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How To Take The Headache Out Of Keyword Research

Posted on April 22, 2014 by Hosting

The post How To Take The Headache Out Of Keyword Research appeared first on HostGator Web Hosting Blog | Gator Crossing . Let’s admit it:  keyword research can be difficult, and we all wonder sometimes whether it’s worth all the effort. Can you really figure out what people are searching for and use that knowledge to drive quality traffic to your website?  Can you rank for that keyword and show up on the first page of search results?  What’s the best keyword research tool to use? Arrrgh! It’s enough to give anyone a migraine. Choosing the proper keywords and using them to build a profitable business may sound like an impossible task. But it doesn’t need to be. You can do basic keyword research using a simple 4-step process. Follow these keyword research tips and you may find yourself attracting more search traffic than you can deal with.   Smart People Do Keyword Research OK. You might be asking why you should even bother with keyword research. The short answer: Search engines are the largest source of web traffic. Did you know that 92% of people on the Internet use search engines and 59% say they do so at least once a day? There are over 175 billion searches conducted each month worldwide. The fact is when people are looking for something online they go to a search engine first. Keyword research helps you identify the exact language the people you’re looking for use when they surf the web. How? Keyword research is just discovering the most popular, and most often searched terms in your industry or niche. Customers can find your website easier when you rank highly for these keywords on Google, Bing, and Yahoo. In other words, keyword research is the first step to cutting through the noise and driving qualified leads to your website. Keyword research is good for more than developing a good keyword list for SEO and PPC. Content marketers use keyword research to identify topics and determine what phrases to use when writing. So hang on while I explain what to do…   When You Don’t Know Where to Start People describe things in different ways. The words you use to talk about your business may be different from the words your customers use. That’s why it’s important to use keyword research to determine the actual language people use when they search the web. Lots of people aren’t doing keyword research or they’re not doing it effectively. Most people who avoid keyword research do so because they’re confused or overwhelmed and don’t know where to begin. The answer to both of these problems is to approach the problem strategically.   You Don’t Have To Be A Rocket Scientist To Do Keyword Research Keyword research isn’t just to get more traffic or better SERP position. It’s about understanding your customer and knowing your niche. You can use your research to help you figure out: A profitable niche for your business Content ideas people are interested in Similar markets you can tap into Products and services to promote on your website Keywords with the highest cost per click (CPC) I’d like to emphasize something here. If you’re not a techie, but you need to do keyword research break your keyword research down into a manageable 4-step process. What this all boils down to is: You’re looking for targeted keyword phrases that have a high search volume and low competition. Ideally, your keywords should accurately describe what you do. You don’t want too many competitors ranking for that exact phrase but you do want lots of people searching for the exact phrase. Now the specifics: Brainstorm and come up with list of keyword ideas. Take your best guess how your prospects describe your content, products, and services. This is just a starting point. Expand your list using keyword research tools. You use a keyword research tool to check out the possible keywords or keyword phrases and see how they perform. You want to see how much competition you have for each of your keywords and how hard it will be to rank for them. Fine-tune your list by doing some research. Check out the search volume and traffic estimates for keywords you’re considering. This will help you determine consumer demand. You should also add some of the suggested keyword phrases from your analysis tool to your list. Don’t ignore long tail keywords. In most cases, longer-tail keywords are less-competitive. People who search using long tail keywords are more likely to buy because they know exactly what they want. They’re usually searching for a place to buy it. Remember, don’t obsess over the details and don’t let what you don’t know stop you from getting started. To knock one more barrier out of your way, I’ll even show you how to pick a keyword research tool.   Here’s a Quick Way to Use Keyword Research Tools Now, you’re probably wondering, “What is a keyword research tool?” and “ Which keyword research tool is the best? ” A keyword research tool is just a tool for creating a keyword list and viewing the historical popularity of keywords. Keyword research tools allow you to see what people are searching for on the web, guess what else they might search for, and then optimize for those keywords. Don’t get hung up searching for the perfect keyword research tool. That’s a waste of time since the good tools provide the same basic service with only a few minor differences. That said, here are a few you may want to try. Wordze Keyword Discovery Wordtracker Google Adwords Keyword Planner Bing’s keyword research tool SEO Book’s Keyword Research Tool Wordpot YouTube Keyword Tools Keyword Spy Google Trends Use these keyword tools to get keyword ideas and traffic. Remember, you’re learning how your customer thinks, not trying to outmaneuver the search engines. If you’re serious about your website ranking and getting quality traffic, use this process to make life easier. Leave a comment and share your best keyword research tip.   About the Author Anthony Sills’ work can be found at American Express OPEN Forum, Copyblogger, Infusionsoft’s Big Ideas blog, Hostgator’s Gator Crossing blog, and elsewhere. He writes about HR & employment, marketing, and business. You can always reach Anthony via social media , email, or by leaving a comment below… web hosting Continue reading →

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Put Facebook to Work For Your Business

Posted on April 8, 2014 by Hosting

The post Put Facebook to Work For Your Business appeared first on HostGator Web Hosting Blog | Gator Crossing . For small businesses, advertising and marketing is an expense that most don’t want to have to budget for. It’s costly and ineffective unless you know what you’re doing. Not all of us went to college for a Marketing Degree. Luckily, there are ways to bring the cost down and do it all from the comfort of home or office. For any small business online, you need to understand what SEO is and how to do it . Although SEO is a must and it is worth it, these results take time to deliver. In the world of making money, we want results and we want them now. How do we get fast results? Before we can answer that, we need to ask, where is our target audience? With over 1 Billion active users, I believe the answer to that question is Facebook. If you don’t have a Facebook page for your business, you need to create it immediately after reading this post. One of our previous posts discussed 5 Facebook Updates You Need to Know About and you should read it after you’ve created your Facebook page.   Advertising This article isn’t going to explain how to create a Facebook Page and how to create ads. If you need to a refresher or need to get caught up to speed, check out the  Facebook Ad Getting Started Page . If you did Facebook advertising in the past and you haven’t done any recently, then there are probably a few changes that you should be aware of. These are covered in the next sections.   Campaigns / Ad Sets / Ads Previously, Facebook had Campaigns and Ads. You set your budget in the campaign, then created ads within it. It worked, but it wasn’t amazingly effective. With the new set up, you can create Ad Sets. Virtually, these are what the previous campaigns were. You can set your start / end dates, budget, and pause all ads within the set. Used correctly, this can really help with your testing (discussed below). Usually after starting a campaign, we look at what sets are performing and which aren’t, then pause/stop the ads that we don’t want to spend further money on.   Call to Action Buttons If you’ve been following our blog for some time, you’ve probably seen our post about Content Marketing and Creating a Call to Action . If you don’t know what a CTA is, that post is definitely worth the read. Recently, Facebook introduced the Call To Action buttons that are  available for Newsfeed and Mobile ad types. These buttons help by saving the few characters you use to write “Learn More Here” and helps create the specific Call to Action that you’re wanting from your viewers. Types of call-to-action buttons include: Shop Now – Sending users to your store to make purchases Learn More – Sending users to an informative page, blog post, or landing page Sign Up – Creates leads for newsletters and subscription services Book Now – Reservations for cruises, hotels, concerts, and more Download – Grab a copy of your latest ebook or application   Audience This section isn’t really “new” but if used properly, you can target your customers more accurately instead of wasting money on impressions for people that aren’t in the market for your product. As you’ll see from the picture, you can real customize everything to target specific people. If you want to choose people from a specific set of cities, states, or countries, it’s easier than ever. Do you want to sell to just men or just women, or maybe a specific age range? Perhaps you want to choose people by interests such as a movie or book related to your product. All of these can be set within the ad creator. To find what works for you, you should test test and test some more.   Custom Audiences If you have an email list of your customers or subscribers, then you can make use of the custom audiences. One word for this, awesome. With Custom Audiences you can target people who have expressed an interest in your brand or are already part of your brand. This allows you to promote new products to existing customers, as well as products to people who have subscribed to your newsletter but haven’t purchased anything. What it does is take your list of email addresses and matches them to active Facebook accounts. Chances are, a large majority of your list will have used that same email on their Facebook account. From there, you’re able to market to them. Don’t have a list? Create a blog and allow readers to subscribe to updates.   Testing This is probably the most important section of our article. At the beginning, you will be doing a lot of testing. And to be honest, testing will never stop. What you might find working in one instance doesn’t work in another. Or if you try targeting other countries, you’ll find that different colors mean different things and perhaps a red border works for users in America, but it sends a sign of warning to those in India. So what’s the best way to test? Ad sets. They are built for testing. Here are some bullets types of testing Newsfeed, Right Side, or Mobile – Create an ad set for each of these, then run the same ads within each to see which brings you more traffic and conversions. If you’re not optimized for mobile, make sure you don’t choose the mobile option. Country – Can your product be sold globally? Try out different markets to see who is your best audience to target. As you’ll find, some countries are cheaper per click than others. This is because of less advertising competition in these countries. This is also a trick that some companies may use to build their Facebook Page’s audience for cheap at the beginning. Cities – If you’re confined to a local area, you can still test the different surrounding cities to see what works best for you in terms of conversions. Pictures – With ads, you want to have something that has a picture since it will pop out more. But which picture should you use? Different symbols and colors stand out to people. On right side ads, you can put bright borders to attract the eye to the right side. You can run the same ad with 4 different pictures to see which does better. Then after a couple of hours, pause the low performers and then your money will be spent on the pictures that convert or drive leads. Ad Copy – Find out what trigger words get your buyers in the door. Create a few different versions of your advertising text to see what works better for you. Call to Action – Are there multiple CTAs listed above that you can use? Try them all out!   Tracking Now that you have all of your ads set up and you have traffic coming in the door, you need to be able to see if they’re coming from your ads or elsewhere. That’s why you need some sort of tracking in place. There are so many ways to go with this, but we’ll list a few below: Coupon Code – Offer a specific coupon code for your ads to see what converted sales Conversion Pixel – Facebook allows you to install a pixel on your sales page that shows after a sale is made. This sends an alert to Facebook to say that a sale was made. Google URL Builder – This creates custom campaigns for Google Analytics and it works Affiliate Links – If you have an affiliate program, you can create an affiliate account for Facebook and create campaigns with your links to track customers   Good luck with your Facebook advertising and be sure to come back soon for information about Twitter advertising! web hosting Continue reading →

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The Importance of Conveying Professionalism through Your Website

Posted on March 27, 2014 by Hosting

The post The Importance of Conveying Professionalism through Your Website appeared first on HostGator Web Hosting Blog | Gator Crossing .   Many people have seen demotivational posters before. They are treated as slightly humorous distractions from an otherwise busy day, serving to provide a reminder of what to avoid or what not to do.   In spite of the fact that these demotivational posters have a dual purpose, many people only see the amusing side of things and move on without ever truly paying attention to the other side of the coin. Take for example the Professionalism demotivational poster above; the image is not a new one, and many people have seen either this image or other similar images before. We look at them, shake our heads, and wonder to ourselves how someone could be so lazy, and then move on with our days. What we fail to realize is that in some aspect of our jobs, no matter what they are, we have painted around the fallen branch instead of moving it.   Are You Wearing Shoes, Does It Matter? In some instances the lack of professionalism that is displayed doesn’t really affect the workplace. No one can really see the fact that you have taken off your shoes under your desk, after all. The trick is just remembering to slip them back on before you get up, and BAM! Professionalism has been restored. The issue arises when everyone is able to see the lack of professionalism that you present; think of it as greeting clients wearing mismatched socks and no shoes, or having them step over a fallen branch in order to get to your office, where the real professionalism is. I’m not going to suggest that you work to convey perfect adherence to the standards of professional conduct; let’s face it, we are all human and we all make mistakes sometimes. What I do suggest, however, is working to ensure that the face that your customers see is always professional, and the first step in that process is your website.   Be Sure Don’t Accidently The Wrong Grammars Typos and formatting do matter. If your text overlaps, if you have misspellings, poor grammar, improperly used words (they’re instead of their, or where instead of wear), poor navigation, and even improper features all serve to convey the idea that your site is unprofessional. While there may be simple reasons for these things to occur, like an update that was not compatible with your theme (if you use WordPress), or an old version of Magento that was upgraded, for example, there is no excuse for not double checking yourself. Your site is the first experience that your customers have with your company. It is how you are reaching out to introduce yourself to your target market through the internet. While there are instances where a consumer may overlook one issue, such as one improperly spelled word out of the entire site, you want to make sure that your customers do not see your company as one that is prone to mistakes.   Think Like A Customer As a consumer myself, I know that I personally will not spend money with a company if their site isn’t professional. How do I know that they will address any issues with my order in the appropriate manner if they cannot even manage to ensure that their site is error free? This is the mindset that you will need to have when reviewing your site in order to ensure that it maintains the appropriate level of professionalism all the way through. This does not mean your site cannot be fun! There are a host of highly professional websites that are fun. (We like to think Hostgator’s site is not just professional, it is fun too!) It simply means that your site needs to convey the tone that you want it to, contain the appropriate information, and work to present the appropriate image to your customers. It doesn’t matter what you are selling, it simply matters that it conveys the right message, a message that cannot be present if your site is less than professional.   If you are unsure as to whether or not your site looks professional enough, ask a friend, or find an online editing service that can review the site for you to double check and give you pointers. Take the extra time to double check anything you post, and in doing so, you will make sure that your customers aren’t being asked to step over any branches, giving them the confidence in you that they need in order to purchase your products or services.   Image Source: Professionalism Demotivational Poster. (2014). [image online] Available at: http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_MIqc0txxDNM/SvfBIqftprI/AAAAAAAAAA4/S63X2RMUECo/s320/professional.jpg [Accessed: 20 Mar 2014]. web hosting Continue reading →

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American Red Cross And The Tour Du Rouge

Posted on March 25, 2014 by Hosting

The post American Red Cross And The Tour Du Rouge appeared first on HostGator Web Hosting Blog | Gator Crossing . We are happy to announce HostGator is celebrating our 5th year sponsoring the Tour du Rouge , benefiting the American Red Cross .  The Tour du Rouge is a 533 mile bicycle ride from Houston to New Orleans, spanning 6 days (May 4th – 9th, 2014). In recognition of not only the overall cause, but the dedication of the riders and volunteers that make this event possible, we wanted to do something a little bit extra this year.  Today only, all new hosting accounts are 50% off and new domains are starting at just $4 per year; on top of that, we are donating $1 to the American Red Cross for every new hosting package signed up for as part of this promotion. The American Red Cross provides a myriad of services, from disaster relief assistance to emergency contact for military personnel with their families, as well as community outreach programs such as CPR/First Aid training and swimming lessons.  Ultimately, what the Red Cross does is help people and save lives. The Tour du Rouge directly benefits the Red Cross chapters in the Gulf Coast, essentially the region directly through which the cyclists travel on their journey. What began in 2009 with sixty-three riders, has now grown to 200 riders and hundreds of additional volunteers.  This event is about real people helping real people overcome challenges and otherwise preparing individuals to act appropriately in emergency situations.  HostGator is so proud to be involved with such an event.  We invite you to become involved as well. Today you can get a great deal on a new hosting package and help us to help so many more people: sign up now ! web hosting Continue reading →

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The Spark: A Startup Is Born

Posted on March 12, 2014 by Hosting

The post The Spark: A Startup Is Born appeared first on HostGator Web Hosting Blog | Gator Crossing . Editors Note – Cy is a friend of HostGator, currently pursuing entrepreneurial dreams in Silicon Valley. We have asked him to share his adventures. *** Every once in a while, that elusive flash of inspiration delivers the seed of an idea.  It seems innocuous at first, but it lives and grows in the back of your mind; you can’t shake it.  It make take years to come to the fore, but it never fades.  For me, that is exactly how Contastic became a company.  What follows is our story. From the moment I walked in the door to my first sales job at Microsoft, I knew that sales is a winner-take-all business.  The top performers close ten times more deals than the average rep.   After spending a bunch of time with the top performers, I still couldn’t quite put my finger on exactly how they were accomplishing such remarkable numbers.  Their close rates and techniques seemed just about the same as everyone else; why were their results so spectacular?   The Epiphany My epiphany came when I saw their prospect lists.   The best sales people had massive funnels 10+ times larger than those of everyone else.  They would progressively farm this list to surface deals – ensuring they stayed in touch with as much of their network as possible.   Contastic’s dashboard, showing your engagement with your contacts.   I use the word “surface” because that truly is the key to great sales.  It’s all about discovery – not conversion.  It’s really hard to talk someone into buying anything they don’t already want.  Instead, it’s more efficient to simply discover who is already looking to buy – and then be in the right place at the right time to sell to them. My observations are further backed by research (don’t take my word for it!).  The first wake up call comes from Gleanster Research, which published that 50% of leads are qualified but not yet ready to buy.  This points directly to a need for lead nurturing to stay top of mind with those leads until they’re ready.  And Forrester drove it home by showing that companies that excel at lead nurturing generate 50% more sales-ready leads at 33% lower cost.  The numbers don’t lie!   Staying in touch: The Hard Way This transformed the way I thought about sales, from being an act of persuasion to a feat of engineering.  It was about designing a process that would efficiently surface and qualify leads through prospecting.  I built a massive thousand-row Excel sheet of every person and every customer I had ever met.  I’d record interactions and, on a quarterly basis, I’d try and reconnect with everyone on the list.  By the end of my three years I became a top rep. This was, however, a painful and awkward process.  I’d have to search for each person’s email to figure out when we last spoke and on what topic.  Crafting a personalized email then required several more minutes, and often times I’d simply be sending a no-value-add checking email (“Hey X, how are things with you?”).  For high value contacts, I’d take 20-30 minutes to find an interesting piece of news or research to send them – as a way to (I hoped) at least contribute some value to their life.   Staying In Touch: The Right Way I thought – why can’t I give this VIP level of service to all of my contacts ?  Why can’t the lead nurturing process be automated to provide personalized service to every customer and prospect? This idea sat in the back of my head as I was swept into my first startup (cimls.com) where I saw realtors struggle with this exact same problem – staying in touch with current prospects and past clients.  I witnessed this every single day in business school as well, students networking with each other and talking with different companies to find jobs. Lost connections and lost opportunities, simply because it was too hard to stay in touch. When I graduated in 2013, I knew I had to build this tool to help people stay in touch.  I moved out to Menlo Park, CA – with nothing more than 5 boxes of my belongings via UPS to pursue my dream of building Contastic –a platform to help professionals stay in touch.  How can one recent grad convince others to join him, build a product, find customers and realize his dream?   Stay tuned for the next post: Perilous Pivots – When A Dream Meets Reality ***   About Cy I’m an engineer who loves to sell.   My career started out in big data engineering for Microsoft evolved into a sales role that landed me as the founder of Contastic .  I bring the hard data-driven approach of an engineer to the softer science of sales.  It’s always a pleasure for me to meet new people and help them evolve their sales practices.  You can find me online at cykho.com . web hosting Continue reading →

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