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prebodigitalmarketing ¡ 3 years
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Introducing Google Analytics 4 (Codename: GA4)
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Google Analytics has earned its stripes as a strategic and important digital performance marketing tool since 2005. Businesses who utilise Analytics as part of their digital strategy have, at their fingertips, the ability to measure the success of their websites and track the results of their ad campaigns in real-time, with the added advantage of comparing the data to previous time periods.  Analytics has completely revolutionized the digital discipline of Performance Marketing. Monitoring all platforms gives the digital marketer, on behalf of their client, immense power to review what is working well, fix and optimise what is not, and maximise the overall strategy for success.  According to Forbes, “50% of businesses say big data analytics have fundamentally changed business practices in their sales and marketing departments.”
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prebodigitalmarketing ¡ 3 years
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Performance Marketing 101
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No matter what your exposure to digital marketing
and its unique vernacular and jargon may be, it won’t be long before you come across the phrase ‘performance marketing.’ Is it clever marketing lingo? Is it just a fancy term for ‘digital marketing’? Or, is it a specialised discipline that has evolved in the digital marketing landscape? Rest assured, when you hear the term ‘performance marketing’ it is not just ‘sales talk’ but rather a specific way of applying digital marketing expertise to particular business objectives.
What is Performance Marketing?
A performance marketing approach is multi-channelled and results-driven, focusing on measurable proof and data-driven insights that will align with a client’s big picture marketing objectives and business growth strategy. (That is quite a mouthful!).
Defined simplistically – performance marketing is marketing based on performance (measurable results) and it comes down to a ‘pay-for-performance’ approach. The risk is reduced, the goal is clear, and the ROI (return on investment) is absolutely measurable.
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other services
Google advertising agency
social media advertising agency
amazon marketing agency
ppc agency
Adwords agency
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prebodigitalmarketing ¡ 3 years
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(via PREBO DIGITAL Classical FM Special - CLASSIC LUNCH.MP3)
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prebodigitalmarketing ¡ 3 years
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Are you looking to get your business back on track? Rank on page 1 of Google and immediately increase your leads and sales. Get in touch with PREBO Digital for a free Google Advertising Setup to get started. With proven results, PREBO Digital is your business growth partner. Contact us now at prebodigital.co.za
(Prebodigital)
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prebodigitalmarketing ¡ 3 years
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Google advertising agency - Classical FM Special CLASSIC
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No matter what your exposure to digital marketing and its unique vernacular and jargon may be, it won’t be long before you come across the phrase ‘performance marketing.’ Is it clever marketing lingo? Is it just a fancy term for ‘digital marketing’? Or, is it a specialised discipline that has evolved in the digital marketing landscape? Rest assured, when you hear the term ‘performance marketing’ it is not just ‘sales talk’ but rather a specific way of applying digital marketing expertise to particular business objectives.
What is Performance Marketing?
A performance marketing approach is multi-channelled and results-driven, focusing on measurable proof and data-driven insights that will align with a client’s big picture marketing objectives and business growth strategy. (That is quite a mouthful!).
Defined simplistically – performance marketing is marketing based on performance (measurable results) and it comes down to a ‘pay-for-performance’ approach. The risk is reduced, the goal is clear, and the ROI (return on investment) is absolutely measurable.
Read More
other services
Google advertising agency
social media advertising agency
amazon marketing agency
ppc agency
Adwords agency
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prebodigitalmarketing ¡ 4 years
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UNICEF South Africa Joins Hands with Prebo Digital
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Prebo Digital is happy to announce an exciting client relationship with UNICEF South Africa for digital marketing services.
As a performance marketing agency, partnering with businesses to grow their online presence and achieve their business goals through efficient and effective marketing, is what we do best. We take pride in devoting our time and skills to making their passion our own.
Working with a humanitarian NPO, however, results in quite a different but exciting challenge – forcing us to think even further outside the digital box! In December 2019, UNICEF South Africa joined Prebo Digital’s client list with a specific vision and strategy to grow their brand online and increase donor support. Through our innovative application of expertise and efficiency, we are determined to meet these goals and vision.
As we have worked together to grow their donor support through our services, UNICEF South Africa’s campaigns and initiatives have grown our hearts.
Working for the perfect fit
It takes a digital village. Strategies shift when the bottom line of an organization is not a customer base but rather a donor support base. An agency that does work in the digital space – creating awareness around campaigns on social media platforms, Google and content creation – free up UNICEF South Africa to focus on what they do best on-the-ground: rolling up their sleeves and making a difference in the lives of vulnerable children in communities across South Africa.
We have the unique skill set to assist them on that journey.
Working for the greater good
As a humanitarian organization, UNICEF South Africa’s brand philosophy is all about giving back. The focus is not about making a profit, but about making a difference. Conventional return on investment (ROI) and customer conversion rates take a back seat to the urgent need to find individual partners who will invest in sustainable programmes that will uplift the broader community. Instead of your online monetary payment getting something delivered to your door, your online donation delivers hope to the doors of others.
We have the privilege to be part of that.  
Working for every child
UNICEF South Africa’s sole mandate is protecting the rights of every child. This is the driving force behind every campaign initiative. We get to contribute to this cause-related marketing strategy, becoming a small cog in the machine of change in our neighbouring communities.
To date, we have employed our services and had digital hands-on input in the following campaigns:
Campaign #1 – #DeliverFutures
The Deliver Futures Campaign was a 2019 festive season initiative to combat acute malnutrition and kickstart a new future. This involved the delivery of boxes containing micronutrient powder and high-energy peanut paste to malnourished children across the globe.
Campaign #2 – #EveryChildAlive
The Every Child Alive Campaign was a 2020 New Year initiative to put an end to preventable newborn deaths that occur daily. This was focused on giving vulnerable mothers and babies access to affordable, quality healthcare, good nutrition, and clean water.
Campaign #3 – #LittleHandsMatter
With the sudden rise of a global pandemic – prompting an immediate campaign response – we’ve been hands-on with the Little Hands Matter initiative. In working alongside UNICEF South Africa, we have helped in their quest to successfully achieve their campaign objectives to build and roll out over 100 handwashing stations in under-resourced areas in the fight to curb the ongoing spread of life-threatening diseases.
We have been proud to collaborate on these campaigns, sharing the vision and hope ‘for every child.’
Looking ahead, we are excited and confident to be able to assist UNICEF South Africa in the important work they do across the country.
UNICEF South Africa works to promote the rights of every child and supporting children to reach their full potential.
PREBO Digital is a performance marketing agency founded on the belief that great businesses are built on great partnerships. We deliver a collaborative, measurable, and business objective-focused approach to growing your business.
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prebodigitalmarketing ¡ 4 years
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Shoppable Posts for Instagram ❤ Your ‘How-To’ Guide!
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#1. Understanding Shoppable Posts
Shopping on Instagram is an exciting new social commerce feature that allows you to add shoppable tags to Instagram posts. If you are a brand or business with a physical product, Shopping on Instagram elevates your feed by promoting your products to potentially reach millions of daily Instagram users.
When someone views an Instagram advertising post that contains a shoppable tag, they will initially see a shopping bag displayed in the corner of the image. By hovering over the image, shoppable tags will appear, sharing the name and price of a product.
If a consumer likes what they see, they can click on the shoppable tag and be shown extra product information as well as a Visit website button. When clicked, the button takes users directly to the product’s page or checkout page on the businesses eCommerce website. This enables products to be purchased quickly and easily while consumers explore their Instagram feeds.
By showcasing your products with Instagram marketing on your feed, you are creating an immediate shopping experience for your followers.
#2. Setting Up Shoppable Posts
There are a couple of stages to setting up Shopping on Instagram;
In order to be approved for Shopping on Instagram, you need to first create a Facebook business page.
Once your Facebook account has been set up, connect the page to your Instagram account. Log into your Facebook account and open your Facebook business page. Select Settings > Instagram. Then click Log In to connect to Instagram and sync the two accounts.
You will then need to create a catalogue of your products on Facebook. All products that you wish to advertise on Instagram with shoppable tags will need to be added to the catalogue. This catalogue can be uploaded through Facebook Business Manager and Facebook Catalogue Manager. To create a Facebook catalogue, make sure you are using the Facebook shop template on your Facebook business page under settings. When completed, save your settings and then start uploading your product images, adding a product name, price and description to entice consumers.
#3. Connecting Shoppable Catalogue on Instagram
Once you have connected the Facebook and Instagram pages, you will have to wait for approval to start using Shopping on Instagram. You can then start creating social commerce shoppable posts.
Follow these simple steps:
Open your Instagram app.
Select Get Started > Business Settings > Shopping.
Select the Facebook catalogue you have created.
Click Done.
#4. Creating Shoppable Posts on Instagram
To add shoppable tags to a post, either create a new post or select an existing one:
Click on the image where you would like to add a tag.
Enter the name of the product until it appears in the search box, just as you would tag a person into a post.
Once you have finished tagging, select Done.
Preview the post to check you are happy with it.
Click Share.
#5. Top tips for successful Instagram marketing
How to create Instagram posts that will convert into sales:
Try using shoppable tags on both single image and carousel posts to ensure a varied Instagram content strategy.
Make the most of the Shopping on Instagram feature by tagging up to 5 products per post and up to 20 products in carousel posts.
Shoppable tags can be dragged and dropped around an image to ensure they don’t block too much of the photo and detract from the post’s visual appeal.
Check that each tag displayed on an image touches the right product so viewers can easily see which product each tag refers to.
Once you have added shoppable tags and published the post, click through to check that the URL for each product takes Instagrammers to the correct page on your eCommerce store.
#6. Useful links
Shopping on Instagram is a great tool to transform your feed and drive sales.
Read more for further information and inspiration on Instagram advertising:
https://later.com/blog/facebook-shops/
https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/selling-on-instagram
https://www.falcon.io/insights-hub/topics/customer-engagement/instagram-shoppable-posts-2018/
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prebodigitalmarketing ¡ 4 years
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How to choose a digital marketing agency
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Practical tips for a business owner and marketing executive
You’re a business owner or a marketing executive and your objective is to grow the number of leads or sales for your business. You’ve heard that digital marketing is the best and most efficient way to do so.
For starters, that’s true.
Digital marketing allows you the greatest degree of flexibility when it comes to your investment, accountability on how and where your money is spent, as well as reaching your ideal audience – even if that is coffee-loving, sedan-driving, young parents in suburbia currently looking to book their next beach holiday.
To make the most of this promising marketing channel, you need to choose the right digital agency, which can be a challenge. Your decision will have a significant strategic impact. To read more about this, check out my previous blog on this topic.
It would be easy selecting a digital agency if you would be a digital agency… just like choosing the right builder is easy when you’re a builder or choosing the right accounting firm if you’re an accountant. But when you’re selecting an expert service provider from a totally different industry, how do you make the right choice without getting burnt?
As a former Googler, advising corporates in the digital advertising industry, now running a digital agency, here are my insider tips to choosing a credible agency:
Find an agency that values transparency – During my tenure working at Google with large businesses and their agencies in South Africa, it became apparent that some commercial models used by agencies aren’t always ethically sound – taking advantage of a client’s lack of understanding of digital buying processes – profiting from fraudulently increasing click prices, setting fixed click prices or underspending on media budgets.
Whether this is common practice or outright dishonesty, both instances create a bad practice and set a standard in the industry that shouldn’t be tolerated by clients. After leaving Google and starting up my own performance marketing agency, I was (and still am) very motivated to change this and offer a true, transparent and fair working relationship with clients who are desperately aiming to grow their business.
In the meantime, I have had many opportunities to take over Google Ads accounts from other agencies only to be shocked by the inadequate level of work, and in some instances, a complete lack of work.
If you’re a business owner reading this and are looking to select a new agency,  where do you start?
Regardless of how you find an agency, it is important to speak to some of their clients and find out about their transparency when it comes to their reporting on budget spend and results.
If you’re already working with an agency, ask to see the Google/Facebook reports of the exact monthly/weekly spend and how that matches up to your allocated digital marketing budget.
Request an overview of the changes they’ve been making in the past month. (INSIDER TIP: Google & Facebook have a change log showing the exact changes made for any given period of time)
Find an agency that offers real expertise
The first myth that needs debunking is this: certifications look better on the wall of an agency’s office than in an actual AdWords or Facebook account. I know, because I’ve been there. When studying for my first AdWords certificate it became obvious that you can fake the system and get to the answers rather quickly, just like an open-book exam, but in this case, you also have the whole of Google.com at your disposal. The questions asked in the exams are mostly facts of how the ad platforms work but provide no guarantee or safeguard that an account is in safe hands with someone possessing a certificate. Real learning happens on the job. If you want assurance that you’re speaking to a real digital expert, get them into your existing account to review a few campaigns and then bring in a 3rd party to verify their work. You can also call me if you need someone to verify, – I love to help!
Find an agency that promises real partnership – this comes back to the first two points. You’re looking for a partner that you can trust with your business objectives and your brand, bringing you lots of new business. Your agency should be continuously prioritising your business objectives and making that central to your working relationship. At Prebo Digital, we take a cautious approach, working to prove that we are competent to do the job first, before scaling up together.
At the end of the day, choosing a digital agency is a strategic decision. These tips will equip you with the right tools to select an agency that will significantly influence your short and long term success, bringing in new business and establish your brand’s identity with integrity, while you stay in control.
For any more detail or simply want to chat, feel free to get in touch with me.
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prebodigitalmarketing ¡ 4 years
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How Google Ads works Understanding its Terms and Abbreviations
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There are numerous terms that Google uses on it’s Google Ads platform to makes sense of the account structure and performance. These terms increase in number as Google expands and improves its platform, so it is not strange that from time to time certain terminology will seem foreign especially if you have not spent a good time studying or working on Google Ads. Not all of these are important to everyone, how important certain Google language is based on, if you are like us, a digital marketing agency Prebo Digital navigating through campaigns, or you as the client analyzing your Conversions/results and the cost-effectiveness of your Google Ads spend.
We have looked into some of the most favoured Google Ads terms that show up the most in reports and emails when communicating to clients, and put together a client-friendly Google Ads glossary.
Account Structure Terms
Campaign
The overarching structure of an account which contains ad-groups and Keywords. ad-groups in a campaign share some similar settings and budgets. A campaign can have more than one ad group.
ad-groups
Contains one or more ads which target a shared set of Keywords. With ad-groups you can set a Bid, or Price per Click, to be offered when an ad group’s keywords trigger an ad to appear.
Keywords
Are words or phrases that are used to match your ads with the terms people are searching for. Using high quality, relevant keywords in  your advertising campaign can help you reach the customers you want, when you want.
Quality Score
Quality Score is an estimate of the Quality of your Ads, Keywords, and Landing Pages. Higher quality ads are rewarded by Google with lower prices and better ad positions.The more relevant your ads and landing pages are to the end -user, the more likely it is that you’ll see higher Quality Scores.
Impressions
Each time your ad appears on Google or the Google Network, it’s counted as one impression. Person begins to type and then clicks anywhere on the page like a search result, ad, or related search. *Not to be confused with an actual click.
Ad Rank
In Internet marketing is the position of a pay-per-click (PPC) ad on a search engine results page (SERP). 1.0 indicates top position in Google, ranking down to 4.0
Mobile Ad
A type of ad that can appear on webpages and apps that are exclusively viewed on a mobile device like a cell phone or tablet.
Ad extensions
Are additional pieces of information about your business such as  a phone number or a link to a specific page on your website. You can add a number of these beneath the headline of your Ad.
General Adwords Terms
Call to action
Is a statement designed to get an immediate response from the person reading or hearing your AD. It Is used in business as part of a marketing strategy to get your target market to respond through action. Call to action (CTA) phrases use action verbs, like: Call, Click here for, Download, Buy Now e.t.c
Click through rate
Is the percentage of individuals who click on an ad after viewing it. CTR is the number of clicks that your ad receives divided by the number of times your ad is shown.
Clicks / Impressions = CTR
Landing page
Is the Destination URL, a web page your audience lands or ends up on when clicking through from your Ad.
Optimization
Is increasing bids by 25% to get more impressions and to have the ad show in higher positions. To make sure that its ad is relevant enough to it, and if not – move that keyword to another ad group with a more relevant ad copy.
Split testing
Its a marketing strategy where two components of a marketing campaign are tested against each other, side-by side, to analyze which one can deliver the best results. Split testing can be applied to everything from emails, landing pages, blog post titles to Facebook and Google Ads.
Cost related Terms
Bid strategy
Consisting of automatic and manual bidding strategies, it is your approach to how you plan on spending your money, prioritising on a certain goal
Daily budget
How much you are willing to spend in a day on a single campaign.
Cost per click (CPC)
Is the actual price you pay for each click to google each time someone clicks on your ad.
PPC (pay per click)
Is an internet advertising model used to direct traffic to websites, in which an advertiser pays a website owner or a network of websites when the ad is clicked.
CPM cost per thousand impressions
The amount charged for one thousand display ad impressions. Commonly used by Facebook.
Billing threshold
A defined amount of money that will trigger Google to charge an accrued cost when reached. Also known as “Budget Limit”
Ad Creative Terms
Headline
The Heading Text of  an ad
Destination URL
The address of your webpage people land when they click on one of your ads.
Display URL
The webpage address that appears with your ad, typically shown in green text. Display URLs give your audience an idea of where they’ll arrive after they click an ad.
Description
A paragraph of the ad that gives a detailed explanation to the ad.
Google have a more comprehensive Google ads glossary on their help centre covering the multitude of definitions for  beginners and professionals. These comseo monly used terms are essential reading  if you are involved in any aspect of your Google ads efforts.
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prebodigitalmarketing ¡ 4 years
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Advertising – A Strategic Business Pillar Or A ‘Ticking-The-Box’ Exercise
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Choosing the Right Web Designer
So, you’ve finally decided that you need a web site for your business? Well, there are a few key-points to remember BEFORE you make one of the most crucial decisions for your business.
Choosing the right designer for your new business web site:
When it comes to choosing the right web designer for your web site, you should always shop around first to check out all of the available options. There are many web design companies out there to choose from. And most of them are pretty good at what they do.
Always ask to see samples of a web designer’s previous work and examine their portfolio. This will help you get a better feel for the style of sites any particular web designer is capable of doing. Most of the time, web designers have their own unique style and you can easily spot which designs they’ve done in the past. I mean, it’s similar to any other artist’s style; you can definitely spot their previous works based on the general layout, color scheme, and over-all visual appearance of the sites.
Experience is also a key factor here. Just like any other craft, web designers get better with experience. So naturally, you’ll be better off by choosing a web designer who has more experience under his or her belt.
Another key point you should define is whether or not the web designer can make you a 100% custom web site. Or will it be just a basic template web design that 100’s or even 1,000’s of people already have across the Internet. Pretty much anybody these days can create a basic HTML web page in Microsoft Word or Publisher and change the title of it to reflect their Branson business. But you must ask yourself: “is this really what I’m looking for”?
Web sites that are truly custom built will stand out more the rest of the basic template web designs that so many people are using these days. A custom web design will catch the eye of your potential customers and show them that you have a really professional web presence and you mean business.
A lot of web designers these days choose to do the template web sites for one of 2 reasons:
It’s cheaper to use a basic template web design. They might be lacking the necessary skills needed to develop a fully custom web site. Whatever the case may be, make sure you go with a designer who is capable of creating a custom web design for you. It will inevitably cost you more for a custom site. But it is totally worth the extra money spent. Trust me, in the end you will be much happier with your web site if it is a site that’s unique and created for just your business and not everybody else’s.
Communication with a potential web designer is also critical in the development of your web site. You need to be perfectly clear and define your goals up-front, before you actually sign a web design service contract with a designer. Make sure you know what you are getting for your money and make sure you get it in writing! I have a 9-page web site design contract that I use every single time I design a new web site. Included in this contract is an itemized list of all work that is to be performed during the development of the web site. Things like the exact number of pages, the exact number of graphics to be designed, whether or not I need to create a logo, the estimated time before completion, whether or not routine site maintenance will be performed after the site is 6 months or 1 year old, etc.
Defining these things will help you in the long run and will also make sure you and the web designer are on the same page.
I also use what I call my “web design planning worksheet”. This worksheet gives “milestones” or deadlines for each phase of the web design project. Things like “In 2 weeks the general layout will be done” and “2 weeks after that, the site will be coded and launched” and then “In one moth after the web site is launched, we will evaluate it to see what needs to be adjusted”, etc. (these are just examples, by the way. the details included in one of my actual worksheets gives exact dates and more specific milestones).
And what about the web hosting for your new web site? Usually, a web designer will provide some kind of insight as to which hosting company they recommend. Web designers in general have a preference for a hosting company that they know will be a good choice for your web site and they should assist you in making this selection.
Fortunately, we have our own web server here at Digital Spiral Web Design so we can do all of the hosting ourselves. This is very beneficial because we can make sure the web server stays up and running and if there is any maintenance that needs to be performed on the server, we can do it ourselves in a timely manner. Plus, we will always cut a deal for our web site hosting services to any new business who chooses us to do their web design.
Will your new web site require any specialized web programming? Well, the answer to that question is based solely on the needs of your Branson web site. What kind of site will it be? Does it need a shopping cart for e-commerce? Will you be implementing any special web applications or online forms for your viewers to fill out? Will it be a web site that requires your viewers to fill out registrations and sign up so they can login? If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, then chances are you’ll need a web designer who can also program.
Web developers and designers must be skilled in the art of web PROGRAMMING (something that is very different from regular web DESIGN). Web programming involves the implementation of different web programming languages like JAVA, PHP, Flash, SQL, or.NET. All of these web programming languages need highly skilled individuals to code them and develop web programs with them.
I personally love PHP! I use it for pretty much everything. I won’t go into the details of PHP in this article (I would have to write an entire book about it to cover all of it). But with PHP, I can create pretty much any web application that is logically possible.
So, make sure you choose a web designer who is also capable of coding any special functions that your new web site needs. This decision needs to be discussed and gone over by any potential web designer you might use to create your Branson web site.
And finally, you should always check with the potential web designer’s previous clients to make sure they give him or her a good reference. Remember: it just like any other service. You need to verify a web designer’s references and make sure they can do what they say they can do.
So, just to summarize all of the tips I’ve mentioned:
Ask questions, questions, and more questions before you choose a web designer. Clearly define your goals from the beginning. Ask to see the web designer’s portfolio and samples of their previous work. Make sure they can help you with choosing a web hosting provider. Get documentation to show exactly how many pages will be included in the project and the estimated time before completion. If your Branson web site requires special web programming, make sure the designer can handle it. I hope this article helps anybody who is getting ready to have a new web site designed. A good web site can really do wonders for your business!
Here at Branson website design, we specialize in affordable custom web design for all businesses! We also offer very affordable pricing for our web hosting services. If you would like to know more about our services or to see our web design portfolio, visit our main company web site at the link below. We offer affordable custom web designs!
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prebodigitalmarketing ¡ 4 years
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It Takes Two to Write Great Content
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7 value-added benefits of a content team
Content may be king, but the content does not write itself. Behind every piece of content or copy (big or small), is a content writer or content team – the little writing minions who generate the magic. If you want the world to fall in love with your brand, then you need content that sparkles and that means you need a creative content team.
As the Congolese proverb states – ‘A single bracelet does not jingle.’
Even if you are a digital marketing agency which offers content writing as a service to your clients, ideally you should invest in more than one content writer. They will prove invaluable to your business.
Here are 7 reasons why:
#1 Spreads the load
If content writing is part of your business’ service arsenal, then there are probably a large number of blog articles or content required for your client base. Overloading one writer with all the content writing expectations and timelines can become overwhelming and stifle creativity. You do not want a content writer who just goes through the motions to get the job done. A writer stuck in a rut will not help in achieving the overarching objectives of your clients.
#2 Sparks ideas
Any writer will tell you that brainstorming is key before their fingers hit the keyboard. Their misunderstood and compulsive passion for notebooks is legitimately part of their creative process. Sparking ideas for articles and relevant content that will engage clients and promote their brands is vital. Having more than one content writer means that a writer never stays shackled to one way of approaching content. It is necessary to be pushed out of comfort zone thinking and writing. Content writing must never become too predictable or monotonous. Your clients will thank you for this.
#3 Styles of writing
I am guessing that if you are a Digital Marketing Agency, you have a broad and varied client base – with each client’s brand, service or product embracing a variety of target audiences. More than one content writer enables them to connect with various audiences and keeps content creative, relevant and on track. Each writer brings their own context, worldview, life experience and perspective to the writing table which keeps content fresh, exciting and varied.
#4 Sweetens the deal
Every writer is an underground critic of another’s writing. They cannot help themselves. But this added dimension of editing and accountability on your content team is significant. A writer can always be a better writer. Having your content checked and proofread by a fellow writer will result in quality writing. This excellence translates to your overall reputation and increased value for your client. A win-win situation.
#5 Steps in the gap
Life happens. People get sick, crises occur and holidays need to be planned. This is where having more than one content writer is a huge advantage to your business. You can manage the gap. No apologies have to be made and deadlines can still be met.
#6 Stimulates growth
The world of digital marketing is dynamic and doesn’t stand still. A content writer cannot just be a writer in this ever-changing and fast-paced environment. Content writers need to understand the various aspects of the industry as it affects SEO, CTR, CTA, PPC, UTM etc. This requires training and development within the various fields – to get ‘big picture’ understanding and to make sure the content is doing what it should be doing for your clients. Having more than one content writer on your team frees up time to offer these growth opportunities, which means everyone reaps the benefits.
#7 Supports each other
In a business environment, support and someone having your back are so important. A lone ranger mentality can be dangerous and counterintuitive to a business’ inner workings. A team means the individual remains enthusiastic, gains confidence and is likely to produce excellent content. This outcome only increases the trust value that your clients will place in your business.
If you want your business’ content to shine and achieve the desired effect for your clients, make sure you have a content team. They will thank you and so will your clients.
It takes two to tango, but in the world of digital, it takes two to write great content.
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prebodigitalmarketing ¡ 4 years
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Client and content writer – a match made in heaven
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The tenuous relationship between client and content writer can result in stormy waters or calm seas. In a previous blog article, the potential likelihood of conflict arising between client and content writer was explored. The emphasis was on how the content writer could get the most from their client. In this article, attention will be focused on how the client can get the most from their content writer.
Skirting the tensions is possible and the reality of a perfect partnership is certainly a possibility.
A content writer is an invaluable asset and an intrinsic addition to a client’s strategic marketing goals and brand vision. By letting them do what they do best – which is writing, allows you to do what you do best – run your business.
A content writer is your secret weapon to growing your business and giving your brand unique and creative exposure.
They do this by skillfully using words.
Their reach is broad, especially across social media platforms and in streamlining your online presence. Their professional content, promoting your business and engaging with your customers, is hugely significant and beneficial. This is a potentially powerful relationship.
A content writer is a puzzle piece which uniquely fits your business.
How to get the most from your content writer:
Trust their skill:
First and foremost, a content writer is a writer. That is why you need them. They are talented in their craft with words and manipulate words to present your brand message in a relevant, fresh and exciting way. They not only turn readers into customers, but they continue engaging those customers with inspirational, informative, entertaining and persuasive content. Content writers have the means, though their words, to sustain the loyalty of your customers.  
View them as consultants:
You may be an expert in your brand, but they are the experts in giving your brand exposure. They do this by producing content that showcases your product or service in an influential way. Words have power, keywords have SEO power and your content writer knows how to use both for the best of your business.
Give clarity as to the purpose, tone, style and audience of the piece to be written. The writer needs to know what you want to achieve from the content.
Communicate what words you like or don’t like and give a clear framework wherein the writer can work their magic. Consider their input and respect their suggestions. Your goal is their goal.
Give them creative license:
Writers are creative people. Restricting that creativity and passion will be counterproductive. If you have been clear, transparent and forthcoming with your expectations, the best thing is to give your content writer a measure of creative freedom. They are unlikely to disappoint you. This will result in dynamic content that comes alive, tells a story, has soul and authenticity and will connect with your audience.
Viewing your content writer though this lens, will make for a happy and long standing partnership that will benefit your business and give it a competitive edge. All will be plain sailing.
That is what the words of a content writer can do.
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prebodigitalmarketing ¡ 4 years
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Choosing the Right Web Designer
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So, you’ve finally decided that you need a web site for your business? Well, there are a few key-points to remember BEFORE you make one of the most crucial decisions for your business.
Choosing the right designer for your new business web site:
When it comes to choosing the right web designer for your web site, you should always shop around first to check out all of the available options. There are many web design companies out there to choose from. And most of them are pretty good at what they do.
Always ask to see samples of a web designer’s previous work and examine their portfolio. This will help you get a better feel for the style of sites any particular web designer is capable of doing. Most of the time, web designers have their own unique style and you can easily spot which designs they’ve done in the past. I mean, it’s similar to any other artist’s style; you can definitely spot their previous works based on the general layout, color scheme, and over-all visual appearance of the sites.
Experience is also a key factor here. Just like any other craft, web designers get better with experience. So naturally, you’ll be better off by choosing a web designer who has more experience under his or her belt.
Another key point you should define is whether or not the web designer can make you a 100% custom web site. Or will it be just a basic template web design that 100’s or even 1,000’s of people already have across the Internet. Pretty much anybody these days can create a basic HTML web page in Microsoft Word or Publisher and change the title of it to reflect their Branson business. But you must ask yourself: “is this really what I’m looking for”?
Web sites that are truly custom built will stand out more the rest of the basic template web designs that so many people are using these days. A custom web design will catch the eye of your potential customers and show them that you have a really professional web presence and you mean business.
A lot of web designers these days choose to do the template web sites for one of 2 reasons:
It’s cheaper to use a basic template web design. They might be lacking the necessary skills needed to develop a fully custom web site. Whatever the case may be, make sure you go with a designer who is capable of creating a custom web design for you. It will inevitably cost you more for a custom site. But it is totally worth the extra money spent. Trust me, in the end you will be much happier with your web site if it is a site that’s unique and created for just your business and not everybody else’s.
Communication with a potential web designer is also critical in the development of your web site. You need to be perfectly clear and define your goals up-front, before you actually sign a web design service contract with a designer. Make sure you know what you are getting for your money and make sure you get it in writing! I have a 9-page web site design contract that I use every single time I design a new web site. Included in this contract is an itemized list of all work that is to be performed during the development of the web site. Things like the exact number of pages, the exact number of graphics to be designed, whether or not I need to create a logo, the estimated time before completion, whether or not routine site maintenance will be performed after the site is 6 months or 1 year old, etc.
Defining these things will help you in the long run and will also make sure you and the web designer are on the same page.
I also use what I call my “web design planning worksheet”. This worksheet gives “milestones” or deadlines for each phase of the web design project. Things like “In 2 weeks the general layout will be done” and “2 weeks after that, the site will be coded and launched” and then “In one moth after the web site is launched, we will evaluate it to see what needs to be adjusted”, etc. (these are just examples, by the way. the details included in one of my actual worksheets gives exact dates and more specific milestones).
And what about the web hosting for your new web site? Usually, a web designer will provide some kind of insight as to which hosting company they recommend. Web designers in general have a preference for a hosting company that they know will be a good choice for your web site and they should assist you in making this selection.
Fortunately, we have our own web server here at Digital Spiral Web Design so we can do all of the hosting ourselves. This is very beneficial because we can make sure the web server stays up and running and if there is any maintenance that needs to be performed on the server, we can do it ourselves in a timely manner. Plus, we will always cut a deal for our web site hosting services to any new business who chooses us to do their web design.
Will your new web site require any specialized web programming? Well, the answer to that question is based solely on the needs of your Branson web site. What kind of site will it be? Does it need a shopping cart for e-commerce? Will you be implementing any special web applications or online forms for your viewers to fill out? Will it be a web site that requires your viewers to fill out registrations and sign up so they can login? If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, then chances are you’ll need a web designer who can also program.
Web developers and designers must be skilled in the art of web PROGRAMMING (something that is very different from regular web DESIGN). Web programming involves the implementation of different web programming languages like JAVA, PHP, Flash, SQL, or.NET. All of these web programming languages need highly skilled individuals to code them and develop web programs with them.
I personally love PHP! I use it for pretty much everything. I won’t go into the details of PHP in this article (I would have to write an entire book about it to cover all of it). But with PHP, I can create pretty much any web application that is logically possible.
So, make sure you choose a web designer who is also capable of coding any special functions that your new web site needs. This decision needs to be discussed and gone over by any potential web designer you might use to create your Branson web site.
And finally, you should always check with the potential web designer’s previous clients to make sure they give him or her a good reference. Remember: it just like any other service. You need to verify a web designer’s references and make sure they can do what they say they can do.
So, just to summarize all of the tips I’ve mentioned:
Ask questions, questions, and more questions before you choose a web designer. Clearly define your goals from the beginning. Ask to see the web designer’s portfolio and samples of their previous work. Make sure they can help you with choosing a web hosting provider. Get documentation to show exactly how many pages will be included in the project and the estimated time before completion. If your Branson web site requires special web programming, make sure the designer can handle it. I hope this article helps anybody who is getting ready to have a new web site designed. A good web site can really do wonders for your business!
Here at Branson website design, we specialize in affordable custom web design for all businesses! We also offer very affordable pricing for our web hosting services. If you would like to know more about our services or to see our web design portfolio, visit our main company web site at the link below. We offer affordable custom web designs!
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prebodigitalmarketing ¡ 4 years
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What to consider when choosing the right SEO Services
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Search engine optimization, or SEO services, attempts to improve a website’s organic search rankings in SERPs by increasing the website content’s relevance to search terms. Search engines regularly update their algorithms to penalize poor quality sites that try to game their rankings, making optimization a moving target for website owners. Many vendors offer SEO services.
How to spot A Good SEO Expert & Practice
A good seo specialist understands that It’s no longer just about optimizing your website for Google with your seo service. It’s about optimizing your presence across the web. By understanding who your target audience is and where they spend their time, you can attack those platforms and build an organic presence. As Google gets more intelligent, you need to get more intelligent about how you approach marketing. That doesn’t mean looking for ways to beat the search engine algorithms. Instead, you must learn to use them to your advantage.Instead of trying to jam other third party pages with links as part your seo services strategy, create a piece of content that delivers what Google (and users) want. By creating value with your content, you open it up to earning social media shares and powerful links from relevant sites.
Consider Smart SEO Services
One of our key learnings over the years has been that whilst SEO has the highest ROI (Return On Investment) it is a journey and one that can’t be hurried; yes, it does indeed take six to twelve months of focused effort to reach the top of Page 1 in the Google or Bing or Yahoo Search Engine results for your top twenty of so keyword clusters – and that takes patience…often a multi-disciplinary approach is required that incorporates a combined paid, earned and owned digital media strategy. Such a strategy starts with some paid advertising and an actively concurrent implementation of content and SEO services, eventually phasing paid out of the mix as your organic Search Engine visibility gains traction.
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prebodigitalmarketing ¡ 4 years
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How To Choose The best Web Design Services In Johannesburg
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Web Design Services:
Establishing a web presence and effectively marketing your website can take weeks or even months of researching different web design services such as; website designers, developers, website hosting, online marketing, SEO experts, logo designers, link builders, article writers and so on. We offer all these design services and more so there is no need to use several web design companies. With our web design, we can build any type or size website you require from small custom designed websites, or highly advanced online stores. We also offer lots of help and advice along the way so don’t worry if you are not a web design guru. Each of our websites can be developed with a very easy to use content management system, also known as a CMS, and we provide free basic training on how to use your website. Get a Quote
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prebodigitalmarketing ¡ 4 years
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To Measure is to Know – How to measure Social Advertising for a Performance Advertiser
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By Timo Dinkelman, CEO & Co-Founder of Prebo Digital
To measure is to know. To know without measuring is to have a gut-feeling. To make sure your gut-feeling is right, you need to measure.
This “logic” applies to measuring the full value of Facebook Advertising to a business that mainly focuses on short term revenue and profitability.
From my days working at Google, measuring lower-funnel activity where your marketing spend has a direct impact on revenue is what I’m used to. Facebook Ads, in my opinion, and contrary to what most people say, will never really be a low-funnel marketing channel. for the main reason that it remains a display, and hence push, channel instead of a pull channel like search. The intent and readiness to act (read: convert) is significantly lower on any display channel.
Measuring lower-funnel results is also not made easier by wanting to compare data in Facebook’s Ads Manager vs. what you see in e.g. Google Analytics. These two platforms have fundamentally different methods of attributing/crediting conversions to marketing channels.
Google Analytics works on cookie-based reporting and Facebook on user-based reporting (using User ID from Facebook). Facebook, unlike Google Analytics, also doesn’t have the ability to consider other channels as part of the conversion process and will thus claim a conversion even if someone only saw the ad and continued to make the purchase after engaging multiple touchpoints.
So what platform should you consider true when it comes to conversion results? From my viewpoint, Google Analytics is closest to the truth when it comes to channel performance. But basing all your budget and marketing planning decisions by only looking at Google Analytics would not be the ideal solution as channels work together to reach your business objectives.
So how do you measure whether Facebook Ads are worth your investment if you can’t trust the results reported on in Ads Manager?
Here is my recommendation on how to best measure Social Advertising results:
Use every metric you can find to show its value to a performance advertiser (someone who cares about short term sales, leads & ROI).
Depending on which audience and where in the funnel you’re looking to advertise, I’d recommend the following:
As mentioned above, Google Analytics should be used as your truest source of conversions BUT, Facebook campaign metrics should also be used to make decisions around optimizing campaigns (budget allocation, creative updates, audience updates etc.) and for broader reporting on channel performance as part of the full marketing mix.
Where I’ve seen Facebook Ads perform really well is in the following four scenarios:
A business is looking to explore new markets (geographically or interest-based) where very little search intent exists. In this case, one has to build a market, educate the market, and grow brand awareness.
A business is not currently advertising low in the funnel and is looking to grow its sales.
A business is already successfully advertising lower in the funnel through SEM but is maximizing the search volume potential and is looking to grow its appeal to a wider audience.
A business has a high conversion rate on email marketing and uses Facebook Ads to grow their database.
In none of these cases, FB would be a direct competitor/comparison to lower funnel marketing. Hence my view that FB Ads should be measured differently to low funnel marketing such as e.g. SEM.
Here are the recommended steps to improve the accuracy in measuring your FB Advertising:
Implement UTMs to ensure you measure every ad click coming to your website. This will help you to identify direct sales, leads, soft conversions as well as assisted ones.
Measure the full impact of Social Ads on your social traffic. In many cases, total social traffic (organic + paid) goes up as a result of (increased) social exposure. This happens as people e.g. see your IG Ad, click through to your profile and then click to the website to buy.
Measure all soft conversions of which you know will eventually drive additional sales. These would be newsletter subscriptions, wishlist adds, add to cart etc. A good e-commerce website would have an engine through different email campaigns to capture those potential customers back into the system to get them to eventually convert. Constantly feeding this funnel with qualified users is vital to continue growing your business. This way you can set a goal of a low acquisition cost for a new email address from a qualified audience to grow your email database which you know converts well for you.
The last recommendation would be to measure the impact of campaigns on your total branded website traffic. Mainly in your organic search and direct traffic, you should be able to see an increase in visits on these channels, as well as an increase in the % of new users coming through these channels from the time your FB mid & upper-funnel campaigns started.
There is a bit of homework to do and foundations that need to be put in place. But if you’re seriously considering Social Ads, use it as a growth engine parallel to your lower funnel SEM activity rather than trying to get more volume with similar results to what e.g. Google Ads gives you, because that is comparing apples with pears. In that case, rather expand your keyword set.
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prebodigitalmarketing ¡ 4 years
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How to choose a digital marketing agency
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Practical tips for a business owner and marketing executive
You’re a business owner or a marketing executive and your objective is to grow the number of leads or sales for your business. You’ve heard that digital marketing is the best and most efficient way to do so.
For starters, that’s true.
Digital marketing allows you the greatest degree of flexibility when it comes to your investment, accountability on how and where your money is spent, as well as reaching your ideal audience – even if that is coffee-loving, sedan-driving, young parents in suburbia currently looking to book their next beach holiday.
To make the most of this promising marketing channel, you need to choose the right digital agency, which can be a challenge. Your decision will have a significant strategic impact. To read more about this, check out my previous blog on this topic.
It would be easy selecting a digital agency if you would be a digital agency… just like choosing the right builder is easy when you’re a builder or choosing the right accounting firm if you’re an accountant. But when you’re selecting an expert service provider from a totally different industry, how do you make the right choice without getting burnt?
As a former Googler, advising corporates in the digital advertising industry, now running a digital agency, here are my insider tips to choosing a credible agency:
Find an agency that values transparency – During my tenure working at Google with large businesses and their agencies in South Africa, it became apparent that some commercial models used by agencies aren’t always ethically sound – taking advantage of a client’s lack of understanding of digital buying processes – profiting from fraudulently increasing click prices, setting fixed click prices or underspending on media budgets.
Whether this is common practice or outright dishonesty, both instances create a bad practice and set a standard in the industry that shouldn’t be tolerated by clients. After leaving Google and starting up my own performance marketing agency, I was (and still am) very motivated to change this and offer a true, transparent and fair working relationship with clients who are desperately aiming to grow their business.
In the meantime, I have had many opportunities to take over Google Ads accounts from other agencies only to be shocked by the inadequate level of work, and in some instances, a complete lack of work.
If you’re a business owner reading this and are looking to select a new agency,  where do you start?
Regardless of how you find an agency, it is important to speak to some of their clients and find out about their transparency when it comes to their reporting on budget spend and results.
If you’re already working with an agency, ask to see the Google/Facebook reports of the exact monthly/weekly spend and how that matches up to your allocated digital marketing budget.
Request an overview of the changes they’ve been making in the past month. (INSIDER TIP: Google & Facebook have a change log showing the exact changes made for any given period of time)
Find an agency that offers real expertise
The first myth that needs debunking is this: certifications look better on the wall of an agency’s office than in an actual AdWords or Facebook account. I know, because I’ve been there. When studying for my first AdWords certificate it became obvious that you can fake the system and get to the answers rather quickly, just like an open-book exam, but in this case, you also have the whole of Google.com at your disposal. The questions asked in the exams are mostly facts of how the ad platforms work but provide no guarantee or safeguard that an account is in safe hands with someone possessing a certificate. Real learning happens on the job. If you want assurance that you’re speaking to a real digital expert, get them into your existing account to review a few campaigns and then bring in a 3rd party to verify their work. You can also call me if you need someone to verify, – I love to help!
Find an agency that promises real partnership – this comes back to the first two points. You’re looking for a partner that you can trust with your business objectives and your brand, bringing you lots of new business. Your agency should be continuously prioritising your business objectives and making that central to your working relationship. At Prebo Digital, we take a cautious approach, working to prove that we are competent to do the job first, before scaling up together.
At the end of the day, choosing a digital agency is a strategic decision. These tips will equip you with the right tools to select an agency that will significantly influence your short and long term success, bringing in new business and establish your brand’s identity with integrity, while you stay in control.
For any more detail or simply want to chat, feel free to get in touch with me.
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