Blogs

If your website takes 2 seconds to load, only 9.6% of customers are bouncing off your page. However, if the page is taking 7 seconds or more to load, an alarming 32% of customers are running away from your website. Brian Dean did a study in which he concluded that Google PageSpeed is one of the most relevant factors when it comes to revenue generation. Marketers are finding ways to beat their competitors, eliminate friction, and make page loading time their competitive advantage to grab the attention of target customers. Plenty has been written to optimize a website for better speed, but nothing proves more useful than the Google PageSpeed Insights tool.

What Exactly is the Google PageSpeed Insights tool?

Unless you are living in a cave, far far away from humans, you must have already heard about the Google PageSpeed Insights tool. For others, it is an authentic tool by Google, designed to optimize the performance of the website. The tool will give you an option to improve the performance of some aspects of the page, which will boost the overall page speed. The tool can be used for both mobile and desktop, which gives every website a chance to rise above their competitors.

1. Start By Designing a Responsive Website

Imagine this. You’ve created an excellent website for desktop users. The interface, the colors, and the graphics are making users fall head over heels in love with the website. However, somewhere around the globe, some people hate your website. Why? Because when they try to access your website on a mobile device, the pixels are distorted. The design is displaced. Moreover, the so-called interface doesn’t seem aesthetically pleasing to them. I don’t know about you, but as a marketing professional, I know what it feels like to design a website that is responsive in nature and works well across every device. You can check the responsiveness of your website by visiting the following website. A responsive website will improve the user experience which will help Google rank your website higher in the Google search pages. Last year, Google launched its mobile-first indexing, which gave mobile page load speed a significant place in their algorithms. So, now you know that mobile page speed is vital to ranking your website in Google search results.

2. Optimize Your Images

Some people are already doing it while others don’t even pay attention to the pictures on the website. As per the guidelines by Google, you need to incorporate quality images in your website. Embed titles, and alt text in every image. Most importantly, use a sitemap for images which will help Google organize your photos in a better way. Use Squoosh to optimize your images. Of course, using responsive images is a must. Furthermore, use safe search images which will increase your chances of ranking your website higher. It is prudent to read the SEO guidelines before you start working on the SEO of the website.

3. Instead of Quantity, Focus on the Quality of the Code

If the code on your website is good, the webpage will load fast. Use Pingdom to know precisely which of the codes on your website need more simplification. Reduce the CSS code in your website. Try to use inline formatting whenever it is possible for you. It is best advised to avoid any intensive WordPress themes or bulky codes. Instead, it is better to use a clean HTML 5 template. Google uses several machines to gather data from the website. If the code on the site is not well-structured. It will give Google a hard time. And this is not something you want for your website. Google PageSpeed Insights enables search engines to look for straightforward codes. And rank the websites based on the simplicity of the code.

4. Focus on Browser Cache

Whenever you visit a website, the web browser stores data such as HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and images in the local cache. This makes things easier when you visit the website the next time. When the cache is stored, it gives access to the same browser and reduces the delay that occurs when rendering the website. When the browser cache is implemented. And it will help load the website faster. A professional hosting service might already be using a browser cache. However, if you want to implement the browser cache, you can always go for the W3 Total Cache plugin.

5. Accelerated Mobile Pages

When building a website, it is good to learn from the best. The best startup websites employ Accelerated Mobile Pages to pull up data and present it in a decluttered manner. Here are the three reasons why you must use Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_swfNlBPP8 A mere 1-second delay in loading the webpage can drop the conversion rates by 7%. Studies have shown that using AMP pages to fetch data from a website can reduce the number of server requests by 77%. This means that a website will load faster regardless of the device used to browse the website.

6. When it Comes to Website Design, Less is More

A clean website is not always attention-grabbing for users but Google PageSpeed Insights necessitates website owners to simplify their website designs. A clutter-free website design will reduce the load time of the website. Using simple triggers can boost the UX of your website. The Speed Insight tool will help you eliminate all the extra space that your website is consuming, and you can ask your website developer to mitigate any further damage.

To Conclude it All

As a skilled marketer, it is essential to learn website optimization and the holistic approach to every piece of the puzzle that constitutes the site. Furthermore, web speed optimization is an ongoing project. There is no limit to it. You can take six months and still feel that it is not enough. However, PageSpeed Tool can help you ton. Use the above rules as a guideline and starting point to familiarize yourself with the tool, and start setting clear goals on how you plan to use it to craft your long-term content marketing strategy.

Try to Envisage Apps as products in a supermarket. There is fierce competition between two things: shelf space and consumer attention. In the digital store, however, there are no shelves. The discovery occurs with a bottleneck. How can consumers buy apps that don’t show up in the first place? Here is where app store optimization kicks in. To get above the fold, smart owners focus their efforts on app store optimization. By optimizing keywords, icons, and other assets, the apps are being optimized to ensure that they secure a prominent spot in the app store. Staying visible in the app store takes a lot of dedication and challenging work. This is why companies often get more downloads in one country and leave many opportunities on the table, untouched. Imagine if the company does work on app store optimization, how easily can they reach a global market? However, before you go nuts by stuffing keywords in your app description or think up ways of getting your app highlighted in the app store, there are some app store optimization basics that you need to learn & master. Previously it was assumed that long-tail keywords could hack the algorithm of Google. However, as algorithms evolved, it was clear that just using killer keywords was not enough.

What is App Store Optimization (ASO)?

App Store Optimization is also known by other names such as App Store Marketing and Mobile App SEO. The core focus of App Store Optimization is to increase the ranks of the mobile application in the App Store and iTunes. The apps are created especially for Android, iPhone/iPad, and Windows phones. Most people focus on app store optimization to boost downloads, but the goals extend to include:

• Increasing the brand
• Enhancing the engagement of users.
• Getting positive reviews and ratings.

If you still need some motivation to indulge in app store optimization, here’s some food for thought: In the year 2017 alone, there were 270 billion app downloads, a significant boost from 224.8 billion in 2016. When you compare this to the decline in social media growth, you will be able to conclude that ASO should be your priority, regardless of the size of your business.

In-Store App Store Strategies

Research has revealed that iPhone apps generate 75% more income than Android ones. Unless you don’t know your math, this alone can be a good reason to opt for app store optimization. While optimizing apps, here are a few pointers that you can leverage to make your app prominent in the app store:

• App URL, name, and subtitle: You must ensure that the name and URL incorporate all the major keywords which are used to describe your app. It’s important to use keywords which reflect the thought process of each user. For instance, what keywords will the users type while searching for your app?
• Ratings of the App: The app store focuses on mobile apps that have positive reviews and fresh ratings. Ensure that users who’ve used your app, review it for the next potential user.

• App downloads: More downloads would bring your app in front of the radar. They would like to know more about your app. They will be curious as to why people are using your app, and they will do the same to follow the trend.
• App Store keywords: Much research is required to keep the keywords fresh and match them to the queries of the users. However, when done regularly, it can raise the rank of your app.

Scrutinize the Local Culture

According to some experts, the concept of localization is nothing more than “wash, rinse, and repeat”. This basically boils down to the fact that for every geographical location, you need to plan a different strategy. However, before you dive into the 12-foot pool, you must learn how to swim flawlessly in a small pool. There is an art of understanding the local dynamics of society. For instance, if you approach an app development agency in New York, you’ll see that the agency is less about money and more about value, while an app agency in Dubai focuses more on presentation than the actual usability of the app. Paying meticulous attention to certain aspects of your app is necessary. For example, the color, images, and the user interface. Some colors are given more preference in some cultures. Do your due diligence and use common sense!

A Specialized App is Easy to Optimize

A quick way to highlight your app in the app store is to develop a specialized app, such as a Calendar app or Google Maps. For instance, pick a famous publisher like ESPN and make a mobile app for them, or a radio app, or even a live video app. However, if you’re going for one app, ensure that you put everything into it. Since it is a specialized app, it must offer some unique benefits. Take the Waze app as an example. It’s used for navigation, just like Google Maps, but what sets the Waze app apart is its updates from law enforcement activities, speed cameras, speed limits, and traffic accidents.

One Major Mistake that App Owners Need to Avoid

The biggest mistake that people make while doing app store optimization is not utilizing the website to bring traffic to the app page. Create a separate landing page that will direct users to the app download section. Don’t treat your website as something separate. It is an integrated part of your marketing strategy. By using the website, you can drive users deeper into the sales funnel and engage them to buy/download your app from the App Store. As we all know, the content in the app store is limited to app stores. So, using content from a landing page can leverage the app awareness and discovery of your mobile app. This can act as a traffic magnet and create app authority without spending any extra budget. You’ve created an app which might be good for the local market, but it will take time to scale the app on a global level. But we all know that developing an app is only a good start; what lies ahead is much more challenging. Discovering the market and what will strike the chord is impossible to predict. Start from simple app store optimization. Use the above strategies to maximize your gains and make the app popular among your target audience. Oh, by the way, if you don’t have an app, we would love to develop one for you.

Who would have thought that a simple app for kids could become the next big thing? Now it is a no-nonsense tool for selling, marketing, driving traffic, and even generating sales for your business. With over 1 billion monthly users and 500 active daily users, Instagram is the gold-standard social media platform that created a lot of buzz in the past few years and is not aiming to stop. You cannot ignore the numbers. People are using Instagram to generate sales right from their homes. Businesses are using Instagram to generate leads. Every Entrepreneur is working hard to learn how to get more Instagram followers. How do you generate more sales? And how to outlast their competitors by using Instagram. Sure, engagement on Facebook looks great on paper. But when it comes to lead generation, Instagram is on the winning end. The goal of this blog is to turn you into an Instagram unicorn. You’ll not only learn how to increase Instagram followers, but you’ll also be able to turn visitors into raving fans. Just append these Instagram hacks to your social media strategy. These tips will help you to create attention-grabbing headlines, profiles, and post on Instagram like a star to gain visibility and engagement.

Use Dedicated Hashtags Wisely

There is no harm in creating a #tomsmechanic hashtag. Kind of gosh wow. But how will your users know about this hashtag unless you use it in every picture, campaign, and social media platform? Whether it is your social media profiles, brochures, print ads, or signage in an event. When getting help from conventional marketing mediums like TV and radio, ensure that everything is well-integrated. Anyone listening or watching your ads on TV should be able to recognize your brand with a hashtag.

Be Creative with Hashtags

Sometimes being simple can take you to unimaginable heights. While everyone was busy searching for the right hashtags, Airbnb came up with #WeAccept and took social media by storm. The goal of the brand was to showcase support for a critical ethical issue. Everything began with a small inspirational video by Airbnb. The momentum started when people from different backgrounds started sharing their pictures. The hashtag became an instant hit. When it comes to writing hashtags, it is best not to use those typical one-word hashtags. Sure, you can use them if you’re a creative Airbnb. But if you want to gain the attention of the users – be funny, outrageous, or even ironic.

Participate in Trending Conversations

For every post, you must use relevant hashtags. For instance, if you are a furniture company and want to share behind-the-scenes photos, you can use #woodworking. Success lies in simplicity. If you look at the Domino Pizza 2012 campaign, there was nothing special about the hashtag. A simple #LetsDoLunch tag went viral when Domino announced that pizza prices would go down with every tweet. This not only helped build a community around the brand. In fact, people were eager to share the tweet to earn the cheapest Pizza. It was 85,000 tweets later (in just one day). Can you really believe that? If you want to take part in popular conversations, search for trending hashtags. Once you have 3-4 tags, use these tags along with the content that you’re producing. When a toy becomes part of the bigger conversation, people stop and take notice. This is the attention which brands crave. Do some research and you will be able to optimize your content for better reach.

Detailed Descriptions Never Hurt a Bit

A picture is considered a substitute for a thousand words. But without words, the depth and meaning of the picture cannot be revealed. That’s why it’s necessary to use detailed captions for all your photos. National Geographic is great storytelling. While traditional media focuses on just photos, National Geographic on social media uses the power of captions to steal all the attention. You might be thinking that you’re not a writer, how you can write so much. The trick is to amaze the user with interesting facts or humor. Whatever you do, don’t miss the chance to astonish your users with captivating captions. In the start, it might sound difficult but as you do it more, things will get easier.

Tap into Influencer Marketing

If you’re interested in attracting more followers for your brand and learning how to get followers on Instagram, the best approach is to follow the influencers on Instagram. Visit the profiles of each influencer and see which one is relevant to your niche. Just turn on the post notification feature and see what they’re posting at different times of the day. When the influencers ask for help, move forward and help them without looking for some favor. If you help them a few times, this will bring your brand to their attention and they will mention you in their profile. Apart from this, you can use these quick tips to increase your Instagram following fast.

• Use images to which people can relate.
• Figure out the best time to post on social media and post at that time.
• Ask followers to caption your photos.
• Analyze. Repeat.
• Use relevant hashtags.
• Fill your profile with all the services.
• Use persuasive CTA with every picture.
• Use filters to create a personal touch in the photo.

Over to You

How many followers do you have on Instagram? What is the best tactic you have used to attract followers? Let us know what is working for you. Are you willing to boost your sales? Let us help you with our digital marketing strategy.

Sales were dropping. The company needed a new strategy to boost sales. Dunkin Donuts came up with a unique campaign to increase their sales in Seoul, South Korea. “The essential difference between emotion and reason is that emotion leads to action while reason leads to conclusions.” ~Donald Calne Dunkin Donuts sprayed the smell of Coffee on the local buses. The spray known as ‘Flavor Radio’ squirted into the nostrils of more than 35,000 people. The effect: Sales went up 29%. [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2tP-FAn6u8[/embed] Dunkin Donuts used Atmospheric Marketing to increase its sales. A marketing strategy designed to influence the emotions of customers by making changes in the environment. With a physical store, you can enhance purchase probability by making little changes in your environment. Do you think your local café sells better Coffee than Starbucks? Maybe. But if all your senses are doing fine, you will realize how getting Coffee from Starbucks makes you feel. It is the feeling that makes all the difference. You can present many arguments to support the fact that one of the factors that persuades the customer to buy from you. But everything aside, the most genuine form of sales is when customers buy with their emotions. A lot has been written on how to increase online sales and boosting online sales is a tormenting process. Sure, a professional digital agency can help you increase your online sales, but if you want to keep the customers for long haul you must study how emotions can help to pump up your online sales. Fret not! We are not just an awesome digital marketing company; we are in the business of educating our visitors to grow, to lead, and to succeed in this world. Therefore, we have gathered some insanely wonderful data on how to increase online sales without spending a fortune on your advertising.

Why are Emotions Important?

Dale Carnegie in one of his books said, “When dealing with people, remember you are not dealing with creatures of logic, but with creatures of emotion.” A study done by Antonio Damasio – a neuroscientist concluded that ‘Emotions trump logic.’ Antonio studied people who have damaged areas of their brain that deal with emotions. These people were not able to make even small decisions despite presenting them with various cons and pros of things. Sheena Iyengar, in her TED talk, "How to make choosing easier," described an experiment in her talk. In a grocery store, two booths were set up. One with 6 varieties of jams and the other with 24 varieties of jams. The people bought 6 times as many jams from the booth with only 6 choices. Why? When there were many choices of jams, the customers felt confused, and instead of buying more, they didn’t bother to buy anything from that stall. If you are new to the business and willing to beat your competition by increasing your online sales, here are 7 emotions that will trigger the right nerves in your customer's body.

How to Increase Online Sales By Using These 7 Emotions

1. Fear

The visitors to your website are looking for a solution. They are worried about a problem, and they fear that they will be left behind if they don’t find a solution to their problem. Instead of creating a false sense of fear, use the power of losing to help them decide. For instance, if you don’t buy the product now, you’ll not get the 30% discount which you’re getting now.

2. Frustration

Everyone in this world is looking for an easy life. Nothing frustrates the customer more than browsing websites with a lot of nonsense content and no solution to their problem. The solution is to talk to your customers. When you see people browsing your website for a long time, ask them what they are looking for. Ask them what their day-to-day problems are and how you can assist them. The more you talk with your customers, the better solutions you can provide them.

3. Hope

Beauty brands leverage this a lot. Do you want to look younger? Are you looking for something that will make you prettier? Yes. They are selling hope to you. Ask your visitors what their goals, ambitions, and aspirations in life are. What are their biggest pain points? Use their pain points to pierce the veil and increase your online sales.

4. Excitement

The element of surprise is a well-versed phenomenon to engage your audience. Instead of boring your audience with cliché messages, try something unique to gain their attention. In a world of distractions, be the voice instead of the noise. Introduce trial versions of your product or give them sample products. Let them feel the pleasure, the excitement of getting the full version of the product. Understand what makes your prospects tick and move mountains to deliver that to your customers.

5. Anger

Sometimes, when customers get past the frustrating emotion, they fall into the emotion of anger. A quick decision must be made because when a customer has a war inside their mind, you can become a hero in their story. Understand and acknowledge the position that your customers are facing. Figure out why they are angry in the first place. Channel the emotion of anger by presenting them with an easy solution to their problem.

6. Fear of missing out

This is a subset of the emotion of fear. It’s not always individual fear that drives the buying decision. Sometimes it is the fear of not living a better life, just like others. You can use case studies to show customers what they are missing. Companies use this all the time. Use research from third parties to find the pain points of your customers and take the customer on the journey of a better life.

7. The desire to be first

One of the most popular emotions to boost online sales is the desire to be first. The first one to try the product. And the first one to watch the video. The first to tell your friends about the next cool product. Appeal to the customers in a way that highlights the uniqueness of your business. What makes your business different from others, and how will customers feel special when they use your product?

Over to You

“Kodak sells the film, but they don't advertise film; they advertise memories.” ~Theodore Levitt  If you’re successful in listing all your product benefits on your website, people might feel wowed. But if you’re willing to increase your online sales, start impacting emotions!

For some innocent souls, creativity is a gift – something that is showered upon only on special souls like Pablo Picasso, Van Gogh, and Steve Jobs. But, to attain inner peace and live peacefully, one must master the skill of creativity. Yes. Every successful person has done it, and so can you. With hands-on work, everyone can unleash and master their creativity. You might be thinking that creativity is not your cup of tea. You’ve read every book, and watched the famous talk “Does School Kill Creativity” by Sir Ken Robinson, but nothing worked for you in the long haul.

How These Creative Geniuses Polished Their Creativity?

It turns out that there are three networks in your brain. The executive attention network facilitates problem-solving by allowing you to focus on the task at hand, the imagination network springs into gear during tasks that require you to reminisce past experiences, plan for the future or project yourself in different settings in the present, while the salience network is basically for making connections in your brain. Luckily, there is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to practicing creativity. Think of it like writing. The ultimate goal is to be a better writer, but there are multiple ways of getting there. You can take professional courses to hone your writing skills if you want to follow along in the wake of J.K. Rowling; put on your thinking cap and start scribbling ideas to find your Eureka moment; or just read, read, and binge-read on top-drawer writers to give your creative side a rush of dopamine! On a lighter note: “Ok Google,” how do I become a big-shot writer? Creativity follows the same path. There’s no one way to fuel your creativity. Nevertheless, here are a few tangible things you can do to spark that creative side:

1. Schedule Creativity on Calendar

Every morning this man spends 45 minutes in sheer solitude, not thinking about anything, just shutting down his mind to unleash the creativity within. He takes a problem, closes his eyes, and in his mind, conjures up 10 possible solutions for that problem. The result: A couple of companies and billions of dollars to his name. You might have heard about him. Richard Branson – he is kind of a big deal in the business arena. Make creativity a priority. Every day, assign some time to ponder over all the problems that are bugging you. The best time to start is at the beginning of every day. When you assign a specific time for creativity, your brain will be programmed to unleash genius ideas that will help you solve nearly every impossible problem.

2. Boredom Leads to Creativity

If you wear “busy” as a badge of honor and boast over how much you can handle on your plate, you are basically just scheduling every second of every day, without any productive results coming out of it. When you keep your brain so occupied, it cannot wander freely. What if I tell you that you need to try inviting boredom for a change? It’s because when you are bored, daydreams kick in. The apple fell on Newton when he was probably lounging idly under the tree. Einstein presented the theory of relativity when he was bored to death. Studies have shown that boredom leads to creativity. When your mind is relaxed, it goes into a highly creative state. The good thing is that you can train your mind to stay in a creative state whenever you want. If you’re stuck in a project. Take a stroll through the park. Have some Coffee alone or take a quick nap and be more creative.

3. Experiment with a Project with Various Time Slots

Some people are more creative at night, while others get in the zone when they open their eyes first thing in the morning. How can you figure out your timings? The solution: Work on a project at various times of the day. If you switch the time, your brain will approach the problem with a new pathway. When you change the timing of a project, it will turn on your salience network and allow the mind to make new connections and pathways and bring knowledge banks from unimaginable places. A recent study has shown that if you approach a problem with a fresh mind, solutions will come in unexpected ways. This is because the creative thinking that occurs in your brain engages various parts of your brain. When you give more attention and focus on a problem with a relaxed mind, a miracle is bound to happen.

4. Get Close to Nature

When in doubt, take help from nature. An entrepreneur’s mind is buzzing with activity at any time. Sometimes, we have to go back to the basics and rely on nature to unblock neural pathways and glean new inspiration.  In fact, walking alone increases creative output by up to 60%, mostly because spending time outside can activate all three of the brain’s creativity networks and give a boost to your creativity. Pick a book and start reading in a park. While your mind is busy appreciating the beauty around you, your subconscious mind will come up with a brilliant solution to your problem. If you cannot leave your office. Install an app like Nature Sounds that can give you a flavor of nature right in your office. If you’re not a fan of creativity, you can even try popping in your headphones and listening to your favorite music. Research suggests that listening to a classical piece can break the barrier and suggest a viable solution.

5. Try Something Entirely Different

If you heed your leisurely yearnings, good for you. But if your work is too mundane, you can try moving away from your comfort zone for a while. For instance, if you are a designer. Try doodling anything that is in front of you. If you’re a writer. Try changing the genre that you normally write in. The simplest of all is to try doing the daily house chores with your weak hand. Meaning, if you are a leftie, try brushing your teeth with your right. When you do something entirely different, your brain will create new connections, and this will increase your chances of coming up with brand-grandiose ideas.

6. Become an Idea Machine

There are few people with a thirst for knowledge more profound than James Altucher. Altucher is a best-selling author, investor, and podcast host. And Altucher explained why he could find so many creative achievements. And why? His commitment to being an "idea machine". Austin Kleon is another leading expert on how to be more creative. Study the work of both geniuses and you’ll understand that anyone can achieve real creativity. Oh, and if you get an idea for a website development or a mobile app development, do talk to us. We can get your website developed in record time.

Many people dream of starting a business, but most people suffer from a lack of funding, and their idea gets buried away. But what if we share some ideas worth following? These simple ideas look ordinary but when executed with passion every single idea can turn into a billion-dollar venture.

1. Be a Personal Shopper

Do you get thrilled when you buy gifts for your friends? If yes, this can be a perfect gift idea for you. Your clientele can range from wealthy business people to super-busy people who want but don’t have time to buy gifts. These executives, partners, and investors value their time and money than money, which is why they don’t have time to visit a shop or even take out time to buy a GIF online. But, if they know that there is someone who can buy the gift on their behalf, they will happily pay you and get the job done. If you don’t have any clue where to start, here is a good resource that will get you started. Start Your Own Personal Concierge Service

2. A Party Planner for Kids

A million-dollar business idea which you can start with less than $2,000. If you have the tenacity and patience to control a room full of kids, Americans are happy to spend $3,000 on you. There are two methods by which you can set up this business. First, you can throw the party by using an app and invite people to the client’s location. Second, you can rent a space or reserve a park to get started. If you need advice, do read Start your own Kid-Focused Business and educate yourself with the ins and outs on how to levitate your business off the ground. It’s not just about throwing a party, it is about leaving a mark for yourself.

3. Bake it to Earn it

They say if you want to earn the respect of a man, one path leads through the stomach. Cook good food and people will fall in love with it, and they will be happy to pay for it. If you own an oven and have an internet connection, you can start baking and earning from home. You just need a kitchen to start your business. Or you can rent a commercial kitchen if you’re planning to put all your eggs in the same basket. But for the start, I would suggest that you initiate the business in your kitchen. The good news is that the ingredient cost is just 15-20% which means you can start the business with some decent dough.

4. Show Off Your Copywriting Skills

If you’re good with words, there’s a lot more you can do than entertain your friends or waste those precious words on social media and texts. You can make some good money out of these words. Here is an excellent guide which can help you start copywriting even if you don’t have any prior writing experience. For now, you can start with this. Reach out to your nearest store, grab a bag of chips, and read what is written on the back. Can you make it better? If you have a friend, ask him for a free assignment. Whether it is a free slogan, an email, or a website copy. Go for internship opportunities and start improving your craft. It’s okay to take pennies on the dollars at the start, the point is to initiate the process. You can earn a lot of money later.

5. Be a Vintage Clothes Dealer

It takes a plethora of guts to switch houses. But what about flipping vintage clothes? You don’t need an overabundance of money to get the business running. Take some time out on the weekends. Go to second-hand stores and flea markets. You’ll find gems of luxury clothes there. With a little stain removal and sewing skills, you will be able to earn a decent amount of money from these vintage treasures. Regardless of your financial situation, you can start this vintage from your room. Make your home a shop, or if you want to sell clothes online, make a small website and start selling online.

6. A Social Media Consultant

Small businesses might bake good cakes. They can even write good captions or take pictures. But when it comes to reaching more people it is not everyone’s piece of the pie. Pick The Art of Social Media by Robert Kawasaki or start following Gary V.  When you gather enough knowledge start applying the knowledge and monitor the results. Build an amazing following and help the brands reach more people. When you get the word of mouth out there in the market, you’ll be able to pitch restaurant owners, small business owners, and startups. You can even start free courses to gain more reach, and you can also opt for paid courses.

To Wrap it All Up

There are thousands one business ideas out there. But if you don’t start executing things how will you know what ideas are worth improving? Try out these 6 ideas and see which one suits you best.

If someone claims that they cannot master a certain subject or advance in their skill, they are simply foot-dragging. With overwhelming data around us, it is simply inefficient to say that we don’t have time to analyze that data and convert it into something meaningful. To gain a competitive edge, the brand must see beyond the box and learn how to take data and convert it into insights. Abraham Wald is a prime example of how to utilize data and convert it into insights. When we are on the topic of thinking outside the box, it will be a disgrace to humanity if I don’t mention ‘Abraham Wald’. Born in Austria-Hungary (now known as Romania), Wald was a mathematical prodigy. In primary school, he was correcting his teachers and in secondary school, he was rectifying mistakes in his textbooks. In World War II there were severe damage & wartime problems. The situation required someone to minimize the bomber's losses. Instead of working on the areas where the aircraft was hit, Wald suggested an alternate theory. Wald proposed the Navy reinforce the areas where the returning aircraft were unscathed since those were the areas that, if hit, would cause the plane to be lost. Abraham Wald had no idea about the war, but he was good at math, so he used the power of data to present a solution to the problem. The brands of today can learn a lot from Abraham Wald. There is a reason some brands are sustaining a competitive edge over other brands. Let’s look at some of the tactics that can help brands create a competitive edge over their competitors.

Don’t Hinge Upon Intuition

Wald was the ultimate genius of his time. But still, he didn’t rely solely on his intuition. Instead, he collected data, analyzed it, and gave his hypothesis. A research done by Newsworks investigated a problem. They surveyed 30 young media planners and asked them to finish the IPA Touchpoints diary for a week. This was done so the results could be compared with the broader population. The results were scattered. The young planners watched TV for half of the duration as compared to the total population. This led to confusion that often people assume that what they are thinking is right. To rely on intuition is dangerous – it may influence us but not the customers. Instead, every plan needs to be analyzed with data. Wald gave us the insight that data is meaningful only with analysis.

Collect Data with Simple Tools

When Wald collected the data he used a pen, paper, and numerate assistant. Which was basic even for the 1940s. Data Collection is important for marketing, and most of the agencies these days fall into the trap of complex methodologies to collect data. The machine learning, AI, econometrics, and so on. It feels like we have replaced the hard work thinking with high-cost measurement of value. But insights don’t require high budgets. In fact, there are free survey tools that can help, collect, and manage the data of users without even spending a dime. Email is the evergreen medium to collect data from clients and deliver them customized products. The key is to get good insights in the simplest of ways.

Just the Data Won’t Be Enough

"Numbers have an important story to tell. They rely on you to give them a clear and convincing voice." ~Stephen Few Data is nothing but a raw form of material out there. If the data is not analyzed for the insight it won’t do any good to the creator. If the agencies want to take the competitive edge they must take the data and study, it to strengthen human decision-making. This tells a lot about Survivorship bias. Survivorship bias is a tendency to only focus on the survivors rather than everybody. This can also mean that people tend to focus more on the winners rather than the losers. This can be due to their lack of visibility which can, in turn, lead to false conclusions. This affects consumer decision-making. The experience that Wald provides us leaves us with plenty of lessons. We can learn from Wald and other historical figures who didn’t have much with them, but they took the leap and gained a competitive edge over others. As Bill Bernbach said: “Human nature hasn’t changed for a million years. It won’t even change in the next million years. Only the superficial things have changed. It is fashionable to talk about the changing man. A communicator must be concerned with the unchanging man with his obsessive drive to survive, to be admired, to succeed, to love, to take care of his own.” Branex can transform the data into insights that will gain a competitive edge over anyone coming their way. Contact our dedicated professionals!

I don’t know if humans have indeed cultivated the fabled attention span of a goldfish. In fact, I don’t really care if it’s a myth or not. But what I do know is that in this 24/7-driven world out there, people expect to get information on demand really fast. And in an era where brands are beginning to realize the power of customer-centric products, it’s necessary to understand the intent of customers. In addition to hiring high-profile sales representatives or brand influencers who can bring traffic to your website, let us all bow down to Chatbots. Yes, Chatbots are here to answer the call for this demand. Brands are harnessing the power of Chatbots to provide customers with ease and at the same time, save tons of money for hiring customer service reps. Chatbots are helping customers find information fast. They can educate a customer regarding a product or a service, assist the customer while making the purchase, and, for the cherry on top, Chatbots are improving conversion rates massively. If you don’t have a clue what I am talking about, let's look at some of the ways you can drive traffic to your website with the help of Chatbots.

Focus on Customer’s Questions

The primary difference between a brick-and-mortar store and an ecommerce store is that in the former, customers solicit the help of a salesperson when they don’t find a product on the shelve. While in an ecommerce store, this responsibility falls on a customer service rep or in the modern age, a Chatbot. In a physical store, a customer asks a question, and they are directed to the desired section where they can buy the product. But with a Chatbot, a whole new set of possibilities unfolds. With every question from the customer, you can modify the script of the Chatbot and boost your sales. Just like when you find a salesperson and they suggest some additional products, a Chatbot can read the intent of the customer and offer valuable suggestions to them. Whenever customers ask a question, use this information to iterate the Chatbot for better communication with the customers. Use the phrases and words that were used by the customers in their questions to help them find quick answers to their queries.

Add a flavor of Advice to your Answers

No one minds good advice. Most website owners assume that since Chatbots are robots, no one will listen to them. But the good news is that Chatbots of today are smart. When customers visit your website to buy a product, they already know what they’re looking for. The Chatbot just needs to fill them up with some answers. Just like a great salesman doesn’t just sell the product that customers want, they refer some add-ons or updated versions of the product, the Chatbot can be programmed similarly. When people don’t mind getting advice from sales professionals. Why won’t they welcome advice from a Chatbot if it is doing them well?

Eliminate the Obstacles from A Buyer’s Cycle

At times, the questions that customers ask are a result of some problem that they’re facing while purchasing the product. It’s an obstacle that is hindering the sales process. By giving customer precise answers pertaining to their problems, you’ll better be able to alleviate shopping cart abandonment. For instance, a customer might ask, ‘Do you ship overseas?’, or ‘Do you offer a complete refund?’ These are ordinary questions which can help customers make the final decision to buy the product.

Stimulate the Customer with Multiple Answers

We all prefer to buy from the experts. Leverage the power of Chatbots to portray yourself as an expert. Caught up in the throes of a problem, we all consider taking advice from an expert. An expert not only helps up discover solutions, but they also present us with many options to help us choose the right products for ourselves. This form of questioning cultivates trust among the customer and makes the customer listen to the expert without worrying about the quality of the product. For instance, if a customer asks a Chatbot, “Do you have engagement rings?" or “From where can I buy an engagement ring?”, you can take this information and feed it to the Chatbot to answer in a variety of ways. For instance, the chatbot may prompt,

• “What shape and cut are you looking for in an engagement ring?”
• “How many carats are you looking for?”, or perhaps pry a little deeper into your pocket and say,
• “How much are you willing to spend on the engagement ring? or speak your mind and utter,
• “Are you willing to go for a discounted engagement ring?"

These questions will not only open new opportunities for the brand, but they can also help the customer make an informed purchase since most people are more prone to respond to the queries of a chatbot, without dubbing them as nosy. Additionally, it will drive more traffic on your website.

Stick to Short & Professional Answers

No one likes being lectured upon. Some Chatbots can really rub you the wrong way in this regard. This will do the exact opposite of driving traffic to your website, it will increase the bounce rate of your customers. Excessive information might be okay with your blog or on your website, but when talking to a Chatbot, the customers want to solve their problems fast. They cannot wait for long-haul conversations. So, to drive traffic on your website, be short, professional, and helpful with your answers.

When you take some time out to read the conversations between your customers and the Chatbot, you’ll be able to devise a plan of action for it.

Look for Feedback in their Words

Feedback is the fuel that powers the brand. If there is no feedback, how will the company know what is working right and what isn’t? The Chatbot will be able to provide you with a lot of information on the words that customers are using in their conversation. A customer doesn’t need to be generous with their praises; sometimes, you have to read between the lines to learn what you wanted to hear. Get those statements and analyze them to improve customer interactions with the Chatbots. For example, try to read the conversations that end abruptly. Why did the customer leave without giving any review? Use this information to feed better data to your Chatbot.

The Next Step

Websites are using Chatbots to improve their retention and drive traffic to their websites. You can take the information that the customer is giving and use it to your advantage. If you are unable to find a genius app developer who can build a Chatbot for you,

You can create a powerful unique selling proposition that resonates with your target audience and drives business success. When I started my first business, I was super excited. It was a blessing to stay awake and work on something bigger than myself. For 6 months, life was wonderful. Stressful. But perfect. I was doing what I loved. Sales were on a growth curve. But things eventually started going south. Reason? We will get back to that later. Everything was on track. A brilliant team. Excellent website. An addictive app and an upbeat social media team. It took me some time to realize what I was doing wrong. Since my brand was new, customers were happy to try it. But then more brands realized what I was doing, jumped on the bandwagon, and my sales went down the dumps. A business without sales is nothing. The only thing that drives customers to buy from you is your Unique Selling Proposition, which is your company’s DNA, it’s being for existing. By having a clear USP, your branding and marketing are stronger because you have an unobstructed vision of the message you are aiming to deliver. This is what I lacked at that time, but on my second venture, I worked on my unique selling proposition and highlighted my strong points. These days, creating a unique selling proposition is necessary to attract the right customers & turn away the wrong ones. If you have a firm grip on how your ideal customer thinks, it will be easier for you to create a killer USP. If you don’t know where to start, keep reading and you’ll find out.

Steps to Creating a Promising Unique Selling Proposition

Your USP needs to be as promising as the headline that sells your product/service. Since you are willing to maximize your results, you need to follow these simple steps to highlight the core benefits of your product.

Step 1: Start with the Benefits

Take out a piece of paper and write the first three benefits that your brand offers. Let me be straight here. Your client doesn’t care if you offer the best price or high quality, if you’re not telling WHY your product is different from your competition, nothing will matter. “The milk chocolate melts in your mouth, not in your hand.”  The fact that the M&M candy shell prevents the chocolate core from oozing out and creating a mess is a definite plus for customers, and M&M made sure to make it their unique selling point. Think in terms of the end result. What is the one benefit that your customer will get by using your product? Now move towards the next step.

Step 2: Be Unique

The key is to be unique. A unique USP will set the buying criteria for your customers which will identify the logical choice for your customers. Figure out how your unique selling proposition is creating an urgency and desire. Your product should offer something valuable. Consider the following example:

• Product: “A unique baseball bat which will make you swing like a pro”
• Unique offering: “A simple technique which can help you learn to swing like a pro in 10 minutes.”
• Guarantee: “Either you’ll swing like a pro or we will return your money.”

Step 3: Solve a Pain Point

For instance, Domino Pizza started with a “Pizza delivered in 30 minutes or for free.” the USP became widely successful. The performance gap between the current and desired state should improve. When Mom and Dad come home after a long day they are unable to cook, but the kids are starving and now they want Pizza. Just call Dominos! “Everything you need in the bathroom—from razor blades to grooming products—automatically delivered to your door. It doesn’t get any simpler than that.” By offering a subscription-based service that delivers personal grooming products to customers by mail, the Dollar Shave Club eliminates the hassle of running out of a certain product when it is needed the most and having to rush to a store. This is problem-solving at its core. The pain point was “hunger” in the case of Dominoes, and convenience in the latter, and it was acknowledged in the respective USPs.

Step 4: Offer Some Social Proof

Consumers often feel skeptical about the false claims that brands make in their unique selling propositions. Don’t be an airbag and write anything that you’re not offering and then not live up to the expectations. Write ideas on paper and measure them with your company values.

Step 5: Use Your USP across All Marketing Efforts

Use a variation of your unique selling proposition in every marketing collateral that you send to your customer, from advertising copy to business cards, brochures, and flyers. Your elevator pitch and the conversation starter that you do, need to revolve around your USP.

Step 6: Delivering the Promise

That’s the most challenging task. To live up to your USP. You need to ensure that you deliver your USP carefully. Reputation is hard to build and easy to lose. If you don’t work on delivering the value that your USP offered in the first place, it will ruin your reputation and burn you at the stake. For example, in the beginning, FedEx faced the problem of staying true to its USP of overnight delivery. But they established systems which allowed them to make good on their USP.

Conclusion

A powerful unique selling proposition is like an anchor that can save a dying ship. It’s a driving force that will establish the base of your success. Build your USP and leverage it to optimize your marketing materials for maximum results. Take these 6 steps and come up with a memorable, actionable, and unique selling proposition. Not just write it down; live your brand USP.

You’re all excited about your new website for business. The website is working like a charm. You’ve installed Google Analytics on your website. Now, customers will rush to your website while you sit back, and catch up on the games slouched on the couch, with a drink in hand. Wrong! Sure, an e-commerce store provides you with an opportunity to make money while you sleep but before you sleep, you need to do some things that can keep your business rolling. Whether you’re starting a blog, an e-commerce store, or a service, money will not come to you that easily, unless you read this blog until the end. Alternatively, you can always spend a heavy amount of money on your marketing & sales.

6 Ways You Can Get Your New Online Business

Here are 6 ways you can get your new online business noticed:

1. Stop Bragging & Start Creating Value

The clients don’t care how awesome your website is; if there is nothing of value to the visitors, they will close your website and move towards your competitor. All marketing efforts should be directed toward solving real-life problems of people. For instance, if you are providing e-commerce solutions, what you can do is complete the website days before the given date. In this way, your services will outclass your competitors. You will build a reputation for being a seamless, fast-paced agency. Time is the most important commodity and if you can save the time of your audience, you have won. Every service that you provide should be aimed towards something that the market needs or wants. And how will you benefit from it? A value will not only lead to sales, but it will help you get the word out and promote your business.

2. Why Settle for a Bucket When You Have an Ocean?

There is a good chance that most of your followers are on Twitter while you’re wasting time on Facebook. Maybe your audience prefers to receive emails rather than updates on Facebook. There is no one way to approach your audience. You can repurpose your content and post it on various social media platforms. For instance, if there is a how-to article on your blog, you can extract key points and make a good presentation out of it. Doing so will expand your reach and you’ll be sharing different stuff on various social media platforms. Just because you feel that you’ve hired people to do online marketing, you can ignore your offline audience. Print advertising, public speaking, and business cards are effortless ways to get to clients and inform them about your business. The end goal is to reach people who are interested in your business. But not everyone will be in the same place, so you must put some extra effort into rallying people around you.

3. The Influencers Can Help

It is my habit to share blogs to gain reach. Usually, my share generates a reach of 50 people. But then one day a friend read one of my posts and shared it on his Twitter account. He is kind of a big gun. From 50 people, the reach went up the root. Around 10,000 people read the blog in a single day. Yes, this is the power of social media influencers. If you want to reach out to more people – the best option is to reach out to influencers and request them to share or refer your services. One clever idea is to interview industry experts. The influencers will be happy to share your website and blogs. Share words of wisdom from famous influencers and tag them on social media. Thank the influencers and they might consider sharing your business with their followers.

4. Try Free Publicity

If you create good content, you can be featured by Neil Patel. Highlighting your values can help the media take notice of your brand. You can send newsletters to media personnel and ask them to help. A great option is to create e-books centered on trends or industry insights that can easily be picked up by the media.

5. Give Away Something for Free

People love it when they win. The exhilarating feeling makes them come back for more. And to win something for free, people can share your brand with potential customers. Don’t give away easily. Make the customers think a little, this will force them to solicit help from their friends; in turn, inadvertently sharing your content. Another thing you can do is to give away something when the customers buy from you. If you attach a small value-added gift with every purchase, this will greatly please the customers.

6. Be Authentic & Approachable

Transparency is a rare commodity. No brand can win big if they hide things from their customers. People of today are more in tune with the buying options that are available to them. If they find something fishy about your offering, they will switch the brand without even informing you. This means that you need to gain the trust of your customers. Ask them what they want via email. Survey them and learn how they feel about your brand. While these six tips take time to do and show results, they are invaluable in building a quality brand and loyal customers.