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Are Google Ads Worth It For Small Business?

Google-Ads-Are-They-Worth-It

You have already dedicated much of your time, money, and other resources to set up your business website. Everything looks good, and you’re ready for people to see what you’ve got.

If only we could say that your marketing efforts stop there. Setting up your website is a great start, but now it’s time to get buyers to visit your page.

Most people have access to the internet, and a big chunk of those users are on Google, and the goal is to help people find your business.

Can Google Ads Help?

Google Ads, formerly AdWords, is a pay-per-click (PPC) platform that allows businesses to place shopping ads or text ads. These paid ads link people to a website on a search engine results page (SERP) for a keyword.

PPC means paying, if and only if, your ads are clicked. These ads are ranked first on Google search results and are an effective way to generate traffic.

As industry experts, we can confidently say that among your paid ad options, Google Ads might be the answer. Before you decide, let’s look at the benefits.

  • You Can Target Potential Clients While They Are Engaged

In the current digital climate, many consumers turn to Google for answers to searches such as “digital marketing agency Australia”. The Google search engine will pull up relevant suggestions.

You can get in front of potential customers at the moment they search for your product or service, as long as you bid on the right keywords for your industry.

  • You Can Focus On Niche Or Local Markets

Google Ads is a valuable investment for local businesses. Statistics show that 72% of consumers that perform a local search visit the store that is within 10km or less. By using a geographic range to limit your keyword, you avoid more nationally focused competition while reaching your local audience.

Google Ads can do the same for businesses that cater to niche markets. Because Google Ads is keyword-specific, you have the power to find your intended audience in a more targeted way compared to other platforms. Additionally, by using precise keywords, you lower the cost of your ad and reach the right consumers.

  • You Can Control Your Spending

Google does not run up significant charges on your business credit card. It allows you to set parameters for your campaign. Google Ads work on a cost-per-click basis. You only pay when your ad is clicked. You also set an average daily budget for your campaign.

  • You Can Expect Quick Results

One of the best things about Google Ads is the instantaneous results. Once you set up your campaign, fill in the target keywords, pick your daily budget, set up ad messaging, you are good to go. You may even begin generating sales from day one of your campaign.

Other digital marketing efforts such as search engine optimisation (SEO), which try to improve your search result rankings can take time to begin working. According to numerous case studies, this is not the case with Google Ads.

  • You Can Track These Results

Google Analytics, a free information tool, can assist businesses with conversions on PPC ads; optimise websites, product descriptions as well as track visitor behaviour on the platform.

Another appealing quality that Google Ads brings to the table as a marketing tactic is its ability to track ROI. The Return on Investment that a marketing effort earns is a significant consideration for a marketing budget. Google PPC ads don’t keep users guessing regarding the ROI.

To Conclude — Are Google Ads Worth It?

Google Ads can be worth investing in for small businesses. As can be gauged above, there are plenty of benefits that come from advertising on Google. That includes the ability to easily track ROI, pay for performance model and a way to reach motivated and targeted audiences.

If you’re still worried about your marketing budget, you can avoid competing with larger businesses by selecting local and longtail keywords. Choosing alternative keywords will help dial down the cost of the ones that every company in your industry wants.

Get more clicks and sales with expert Google Ads management Google Ads Management Service offered by Mad Cat Marketing. The service that provides an all-in-one system to help your ideal clients find you.

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9 Must-Have Features for E-commerce Websites

Must Have Ecommerce Features

Does your e-commerce website have all of the necessary features to make for a safe and comfortable shopping experience?

Your customers should be presented with a site that is secure, attractive and easy to navigate!

As e-commerce specialists, we have put together a list of the essential features that should be included in your e-commerce website.

1. Mobile Compatibility

More and more people are doing their online shopping from their mobile phones. In fact, recent studies show that at least half of online shopping purchases are made from mobile devices. Therefore, is your site mobile-compatible? Keep the modern, mobile shopper in mind by providing a fully optimised mobile shopping experience from their phone. Optimise your site and you can expect your online sales to increase dramatically!

2. High Quality Photographs

We live in a highly visual society and people want to be able to see exactly what they’re purchasing before handing over their hard-earned cash.

Ensure that all images on your site are of a high quality and can be zoomed in on so that customers can see the details that every product offers. There should be multiple photographs of each product, from a variety of angles. While photos should be high quality, they should also be optimised and correctly compressed so that they do not slow down the page loading speeds.

3. Special Deals And Offers

People love to feel as if they’re getting a good deal, so it’s essential that you have a ‘Special Offers’ section on your e-commerce website.

By letting your customers think that they’re getting a special promotion, they will automatically be more inclined to spend and buy immediately, especially if the deal is offered for a limited timeframe. Special offers also give new buyers a starting point if they’re not too sure what they’re looking for.

4.Wish Lists

Wish lists are a feature on almost all respected e-commerce sites for good reason. Wish lists are extremely convenient and allow shoppers to curate a list of all their favourite products that can be shared with family and friends.

It also gives customers the opportunity to bookmark items that they may want to purchase when they get their next paycheck.

Additionally, wish lists can become important aspects of your marketing and engagement strategies as they give vital information about what your potential customers are interested in buying.

5. Related Items

The ‘Related Items’ feature on e-commerce sites uses simple algorithms to present customers with other products that they may be interested in.

If they are buying clothing, they may be presented with other clothing items in a similar style. By presenting the shopper with further items in their style and price range, you could initiate additional purchases.

‘Related Items’ create many positive signals for the buyer, the main one being that your brand understands them and their personal taste.

6. Security Features

One of the most important aspects of your entire e-commerce site is your security features. E-commerce sites with substandard protection are easy targets for hackers and cybercriminals.

You need to ensure that you have a secure platform to protect your customers’ personal details, as well as the following security features:

  • Two-factor authentication – This provides an additional layer of security by asking the shopper to provide their log in details as well as a code sent to their email address or phone number in order to purchase.
  • Firewall – Firewalls provide a gateway or wall between two networks and permits authorized traffic and blocks malicious traffic.

7. Variety Of Payment Options

Does your e-commerce website offer enough payment options? And are these payment options advanced, safe and secure? Be sure to cater for your target market and provide the payment options that they are most likely to use.

Be transparent about why certain payment options aren’t available on your site, and above all keep your customer’s safety as a top priority.

8. Shipping Information

Don’t frustrate your customer by surprising them with unexpected shipping costs. State plainly and clearly the cost of your shipping. You will also need to state the different shipping options you offer, the different countries that you ship to and the expected timeframes for each shipping option.

You may want to offer free shipping if customers spend over a certain amount, as this is a great incentive for people to spend slightly more.

9. Return Policy

To prevent you from dealing with any issues when it comes to customer service and returns, your return policy should be stated as clear as day on your site so that your customer knows your return process should they happen to buy the wrong size etc.

Do you need help incorporating some of these must-have features into your e-commerce site? The team at Mad Cat Marketing can assist you in creating a responsive and engaging e-commerce site, built for a comfortable online shopping experience. Get in touch with us today!

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5 Great Reasons To Invest In Mobile Optimisation in 2020

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Finding it difficult to generate more traffic for your website?

Need to find a reliable way that is easy and effective at increasing your website visibility?

Or maybe you just want to generate new leads and close more deals?

If that is the case, then you need to invest in mobile optimisation. With more searches occuring on mobile devices than desktop, the shift to smart phone searching has already happened.

Today, most customers use their mobile devices to shop for products online. In fact, studies show that over 80% of people who search for a local business using their smartphone will visit a store within 24 hours.

Consumers also use the mobile channels to seek services and to compare prices of things that they need. That’s why, in 2016, global mobile traffic went up by 63%.

Mobile optimisation ensures you can be found when these people go looking online.

If you don’t invest in mobile optimisation your website loses the opportunity of generating more traffic. The most popular brands in the world have mobile-friendly websites, that is why it is easy for them to generate new leads. That allows their customers to access their services on the go, anywhere they go.

If you want to get more clicks, calls and customers, here are 5 reasons why mobile optimisation has to be part of your marketing strategy.

#1 – Reach Out To More Customers

Today, more people use the online platform to look for products and services that they need. In fact, there are 3.5 billion searches on Google every day.

They use their mobile devices, including tablets and smartphones, to do this. That is why you need a mobile optimised website so that they can easily access your website using any device.

Failing to invest in mobile optimisation means losing sales and traffic. Your website will be limited in generating traffic and new leads.

With mobile searches for ‘near me’ growing by 500% in the past year, it’s clear that being available on mobile helps you reach out to more customers.

#2 – Generate More Revenue

More sales results in high revenue for your brand. In the year 2017, the majority of eCommerce revenue was generated through mobile sales. Moreover, mobile sales are expected to increase from 34.5% to 53.9% by the year 2021.

Investing in mobile optimisation can help you increase your conversion rates as well as your total revenue.

Think of your favourite retail brands. Odds are they have highly advanced mobile sites because they know the revenue-driving value. These websites offer great shopping experiences.

In 2021, mobile is expected to eclipse desktop for online sales. So make sure your site is mobile friendly to take advantage.

#3 – Generate More Traffic

Another factor that you need to acknowledge is that mobile-friendly websites perform better than websites that are not mobile optimised.

As a result, mobile-optimised websites generate more traffic as well as backlinks.

Your website can generate more traffic when it is easy to find online. By getting more traffic, you will automatically increase your brand’s awareness.

#4 – Improve Your SEO

Mobile-optimised websites are usually favored by search engines. In 2016, Google launched an algorithm update that boosts the ranking of websites that are responsive to mobile search results.

You want to find out whether your website is mobile optimised or not? Just take Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test and you will get your answer.

However, how well your website is mobile optimised depends on the technical skills you have. If you do not have any technical skills, then you can choose to hire an SEO expert who is experienced in this type of work.

Looking for some affordable marketing help? Chat to the team from Mad Cat Marketing today!

Furthermore, different strategies are required for mobile pages. They are also required to have bolded CTA buttons, load faster and have shorter headlines. Also, make sure that you meet all the requirements for the image size as well as the minimalist design.

Mobile eCommerce label Tow and Line suggest paying close attention to your images. They say “we have a number of products, so product pages contain a lot of images. We hadn’t properly optimised them at first and the load speed of our site suffered. Make sure you compress your images and reduce the file size as much as possible to help your mobile site load fast. That will also help your SEO.”

#5 – Increase Your Visibility On Social Media

Most people spend their time on smartphones and tablets. In fact, the average adult will spend roughly 2 hours and 55 minutes on their smartphone EVERY day.

That is why you need to make sure that your website is mobile-friendly so that you can reach out to more customers.

Furthermore, social media signals are used as a ranking factor by Google (don’t believe articles that say they’re not, the more shares you get the better your traffic will be and THAT helps SEO).

That means a website that is poorly optimised will be ranked low in Google search results. As a result, that website will get a few likes, shares, exposure and traffic.

Are you ready to be found on mobile?

By investing in mobile optimisation, you will generate more traffic for your website and increase your brand’s visibility.

Mobile optimisation is not an easy task, but with the help of an SEO expert, you will have your website mobile optimized within a short period.

Need help getting started? Chat to the Mad Cat Marketing team today!

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Written by: Kevin Miller

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Why Do I Need A Marketing Strategy?

Marketing Strategy

You might think, “I’m just a small business with an even smaller marketing budget, why do I need a marketing strategy?” As a result of thinking you don’t need a strategy, you carry out marketing activities as and when you have time to do them or whenever you remember that you should be doing them. You spend time, effort and sometimes money carrying out your marketing without really knowing what you are hoping to get out of it or if it is working. Whether you’re a one-man band or a global corporation, this sounds like ineffective business planning to me.

Why do you need a marketing strategy?

Having a marketing strategy in place, no matter what the size of your budget is or how many people you have on your team, has a number of benefits to the way you run your business and sell your products or services. A marketing strategy helps to give you, your team and your business a sense of direction. Without one, it might not be clear what you are trying to achieve, what needs to be done to achieve it, and whether or not it is working. By defining goals and the strategies involved in achieving them, it will provide you with a better focus, so everyone knows what they are aiming towards and what they need to do to achieve it.

A marketing strategy also helps you to gain a better understanding of your business; what it’s selling, how it is different, who it’s selling to, who its competitors are, and more. Knowing all of this information will help you and your team to work more effectively, as they understand the needs of their customers and the conditions of the market. Essentially, a marketing strategy makes your business run more effectively, making it more successful at bringing in new customers, retaining them, and making sales. Plus, if your competitors have a marketing strategy, but you don’t, then this puts you at a serious disadvantage against them.

What’s the difference between a marketing strategy and a marketing plan?

A marketing plan is essentially an extension of your marketing strategy. Where the strategy outlines all of the factors affecting your business, the marketing mix you are going to implement, how you are going to communicate it, etc., the marketing plan explains how to put this strategy into action. It involves assigning more detail to the plan of execution identified in your marketing strategy, including specifics such as budget, timescales and who is in charge of what.

What should your marketing strategy consist of?

There are several areas you need to consider when creating a marketing strategy. One of the first things you should do is define your goals and business objectives, as these will shape the entire strategy. Next, you need to decide how you are going to achieve these goals; what marketing methods you will use, who you are going to aim your campaigns towards, how you are going to communicate with them, etc.

A good marketing strategy requires a comprehensive understanding of all of the factors which affect your business, both from within it and outside of it. Firstly, thinking about the business itself, what is it that is special about your business and the products or services it offers? What is your unique selling point (USP) or unique value proposition (UVP)? Essentially, you need to think about what you do that no one else in the market does, and what value you provide to your customers.

Understanding this also involves understanding your customers. If you know what your target market wants, what challenges they face, and what motivates them, then you will be able to assess what you provide them that solves their problems or meets their needs. From examining your customers’ behaviours, thoughts, etc., you will also be able to decide which marketing methods will be the most effective at reaching them, what platforms you should use to reach them, when you should communicate with them, and what language you should use to do so.

As well as your business and your customers, you should also gain an understanding of the market you are operating in. Knowing who your competitors are and what they do will also benefit you when identifying your USP as you can compare what you offer to what they offer, and see what the differences are. Being aware of your market will also allow you to identify any emerging opportunities that you might be able to take advantage of, such as a new technology or a competitor going out of business. This also goes the other way, as you can also identify emerging threats, such as a new competitor in the market or a decline in your customer base.

It’s important to regularly review your marketing strategy so that you can assess what aspects of it are working and which aren’t, and you can respond to any changes in the market and identify how to handle these. Remaining flexible and updating your strategy according to changing factors, both internal and external to your business, will help you to stay one step ahead of the competition.

Having a strategy in place for your marketing and a plan for implementing it will help your business to achieve its goals more efficiently, meaning more customers, more sales, and more profit for you. Find out how we can help you create a marketing strategy and plan. Get in touch.

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5 Reasons Why Your Business Needs Social Media

5 Reasons Why Your Business Needs Social Media

We’re all constantly working to try and grow our businesses, generate more leads, get more customers and more profits. It can be difficult, especially for small businesses with not much of a budget to spend on marketing. The key is to find the right marketing channels that work for your business, many of which can be done at affordable prices.

Social media is something that all businesses should be doing, regardless of the size of your business, the industry you’re in, or your budget. The popular social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram are all free to sign up to, so it’s a great form of marketing you can use without spending any money. You are able to invest some money into social media for advertisements and promotions in order to boost your success, but again, this doesn’t have to mean spending the big bucks.

Here are a 5 reasons why you should be using social media marketing to grow your business:

1. Increase links to your website

Through social media you can post content with a link back to your website, encouraging people to click through and visit your site. This can be promotional content advertising specific products or services that you are offering or sales that you are running, or it could simply be interesting information about your business, such as how you formed, what you do, how you can help. If you have a blog or news page on your website, then you can share links to these. If you have your website set up on Google Analytics, then you’ll be able to track how much traffic is coming through to your website from social media to see how much of an impact it’s having. The more people you get clicking through to your website, the greater chance you have of generating qualified leads and making sales.

2. Gain authority

Through social media, you can share content that shows the level of knowledge and expertise that you have in your field. Share quick tips or pieces of advice that people may find useful or might not know. Share links to the latest news from your industry or your local area to establish yourself as someone who is in the know, and the first account that people think to come to when they want to read the latest news in this area. You can also help other users by looking out for questions they might be asking in relation to your field and answering them for you. For example, on Twitter, you can use hashtags to search for instances of people talking about a certain topic, #marketing, for example. When you find someone you can help, hit reply and answer their question. This helps you to develop trust amongst other social media users, making them more likely to buy from you.

3. Share your content

If you have a blog or other forms of content created by your company, social media is a great way to get it seen. This helps you achieve a combination of the above; sharing links to your blog page increases traffic to your website, and sharing useful, informative and educational content will help to establish yourself and your company as an expert in your field. It’s not just about you sharing your content, either; once you’ve shared it on social media, all of your followers and other users on the site will be able to see it. If they find your blog, or whatever it might be, interesting or useful, then they might want to share it themselves so that all of their followers can see it as well. This increases the amount of exposure your content receives and helps to create a lot of inbound links to your website, which boosts traffic and is also great for your search engine rankings.

4. Raise brand awareness

Social media is another way of getting your brand out there and making more people aware of who you are and what you do. First of all, make sure that each profile you have is tailored to reflect your brand; it should have an avatar and header image containing your logo and brand colours, the name of your company should be clear and any messages that you send out should be in line with your brand values. Keep this consistent across all channels, so that you are instantly recognisable no matter where someone comes across your business. Stay active on social media by posting regularly and also engaging with your followers and other users on each platform. The more you post, the more likely you are to be seen, but make sure not to bombard your followers with too much content. Try to get as many followers, likes or connections as you can to expose your brand to as wide an audience as possible.

5. Reach your target audience

With more than 2 billion active social media accounts across the world, it’s likely that your target audience are out there. Social media is an easy and cost effective way to reach your customers and potential customers. Which social media platforms you should focus on will depend on who you are targeting; if you mainly target other businesses, LinkedIn is a must, and we’d also recommend Twitter and Facebook. For businesses targeting consumers, visual platforms such as Pinterest and Instagram can be really effective, and others such as Snapchat, especially if you are targeting a younger audience. Twitter and Facebook are also good platforms for reaching consumers. You don’t need to use all the platforms you possibly can, but find out which best suit your business and really focus on building up a following on these.

It’s clear that social media is an invaluable tool for your business in helping it to grow and generate more leads and more profits. 

Speak to us today about developing a social media strategy to grow your business. Contact us.

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