your subscribers in multiple emails. Don’t know where to find in-depth research? Start your search with Think with Google . This website uncovers digital trends with data reports, guides, and infographics. When using industry reports, it’s important to avoid regurgitating the information to your visitors. Your goal is to engage people with a different viewpoint. Don’t be afraid of controversial stances if your brand truly believes in an ideal. Take advantage of the resources available to your small business. An industry report could ignite your next great content piece that your readers will love.   2. Ask Your Audience In the hustle and bustle of work, we often forget the obvious when generating content ideas. Asking your audience is an effective way to add fresh insight to your content. Ross Simmonds , a marketer, strategist, and founder of Hustle & Grind, agrees: “So many people create content without talking to their actual target audience…But if you’re trying to grow a brand, you need to start with your audience in mind. So pick up the phone, open up the inbox or queue up the DM and get in touch with your audience.” Explore different methods of approaching your audience for content suggestions. You can send a three-question survey via email to a segmented group of subscribers. Or you can run a simple Facebook poll. You also may want to incentivize responses with free swag. Showing your appreciation will earn your brand quality feedback. User-generated content can work well for your content, too. You can do an open call for quotes or photos for a specific topic. People love seeing their names in print or hearing it on a podcast episode.   3. Scan Twitter Hashtags Twitter serves as the pulse of the latest trends in consumer behavior. From funny threads to serious news, the social platform gives your brand an inside peek at what your customers discuss and their daily activities. This social network is an oasis of content ideas that can fill your entire calendar. Use specific hashtags to search through recent tweets from your audience. For example, if your online store specializes in beauty products, you might do research with #beautytips or #beautyproducts. With a brand presence on Twitter, it’s possible to receive ideas directly from your customers. Every week make a conscious effort to read responses from your followers. You also should be replying back to them to express your gratitude. Broaden your research by checking out your audience’s responses to competitor brands. You’ll get a sense of what excites and bores customers about the competition. Regularly review your own your Twitter Analytics , too. This social intelligence is enough to build better content for your site. Use it to develop an amazing e-course or vlog.   4. Review Conference Agendas Every year, conferences get flooded with smart participants and charismatic speakers. If you desire remarkable ideas, the conference agenda holds the key to your content generation woes. When examining the agenda, the goal isn’t to swipe someone’s entire presentation. Instead, use it as inspiration to initiate adjacent content ideas. Carro Ford , a marketer and author, says: “Study the agenda and session tracks to get a sense of trending user problems and concerns.
 Conference keynotes and sessions highlight trending topics in your market that you can cover in your blog. You’ll also get ideas for keywords to use in your writing.” As a sign of appreciation, you should mention the speaker’s name and include a link to their work, if possible. These little actions provide an avenue to foster future content relationships. You also could use agendas as a syllabus for your content calendar. You might highlight a specific topic each month or create a quarterly infographic from the title of a talk. It’s not necessary to start from scratch with your content generation. Take the time to scour through conference agendas to find unconventional topics.   5. Connect with Influencers The content generation process shouldn’t operate in a silo. To produce your best content, you’ll want to collaborate with experts, thought leaders, and influencers . Working with others alleviates the ongoing demands of content production. Plus, it also gives your audience an opportunity to hear from other leading voices in your industry. Be selective when working with influencers. Don’t compromise your brand’s integrity just to earn popularity. You can vet thought leaders by analyzing their past content and asking for professional references. Moreover, expand your reach to lesser-known individuals. Help a Reporter Out (HARO) can assist you in developing relationships with experts in a variety of fields. It’s a free resource, and you’ll receive quality quotes for your upcoming stories. Think outside of the box with influencer content. Rather than the same old blog post, get industry leaders to take over your social media accounts for a day. Or ask them to record five three-minute video clips about an interesting topic. These content pieces will be more meaningful to your visitors. Step up your content game with the help of others. You can do more through collaboration.   Fresh Ideas, New Content Generating content is an ongoing process. For fresh ideas, read the industry reports or sift through your Twitter timeline. Be creative and craft extraordinary content for your audience. Need help brainstorming blog topics? Read this post. Find the post on the HostGator Blog Continue reading →

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Application Server vs Web Server

Posted on April 30, 2019 by Hosting

The post Application Server vs Web Server appeared first on HostGator Blog . Technical terms can get confusing, but understanding the definitions of different terms and how they relate to each other can be important to understanding how things work. Two terms you may come across in similar contexts are application server and web server. Based on how they’re used, you’re likely to wonder how they differ. Here’s the rundown on application servers vs. web servers, what you should know about the difference, and how they relate to application hosting . What is a Web Server? A web server is the technology that serves up a website to users when they visit a URL. On the technical side of things, what that means is that it handles the hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP). When a client (which is usually a browser or mobile app) queries the server (by visiting a URL or accessing the app), the web server does the work of processing that request and delivering up the web page—or at least the static parts of the web page. How Web Servers Are Used This is all what happens on the backend when you visit a website. People don’t usually have to think much about what web servers are or how they work in order to browse the web, or even to run a website. Unless working with web servers is your job, the only time you’re likely to have any reason to think about them is when you’re launching a website and you need to find website hosting. For most website owners, having your own web server is impractical. The power needed to store all the files that make up a website and deliver HTTP protocol to the hundreds or thousands of visitors that come to a site is beyond what most individuals can take care of with their own resources. The physical hardware that powers web servers is large and sensitive. It wouldn’t easily fit in your average three-bedroom home, and even most offices don’t have good facilities for managing a web server well. In addition to the space involved, web servers also need the right kind of care. They must be stored in climate-controlled environments to avoid overheating. They need regular maintenance from skilled professionals to stay in working order. And for the web hosting they provide to stay secure from hackers, they need to be equipped with the proper firewalls and other security measures that keep the websites they power safe. Web hosting companies take care of all that and rent out space on their servers for a monthly or annual fee. How web hosting works is that every website you visit online lives on a web server somewhere that does the work of delivering each web page you view on your browser. But for the most part, those web servers do their job in the background, far away from the people running the websites and the people viewing them alike. What is an Application Server? An application server is a little harder to describe in layman’s terms. It’s the software server that both web applications and desktop applications run on. Application servers host what you call business logic, which is the code that provides the functionality needed to build and run dynamic content. If that’s still a little too technical for you, an application server is essentially the software framework that allows programs and websites to create and serve up dynamic content. It’s used for websites that include dynamic features ( features that change based on specific parameters, such as where the visitor is geographically or whether an item is currently in stock). But it’s not exclusively used for websites. Application servers can be used for other types of platforms and applications as well, particularly at the enterprise level. Mobile Application Servers As mobile use soars, mobile application servers are now a growing subset of application servers. These work in a similar way to other servers, but for mobile apps. They essentially serve as the middle component between the backend system and mobile devices, making sure that the different components of an app or web page show up appropriately on a mobile device. Since mobile devices have certain features and limitations, mobile application servers often have to do the work of ensuring the mobile version of a program or website functions well in spite of the limited connectivity, power, and bandwidth that’s normal with mobile devices. For mobile technology used by businesses, mobile application servers contain the software that provides access across device types and process important elements of that access such as authentication, security features, and updates.    How Are Application Servers and Web Servers Different? Application servers and web servers provide similar functionality and have a lot in common in the role they play, but the differences are worth being aware of. Application servers work with more than just http protocol. Web servers basically have one primary job: they process HTTP requests in order to display websites. Application servers often have this ability as well, but they go further and provide additional functionality. They work both with websites and with other types of programs. And they can add a layer of adaptivity to the information they deliver. Web servers serve static content. Web servers on their own provide static web pages to browsers. While you can visit a website that includes adaptive components, those are powered by additional technology beyond the web server itself. The part the web server provides when you type a URL into a browser is the same regardless of the place a person is, the device they’re using, or any other factors that might otherwise influence what they see. Application servers can enable additional functionality. The websites and applications that use application servers often need to provide features that go beyond the static functionality web servers provide. Application servers can enable features like transactions, personalization, and messaging services. These enhanced features are increasingly used and expected for websites of all types.   It’s Not Either-Or The framing of “application servers vs web servers” isn’t really accurate. Generally speaking, it’s not a matter of choosing between the two or deciding which is better. Most of the time, they’re a package deal. Application servers can contain web servers. Web servers are usually one part of an application server. In addition to the other functionality they provide, they also tend to enable HTTP protocol. Sometimes the web server function is an important part of the other features an application server offers. Most often, when you hear someone talk about application servers, you can assume a web server is one part of what they’re describing. Web servers and application servers often work in tandem. Even though many application servers include a web server, application servers are most commonly  used alongside web servers. You can get speedier and better results by having a web server that takes care of the static portion of serving up a website, and an application server that handles any dynamic functions. Web servers can handle caching and simple requests that don’t require much bandwidth, leaving the application server to exert its power only on the more complex requests that require it. That way, simple web requests don’t overtax or slow down the application server and both pieces of the overall solution do their jobs better. Developers can ensure that a website knows how to recognize which requests only require the web server, and can incorporate a filtering technique to identify dynamic content requests and automatically forward them to the application server. By working together, the two types of technology provide better results all around. How Are Application Servers and Web Servers Alike? While the ways they differ matter, web servers and application servers are more alike than they are different at the end of the day. Both serve as the middleware or bridge between the back systems that keep a website running and what the user sees when they access it. They help translate the technical side of things into something web designers and everyday web users can interact with in a way that’s intuitive and helpful. And while they’re both invisible to the vast majority of users, they help power the web we all depend on every single day. Which Do I Need? For most web users, the distinction won’t really matter. And often the terms are used interchangeably, in part because the vast majority of us don’t need to worry about what the difference is. In practice, what you need is a reliable web hosting provider who takes care of the web servers for you and provides compatibility with any applications you use in order to bring all the functionality you need to your website. Don’t feel like you have to choose between one or the other. A good application web hosting plan can do both. How to Find the Right Web Hosting Plan A good web hosting provider will have the right bandwidth and features to enable all your static and dynamic website needs. You won’t have to worry about what’s happening on the backend, you can simply enjoy the results of it for your website and visitors. You don’t even have to think about it during the designing process, especially if you use a website builder that makes it extra easy. But the market for web hosting plans is large. To find a good web hosting provider that will take all the complicated aspects of worrying about web servers and applications out of your hands, here’s a short list of the main things to look for. 99% uptime Possibly the most important responsibility a web hosting company has is making sure your website is consistently up and available for your visitors. Web servers must occasionally go offline for maintenance. But the best web hosting companies make sure those times are so rare you barely notice it. With less reputable companies, your website can go offline for a variety of reasons: insufficient maintenance, repairs, hardware glitches, hacker attacks, or weather problems like the the server warehouse flooding. In the industry, the amount of time your website is available to visitors is called uptime. And uptime is one of the main differences you’ll find between different service providers. The reason you pay a web hosting company is to do the work of maintaining the web servers for you. For your money, find a company that does it well. The best web hosting companies promise at least 99% uptime. And some (like HostGator) actually go so far as to assure 99.9% uptime with a money-back guarantee. Ease of Use You don’t have to know the technical ins and outs of how your web hosting technology works. With an intuitive web hosting provider, you just need to know how to log into your account and cover the basics: managing domain names , setting up redirects, and keeping your billing up to date. If you’ll be using a popular content management system (CMS) or other application to build your website with, then you also want a web hosting plan that makes installation easy and provides compatibility, And a good web hosting plan will provide plenty of resources on how to use the account management and cPanel tools you’ll use to manage your website. 24/7 customer service If reading about the technical side of web and application servers leaves you feeling confused, have no fear. You don’t have to shoulder the responsibility of the technical side of running your website alone. Any good web hosting provider will offer customer support to help you figure out a range of issues related to building and running your website. And while having any access at all to customer support makes a difference, it’s that much more valuable to have consistent access at the moment you need it. Find a web hosting company that offers customer support 24/7 and has a good reputation for the level of support they provide. Security features Website hacks are all too common in the modern world. And if your website will collect personal information from visitors, the risk is that much more serious. Choosing the right web hosting provider is the first step in creating a secure website. Check that your web hosting company invests in infrastructure that keeps their web servers safe and sets up firewalls to keep hackers out. And look for additional features or add-ons such as an SSL certificate or security software. Some simple additions can make your website that much safer. Choose Application Web Hosting Solutions While it can be valuable to understand the distinction, you don’t have to choose between an application server and a web server. When you choose an application web hosting plan, you can be confident that your web hosting service provides all the functionality you need. They’ll take care of managing the web servers and application servers on their end and make sure everything works together as it should. You can focus on building an awesome website that delivers the experience you want your visitors to have. Regardless if you’re looking into shared hosting, dedicated server hosting , or any other hosting plan, HostGator can help. Contact our team of experts today for further assistance on our website hosting plans. Find the post on the HostGator Blog Continue reading →

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4 Great Examples of Video Content that Converts on Social Media

Posted on April 11, 2019 by Hosting

The post 4 Great Examples of Video Content that Converts on Social Media appeared first on HostGator Blog . They say, “Content is king,” but that’s only true if you are creating the right type of content for your target audience. And when it comes to social media marketing, it’s all about video content. Text and blog content will always have a value and place of its own, but video is getting all of the attention, buzz and engagement when it comes to Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram users. When used correctly, it’s also been a huge influencer in higher site conversions as well. With this in mind, today we are going to be looking at four different ways to create video content for your social audiences, while also growing your reach, conversions, and engagement in the process. 1. Create Videos Based on Current Events and Existing Viral Content One of the many benefits to focusing your efforts on video content, is that most of the time a lot of the work is already done for you. With blogging, whall of your content has to be original, but things are completely different with video and images. Everyone is always sharing the same stuff, and making memes, and we often really never know who the original creator or uploader was. A perfect example of this can be seen here . We’ve probably all seen the video of the people in the boat, who aren’t sitting down and are going way too fast. End result, they fly all over the place and the video goes viral. But the reason why this particular example is so perfect, is because “ Rick Lax’s Favorite Videos ” (which currently has 1.6 million Facebook fans) is killing it with videos that have already gone viral. They simply add their own text and commentary to each and republish them under their own channel. This video example alone has more than 50k shares and over 17 million views. 2. Grab Attention with Whiteboard and Text Animation Videos As wonderful as video can be for social media, it’s not simply a matter of uploading a video and then seeing results. When the thought of video comes to mind, many people shy away because they either have no idea how to create them, or they don’t want to spend a lot of money on a design team. Just like anything else, you need to create content that grabs the attention of your audience and makes them want to stop scrolling through their news feed. An excellent way to accomplish this is through the use of whiteboard and text animation videos. These types of videos are also very affordable and easy to make. Using a tool like mysimpleshow makes the video creation quite simple, as you just need to grab images, add text, and then move them around to your liking. Then, once you find an idea and concept that works with an audience, you can continue to tweak and customize it until it’s perfect. If there was ever an example for how important and effective animation and explainer videos are, this video is it. I don’t know many people that actually care how deep the ocean is, or would even spend 10 second to read about it… but when it’s in visual form, it can result in millions of views and new social followers or customers. If you aren’t too familiar with the concept of whiteboard and animation video, or how you can start using them for your own brand or business, check out this article with 17 great examples . 3. Develop Brand Mentions with Industry Experts and Video Interviews How many times have you visit a top influencer blog or online marketing guru site and then started seeing their advertisements and videos on Facebook? It happens all the time, and we will actually cover this in more detail in the next point. What I want to focus on now however, is the importance of video branding and visual association with other experts and trusted brands within a given niche. These videos work well for many reasons. They improve brand awareness and build reputation points as well. It’s not just about people searching for your videos. It’s also about them searching for who you might be doing an interview with. There are a number of tools out there to help with the tracking of social media mentions, while also providing you with some valuable data on who the top experts are within your space — which could lead to more interview and partnering opportunities. The best examples of these co-branded videos are often seen with one-to-one video interviews and webinars, which are then turned into sponsored content on social media. It’s usually Q&A for the first half, then upselling for something in the second portion. If you see someone interviewing or having a chat with someone else you know and trust, you are also more likely to follow and trust them as well. Plus, think about how many people you could be reaching when the person you are interviewing also shares it with their audience. This is something Russell Brunson has been doing for a while to grow his company. Head over to his YouTube account and you can see one of his interviews with Tony Robbins. Once you have something like that in place, you can keep marketing it and milking it for all it’s worth — since Tony is such a well-known and trusted name. Also, once you start to secure bigger names for interviews and JV opportunities, it will make the process of bringing in other influencers much easier. By using social media to host and promote this content, you are also growing a community forum around the content with comments, questions, and sharing. 4. Set Up a Remarketing Video Campaign We’ve covered a bunch of different ways to create video content, but not so much on how to effectively target your audience. As with all advertising, it’s ideal to show your best advertisements and ad copies to audiences that are already familiar with your brand or what you have to offer. Once again, this is where the magic of social media advertising comes into play once again. Through the use of remarketing, one can create an ad campaign that will deliver specific advertisements to audiences that have either been to your site and left, subscribed to your mailing list, or are already a follower of your social accounts. These types of video campaigns are ideal with upselling and bringing users back to complete a process they might not have acted on. These are commonly used with webinars as well, often being reminders that a webinar offer is closing and to act soon. There are many different methods for setting these types of campaigns up, and Adespresso has an excellent guide on the different options available. Through the use of custom audiences, you can even create campaigns and retarget users based on how much of your video they watched. Another great thing about remarketing ads is that your advertising dollars are spent more efficiently. Since your ads are being seen by people that are already interested in something you offer, they are more likely to click and buy. Not only can this lead to increased conversions, but also lower ad costs as a result of a much higher click through rate. Video is Here and It’s Also the Future! After skimming through each of the video creation and marketing examples laid out above, you should have some nice ideas for implement similar concepts into your own business and brand. The concept of using video to create content and target your audience is nothing new, but the methods in which you are reach, engage and upsell your video marketing is. Be sure to start using these methods today, as video isn’t just here right now… it’s also the future of all online, offline, and social media engagement. Get started with these 7 video ideas every business should feature on their website. Find the post on the HostGator Blog Continue reading →

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