How PPC on Facebook Can Draw Facebookers to Your Site

Original Article from IntelliSites, the smart choice for Albany Web Design (and Albany SEO)




Anything that people spend a lot of time doing provides a great marketing opportunity. Nowadays, people spend a lot of time updating their statuses, chatting, spying on long-lost acquaintances, cultivating their Farmville crops, or otherwise interacting with that famous white screen...

Enter Facebook Ads.

America's Favorite Way to Procrastinate

Now that Facebook is everywhere, advertising on Facebook is a super way to reach out to the world. While folks are browsing their friends' posts and profiles, they are simultaneously viewing advertisements that Facebook positions on the right side of their screens. These clickable ads make it easy for a user to jump over to the website or Facebook page of any company whose ad piques his interest.

Hit Your Targets Dead On

But here's the thing. Not only do Facebook ads provide clickable advertisements to a group of people who are most likely just killing time, but they also can provide these ads to people from very specific demographics. If you think about your Facebook profile, the information you share gives away a lot about you. Many people openly share their interests, their educational background, their employment history, their marital status, and more. This is information that marketing list maker types used to have to dig around to get, but these days many people are happy to broadcast it to the Facebook world. So without doing any snooping, Facebook can make sure that your ad pops up on the screens of people who are most likely to respond to it. This is target marketing at its most precise.

In the case studies tab on their advertising page, Facebook gives a pretty solid example of how this can benefit business owners. Since Facebook users often share their relationship status on their profiles, it's easy to market specifically to people who are engaged. The page shows an example of a photography company who benefited tremendously from advertising on Facebook to women who had chosen “Engaged” as their relationship status.

What's the Price Tag on These Magical Ads?

We can't tell you exactly how much it's going to cost, but you can tell us. Like PPC campaigns through Google, the cost of advertising on Facebook varies based on your budget. Facebook offers a PPC-style option which allows people to pay only when a user clicks on the ad, and once you've reached your predetermined daily budget, Facebook stops displaying your ad for the rest of the day. Another option is to set up a Cost Per Thousand Impressions (“CPM”) campaign where you pay a flat rate every time your ad is displayed 1000 times. Either way, it's up to you how much you want to spend, making it possible for businesses large and small to take advantage of Facebook ads.

So if you're looking for a way to advertise your page to specific targets at a price you set yourself (AND to justify spending more time on Facebook at the same time), give Facebook ads a try.

Optimizing Your Website for People With Disabilities

Original Article from IntelliSites, the smart choice for Albany Web Design (and Albany SEO)


The world wide web is for everyone.

But think about how challenging the internet experience might be for people with disabilities.

People who see, hear, understand, focus, or read differently than others can have a tough time navigating through a website that was not designed with all people in mind. But the Web Accessibility Initiative website gives examples of specific disabilities and some easy ways you can enhance your site to level the playing field for people with these challenges.

For instance, the WAI site points out that many websites present obstacles for individuals with colorblindness. The site suggests labeling color pictures with words, particularly on e-commerce sites that may be selling the same item in, for example, red, blue, green, and gray. It also mentions that text designed to indicate something special is often a different color on a site (e.g. clearance items in red text), but using underlining or bold text would be more helpful for a person with colorblindness.

Providing Access for Everyone

The key is to provide options that will allow different users to access your site in the way that works best for them. If you have videos on your site, for instance, you may want to think about making it easy for a user with a visual impairment to view them at a larger size. You may also consider providing a closed captioning option for the hearing impaired. And it might be a good idea to make the videos easy to turn off in the event that they distract a user with ADHD who is trying to read nearby text.  You'll find that providing these types of options on your site can also benefit clients who do not have disabilities, allowing them to make choices about how to use elements of your site and making it easier for them to use.

A lot of factors go into the design of a website, but if reaching the largest possible audience is one of your priorities, make sure to tell your web designer that you're interested in making your site accessible to people with disabilities. After all, a store with a ramp is more likely to get the business of a person who uses a wheelchair, and a website with accommodations for individuals with disabilities can make it clear to your customers that everybody's welcome at your site.

Put Social Media to Work for Your Site

Original Article from IntelliSites, the smart choice for Albany Web Design (and Albany SEO)



Social media is an increasingly popular function on websites, but your social media sites and your website are not the same thing. And you shouldn’t confuse the two. Each has separate goals and purposes, and it’s important to have a separate plan of action for each. Here are three differentiators to help you navigate the separation.

Linking to other websites. Once you get people to your website, don’t let them get away. Keep them for as long as possible through a series of calls to actions and conversion points. But on your social media sites, you certainly want to drive people away from your page and to your website. Your website is the hub of your social media activity, while your social media pages are marketing efforts to get traffic to your site.

Updating content. Undoubtedly, you’ve spent considerable time creating sharp content for your website. You probably don’t spend as much time analyzing the content on your Facebook posts and Tweets. The tone of your social media entries should reflect that of your website, and should be updated frequently with relevant information. Your website should remain relatively static in its content, and be a solid foundation to people to learn about your company. Keep your website consistent and provide timely updates via social media.

Creating strategy. Divide your online strategy into two sections: Your website and your social media efforts. The strategy for your website should be consistent across all pages. The strategy for your social media should be custom-tailored for each platform, but be unified in the fact that all platforms should drive people to your website. Facebook, Twitter, forums and blogs all have separate purpose, so devise a strategy that works for each. Efforts for your website and your social media pages should have the ultimate goal of increasing sales and producing measurable results.

Your online presence is important, and it’s key to create a unified identity in all online efforts. But don’t mix the purposes of your website and your social media pages. While they go hand-in-hand for successful online engagement, each has a distinct task, so plan your involvement accordingly.

Diversify Your Marketing

Original Article from IntelliSites, the smart choice for Albany Web Design (and Albany SEO)



It's no big secret that the crew at Intellisites loves the world wide web. We'll talk your ear off about how amazing websites can be and how they can work with social media sites to help business owners bring their businesses to a new level.

But that doesn't mean we think that once you have a website and a few Facebook fans, your marketing is done.

A well-optimized website paired with a strong social media presence is a huge part of marketing your business successfully, but as your website gurus and pals, we want to make sure you understand that the web, breathtaking as it may be, shouldn't be the only place you show your clients who you are.

Meet Our Posse

If you really want your business to be all it can be, then it's best to use a comprehensive marketing approach that uses different types of media to send a well-defined message about your brand. And the best way to do that is to make sure that your web design team has allies in the marketing and print world who will ensure that all of your marketing efforts jive.

Luckily, we do.

Intellisites is partnered with some of the coolest cats in marketing, in fact. The marketing magicians at Burst Marketing and the diggity design dudes at imPress have worked together with us to help many of our clients develop and implement successful marketing campaigns. Because we can all work together to carry out a solid marketing plan that incorporates the right combination of printed materials, promotional items, and web masterpieces, our clients are able to express a consistent message to both on- and off- web targets.

If you came here looking for someone to build you a super website, then you definitely came to the right place. But thanks to our comrades at Burst and imPress, this is also the right place for people looking for a marketing approach that will make their businesses take off.

A Key to Keywords

Original Article from IntelliSites, the smart choice for Albany Web Design (and Albany SEO)


Keywords. At the heart of every SEO strategy and PPC campaign there are keywords. These are the phrases that users type into the search boxes of search engines like Google, Yahoo, and Bing millions of times a day. Keywords are what trigger those fancy search engine algorithms to do their magic and serve up relevant results. They are the key (yeah, I know) to the communication between the user and the search engine, and they come in a few different flavors. We've served up a guide here to give you some insight into how keywords are categorized and how they're handled in the world of web marketing.

1. Short Tail - e.g. "Shoes"
These types of keywords are very general, and very competitive. The ambiguous nature of these one or two word phrases makes them open to interpretation by both the user who is searching with them, and the browser that is trying to find the most relevant content for them. The results for these search terms are usually big brand names that want to pull in a huge audience, and can afford to do so. Ranking high for these terms requires a serious investment of time and money. PPC campaigns that are aggressive, extensive SEO, and a relentless linkbuilding effort that is probably reinforced with Social Media, will likely be required to rank well for short tail keywords. If you have an up-and-coming business, or have a brand new website, and want to rank number one for a term like "shoes," you will need all of the aforementioned strategies as well as a small miracle.

2. Long Tail - e.g. "Red Toddler Shoes"
Keywords that will typically generate more conversions are specific, multi-word combinations that reveal an unambiguous intent. Users who know what they want will use long tail keywords, and the search engines will have no trouble serving up relevant results. This is advantageous to smaller, more niche companies, as these phrases are relatively less competitive. Larger companies will still have a strong presence however, and a well rounded approach to SEO is necessary to rank for them. Another variation of the typical long tail keyword phrase uses a specific location, such as "Red Toddler Shoes Albany." The searcher who uses this phrase is looking for businesses in Albany, NY, and will likely see the search engine's local listings mixed in with the results. Having a well optimized local listing is a crucial ranking tactic, and is one that greatly benefits smaller businesses. Long tail keyword phrases require some creative thinking and a little more analysis, but optimizing for them is usually very effective.

3. Intent Keywords - e.g. "Buy Baby Shoes"
These keywords reveal an intent on the part of the user to perform an action, typically to buy a product. These phrases are usually just as competitive as short tail keywords, but making them more specific like, "buy red baby shoes for girl," will generate more pointed results. The meaning behind these types of searches is easily understood and the search engines will usually provide relevant results like online shopping sites, but product reviews and even "how to" guides will show up in results too. Strong SEO and detailed descriptions of products help sites rank for intent keywords, but more than that, driving relevant traffic will require an effective PPC campaign.

4. Question Keywords - e.g. "What Size Baby Shoes Should I Buy?"
These phrases are in the form of a question, not necessarily with the question mark added. These phrases may have a very general root phrase ("baby shoes" in this case), or be very specific, and that is really what will determine the competitiveness of the phrase. In general, question keyword phrases will produce results that address the question and attempt to answer it. Blog articles, "how to" guides, wiki sites, and forums will likely be among the top results. The best way to rank for terms like this is through quality blogging, and of course on-site SEO that focuses on the root phrase to heighten relevance.

5. Brand Keywords - e.g. "Osh Kosh Baby Shoes"
Keyword phrases that contain a specific brand can be very competitive, unless of course it is your business's brand. Typically that brand's site will rank very highly for these search phrases, but it's possible that online shopping sites featuring that brand's products will push passed it and rank higher. The results are similar to the intent keyword phrases in that they feature sites that list products, but the "how to" guides likely won't be present and the rankings are harder to break into. If the searcher is looking for a specific product it'll be difficult to get them to land on your site unless you offer that prouct. It is possible to rank in those results with carefully worded blogs (articles like "Why Our Shoes Are Better Than Osh Kosh Shoes"), aggressive PPC, and quality Linkbait content.

Cell Phone Browsers and Your Site

Original Article from IntelliSites, the smart choice for Albany Web Design (and Albany SEO)



Remember the old days when you needed a computer to use the internet?

There's no denying what a big splash smartphones are making on the internet scene these days. Check out this recent article by Sarah Kessler, which references some new crazy stats about how big a role smartphones are playing in e-commerce and commerce in general. The article states that 30% of those surveyed used smartphones to look up product information or find the locations of stores and 11% actually made purchases on their smartphones during the holiday season. And, maybe most importantly, Kessler mentioned that the study indicated a correlation between how satisfied shoppers were with a company's mobile experience and how likely they were to make a purchase with that company.

In other words, people are taking this whole smartphone/shopping thing seriously.

How To Keep Up

If people are going to be making decisions about where to spend their money using their smartphones, then your company's website needs to be prepared for mobile visitors.

Of course, different businesses are going to need to take different steps to make themselves mobile friendly. You'll need to sit down with your web designer and have a chat about what kind of business you run and who your targets are. From there, you two can put your heads together and decide whether you're the kind of business that needs to make smartphone users generally happy or the kind of business that needs to make smartphone users jump for joy.

If you're going to get some smartphone visitors but not many, then making those visitors generally happy should be plenty. Your web designer will just need to make sure that your website shows up nicely on their phones, and you'll be good to go.

But if smartphone visitors are going to start taking over your site in the near future, you want to go all out for those folks. There's a difference between a site that can show up on a phone and a site that was designed for a phone. So if a good portion of your website visitors will be using smartphones to get there, you're going to need your web designer to make an alternate version of your site that is simplified and easy for mobile users to navigate in order to drive conversions. After all, those cell phone users are working with a small touch screen, so providing big buttons and easy ways to get to the important stuff on your site will really help them out.  And if you really want them to love you, you can even incorporate digital coupons and other promotions just for smartphone users into your site.

Smartphones are hip and here to stay. And if you want their users to say the same thing about your business, make sure your web design team gets your website into shape.

Put Social Media to Work for Your Site

Original Article from IntelliSites, the smart choice for Albany Web Design (and Albany SEO)


Social media is an increasingly popular function on websites, but your social media sites and your website are not the same thing. And you shouldn’t confuse the two. Each has separate goals and purposes, and it’s important to have a separate plan of action for each. Here are three differentiators to help you navigate the separation.

Linking to other websites. Once you get people to your website, don’t let them get away. Keep them for as long as possible through a series of calls to actions and conversion points. But on your social media sites, you certainly want to drive people away from your page and to your website. Your website is the hub of your social media activity, while your social media pages are marketing efforts to get traffic to your site.

Updating content. Undoubtedly, you’ve spent considerable time creating sharp content for your website. You probably don’t spend as much time analyzing the content on your Facebook posts and Tweets. The tone of your social media entries should reflect that of your website, and should be updated frequently with relevant information. Your website should remain relatively static in its content, and be a solid foundation to people to learn about your company. Keep your website consistent and provide timely updates via social media.

Creating strategy. Divide your online strategy into two sections: Your website and your social media efforts. The strategy for your website should be consistent across all pages. The strategy for your social media should be custom-tailored for each platform, but be unified in the fact that all platforms should drive people to your website. Facebook, Twitter, forums and blogs all have separate purpose, so devise a strategy that works for each. Efforts for your website and your social media pages should have the ultimate goal of increasing sales and producing measurable results.

Your online presence is important, and it’s key to create a unified identity in all online efforts. But don’t mix the purposes of your website and your social media pages. While they go hand-in-hand for successful online engagement, each has a distinct task, so plan your involvement accordingly.