Future Visions
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May 15, 2013

Improve Your Email Campaigns and Increase Your Click Through Rates

Filed under: Email Marketing, business — Tom @ 10:43

Future Visions is a digital marketing company that is in the business of helping SME’s to utilize the many tools of the internet to increase leads, improve business relationships and drive sales.

While the team offer ‘traditional’ web design and development services their passion lies within the realms of email marketing. Future Visions has a lot of experience when it comes to this particular field, and we wanted to help you use email marketing to really understand the behaviour of your recipients.

Click throughs – The KPI of Email Marketing

When it comes to email marketing there are a limited set of KPI’s to contend with. While many businesses focus on the number of recipients within a database, we instead concentrate our analysis on the click through rate.

You see, clickthroughs indicate great content. Whether you’re emailing out an offer, or an invitation to an event or just a summary of your latest blog posts, if you’re getting clickthroughs then it means you’re getting the right content to the right people.

A clickthrough is the digital equivalent of a foot in the door, and once that connection has been made you can then start to nurture your contacts into lead, and from leads into customers.

However, as experts in email marketing we recognise that the main KPI of this form of advertising can be low, woefully so, in fact; making it hard for many to justify the time invested in email campaigns.

Don’t let this KPI kill your email campaigns – instead consider using a simple email marketing tip to improve your campaigns and increase your clickthrough rates!

If You Don’t Ask…

We all know the old saying, if you don’t ask… and yet so many business owners are reluctant to ask their customers for feedback. Whether it’s asking clients for feedback on the customer service or whether it’s asking recipients for feedback on our email campaigns, we just don’t seem to know how to ask. But, if we don’t ask….

A simple email survey can make it quick and easy for recipients to provide feedback on your email campaigns (as well as other business processes). A survey email campaign won’t just provide you with accurate information that you can use to improve your future campaigns, it will also help to create a campaign that receives, what for it, great clickthrough rates!

Designing an Awesome Email Survey

The key to this info gathering tactic is to ensure that the email survey is designed for maximum response. This will mean that you need to consider a number of factors when designing your email survey.

Maximum Response – Minimum Effort

Your email should be designed to enable the recipient to provide the maximum amount of valuable information with the least amount of effort and within the last amount of time.

Keep it Short and Sweet

Recipients don’t need to know the processes that went behind your decision to send the survey; just get straight to the point and pop the question.

Make It About Them, Not About You

We all know that the point of this email is to gather data to make your email campaigns better, but it doesn’t hurt to flatter your recipient.

Rather than a plain old “please fill out this survey” plea, instead opt for a friendlier (and more importantly recipient focused request) “We want to create content that is valuable to you. Would you mind taking two seconds of your time to let us know what you really like so we know what topics to cover in the near future?”

Remember, It’s A Survey!

All too often when email surveys are used they are used badly – and this is because the sender has forgotten the point of the email. Before you bombard your recipients with questions take a little time to consider the questions you want to ask, the answers you will offer and the goal of the survey.

Ultimately, a survey is a data gathering exercise, and an email survey is no different. In order to gather accurate and useful data you need to ask the right questions.

Develop and Design Your Email Survey Today With Future Visions

As experienced email marketers we know everything there is to know about effective email marketing. Whether you want to send regular updates, advertise your offers or create an email survey we’re here to guide you through every step of the process; from conception to completion.

If you’d like to use an email survey to improve your email campaigns and increase your click through rates simply email the Future Visions team or call Nathan and Tom on 0121 288 3688.

May 2, 2013

4 Great Marketing Tips That You Can Implement in 48 Hours

Filed under: Marketing, business — Tom @ 12:54

Today is May 2nd 2013 – and it’s almost impossible to believe that we are so very close to being halfway through the year; and now is as good a time as any to ask yourself how your business is doing.

After the resolution fueled frenzy of January and February, it’s all too easy to slip back into bad habits that do not benefit your business; and in a world where three short seconds can make all the difference with a conversion, and when 140 characters can make or break your business, it seems even more important to make sure that as an SME your marketing strategy is spot on.

At Future Visions we’ve come up with four great marketing tips that you can implement in 48 hours or less to help you drive more traffic to your website and to secure more business through your online activities – That’s one technique for every 12 hours!

So, without further ado, let’s get started!

Top Tip 1 – Add Personality To Your “About Us” Page

Far too many business owners think that their prospects and customers do not bother with the ‘About Us’ page, but with a check on your online analytics you would be surprised to see just how many people try to peek into the heart of your company.

Too many businesses fill up this page with figures and facts that make the viewer snooze. This page is the perfect opportunity to introduce a personal element to your corporate website, so make the most of it. Don’t just stop at the “About Us” page on your website – take a look at revamping your About sections on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, Google+ and any other online profiles that you may have.

  • Step 1 – Ask employees, colleagues and trusted customers to review your “About” Page. Ask for honest feedback and see what results you get.
  • Step 2 – Check out the ‘About Us’ page to your two biggest competitors and see how the three text pieces compare.
  • Step 3 – Think about the brands and businesses that you admire the most and visit their ‘About Us’ pages – you may be surprised to see what kind of content they use.

Top Tip 2 – Speak Volumes with Videos

We all know the power of video marketing (this is the kind of content most likely to go viral), so it’s important that we use this medium effectively. However, trying to create a viral video may be your undoing. Instead, focus on the audience and the message that you want to convey.

Videos can be used for a variety of purposes, including lead generation, testimonials and even objection removal. However, you need to identify how videos can work for you.

  • Step 1 – Assess whether or not your current collection of marketing videos have achieved your core objectives.
  • Step 2 – Spend a couple of hours creating a script for a video that addresses your biggest marketing challenge.
  • Step 3 – Be sure to focus on the audience and the message rather than the viral factor of your film.

Top Tip 3 – Follow Trendsetters, Target Journalists and Key Industry Players Online

Before social media getting connected with a journalist, trendsetter or key industry player was ruddy hard! However, social media has made it much easier for business owners to connect with important associates; and Twitter in particular is very good for these beneficial relationships.

A few good tweets could easily earn you a retweet from a well know and much respected journalist, and before you know it you could gain a ton of new online followers that are interested in what you have to say.

  • Step 1 – Spend a couple of hours online thinking about the people, brands and business that you would most like to follow.
  • Step 2 – Find these people on Twitter and follow them!
  • Step 3 – Make a habit of retweeting content that these key industry players post (bearing in mind the golden question from Tip 4 below!)

Top Tip 4 – Wow a Customer

Ok, so this one isn’t perhaps an activity you can always carry out online and it requires a dedication of your time; however, a small offline gesture could have a massive impact on your online marketing. Let’s face it, a company without customers is a failing business, and yet all too often we fail to truly wow a customer once they are through the door.

We can wow our customers both online and offline; and a great way to keep your customers in mind when creating online marketing content is to ask yourself, honestly:

“Would my customers thank me for this?”

Formal surveys and focus groups are an old school expensive way of getting feedback. Instead, communicate with your customers through social media (this means listening and engaging as well as broadcasting!)

  • Step 1 – Juggle your diary to accommodate a little customer time each day and start booking in some time with your customers.
  • Step 2 – Arrange coffee chats, Skype calls and Google hangouts between you and your customers.
  • Step 3 – Listen to them rather than talking to them, and make them feel appreciated and cared for by your business.
  • Step 4 – Ask yourself, every time you send an email, post an update, or write a blog “Would my customers thank me for this?”

Marketing can seem like a minefield, but there are a number of short term strategies that you can adopt that will ultimately impact the long term success of your business.

Future Visions is here to help guide you through the maze of digital marketing strategies that are available to your business. From email marketing to e-commerce we’re here to assist your business, helping you to grow your business. For more advice on digital marketing strategies simply contact us online or call us on 0121 288 3688.

April 18, 2013

5 Ways to Manage Marketing as a One Man (or Woman) Business

Filed under: Future Visions, Marketing — Tom @ 08:18

Almost all small businesses start as a ‘one man band’, and although this can be the most cost effective way of running your business in the early days it does mean that as a business owner you end up becoming a Jack (or Jill) of all trades. One of the areas most solo businesses struggle with is their marketing.

It’s all too easy to say ‘if I only had more time/more money/more staff’, but the truth is you don’t, and if you don’t manage to find a way to make your marketing work for your business then you never will.

Being successful means being smart with your money and your time

Tip 1 – Set Marketing Goals That You Can Measure

Follow these simple steps and you’ll soon spend more time on marketing activities that genuinely work for your business:

  • Identify Your Goals – What is it you want your marketing to achieve? Do you want to get more conversions on your website, or do you just want to increase the traffic going to your website? Identifying what it is you want to achieve will help you focus on what activities need to occur to reach that goal.
  • Implement Your Strategy – It’s all too easy for solo run businesses to get caught up in the chase for absolute perfection, for fear that a single mistake may damage the little reputation you have. Don’t waste time with maybes; implement your strategy, kickstart your activity, monitor your results and tweak as needed!
  • Monitor Your Results – This is perhaps the area where most solo businesses fail, but it is the area that matters the most. It is essential that you have the tools in place to monitor your marketing activities. These tools will deliver data that is critical, as it will tell you how to improve your marketing activities and strategy in the future.
  • Evaluate Your Data – The small businesses that successfully complete steps 1 to 3 then often trip up at the fourth and final hurdle, which is crucial. You must make time to evaluate the data you have gathered from your marketing activities, as this will tell you how well each activity is working and which areas require improvement.

Online marketing activities are PERFECT for this kind of approach, because it’s very easy (and affordable) to find the monitoring tools that help you to collect and evaluate data.

Tip 2 – Identify Your Audience and Cater Content to Them

We know that we communicate with different people in different ways. We wouldn’t dream, for example, of talking to our baby the way we would talk to the boss of a prospecting company!

It is crucial that you know your audience well, and that you know exactly how to communicate your audience. After all, the last thing you want or need is to spend time on marketing activities that are crafted for the wrong audience.

Invest some time building up your buyer personas, and then you will have a clear tone of voice that you can use throughout your marketing activities; from your lading pages to your marketing emails.

Tip 3 – Social Media – Choose Your Platform Carefully and Schedule Your Posts

Soooo many small businesses know that they should use social media, but they are not sure how.

Social media advice and expertise is plentiful to say the very least – so let’s keep this tip short and sweet.

  • Choose Your Platform Wisely – It’s easy to think that you should be seen/heard on all social media platforms at all time, but this isn’t true. It’s worth spending some time identifying the platforms that:
    • Best suit your business
    • Best suit your audience

It may take a little while to realize which platforms work best for you, but once you are confident that you know which ones work then spend time and energy investing in your profiles on these platforms.

  • Schedule 90% of Your Posts – Be honest, have you got the time to spend moments that turn into minutes each day posting out an update two to three times a day? No, ok, well, do you have the money to pay someone else to do it? I didn’t think so! Well, your only option is to schedule 90% of your posts using an application like Hootsuite.

Dedicate a day where you will spend time creating your content, and use the app to post these updates at key times of day.  Only post real-time content when it’s a news flash or spur of the moment story.

Tip 4 – Create Content that will Stand the Test of Time

Tip 4 is a biggie! We all know we should be producing blogs on our website (it’s great for SEO, it’s content that can be shared and it establishes you as an expert) but it is very easy to write content that is time sensitive.

While ‘latest news’ posts are great and current they will be short lived. Whether you’re writing the content yourself or paying someone else to do it you need your blog content to be long lasting. Think of how to blogs, what is blogs and other informative posts that are aimed at your audience and designed to stand the test of time.

Tip 5 – Insert Call to Actions into All of Your Blog Posts

So, you’ve created a killer blog post that you lovingly crafted for your buyer persona. You have successfully used your social media profiles to plug the blog, and it’s generating lots of traffic to your site.

Great – but, is the blog working hard enough for your business? Does your blog include a clear call to action? If this one element is missing you could be losing a lot of sales. Don’t just make sure that there are CTA’s in your new blog posts, spend a few minutes adding them to existing blog posts too.

Call us today on 0121 288 3688 for advice on your digital marketing activities, or contact us online and we’ll call you!

April 4, 2013

20 Top Tips to Help Improve Your Inbound Marketing Leads

Filed under: Marketing, Website Design, business — Nathan @ 12:32

Marketing is all about using short term advertising campaigns with a long term business strategy in mind at all times. It sounds a lot easier than it actually is, but with these 20 top tips you’ll be able to improve and increase your inbound marketing leads.

Without further ado, we would like to present our twenty top effective inbound marketing techniques.

The first top ten tips are relatively simple and should be carried out anyway, but just in case you’re not doing them, here they are:

  1. Make sure your website passes the blink test (if you’re not sure, simply speak to our team and we’ll be happy to provide you with advice!)
  2. Use clear and concise call to actions throughout your website.
  3. Use offers throughout your website that are appealing to all leads at all stages in the funnel.
  4. Be sure to use your blog to your advantage! Successful business sites blog on average 3 to 4 times per week.
  5. Once your blog content is posted on to your site share the link to your content o your social profiles.
  6. If your blog post is educational and informative share it with your LinkedIn contacts.
  7. Take the time to find out what sites your target audience frequents (these may not be just social media sites) and be sure to post your content on these sites.
  8. Create landing pages that are dedicated to a particular campaign and that have been optimised for conversion.
  9. Nurture your new leads with targeted campaigns that ease them further down the funnel.
  10. Last, but by no means least, track, test, evaluate and improve on all of your marketing activities!

These are the first top ten tips, and here are the final ten!

11. Split Testing Email Elements

Most people make the mistake of thinking the only thing that they need to split test is the subject line, but this is not true. A/B test all elements of your marketing emails, including the layout, content, subject line, personalisation and even the ‘from’ name and address.

12. Re-Engage the Disengaged

You’ve noticed that subscriber ‘Sue’ has stopped replying to, or even engaging with your emails as of late. Cue sad smiley face. Not only is it sad that Sue is no longer interested, her lack of engagement could be damaging your reputation and your email delivery success rate. Before you unceremoniously unsubscribe Sue from your list, try a re-engagement campaign aimed specifically at the subscribers that have disengaged. Within 30 days you could have a re-engaged subscriber, and if you don’t, at least you can hand on your heart say that removing Sue from your list is a benefit to your business.

13. Use Long Tail Keywords in Your Blogs

Short keywords are highly competitive; however, long tail keywords and a little research can go a long way to generating great leads to your site. Use the Google Keyword Tool to research long tail keywords (usually three words or more) get an idea of how much traffic a keyword generates each month (both locally and globally) and find out how competitive a keyword is. Then use Google to see how well each keyword is covered by other sources. If you identify a clear gap in the available information online then you know what to write a blog on.

14. Newsjacking – Hijacking News Stories to Benefit your Business

Newsjacking is a common online practice; simply find a current popular news story and use it in your blog posts. The trick to this is to make sure it’s relevant to your business. It takes a little practice, but it’s a nifty trick that can yield quick results.

15. Social Media Advertising

There’s no doubt about it, social media is huge; so it makes sense that you spend some of your marketing budget on social media advertising. Remember, social media marketing campaigns will only work if you have an active social media presence, so spend time developing those profiles and engaging with your online audience.

16. Offer a Free Online Tool

Whether you are a service provider or an online store there’s no doubt that your prospects and customers would appreciate a free online tool that is relevant to your business. It may help prospects calculate the number of laminate wood packs they need to cover their floor, or the amount of tax that they will pay on their salary, or what kind of insurance cover they should consider.

17. Help a Reporter Out

Help a Reporter Out is a tool used by journalists to get cost effective quotes from informed individuals on a wide range of topics. Although your pearls of wisdom may not immediately earn you vast sums of money you can use this site to get mentions (and most importantly, inbound links back to your website) in well known online publications.

18. Include Tracking Tokens in Your URL’s

A tracking token is a snippet of code that can be used to track the activity on your individual web pages. This information can help you make critical decisions about how and where your marketing budget is spent.

19. Create a Landing Page for Your Blog Subscription

Your blog should be a haven of up-to-date, useful and relevant information that your audience should appreciate (if it’s not, it might be worth rethinking your blog strategy and/or blogging more frequently), so why not create a landing page that allows visitors to sign up to your blog. Market your blog like you would any other asset and you’ll soon see the inbound traffic increase!

20. Create Visual Media for Social Posting

Images and videos are much more appealing (and much more likely to be shared by users) than text based or link based posts. Make sure you use plenty of visual content in your social media posts to increase engagement between your business and your audience. This will help you to reach new people very quickly.

March 20, 2013

9 top tips to improve your Call to Action on Your Website

Filed under: Website Design — Tom @ 15:19

A Call to Action (which we’ll here on out call a CTA) is an essential component that can be used to increase the activity that occurs on your website. Used correctly, a CTA can be a highly effective tool that can help you reach a much wider audience.

CTA’s have been used on a number of advertising mediums in the past, but online CTA’s can be quite tricky. They need to be instantly visible, while looking like they belong on the site. They need to be encouraging with their words without being over the top. Online CTA’s are an art form, and getting them right can make a big difference.

Some simple tips on design, wording and placement can dramatically increase the effectiveness of your CTAs. With this in mind, Future Visions would like to present to you nine top tips for creating an effective call to action on your website.

Choosing the Right Wording for Your Call to Action

The wording on a CTA should be minimal, but what you do say and how you say it can make the world of difference in the effectiveness of your CTA.

Top Tip 1 – Use informative and actionable copy.

‘Submit’ is a cold, clinical word that generates anxiety and using this one word alone can dramatically impair the number of clickthroughs that your CTA generates. Instead of a button that says ‘Submit’ use copy that makes it very clear what action will occur when a user clicks on the button, such as such as ‘Download Now’, ‘Buy Now’, ‘Get Your Free Trial’ or ‘Speak to an Advisor’.

Top Tip 2 – Keep your CTA copy clear and simple.

Your visitor will want a simple, easy to read overview of what’s on offer, not an essay. The attention span of the average internet user is limited, so say what you need to and make your CTA button clear (using the advice from Tip 1!)

Top Tip 3 – Be honest about what it is you’re offering.

A CTA will be ineffective if the visitor, for whatever reason, distrusts what is being offered or if they distrust the author of the offer. People have been mis-sold too many times, and it has made them naturally weary and savvy. Don’t use fake promises or over the top offers to get your audience to like you, instead be honest and upfront with your offer.

Creating the Perfect Design for Your Call to Action

There is no ‘golden design’ for a CTA, as the design depends entirely on the design elements, graphics, font and colour scheme used on your website. However, there are some simple tips you can apply when designing your CTA.

Top Tip 4 – Use eye-catching colours to attract attention.

Your CTA needs to attract the eye, not be lost in the general design. No matter where you use a digital CTA (such as on your website or in a marketing email) the CTA should be big, bold and beautifully designed, ensuring that it attracts attention while complimenting your colour scheme.

Top Tip 5 – Size does matter.

Nobody will clickthrough on a CTA if they can’t see it or find it in your digital design. Make sure your CTA is big enough to be easily seen.

Top Tip 6 – Use digital design indicators to suggest the opportunity to interact.

The great thing about the web is that there are a number of design tricks that can be used to let a user know that an element is interactive. Digital design techniques such as bevels, shadows, colour changes and hover effects all immediately inform the user that an element is interactive. Make sure your CTA utilises these design effects so that a visitor knows that they can interact.

Placing Your Call to Action on Your Website

You’re happy with the wording and you delighted with the design, now al you need to do is find the right place for your CTA.

Top Tip 7 – Place your CTA above the fold line.

The fold line is the invisible line at the bottom of the screen/browser that is drawn before a user scrolls. Most web pages include a vertical scroll on the right hand side, but there’s no guarantee your visitor will scroll down to read on, so your CTA needs to be visible without the need to scroll.

Top Tip 8 – Place the CTA within matching content.

There is no sense in placing a CTA that says ‘Download the Home Hair Dye Guide’ on a page that talks about beauty treatments. Your CTA needs to compliment the copy and theme of the web page. You may need to create multiple CTA’s with different offers to attract the attention of your online audience.

Top Tip 9 – Use one primary and one secondary CTA per page.

A CTA is a clear message that cuts through the noise that directs your visitors to take a single action. If there are too many CTA’s the message of the primary CTA gets lost. Use one primary CTA and one secondary CTA per page to make sure that your actionable message is clear and obvious.

If you’d like some help crafting some effective call to action forms for your website pages simply contact Future Visions today and we’d be happy to help you.

March 13, 2013

Optimising Your Digital Content to Increase Online Opportunities

Filed under: Email Marketing, Marketing, Website Design — Tom @ 08:47

It’s all too easy to get into the habit of creating something (whether it’s a piece of marketing or a process), putting it ‘out there’ (wherever that may be!) and then leaving it to do its thing.

Unfortunately, not enough of us optimize the material or processes that we create in order to make them more efficient, and most importantly, more effective for our businesses.

However, optimising your online content is extremely beneficial, and something you should definitely start getting into the habit of doing.

We’re going to have a look at 3 different pieces of online content that you can (and should) be optimizing on a regular basis. To get you started quickly we’ll look at what pieces of online content you should be optimizing, why you should be optimizing them and how you can optimize them.

So, let’s get started!

Landing Pages (or Squeeze Pages)

Landing pages (also known as squeeze pages) are web pages that are designed to capture user information through a lead generation form. This information is usually requested in exchange for something (such as a PDF, or email newsletters, or a product, etc).

Landing pages can help you create solid and segregated contact list that helps you to sell in the short and long term.

Why Optimize a Squeeze Page?

Small improvements to your squeeze pages can make a big difference to your bottom line! A little tweak can help you yield lots of data about not just new leads and customers but repeat customers as well (how useful, and potentially profitable, would it be to know that Billy Bob has downloaded brochure A, B and C but not D or E?)

How to Optimize a Squeeze Page

Your squeeze page should pass the 5 second test; in that a visitor should be able to in 5 seconds ascertain what you’re offering, why you are offering it and how it is of value to them.

Use great headlines, clear copy, a relevant (and unique) image, one call to action and a simple sign up form. Don’t forget to include social sharing buttons!

Online Marketing Content

Many people assume that their marketing content is just the words that are used to populate their web pages, but this is not true. It’s everything that you do online, from the words you use to the images that you include, the layout you adopt and so much more.

All of this content should be designed with your target audience in mind, and it should also be crafted to ensure that your visitors move swiftly and easily through the funnel.

Why Optimize Your Online Marketing Content?

Great content, that is laid out in an attractive and easy to read format, combined with unique and relevant images is a sure fire way to increase the both the number of visitors and the number of conversions that take place on your website. Content is key in modern marketing strategies, and you need to be confident that your online marketing content is ready for both web and mobile visitors.

How to Optimize Your Online Marketing Content

Optimizing your online marketing content is more than just thinking about the words you use. You need to be thinking about your keyword strategy and density, the topics you discuss and the platforms on which you discuss them (and the platforms on which you use to share the original links). You need to consider how each individual piece will link to other pieces within your growing online portfolio of content, and you need to consider your SEO.

You may have to liaise with specialist services to understand the importance of each individual aspect, and a good all round service will be able to help you create content that considers all of these elements and more.

Marketing Emails

Marketing emails are a subject very close to the hearts of the Future Visions team. Needless to say, your email list consists of your most engaged and active audience. It’s vital that you know how to test, measure and improve your marketing emails and your strategy in order to guarantee an ROI from this particular activity.

You need to consider how you build your lists as well as how and when you communicate with this highly engaged audience.

Why Optimize Your Marketing Emails?

It’s important to remember that this particular audience has requested and agreed to your marketing content, and they are one of the groups that are most likely to respond to what it is you have to offer. Be sure to build a great set of contact lists and deliver nothing but the best content to these people.

How to Optimize Your Marketing Emails

In order to optimize your marketing emails you need to consider every aspect of the process, from data gathering to delivery, and beyond. It’s only be testing and measuring each email and campaign that you can optimize your future e-marketing campaigns.

Every detail, from your email design, to the subject line, to the email body and copy, the unsubscribe options and the signature will ALL have an impact on the effectiveness of your email campaigns.

If you’re not sure how to optimize your email campaigns to make them more successful simply give the Future Visions team a call for a friendly and comprehensive consultation.

February 20, 2013

9 Ways to Annoy Your Prospects and Customers Online

Filed under: Email Marketing, Website Design, business — Tom @ 10:36

No business owner wants to annoy their prospects or customers, and yet it’s the little things that we do (or most importantly, don’t do!) that can tick off the most important people in our business.

Let’s have a look at some of the things you may or may not be doing that could be irritating your audience!

Website Design Disasters

No, you can’t expect your website from five years ago to still be the best thing on the internet. A site that’s even 12 months behind can quickly fall behind with the times. Your website is your online shop window and it is critical that it appeals to your audience.

  1. Navigation is time and time again the most irritating aspect of a website for a user. Naff navigation is only going to annoy your visitor and drive them into the embracing arms of another business owner.
  2. Web design trends are changing all of the time. What was the height of technology twelve months ago is now yesterdays news. Outdated site designs or an ugly site design is not going to go down well with your clientele.
  3. Too many businesses have been slow off the mark to update their web design ready for mobile devices. Mobile internet browsing is constantly on the rise, and users will return to sites that they can easily view and use on their mobile. Make sure your site welcomes both desktop and mobile internet browsers!

Granted, most businesses can’t afford to keep redesigning their website on an annual basis, but build a relationship with your web design company. Consult with your web design team on a regular basis about minor improvements that could make a big different to your website traffic and lead generation.

Email Marketing Mistakes

Email marketing is a fantastic tool when used correctly. Used incorrectly it can be a sure fire way to giving your business a bad name. Make sure your emails are a delight as they drop into the inbox and make sure that they don’t get dumped into a spam folder!

  1. Don’t email every day, or even every other day for that matter (unless, of course, your subscriber has requested to receive email notifications of any new blogs and you’re blogging on a daily basis… what do you mean you don’t blog at all!?!?!?)
  2. Nobody likes to be tarred with the same brush. People like to feel individual and special and appreciated. With those things in mind make sure that your segment your contact lists to send appropriate marketing emails to appropriate groups of people, and include personalisation throughout the email content.
  3. One of the most common mistakes that many businesses make is that they repeat the content of one email over and over again, without any editing whatsoever. If you must hammer the message home then at least take the time to explain in each different email a set of different benefits.

Social Media Marketing No No’s

Social media marketing is still relatively new to a lot of business owners, and many struggle to understand it’s purpose or how to use it to gain leverage with their audience.

  1. Even if you’re not sure how to use it, it’s absolutely essential that your business is visible and accessible via social media. If social media marketing leaves you feeling baffled, then work with a social media marketing service.
  2. Don’t just sign up to any old network either! Take the time to find out which social networks will work for you and your audience. Some businesses do better on Facebook, others YouTube and other Twitter. It’s all about finding your platform.
  3. Once you’ve found your social media platform (or platforms) you then need to find your tone of voice. People don’t want technical corporate speak on their social media feeds, they want fun, interesting and sometimes even controversial content!

Don’t think of social media as a way of generating leads or sales. Think of it as a tool that can help you get a better understanding of the individuals that make up your target market. Social media is essentially the watercooler at work; it’s all about laughing, smiling and sharing!

February 13, 2013

Google Analytics in Real Life

Filed under: Analytics, Website Design — Tom @ 12:27

Check out the videos below from the Google Analytics in real life series,we love them and it gives a great real life representation of the mistakes businesses are making with their website. They are definitely worth watching, enjoy!

Browsing

Searching

Checkout

February 12, 2013

Optimise Your Marketing Emails in Six Simple Steps

Filed under: Email Marketing, Marketing — Nathan @ 14:25

E-marketing is a fantastic tool for highly targeted and super successful online campaigns. However, e-marketing is like any other form of advertising, it requires an understanding of both the medium and the audience in order to be effective.

With this in mind, Future Visions has put together six simple steps that you can easily follow to optimise your marketing emails and maximise the success of your campaigns.

Step 1 – Spell it out on the subject line

Email inboxes are designed to ensure that your recipient can quickly and easily scan and prioritise their emails based on very little information. The subject line and the sender name are the two most important pieces of information a recipient has to decide whether or not to treat an email as a priority; giving you have a somewhat limited window of opportunity to entice your audience to open your email. Your email needs to stand out from the crowd and your subject line needs to use precisely the right words to ensure that your recipient clicks open your email. Luckily for you, we have put together a fab ebook on subject lines which you can download for free!

Step 2 – Do NOT use a ‘Do Not Reply’

SURELY the purpose of sending an email campaign is to encourage your recipient to respond in some way, right? Right! So, with that in mind, make sure your email includes a working reply to address, instead of the unfriendly and unwelcoming reply to address of ‘Do Not Reply’.  By sending email from an address that cannot accept incoming email you are automatically creating a one way conversation, and you are unlikely to encourage engagement between your business and your contact. Also, avoid generic addresses such as info@ or team@ as your recipient will want to know exactly WHO they are replying to. Remember, people buy from people, and email is only effective when it feels personal to the recipient!

Step 3 – Keep it real

Following on from the ‘people buy from people’ principle made in the previous step, it’s also important to bear this philosophy in mind when writing your marketing email content. Ask yourself honestly, how often do you call any of your clients a ‘valued customer’ to their face? You don’t, because it sounds corny and impersonal. Instead, you’d use a more personal and heartfelt compliment. When writing your email content try to bear this in mind. Keep it real and be yourself. If your email copy has you typing and deleting, typing and deleting then why not send the Future Visions team your email copy for some insights and advice?

Step 4 – Double check your dynamic content

Dynamic content is a great tool to use to personalise your marketing emails; however, there will be occasions when the data you wish to include in your email isn’t available for all of your contacts. It’s crucial that you double check your dynamic content, and ensure that in the event that your content can be loaded into the email that the content is gracefully replaced with something that is a bit more appealing than {INSERTCONTENTHERE}.

Step 5 – Use a high quality HTML email design

Email design is on the rise so don’t be afraid to add a little zazz to your marketing email template. However, make sure that your email design compliments your existing corporate identity, and ensure that the design renders as expected in all the major email clients (such as Gmail and Outlook). Also, be sure to test drive your email design through a variety of mobile and tablet devices, because these days most people read email on the go. If you’re unsure about the quality or stability of your email design simply drop the team at Future Visions an email for a consultation on your email design and we’d be happy to help you get the right look for your e-marketing campaigns.

Step 6 – Include a Call to Action

You can spell out all of the important info to your recipient, but if you don’t make it as easy as possible for them to complete the action you want them to take then chances are your recipient won’t. Be sure to include a call to action, and whenever possible make this call to action a hyperlink. That way, you can easily track how many people opened your email, how many clicked your link and how many of your contacts converted on each campaign. This feedback will help you to improve your email campaigns again and again.

Remember, e-marketing can really boost your online sales and help you to connect with your contacts.

If you use a technique in your email campaigns that you haven’t seen here then don’t be shy; share your experiences and expertise with the Future Visions team!

January 24, 2013

The one big trick that 3 massive high street businesses missed

Filed under: Finance, Social Media, business — Tom @ 11:05

It seems it’s all been a bit doom and gloom since Christmas, with the announcement that Jessops, HMV and Blockbusters have all gone into administration.

These three massive media based high street businesses have all suffered greatly as a result of missing one big trick; and that trick is the digital revolution.

All three companies struggled to compete with the internet. Rather than embrace the internet and use it to their advantage, they have all, in one way or another let the internet get the better of their business. A mistake which has proven extremely costly for Jessops, and one that still poses a threat to HMV and Blockbusters.

Jessops – Failed to Adopt a Successful Social Strategy

With the rise of social networks there has been a dramatic increase in the number of photographs that are being shared online; so it’s hard to believe that one of the UK’s biggest photographic equipment retailers has gone bust.

Unfortunately the Jessops website has now been replaced with a notice that provides information to customers about what to do. There is a link still to the Jessops Photo website; although again the visitor is greeted with yet another notice and further instructions on how to retrieve your photos.

With Instagram and Pinterest both having access to a large user base, it seems that had Jessops utilized social media to it’s advantage it might ever have reached the point of no return.

HMV – Failed to Adopt an Online Strategy Quickly

As with Jessops, the HMV website has been replaced with a Notice of Administration. However, many news channels have discussed that HMV’s downfall was it’s inability to quickly integrate a website strategy.

Instead, HMV continued to rely on old school marketing methods and in store sales and promotions; hoping it could compete against online retailers with the strength and history of it’s brand. But, if the internet has demonstrated anything it’s that it can make and break giants.

HMV has been thrown a lifeline by Hilco, which runs the HMV stores in Canada. However, HMV has got to learn from it’s previous mistakes and it needs to seriously reconsider it’s online strategy if it hopes to continue trading in the UK.

Blockbusters – Fading From The Fickle Memory of Consumers

Blockbusters has the opportunity to recoup it’s losses, providing of course that it takes the time to reassert it’s identity to consumers using an online strategy.

Blockbusters is fast losing it’s reputation in the different services that it provides. With the emergence of sites such as NetFlix and LoveFilm Blockbusters has lost it’s edge. Supermarkets can also compete with Blockbusters on price for newly released films and gaming titles.

Although Blockbusters has a website, the navigation looks a little outdated (especially compared to it competitor websites) and the site looks a little too busy. Some spring cleaning on their website would certainly make a big difference. However, one of the biggest changes that Blockbusters needs to implement in order to reassert it’s authority as a media retailer is to it’s social strategy.

You can walk into any Blockbusters store at the moment and get a great list of staff recommendations. However, Blockbusters do not have a Facebook page, which means it’s failing to remind customers about it’s business and it’s expertise online. As well as having a general social identity for the business, Blockbusters should be encouraging individual stores to invest some time creating and maintaining their own individual online identities, helping the store to connect with local communities and it’s consumer base.

The Cost of a Compromised Online Identity

What Jessops, HMV and Blockbusters all demonstrate is that physical presence is no longer enough to sustain a successful business. Without a comprehensive online identity and a well thought out internet strategy any business can (and will) fall.

Take heed from the mistakes made by the big players, and invest the time and resources needed to give your business a strong and successful online presence. If you’re not sure where to start or how to implement effective online strategies, do some research and find the right people and businesses to collaborate with.

The internet is where the consumer base is now; and whether you’re a B2C or a B2B business it’s crucial that you make sure you can be easily found and reached online.


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