• FAQs

          Search engine optimization (SEO) helps businesses drive visits to their website through organic search traffic. Given that the top organic search results receive a third of the clicks, a decline in ranking could be detrimental for your business. Implementing SEO best practices on your website will help to ensure that your web content is seen by as many potential customers as possible. The more visitors you have, the better your chances are of converting those visits into sales!

          Local search engine optimization (SEO) helps local businesses gain visibility by optimizing their local business listings for local search. A business that leverages local SEO will include its address, phone number, local opening times, and exact location in the form of a local citation. The goal is to rank for local searches which are usually performed by people in a specific geographical region looking for a business near them.

          We typically see results within the first 30 to 60 days, but when it comes to SEO, there are many factors at play. It's important to remember that SEO is a long-term strategy and results may not come as fast at you wish.

        • FAQs

          Digital advertising uses the internet to send advertisements to customers who are online through different websites and social media platforms like Google, Bing, LinkedIn and Facebook.

          The price for Google Ads management depends on the monthly ad spend. For accounts with $1,000 in monthly ad spend, the price is $550/month. Between $1,000 and $5,000 a month in ad spend, the price is $950/month. For $5,000 to $10,000 a month in ad spend, the price is $2,000/month. For more than $10,000 a month in ad spend, the price is $4,500/month.

          The price for Social Media Ads management depends on the monthly ad spend. For accounts with $1,000 in monthly ad spend, the price is $550/month. Between $1,000 and $5,000 a month in ad spend, the price is $950/month. For $5,000 to $10,000 a month in ad spend, the price is $2,000/month. For more than $10,000 a month in ad spend, the price is $4,500/month.

        • FAQs

          This depends on the complexity and size of a redesign and if eCommerce is needed. On average, it takes around 14-18 weeks from the web design intensive stage to launch.

          If your website experiences the following issues: it’s not responsive on all devices, has a slow loading speed, the design appears old and tired, users don’t spend long on the site, sales are stagnant, or your business is going through a rebranding - your website needs a redesign to boost your brand awareness and sales.

          Sometimes there’s no need to rebuild a website. Minor edits, refreshing page content and images, or restructuring page layout for SEO best practices can boost traffic and sales.

        • FAQs

          Semantic search launched in 2013 with the release of Google's Hummingbird update. Since then, Google's search engine has become more complex. The integration of machine learning, with RankBrain, and NLP, with BERT, has enabled the search engine to better understand the context of a query and deliver more personalized and targeted results. Semantic SEO is the process of creating machine-readable content using structured data and linked open data to help search engines better understand your content.

          On-page SEO is the practice of optimizing individual web pages in order to rank higher and earn more relevant traffic in search engines. On-page SEO refers to both the content and HTML source code of a page that can be optimized, as opposed to off-page SEO which refers to links and other external signals. From meta tags to page content, website structure, and HTML, on-page optimization services are focused on making your website more visible to search engines.

          Structured data refers to any organized data that conforms to a certain format, such as information in a relational database. When information is highly structured and predictable, search engines can more easily organize and display it in creative ways. Structured data involves using a piece of code that is laid out in a specific format easily understood by search engines. The search engines read the code and use it to display search results in a more dynamic way.

        • FAQs

          An SEO agency has experts in different areas of search engine optimization that may be out of the realm of your marketing team's abilities. SEO can be very complex and time-consuming. Furthermore, as search engine algorithms change it can be difficult to stay current on the latest ranking factors and strategies for improving online visibility. You will likely see a greater return on investment and better results from using a professional SEO agency than you would from tackling this on your own.

          As a digital marketing agency, SMA Marketing provides products and services in four areas: SEO, Local SEO, Digital Advertising, and Web Design

          We focus on building authentic, long-lasting relationships with our clients. We’re goal oriented and results driven and believe in doing good and making a difference in the world.

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Increase Conversions on Your Blog (3 Powerful Calls to Action)

Rhonda Bavaro

February 16, 2018

Are you leaving your blog readers hanging or do you tell them how to take the next step with you?

The purpose of your blog is to attract new followers or new customers. Are you letting your readers know how to become followers or customers? It may sound like common sense, but many blogs don’t invite the reader to engage with them. To increase conversions on your blog you have to point your readers in the direction you want them to go.

Every blog post should be written with a goal in mind. By answering your readers’ questions, engaging with them on a relatable level, and positioning yourself as a trusted authority, you attract your ideal buyers. Once you attract them, you have to lead them to the next step in the buyer’s journey.

For those that are new to blogging and content marketing, the message that invites them to further engage with you is called a call to action, or CTA.

In a webinar I recently watched on blogging for business, Jennifer Grayeb of Productive and Pretty said, “Don’t write a blog post without a call to action or next step.” Each reader should finish reading your article and want to connect further with you. Are you letting them know how to do that? Jennifer highlighted three actions your blog readers should want to take after reading your article.

Three Powerful Actions Your Readers Should Take

Your readers should want to take one, or more, of the following actions to connect with you:

  • Get more from you
  • Learn from you
  • Work with you

It’s up to you to direct them to take that next step with a compelling call to action within and after each article. Let’s take a look at each of these in detail and how you can incorporate them into your blog posts.

How to Increase Conversions on Your Blog

By including a variety of CTAs in your blog posts and website pages, your readers will know exactly how to connect with you, how to find more of your content and how to work with you or buy your products or services.

How to Get More From You

Let people know how they can join your tribe, either by subscribing to your blog, following you on social media, or joining your membership site or Facebook group. Inviting them to follow you is how you build your list of potential buyers. Let them into your inner circle first, build a relationship with them, and when the time comes to make a purchase, they will think of you first.

People like to feel they belong to an exclusive group of like-minded individuals. Give them that opportunity by presenting clear CTAs within your blog posts.

Effective ways to do this are with pop-up forms, opt-in forms in the sidebar or header of your blog, and opt-ins within your blog posts. The email marketing and automation platform you use will have instructions for adding opt-in forms to your website. We also like to use Sumo for pop-up forms to capture email subscribers.

How to Learn From You

Your followers will want to learn from you as you build authority and gain their trust. Give them the opportunity to download or purchase premium content from you that teaches them the secrets that you’ve learned through experience. Blog posts that give a taste of what the premium content contains are a great way to lead them to take action to purchase your content or course.

Effective ways to invite your readers to download your content include adding CTAs within and at the end of relevant blog posts that lead to sign up pages, exit pop-ups that capture them before they leave a page, and banners in your blog sidebar.

Your CTA could be something as simple as putting a compelling phrase in your brand color within the blog post so it stands out. For example, “Read the guide now and tell me what you think” will lead your readers to your free opt-in content which then leads to your paid content. Or, it could be an image with a preview of the document they’ll be downloading and text that explains how it will benefit them. (See the CTA at the bottom of this article for an example.)

How to Work With You

The ultimate goal is that your readers want to work with you or purchase your products. Don’t leave them guessing. Make it easy for them to reach out to you. The longer and harder they have to work to contact you, the longer they have to talk themselves out of it and second guess their initial urge to connect.

Use your page navigation as well as your website’s footer and sidebar for CTAs that essentially tell your readers, “Click Here to Work With Me.”

Quick Ways to Optimize Your CTAs

  • Use first person rather than second person phrasing (start my free trial vs start your free trial)
  • Use color to bring attention to your CTAs ~ orange and red have been shown to perform well
  • Use symbols such as arrows to draw the reader to the intended action
  • Include CTAs close to the top of a blog post or the middle of a blog post

End-of-post CTAs are common, and we use them too. Keep in mind, though, that the bottom of a post typically presents many actions which divide the reader’s attention. You’re asking the reader to click on a CTA, leave a comment, and subscribe to your blog. It can be distracting and confusing (and a confused mind says no.) Be sure to include a CTA near the top or middle of your posts, as well.

Are you using calls to action effectively on your website and blog? By letting readers know how to get more from you, learn from you, and work with you, you’ll increase conversions on your blog. That means more followers and customers, and a greater likelihood of long-term success.

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Rhonda Bavaro

Rhonda Bavaro wears many hats at SMA - Operations Director, Inbound Marketing Strategist and Content Writer. She loves helping business owners achieve accelerated growth through inbound marketing and creative content marketing strategies. She enjoys writing about digital marketing, sales, social media, technology, and health.

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