In case you haven’t heard the buzz online, the Google core update that rolled out in August 2024 has had a major impact on page views and user traffic for more than a few websites. As per Google, the update aims to improve search results so they’re geared toward reader service and are “genuinely useful.”
Sounds vague, right? It all ties back to Google’s focus on E-E-A-T, which stands for experience, expertise, authoritativeness and trustworthiness. In other words, page rankings on search aren’t just about SEO, but a whole slew of factors. Now, instead of working on optimizing a page with the likes of keywords and meta text, creators need to also strongly consider things like brand reputation, site longevity ...
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If you want to know why brand voice matters to your company’s success, just remember the chicken sandwich wars.
Back in the distant social media past of 2019, Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen launched a chicken sandwich. Chick-fil-A apparently took exception to this, tweeting what the New York Times called “a thinly veiled critique” of the new offering.
Thus, the first salvo of the chicken sandwich wars was fired. Within 15 minutes, Popeyes’ Twitter account returned fire with the now-immortal words “…y’all good?”
The tweet went viral, leading to such massive demand for the new Popeyes sandwich that lines formed around the block at local Popeyes restaurants and the company eventually had to concede it had simply run out of the popular offering.
While creating ...
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The end of the year is somehow fast approaching already, so if you’re in the travel industry, now is a great time to plan your content for the 2025 travel season. To help you out, we’ve compiled some emerging travel trends from around the web — and offered some thoughts on how to approach those trends creatively in your content.
Focus on Greater Health (and Less Booze)
For years now, there has been a growing trend, especially among younger people, to take better care of their bodies. A trademark example of this trend is the phenomenon of shrinking alcohol consumption, especially among the younger generations.
While many tourism destinations are rightfully proud of their microbreweries and distilleries (and there is great value ...
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You already know that email marketing is key to reaching your customers. But do you have the right targeting system in place to reach the people who are actually most likely to buy from you?
Here are just a few targeting filters you should consider implementing to ensure you’re reaching your optimal audience:
Location: Do you want to reach only people in your city or county? Or people within a day’s drive?
Age: Is your ideal audience young and single, just starting a family or on the verge of retirement?
Income: Do you only want to reach people over a certain income threshold?
Lifestyle interests: Maybe your product or service is something that mainly appeals to, say, homeowners or hobby ...
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As any business owner today likely knows, social media is a powerful tool. Whether that means setting up a strong Google Business Profile or managing a Facebook page, business professionals need to have a pulse on what their online presence looks like. Unsurprisingly, few platforms garner as much attention as Instagram. For business owners, the photo- and video-based platform can serve as a major asset to help promote products and services or get the word out about new offerings.
Here are a few tips to make the most of the platform:
1 | Craft strong captions with a consistent voice
A picture may be worth a thousand words, but that doesn't mean you should ignore the caption. Instead, use the caption space ...
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With the much-discussed advent of generative AI — artificial intelligence that can produce various kinds of content based on prompts from a user — it’s become easier than ever to plug your information into an algorithm and let it do the work for you. But should you?
It’s true that AI is constantly learning and getting smarter. But the truth of the matter is that, for now, AI tools still struggle with creating certain kinds of imagery — for example of human hands and feet.
Then there’s the fact that AI learns by scraping existing information off the internet. What this means in practice is that any kind of design AI creates for you is going to be based on something ...
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I’m sure you’ve heard at least one or two people talk about digital marketing, and maybe you’ve heard mention of a decision-making sales funnel too. But how are the two related and what do they mean for your business?
The sales funnel is a way of visualizing a potential customer’s decision process. At the top of the funnel, you have customers researching a vague problem and discovering potential solutions. In the middle of the funnel are customers who have defined their problem and the sort of solution they need. At the bottom are customers who are ready to make an informed purchasing decision.
Ideally, you want customers to discover your brand as a potential solution for their problem right at the ...
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A Google Business Profile is a powerful way to help your business on search — and it’s easier to manage than you think.
You know that moment when you’re searching for something on Google and you see a business profile card pop up? That’s a Google Business Profile page in action. A built-in feature on the search engine, these free profiles offer businesses the chance to develop a strong first impression online. And, since more than 83% of the global population uses Google as its primary search engine, according to Statista, chances are high that a Google Business Profile will get more than a few eyeballs on it.
So how can you set up your Google Business Profile?
1 | Google Your ...
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You’ve heard the term “SEO” tossed around, but chances are you’re not 100% sure what it means. It stands for search engine optimization, and it’s a critical technique to ensure you’re taking steps to help your content perform as well as it possibly can online. Here are a few best practices to get you started on optimizing your content for websites, social media or membership directories.
1 | Consider length and structure.
Sure, you want the quality of what you’re putting onto the internet to be top-notch. What’s just as important, however, is making sure it’s optimally structured. Start by making sure your content is the right length for the platform on which it will be hosted. If it’s a social ...
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Curious about AI, otherwise known as artificial intelligence? There are many ways this oft-discussed technology can benefit businesses of all sizes… if you know how to leverage the tools properly. Here are a handful of AI platforms that might be useful.
ChatGPT
Arguably the most discussed of all AI platforms, ChatGPT is an OpenAI chatbot that can do many things for businesses. Sales professionals can use it to help draft pitch letters, while marketers can use it to brainstorm copy for everything from email blasts to posters to social media posts. For writers and editors, ChatGPT can serve as a proofreading tool to help catch spelling errors and make text more concise. To use it, simply create an account, enter a ...
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