How Content Writing Is Done

by Mark Bloom | Sep 3, 2019 | Small Business Advice

If You Want to Know How We Learn an Industry

Ray Access employs generalists who can write on almost any topic. In that sense, we don’t specialize in any particular topic; we specialize in quality. So how is it possible for generalists to write anything meaningful about a specific business — especially without a face-to-face meeting or a tour?

This question extends into the universe of all content writers. How content writing is done by professionals seems like a mystery to many business owners. After all, the writers initially know very little about a client business. Since the client knows her business and its audience best, shouldn’t she write the content for a new website or blog? It only makes sense.

And that's how content writing is done!

Why Hire Professional Content Writers?

The truth is that business owners are busy people. For small businesses, the owners have to wear many hats and prioritize their work. There’s no such thing as downtime. And their employees, if they have any, have many things to do too. There’s usually no one at the business sitting around waiting to write website copy. Additionally, no one at the business knows how content writing is done. What you end up with may be unusable.

That’s the advantage of hiring professional content writers. Not only do we know how content writing is done, but we know what website visitors look for and expect. Professionals write to the visitors and for the visitors. It’s the visitors they must please, not the business owners. That background and philosophy in how content writing is done separates an OK website from one that shines a light into the darkness of the internet.

So How Does It Work?

The content writers at Ray Access — as well as other content writing companies — know how to research. And thanks to the internet, there is a veritable encyclopedia at their fingertips. Unlike an encyclopedia, though, the internet isn’t comprised entirely of reputable sources of information. In that sense, the internet’s like a gossip columnist: not all of it is trustworthy.

But when you know where and how to look, you can find the most authoritative information available, up to the latest minute, if that’s what you need. It’s not fake news or amateur journalism. We find the facts about an industry from highly respected sources, and then we use that information to craft compelling website content. That’s how good content writing is done.

Tips for How Content Writing Is Done

When you hire Ray Access, we don’t have to know everything about your business to put together compelling website content. The information we need includes:

Your goals for the website
What your company sells — your products or services
What makes your business special, your competitive advantages
Whom you’re targeting and where they are: either in one geographic location or one industry niche, for example
A list of the website pages you want
What keywords you’re targeting
The page length you’re considering — the longer the page, the more search engines love it
A little bit of your background and passion — what you bring to your business

But we don’t have to know everything — or anywhere near as much as you know — about your business to write your website. Remember that we’re not writing for you, but for your audience. The information we don’t need includes:

Your manufacturing process, unless it’s part of what sets you apart
Whether you work from home
What your profit margins are
Your complete bio
Your age, religion, gender, sexual preference, political leanings or the plans for your vacation

Ray Access Writes about Almost Anything!

In other words, we need some information about your particular business, but we can (and do) the research on your industry to get the broader picture. Every industry, from accounting to ziplining, has authoritative sources of information online. That’s where we go to learn. That’s what we use to inform your readers about your business.

As a result of this process, Ray Access has completed websites for many different industries, and this isn’t even a complete list. Click the link to be taken to an example:

When you want to know how content writing is done, ask the experts at Ray Access. We can write your website for affordable rates and within a finite timeline. Don’t draw out or delay your project because of the content. Hire the professionals who know how to get it done!

Ray Access is a content marketing firm that delivers targeted words to empower your business. Contact us about your specific project to receive a quote or discuss your needs. We write website copy, blog posts, e-newsletters and more. Everything we do is thoroughly researched, professionally edited and guaranteed original.

When It’s Time for an Overhaul

by Elle Ray | Aug 27, 2019 | Small Business Advice

Remaking Your Business to Work for You!

It can be daunting when you're looking at an overhaul

People go through it all the time. Perhaps even you came to a crossroads before, when you felt like it was time for an overhaul of your life — physically, mentally, politically or spiritually.

Sometimes, a change of location does the trick. At other times, you may need to change up your exercise routine. Reinvention, rejuvenation, regeneration … whatever you call it, an overhaul often gives us the impetus to accomplish even greater things.

Businesses too, in many aspects, can benefit when it comes time for an overhaul. A new look, an infusion of energy and off you go. Whether your need for change came from a loss of the passionate excitement you first felt for your company or from trends that have changed, you need to make time for an overhaul to keep up.

Where to Start

The first step to rejuvenating your company, as with any reinvention, is to take stock of what you’ve got. Ask yourself what’s working and what’s not. Taking a thorough inventory is a good idea for any business — whether you have widgets to count or not. Measure your success and effectiveness by asking some hard questions of yourself, your partners and your staff:

Are your products and services still relevant? Have you missed any big trends?
What’s the competition doing?
Are you meeting sales goals?
Is your pricing on point?
Are you happy and still excited about going to work every day?

If you don’t know the answers to some of the questions, dig a little deeper and get the answers. If you respond with a “No” to any of these queries, continue to the next step. You’re on your way.

Making Changes: The Hard Part

As much as many entrepreneurs say they love the challenge of starting over, in fact, most people don’t willingly and enthusiastically embrace change. Some just scrap one business, chalking it up to experience, and move on to the next. Instead, consider what you might be able to do to restore the excitement in your current undertaking. As you make time for an overhaul, consider how you can fix what seems to be broken.

Look for solutions. Sometimes, just a little tweaking of your pricing can get you back on the financial track you first projected. Perhaps your messaging needs an update. Websites, for example, should be revamped every three to five years so you don’t look dated and out of touch — or even out of business! Maybe you’ve spread your offerings too thin and need to get back into the niche that set you on the entrepreneurial path in the first place.

Implementing Change: The Harder Part

After you’ve done the research and focused on solutions to your doldrums, it’s time to take action. Don’t hesitate. Consider William Shakespeare’s words:

“Our doubts are traitors and make us lose the good we oft might win by fearing to attempt.”

Or better yet, from Albert Einstein:

“Even if you have to go through hell — go without hesitation.”

Waiting for “just the right time,” or “when I have this or that in place,” too often leaves you with nothing to show. Once you’ve identified that it’s time for an overhaul and set some goals, make like Nike and “Just Do It.”

Accept right up front that you may make some mistakes. Recall when you first started out. You certainly had a number of missteps, as everyone does, but they never stopped you then — you were so full of passion for your project that nothing was going to stand in your way. Let a little of that naiveté reenter your psyche. It’s OK to make mistakes; what’s important is that you push through them to the success that awaits.

When it's time for an overhaul, throw a dance party

Dance All the Way to the Bank!

If anyone tells you that taking time for an overhaul and implementing change is going to be easy, they’re lying to you. Expect a few sleepless nights, when fear most often lays bare its fangs. And don’t expect smooth skating through the whole process.

You’re going to have to shift some of your thought processes and perhaps even toss a few ideas that actually were working out well, but just weren’t giving you that kick you need from running a business. So put on your dancing shoes and get ready to reap the rewards of your continued efforts. And remember: if the boss ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy.

4 Reasons Plastic Surgeons Need the Best Website Content

by Mark Bloom | Aug 20, 2019 | Website Content

Get Plastic Surgery Content that Attracts Clients

Plastic surgery content makes your patients happy to meet you

Plastic surgery has become more and more popular in recent years, as the procedures have become safer and less expensive. Today, more and more practitioners are entering the field to keep up with the growing demand. And it’s not just for the vain: plastic surgery can be medically necessary. In other words, it’s a legitimate medical practice that also improves people’s appearance.

Plastic surgery is a profession that requires a medical degree as a starting point. Additional years of education and training are required before a doctor can practice plastic surgery. Plastic surgeons are medical doctors (MDs) or doctors of osteopathy (DOs). The best ones also claim the title FACS or Fellow of the American College of Surgeons.

While every medical practice benefits from comprehensive and engaging content on their websites and social media, it’s especially critical for plastic surgeons. Presented here are the top four reasons why plastic surgery content matters.

1. Stay in Front of an Increasingly Competitive Marketplace

Most businesses face competition, but plastic surgery practices present a special case. Often, you can find more than one practicing plastic surgeon or medical aesthetician in nearly every mid-sized population center. But there are actually far fewer of them than there are other medical practitioners. For example, in the United States, there are:

1.1 million doctors
More than 550,000 mental health therapists
Almost 210,000 physical therapists
200,000 dentists
44,000 chiropractors
41,000 optometrists
28,000 psychiatrists
18,000 surgeons
But fewer than 7,500 plastic surgeons

In an increasingly competitive marketplace, plastic surgeons must have a strong presence, both online and offline. Potential patients search online for a “plastic surgery practice near me” more often than not. Practices need to be visible online, and that’s what quality plastic surgery content can accomplish.

2. Persuade Your Audience to Trust You

According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, seven of every 10 reviews of plastic surgery practices are positive. But that means three are not. To compensate for negative perceptions of plastic surgeons, you need a website that generates trust. And that’s what plastic surgery content from Ray Access does.

With the right plastic surgery content about the cosmetic issues you address and the procedures you perform — and the realistic risks involved — you can gain a following as a reputable doctor. Your website can’t promise the moon; it has to respect each individual patient’s case. Yet your site has to encourage visitors to contact you. Good quality content straddles that fine line.

3. Other Practices Have Already Jumped on Board

We’d bet that some of your competitors are already jumping into the online marketing arena to advertise their services. If you’re not online, touting your services and results, you’re falling behind. If you don’t stay current, you risk losing business simply because your website is dated or stilted.

The Ray Access principals have experience writing for plastic surgery practices. They understand what your potential patients are seeking. Let them address these points on your website to attract more paying customers.

4. Plastic Surgery Content Makes a Difference

When your website content connects with potential patients, you create a bond that matters. Delivering insight and honesty about your services makes you a trustworthy, likable source of information. When visitors are eventually ready to talk to a professional about their cosmetic goals, your practice is top of mind.

Creating quality plastic surgery content and gaining new patients isn’t a one-to-one correlation. The process takes time to work. You bolster good website content with consistent blog posts and even email newsletters that keep your practice name in front of potential new patients and keep repeat clients coming back.

A Time to Laugh

by Elle Ray | Aug 11, 2019 | Small Business Advice

When Humor at Work Is an Appropriate Thing

Too often, you may think that work has to be all professional and reserved. Clients may not take you seriously, or so you think. Humor has its place, you tell yourself, and that place is after business hours.

But you’ve forgotten about the saying: “Laugh and the world laughs with you.” As small business owners, we consider humor at work to be life-saving. A balance of humor and seriousness is the key to success. We often choose to laugh instead of cry when the going gets rough.

Introduce humor at work to take the edge off

For entrepreneurs and business people in general, humor at work breaks the spell of seriousness. It refuses to allow you to take yourself too sternly. If you’re not having fun, if you’re not at least enjoying your work, then it’s time to leave and find a career path that does delight you. Life is much too short to spend eight, 10 or 12 hours a day in misery!

Well-Documented Laugh Tracks

Famous — and successful — leaders throughout time have extolled the virtues of humor at work:

“A sense of humor is part of the art of leadership, of getting along with people, of getting things done.” — Dwight D. Eisenhower
“A good laugh makes any interview, or any conversation, so much better.” — Barbara Walters
“It is a curious fact that people are never so trivial as when they take themselves seriously.” — Oscar Wilde
“No mind is thoroughly well organized that is deficient in a sense of humor.” — Samuel Taylor Coleridge
“Next to power without honor, the most dangerous thing in the world is power without humor.” — Eric Sevareid

Unfortunately, in an age that’s super-charged with political correctness, being funny, cracking jokes or letting your wit shine can be a tricky proposition. You don’t want to offend, but real humor very often does just that — at least in the eyes of serious, overly-sensitive clients and co-workers.

Why Humor at Work Works

The culture of your workplace and your business overall plays a key role in the amount and kind of humor at work that feels comfortable. As an owner, you obviously set the tone for the company, so be careful if you catch yourself getting too serious as your business grows, when you make more hires and as your client base diversifies.

Instead, laugh every day. You and everyone around you will be grateful you keep it light. There really are some good foundational aspects to this whole funny business side of work too. Consider that your sense of humor may actually go even further by:

Relieving stress. Nothing busts up stress like a good belly laugh.
Boosting creativity. When you’re relaxed, your creative juices flow more easily.
Building goodwill. People do business with people they like. And if you can make them laugh or even smile, you have a much better chance of making friends.
Creating a positive atmosphere. There’s less tension in an environment where people don’t have to constantly worry about busting out with a joke.
Being unique. While your competitors may be burrowing down in serious number-crunching, you and your team are laughing all the way to the bank.

Oh No You Didn’t

It’s tempting to begin taking yourself too seriously as your bank account fattens. Instead, maintain your sense of humor at work so you don’t turn into old Mr. Potter, guarding his money and alienating the entire town of Bedford Falls. Let co-workers and employees see your funny side. Take your clients and staff by surprise every once in a while by busting loose on your own foibles and laughing at yourself.

People trust others who can laugh at themselves. They don’t worry as much about making a mistake, which in turn boosts morale better than any pizza party can. And if you aren’t sure whether to try to bring a little more humor to work today, remember: indecision is the key to flexibility.

Specialized Content for Dental Practices

by Mark Bloom | Aug 6, 2019 | Website Content

Quality Website Content Provides You Benefits

As of 2018, almost 200,000 dentists plied their trade in the United States. That works out to 61 dentists for every 100,000 people. Of the total, about 21 percent consider themselves specialists. That represents a competitive environment, even in smaller cities and towns.

Attract lifetime patients with online content for your website

For most dentists, any competitive advantage translates into more patients for their practices. Since many people today search for a new dentist online, it makes sense that dentists need a strong presence to make a positive first impression on those searching for dental services. That’s the difference great content for dental practices makes.

How People Find Your Dental Practice

In years past, dentists relied on advertising in local media, including newspapers, billboards and radio and television stations. It made sense, since a dentist is essentially a local business. It’s rare for a person to travel to a different city for a dentist. While these advertising channels still exist, they cater to a shrinking base as more and more people turn to the internet for information and referrals.

It’s much more common today for people to search online for terms, such as:

Dentist near me
Top-rated dentist in [your city]
Tooth implants
Affordable dental crown
Best teeth whitening

If your website content for dental practices includes and highlights these phrases, your practice is likely to benefit from higher visibility on the search engines. That means more people will find you. The more people who find you online, the more patients you’ll see coming through your doors.

Ray Access Has Expertise in Dental Websites

Ray Access has completed the content for about a dozen dental websites. These satisfied clients include:

Family practices
Orthodontists
Cosmetic dentists
Pediatric dentists
Emergency dental services

All have focused on quality care, and in each case, their website content has reinforced the expertise of the practices. In each case, the practices have benefitted by having content that attracts more patients. And in every case, the patients benefit by having a reliable resource for dental information.

Ray Access performs authoritative research and delivers content that’s guaranteed original. Contact us for an estimate on your website project. Better yet, consider letting the experts at Ray Access conduct a website assessment to determine how your site can be improved.

Why Do Web Developers Need Content?

by Elle Ray | Jul 30, 2019 | Agency Advice

Content for Developers Make or Break a Site

Website developers create websites, blogs and plug-ins for newsletters, shopping carts and other electronic business necessities. They use different platforms and styles to build their sites, but it often falls within the purview of a web developer to come up with color schemes and designs.

An effective website is made up of many essential pieces. Because of the very nature of websites, content for developers often comes from other sources, such as:

Graphic designers
Photographers
Writers and editors
Marketing consultants
SEO specialists
Videographers
The clients themselves

Content for developers solves problems, with the site, with the client and with the process

In-House or Outsourced?

Any large web development company often employs professionals with the key skills needed to create a website. you may be able to keep a staff prepared to deliver all the necessary components required for a complete package. Outsourcing content for developers to niche, third-party operations like Ray Access, which only provides writing and editing, is a simple and efficient way to handle your company’s needs.

Keeping all the tasks in-house means that your development team must include more project managers and supervisors, forcing a bigger payroll. But you may not always have enough work to keep everyone busy on a full-time basis. When you outsource content for developers, you only have to call on the third-party vendors when you need them. And once you find a third-party provider you trust, the need for oversight disappears.

Benefits of Outsourcing Content for Developers

In addition to the payroll and supervisory positions web developers can avoid when they outsource, web developers receive an abundance of other benefits they may not really appreciate until they’ve tried the outsourcing business model.

Features and benefits that niche firms offer in the form of content for developers include, but certainly aren’t limited to:

Being able to set firm deadlines that third-party vendors adhere to. Contractors know the value of meeting deadlines, especially if they want to keep getting more work from that developer. After all, having projects slowed down waiting for content in one form or another is one of the banes of the developer’s existence.
Relying on professionals that keep up-to-date on best practices of their particular specialty. Contractors must know their area of expertise. So that means web development companies don’t have to bother with continual in-house training. Content for developers designed by specialists follows current design trends, and those change quickly in the online environment.
Taking responsibility off the client is an advantage that most customers appreciate. Building relationships with content providers means developers can confidently offer a complete package to clients without having to hire and train a team to do the work, or at least that part of it.
Paying for content is rolled into the final quote developers give to clients. In this way, the customer knows what the total budget consists of for a final, ready-to-go-live site. Additionally, the practice of outsourcing content for developers gives the developers a cushion onto which they can add a percentage, increasing their own profit margins.

Massaging the Message

Most website designers and developers understand that an effective website is more than just a pretty face. A site can have the flashiest graphics and hottest new interactive features, but if customers can’t find what they’re looking for or if they don’t understand quickly what makes that business special, then that website is nothing more than eye candy.

You must seriously consider the content you use on a site to bolster its effectiveness. Messaging should be a top priority, allowing the site plan, design and content to fit seamlessly together in the final presentation. When a company’s customers visit its website and the content answers questions and makes searching for information easy, the web developer’s clients make sales. And when those clients need to revamp their site, the developers who’ve spent time and energy building a strong outsourced team will get that call!

Why Senior Care Businesses Need Specialized Content

by Mark Bloom | Jul 23, 2019 | Content Provider

The Senior Market Is Exploding; Are You In?

Seniors represent about 32 percent of the American population. But they control more than 77 percent of the country’s total net worth — about $46 trillion, reports the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. And this population is still growing. By 2030, more than one-third of Americans will be older than 50.

Senior care businesses need to attract the elderly and their adult children

As a result of this shift in demographics, the senior care industry is struggling to keep up. With every new solution — whether it’s assisted living, group homes, stay-at-home care or some combination — new business models proliferate. But despite the honorable intention to help elders live with dignity, senior care businesses have had to fight both a negative public perception and increased competition.

New Marketing Challenges

When it comes to marketing strategies, senior care businesses can reach local markets with print and billboard advertising. But the U.S. population is on the move. Florida and Arizona are popular retirement destinations, and other areas across the South, including Western North Carolina, are rapidly gaining popularity. The point is that many moneyed retirees aren’t staying put.

Suddenly, print advertising has become ineffectual because a senior care facility can’t afford to advertise everywhere their clients are coming from. And the adult children of elders are searching for solutions the way they know: on the internet. So the senior care industry has been forced to move into the online space to compete.

Where to Turn for Assistance and Guidance

Senior care businesses need attractive websites, targeted online ads, effective landing pages and magnetic blog posts to reach their intended market. Each of these strategies require engaging content. To take advantage of the latest explosion of online opportunities, turn to Ray Access.

Ray Access helps your business grow by creating unique copy to connect with seniors and their children. You have to engage the family decision-makers and provide the compelling reasons that make your facilities stand out. That’s how you reach your intended audience and persuade them to contact you. Ray Access has the expertise and experience to create content for senior care businesses that:

Answers questions potential clients have about elder care in general and about your facilities in particular
Enables you to stand out as a trusted source in the industry
Markets your services and facilities as the best solution to elder care in your location
Connects with families who want the best reasonably-priced facilities for their aging parents
Engenders trust in your business that you do what you say you’ll do

Understanding How Your Clients Make Important Decisions

The internet has replaced the public library for research purposes. More and more people go online to find answers and look for businesses that offer what they need. So you can bet that seniors and their caretakers are going to evaluate your website before they call. You need to make the best first impression with a modern design and relevant, clear copy.

Senior care businesses need to keep their message simple

Your prospective clients search for the breadth of services you offer. Does your website list everything you provide in an accessible and easy-to-understand way? Your website needs to describe your:

Long-term care facilities
In-home health care options
Transportation services
Local community events
Assistive technology providers
Elder care nutritionists
Specialized physical therapists
Estate and financial planners
End-of-life advisors

Improve Your Internet Presence

When potential clients and patients find your business online, your website and your blog must tell visitors that your facilities and services are:

Up-to-date with access to the latest technology
Run by experienced, compassionate individuals
Flexible enough to take care of all kinds of elders’ needs
Taking new clients

If your website and blog show that you’re generous with your industry knowledge, you create the impression of trust, and that’s the first valuable commodity your website can deliver. Remember, your website is always on. Turn your website into a marketing engine that brings new clients to your business. It’s this second commodity that makes your website a valuable investment in your business.

How a Blog Helps Senior Care Businesses

To succeed in business, you need a website that communicates your value and your values. An effective website, therefore, needs a blog that attracts more visitors. That’s the role of a blog: your promoted articles reach out into the internet with relevant topics that your website hasn’t, or can’t, cover.

Blogging helps senior care businesses and their potential clients

With a blog, you can explain to seniors and their caregivers everything they need to know: from the constantly changing technology and complex medical procedures to the latest social findings and innovative living solutions. With Ray Access on your team, you’ll never run out of fresh new topics. Give readers answers to questions and food for thought. They’ll remember you when they’re ready to make a decision. With great copy, your website can:

Establish your expertise
Educate your audience
Share new ideas
Take a stand on topical issues
Promote best practices
Clear up controversies

Online Content that’s on Target

Your website must address topics that interest elders and their caregivers. Let Ray Access transform your website into a trusted source of information that your target audience wants to share. It’s time to grab your share of the senior care market that’s trending upward everywhere, with all ages scrambling to deal with a burgeoning population with specific needs and desires.

Ray Access benefits senior care businesses with:

A welcoming home page to let visitors know they’ve come to the right place
Landing pages that improve your conversion rate
Weekly blog posts that attract a larger audience
Services pages that communicate your value clearly
Thoroughly researched medical and psychological treatment pages
Friendly staff profiles to encourage people to like you
Press releases to announce new services or facilities

Be the voice of authority with regularly published content. Become the go-to player in the field of senior care, activities and interests. Create a reputation for making complicated subjects understandable. Let Ray Access take your company to the top of all senior care businesses. Contact Ray Access now for an online presence that propels your business into the future.

How Long Does a Landing Page Need to Be?

by Mark Bloom | Jul 16, 2019 | Agency Advice

How much landing page content do you need? Not this much.

Create Landing Page Content That Drives Sales

You won’t find a magic formula that delivers customers to your business via the internet. You can’t copy a template, change the landing page content and assume your business will prosper. Every business, it seems, has to figure out for itself what works.

Still, best practices exist. Every landing page needs certain elements to be successful, even though those elements can look very different from page to page. So while there’s no magic formula that works every time, a framework in which to operate does exist. But first, let’s agree on the definition of certain terms.

What You Need to Know First

When talking about landing page content, you must understand the key terms. This article defines these terms as follows:

Web page. A website page is a page on your website. The Home page is your root or base page, from which visitors can access your other pages (for example, About or Contact). Due to the nature of search engines, visitors may not always enter your site from your Home page.
Landing page. This website page is not the same as your Home page. It’s a specially-created page that may not even be accessible through your website navigation menu. Its job is to get visitors to follow through on a call to action. It’s the focus of this article.
SEO. Search engine optimization is the practical science behind ranking high in a search engine results page (SERP) to draw more traffic to your website. SEO encompasses many techniques because what works best is constantly changing, based on the search engine algorithms.
Search engine algorithms. Each search engine, such as Google or Bing, uses a formula to determine which website or web page ranks higher than the others on a SERP. The algorithms are controlled by the search engines, and they change from time to time.
PPC. Pay-per-click advertising is a standard internet model for advertising. For PPC to work, you build an ad that shows up when someone searches for a specific keyword or keyword phrase. You only pay when people click on your ad — but you pay whether they buy from you or not.

How Does a Landing Page Work?

If you’re running a PPC campaign, the ad should direct all traffic — on the click — to a landing page with content that reaffirms what the ad claimed. If you’re using an email marketing campaign, the technique is different, but the result should be the same: a clickthrough that sends the email recipient to a landing page.

Never send a potential customer to your Home page from a targeted marketing campaign because it often contains too much information, too many things to do and very little direction.

Your landing page content must contain a targeted message written to connect with the person who landed there. Whoever clicks though to your landing page already has interest in one of your products or services. All you have to do is persuade him to act. That’s the purpose of a landing page.

The Elements of a Successful Landing Page

Since landing page content is by nature rhetorical — in other words, its purpose is to persuade a person to act or behave a certain way — the language needs to connect to the specific target audience. The best way to connect and to get people to act is to reach them on an emotional level. To do that, every landing page needs to feature elements such as:

A re-enforcing heading. If your PPC or email campaign promised a solution to a problem, the heading should reiterate the problem and promised solution. This technique lets visitors know they landed in the right place.
A sub-heading that promises an answer to a problem. The sub-heading is eye-catching and is the second thing a visitor is likely to read. It should contain an “umpf” factor that supports the reason the visitor has clicked through to the landing page.
An engaging photo that visitors can relate to. Think about what a customer will look like when he buys your product or service and uses it successfully. What’s the outcome and how can you capture it in an image or video? Landing page content isn’t complete without graphics.
The benefits of your product or service. How does what you’re offering solve people’s problems? Why should someone buy from you and not your competitors? In short: what’s in it for them?
Social proof. You need testimonials. You need photos of smiling customers to accompany those testimonials. And they need to be real and verifiable. If potential customers see that others have used your product or service and rave about it, that’s strong marketing medicine.
A strong call to action. Don’t litter your landing page content with lots of options. Your landing page needs but one distinct call to action, whether it’s to sign up for your newsletter, buy your product or service, contact you for a special offer, whatever. Your call to action needs to be compelling and unavoidable. The best calls to action add time-sensitive reasons for acting right away.

So How Much Landing Page Content Do You Need?

There’s no magic number that ensures success. If you’ve included all the required elements, your landing page can be 250 words or 1,000 words. The answer often depends on your target market, as it does for many business decisions. Do they read at length? Do they prefer video? Do they really need a lot of reinforcement or are they ready to buy when they click through to the landing page?

Your best bet is to cover your bases. Make sure the elements are covered completely. Make sure every graphic is needed and adds to the story you’re creating. Just like on every normal web page, everything you put on a landing page should contribute to the purpose of the page. If you think your landing page content is too long or too short, test it on different audiences. A/B testing is a staple of marketing. But that’s another subject.

A Blog a Day Keeps Competitors Away

by Elle Ray | Jul 9, 2019 | Blog Writing

Your Business Blog Posts Serve a Purpose

Blogging is the 21st century version of the persistent chatter you hear while walking through a carnival: it’s loud, it’s targeted, and it’s constantly in your face as you amble past the tents. The chatter represents calls to action, each more enticing than the last.

Business blog posts call attention to your business.

Your business blog posts may not be that loud (as in, all caps) and they may not urge your readers to buy, buy, buy. But regular blog posts carry a daily persistence as they pop up in emails and social media sites. While your blog is targeted, it’s only in your face to get Likes from your current and future customers, not to drain your wallet.

The more often you blog, the more of a presence you carry online, on mobile devices and in the minds of consumers. You may not being producing a blog a day — few business blogs do — but the closer you can get to that number, the greater your chances of snagging a savvy passer-by who needs your product or service today.

How Often Should You Blog?

Many factors go into making a decision about how often you should create and post new business blog posts to your website and promotional channels. Some people say that they don’t like to be “hammered” with daily blogs while others look forward to a good daily read that promises to make their day better in some way — by imparting important information, cluing them in to trends or just making them smile.

For sure, one well-written blog a week is much better than daily drab bits of online clutter. But if you’re looking to bump up your content marketing strategy, consider a few guidelines to help you decide on the ideal number of days your business blog posts need to appear to make a real difference to your bottom line:

Your industry. Some industries — certainly tech, tourism and teaching — go through milestone changes overnight on a regular basis. And they produce a lot of newsworthy information that industry insiders need to have as they make important decisions throughout the day. If you’re in a hot industry or in the peak of your industry’s season, business blog posts every day are considered must-do marketing strategies.
Your budget. In the bad old days, entrepreneurs did everything themselves (or it didn’t get done). Today, with third-party vendors like Ray Access ready to fill all your business blog needs, your valuable time doesn’t have to be spent writing and editing. Let someone else do it. Your marketing budget goes so much further with a constant internet presence filled with quality business blog posts than from what you’d spend on TV ads or even carnival barkers.
Your SEO. Search engines love, love, love new content. They reward you handsomely for producing fresh, quality content every day. Daily (and even weekly) blogs give your readers more than enough chances to interact with your company and pass on links they find useful, creating even more interaction with your business. According to HubSpot, “companies that published 16+ blog posts per month got almost 3.5 times more traffic than companies that published between zero and four monthly posts.”
Your competition. How often are your competitors blogging? If they’re getting more eyeballs than you and repeatedly beating you to the punch when it comes to delivering updates and fresh takes on topics that affect the lives and businesses of your clients, you’re in trouble. Be the trendsetter, set the benchmark for your competitors to try to beat, be the big dog when it comes to followers and set the tone for your industry, your community and your own business — a tone that says, “we see you, you matter, and here’s proof.”

Six Steps to Better Website Content

by Guest Blogger | Jul 1, 2019 | Website Content

Improve Your Website with Quality Content

Everyone wins when you ensure your website has quality content

Website design isn’t just about making your site look pretty with rainbows and flowers or dazzling with special effects; your business website needs to be designed so that your customers easily find what they’re looking for. While you may think a nice logo and quality photographs of your products are vital, it’s actually your content that’s most important. Content — the words on the page — are often an overlooked factor in determining the effectiveness of your website.

Design alone doesn’t bring customers in and sell products to them.

Now, it’s OK to want a great design, a catchy logo, a memorable tagline and clear navigation buttons. In fact, you can use available tools to design and publish your own website, if you wish. But don’t forsake content for the other components of your site. Content is what drives search engines to you, enabling your site to show up high in search engine results. Good content also helps your customers.

Why Quality Content Is Still King

You may have the best designed website in the world, but if people don’t find it, it’s of absolutely no value to your business. Your website has to be discoverable, and to be discovered, it needs to show up in search results. People conduct searches before making a purchase, so get your site to show up in those searches.

There are many content strategies, but bear this in mind: While it’s important to have an About Us page and product or service pages on your website, consider having an area devoted to content, like a blog. A blog that you post on your site gives you a reason to provide fresh material, which appeals to search engines and customers. And it’s pages, not websites, that are ranked by search engines.

This means content rules when it comes to SEO.

Your content must be well written. It has to be compelling. It has to connect with your visitors. But there are other aspects that are just as important to include in your content so that it rises to the top in search engine results. Follow these six steps to make your content king.

1. Include Keywords

Any content you create has to include keywords — the terms with which your customers use to find your website. For instance, your keywords could be words that describe your product or service. If your business sells glasses, for example, your keywords may include:

Glasses
Glasses in [your city]
Sunglasses
Best glasses
Popular glasses
Safety glasses
Shades
Spectacles
Specs

You get the idea. Use the keywords you choose as naturally as possible so that search engines connect your website to the words you want your business to be known for. If you already have content on your site, review it to ensure it reflects the keywords you want to highlight.

You wouldn’t mind if your site showed up more than once in a specific search, would you? Imagine if someone sees your site pop up several times in a single search. That builds trust for your business. That’s another value of having targeted blog posts.

2. Answer Questions

People have started using actual questions when conducting internet searches, particularly with voice searches courtesy of virtual assistants like Alexa and Siri. Your content should address actual questions that your customers are searching for, such as: “When do I need to wear safety glasses?” A frequently asked questions page can be a great resource for driving search results.

Answer questions your visitors may ask

Search engines sometimes pull answers directly off websites, including a link to the site as credit for the answer. If your site is selected as having the best answer to a query, it may result in your site being found for other types of search queries, too. Using keywords and questions in your content — particularly those that are actual search terms people use to look for your product or service — drives results to your page.

3. Include Internal or Inbound Links

While preparing content, add inbound links. In other words, link to other relevant pages on your site. Internal links tie your website together, both for search engines and for visitors. Internal links also help your SEO. They help search engines find, index and understand your site.

In addition, inbound links provide added understanding and context for visitors. When you provide answers to questions through links, it builds trust. Additionally, internal links keep visitors on your site, which is also good for SEO.

4. Make It Share-able

People tend to share content that they find informative or insightful, so having quality content helps you with the share factor. When your content is shared, it helps increase the visibility of your business. It also ensures more people have access to your content.

Share-able content drives traffic to your website and adds more connections to your business as those shares proliferate. Since social media continues to grow, those shares help you grow your brand presence. That’s why you must have good quality content that people want to like and share through social media and on your website.

5. Provide Value to Those Who Land on Your Site

Once customers and potential customers reach your site — via search engine results, social media or some other route — you have to give them something valuable. When visitors stay on your site, it reduces your bounce rate, the measure of customers who leave your site after arriving. And here’s the kicker:

Bounce rate is bad for SEO.

Having quality content engages visitors and keeps them on your site. They want to read what you have to share, and they may even share it directly from the site. They’ll come to trust your brand. They’ll want to return to your site. Maybe they’ll even buy something when they’re ready. Increased engagement leads to higher traffic, more conversions and exponential sharing, all of which are good for business.

6. Keep It Fresh

To stay engaging, keep posting new content on your site — and that doesn’t mean a new About Us page every day. Provide fresh content on relevant topics. Search engines love that.

For instance, Google figures out if there’s a popular search phrase and then looks for newer content on the topic. That content gets rewarded with enhanced search results. Make sure you’re staying on top of the trends in your industry and keep producing quality content that’s of interest to search engines and customers.

Final Thoughts

Content has become one of the most important components in SEO. That’s true for blog posts, website content, frequently asked questions and social media content. By including valuable, relevant, updated resources on your site, you improve your SEO and increase your brand awareness.

Fresh, quality content builds trust in your customers and potential customers, and it displays your business as an expert in your industry. These six steps to better website content enable your business to wear a content king crown. And that’s worth a little extra investment.

Guest Post Author Bio: Danielle Canstello is part of the team at Pyramid Analytics. They provide enterprise-level analytics and business intelligence software. In her spare time, Danielle writes around the web to spread her knowledge of the marketing, business intelligence and analytics industries.

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