Wednesday, May 17, 2017
Tuesday, May 16, 2017
Local Businesses websites: 53 Must-Have features
Every small local business has a website these days, even if that website means only some simple pages built with a basic site builder. Any small business must be present online as it’s well known that searches with local intent are leading to calls, store visits and sales in a very short period of time.
It’s easy to see that the framework for success with a local business website is related to simplicity. Essential information presented on the homepage, call options or email options – women tend to send emails, some content for rankings – a blog may be helpful, company images, testimonials and Videos and the website is done. Go beyond the idea that your website must have the coolest design – an ugly website with all the basics well-done won’t put off many customers.
Invest your time in the most important features.Our friends at WebAlive built a nice infographic about the features and key elements a local business website must have. Easy to read and understand, the infographic will pass you trough website architecture steps, UX and UI must-cover elements, some SEO advice and other features every website should have. Of course, everything is explained bellow the infographic on their page, I will leave here thethings you should avoid:
Don’t use flash elements
There was a time when flash was very popular, but websites these days tend to avoid it due to the fact that it’s difficult to work with and doesn’t convert well to mobile devices.
Automatic music in the background
No one wants to hear background music that plays automatically after opening a page. Unless you want to annoy your user, avoid this.
Do not upload video on the web server
If you want to add some videos to your site, use video uploading platforms like YouTube or Vimeo and then embed the videos into your site. This is a much better option than uploading the video directly to your web server.
Moving slider
Avoid moving sliders that display a series of images (or other contents). Though many websites use this, sliders are generally annoying or distracting.
Dead-end pages
There should be no page in your site from where you can’t navigate to other pages. Pages like this are called dead-end pages and they tend to annoy visitors.
Be sure your websites covers all these features, check your website health with eRanker and start monitoring your local rankings – if local searches find you, then clients will find your business and you can boost your sales.
BY
Sorin Diaconu, CMO of GeoRanker, is focused making a big impact in the digital marketing industry. Entrepreneurial spirit attached, areas of expertise include business development and data mining.
THIS ARTICLE WAS FIRST SEEN HERE
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Monday, May 15, 2017
The 25 Tools Every Entrepreneur Should Know About
Most entrepreneurs have a lot of responsibilities on their plate from day one of operation. Everything from hiring employees, managing teams, marketing the brand and dealing with finances can fall under a founder’s responsibilities. Juggling so many tasks can be daunting and lead to a lot of stress. If you’re an entrepreneur and you want to become more efficient, productive and successful, take a look at the list of tools below.
1. Due
Due is an online estimates, invoicing, and payments platform that can help an entrepreneur organize their time through a time-tracking tool plus automate numerous time-consuming tasks. The free platform offers estimate and invoicing templates, reports, database for client and project information, automated reminders and acknowledgements, integration with Basecamp, and multiple payment methods.
2. Asana
Asana is a free project-management tool that allows teams to communicate without email, in one central location. Because many entrepreneurs work with virtual teams, this is a great tool to stay in touch.
3. Google Drive
Most people already know about this tool, but Chromebooks and ability to convert and edit Microsoft Office documents make Google Drive (and accompanying Docs and Sheets) a great way to collaborate and share documents with your clients, freelancers or employees.
4. SoundGecko
Translate online content — like news and blog posts — into an audio file. This allows you to “read” any content that can help you with your business — including articles on productivity, sales and branding — on the go.
5. AngelList
If you are seeking funding for you business, AngelList is a great social network that can help you seek funding and make connections with those in your community.
6. Fiverr
If you need a logo, social-media cover photo, podcast intro, website content and more, be sure to check out Fiverr. Sure, the gigs start at $5 but that doesn’t mean they are sub par. Look at reviews and actual Fiverr gig samples before deciding on a contractor.
7. Elance
If you need a freelancer for a long-term project or something more extensive, try Elance, a platform that allows you to post projects and find freelancers that have what you are looking for.
8. Wix
Original websites are always a good thing, but if that is lacking in your budgets, Wix is a pretty and simple website builder that has modern templates that almost anyone can edit.
9. ShareDesk or DeskTime
If you need an office or just a place to work for the day, try ShareDesk or DeskTime to find a co-working office or open desk that allows you to have office space without paying for an entire office.
10. Google Now
If you are an Android user, connect your Google account to your phone and take advantage of Google Now, which can tell you when to leave for appointments that are on your calendar, whether or not your flight is delayed or even new articles from websites you frequent often. This “virtual personal assistant of sorts” can help you stay organized and on track, even if you have a lot of balls in the air, as most entrepreneurs do.
11. TripIt Pro
If you fly or travel to a lot for conferences, meeting with investors or clients, or other events, TripIt Pro (there’s also a free, less robust, version) can help you stay on top of flight changes, frequent flyer numbers and more.
12. NerdWallet
Startup NerdWallet offers an array of airline credit cards, which can help you accrue points to fly where ever you need to build your business. Put all your business expenses on a single card — from Dropbox subscriptions to office supplies — and watch the points stack up.
13. Audible/Kindle Unlimited
Amazon’s Kindle Unlimited plan and Audible (also part of Amazon) allow you to listen and read several books from its service each month. Just like SoundGecko, it’s another way to stay up-to-date with business, self improvement and more.
14. AllConferences, Lanyrd, ConferenceAlerts, and Confradar
One great way to build a good business is to meet other entrepreneurs and industry colleagues through conferences. There are several conference search engines available, but some work better in certain industries (and areas) than others. Make sure you check out a variety to see which one fits your needs.
15. Meetup
If you are looking to drum up business within your local community, try Meetup to find networking groups, industry meetings and speakers. EventBrite is also a great place to find tickets to smaller, local events as well.
16. Pinterest
Surprisingly, Pinterest can be a great place to find inspiration for new products and upcoming trends (so you can use them in your own projects), as well as a place to share your products and inspirations as a company. Power personal blender Nutribullet is a good example of a growing company that capitalizes on its audience’s interest in healthy living on Pinterest.
17. LinkedIn Content Platform
Once LinkedIn accepts your request to join its long-form content publishing platform, you have free reign to contribute content as much as you want. While the jury is still out among marketers whether or not Google will flag republished posts as duplicate content, it’s probably best to only post original content on LinkedIn. Because LinkedIn is already such a large platform, its content will get indexed faster and could potentially give you more visibility than your company’s blog.
18. Contently
LinkedIn content is just one way to build your brand through content. You should also set up profiles for your employees on Contently, which automatically creates a writing portfolio for them based on the websites they say they write for.
19. Talkwalker
Think of Talkwalker as Google Alerts, but better. It offers more comprehensive results and more options that allow you to check for mentions of your company online. This helps with public relations and the chance to interact with people who are discussing your brand online.
20. HARO
Help a Reporter Out is an email that goes out multiple times per day, with requests from reporters for sources for their stories. This can turn into free publicity for your company. Be sure to respond ASAP, as some requests can get competitive.
21. HelloSign or EchoSign
These are legally binding digital document signing services that allow you to get contracts, agreements, W2s and more signed quickly and over email. Be sure to check your state’s regulation on these documents, but they usually stand as legal in the majority of states.
22. Join.Me
Going back to working with a distributed workforce, Join.Me allows you to share your screen with another user quickly, for free. All you need is the free software, and the other user can see your screen from their browser. If both of you have the software, however, you can also cede control of your mouse to the other user, allow tutorials, customer service and how-to demonstrations easier than ever.
23. Jing
Jing is a free screencast (screen recording) and screenshot software that makes it easy to record product demos, illustrative how-tos for virtual assistants or screenshots for blog posts and product description pages.
24. PressPass and JustReachOut
If you are looking to reach out to journalists to cover your company, product launch or other news, these directories allow you to search for journalists by beat, industry or region.
25. BlogDash
Like PressPass and JustReachOut but for bloggers, BlogDash allows you to connect with bloggers in your specific niche to review products, sponsor blog giveaways or build relationships. Bloggers have a significant audience base and impact on trends, product sales and more, so it’s important to have a great relationship with them.
By :
In his 13-plus years as a marketer and entrepreneur, Sujan Patel has helped hundreds of companies boost online traffic and sales and strengthen their online brand reputation. Patel is co-founder of ContentMarketer.io & Narrow.io.
First seen here
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