1. Use referral emails

2. Highlight good reviews 

3. Allow customers to send a text message inquiry

4. Have multiple ways to contact you (chat bots, website, phone number, & social media) 

5. Run a paid search ad or Google Ad

6. Update Google My Business Profile 

7.  Attend a tradeshow or local fair

8. Sponsor a team, organization, or charity 

9. Run a new paid social campaign 

10. Build an email list through company blog, newsletter, & coupon codes

11. Use QR codes on business cards & social posts 

12. Refer customers to complementary businesses 

13. Join a networking group

14. Participate in local community events & gatherings

Start a user-researched web project today? Call 248.528.3600

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1. Set up exclusive offers 

2. Use email marketing 

3. Update old web content 

4. Use PPC ads or Google Ads

5. Optimize your website for mobile devices

6. Invest in SEO services

7. Live-stream videos

8. Create short-form videos

9. Partner up with an influencer 

10. Use local search marketing (Google My Business) 

11. Integrate social media to your website

12. Use Google Analytics to track web visits & other data

13. Create a landing page 

14. Retarget your ads

15. Chop up long-form content into short-term content

16. Update or upgrade plugins & software 

17. Set up holiday calendar for the rest of the year

18. Send out digital coupons

19. Network with your local community or journalists 

20. Reshare popular posts 

21. Build a company blog 

22. Start a company podcast 

23. Highlight good reviews 

24. Create branded icons for your website 

25. Send out a quality service survey 

Need help starting these strategies? Call 248.528.3600

The post Easy Digital Marketing Strategies for 2023 appeared first on Miller Media, Digital Marketing Agency, PPC, Industrial Web Design, WordPress.

According to Google’s marketing retail guide, 40% of U.S. holiday shoppers say their holiday shopping experience has made them consider shopping much earlier for other milestones this year. This means your holiday gifts offers, specials, and other deals should be ready a couple months in advance. With consumers combining online and in-store shopping, preparing an omnichannel holiday strategy early will be critical to reaching shoppers along their purchase journeys. Have both your supply chain and digital marketing plan ready before November. 

If fact, it might be best to have new strategy right after the current holiday ends. According to the guide, June 2021 reported 31% of U.S. shoppers had already started their holiday shopping and 37% of shoppers who shopped the previous holiday season wished they had started earlier. During COVID-19 and currently, a lot of business’s supply chains had stock issues, causing over 50% of U.S. shoppers surveyed to say that they would start holiday shopping earlier to avoid an item being out of stock. This is especially important if you are an ecommerce business or a product-based company. Several suggestions from Google to include in a marketing strategy are:

• Use the Insights page in Google Ads and best sellers report to keep up with consumer demand. 
• Notify customers with promotions, sales, free and fast shipping options, and return and refund options directly to your product listings.
• Create a Business Profile and run a Local campaign to connect with local shoppers. 

If you are struggling with any of these items Miller Media can help with Google Ads and provides Google Analytics Consulting to create a marketing strategy that is successful. 

Multichannel Shopping is the Main Way People Shop

Omnichannel or multichannel shopping has led to only 4% of U.S. holiday shoppers not using digital channels for their shopping according to the retail guide. This means have a digital presence is a requirement for your business. Have a website, create social media accounts, and GoogleMyBusiness Profile for your business. If you are missing one or more of these avenues and can’t manage them yourself a digital marketing agency can help you. Also, convenience is key for people around the holidays. Minimize stress for last-minute shoppers, who rely on local and nearby stores. In Google Maps, searches for “gift shops near me” have grown globally by over 60% year over year. Make sure your on-page and off-page SEO is effective, so new or returning customers will see you first on Google’s results page. Other ways Google suggests helping shoppers see your business is with: 

• A Performance Max campaign, and through your app (if you have one) by deep linking to reach the right customers. 
• Smart Bidding for store visits or store sales. 
• Listing your products for free across Google Shopping 
• Local inventory ads and adding  Pointy  to your Business Profile to reach nearby customers by promoting available inventory. 

People Use Google for Holiday Inspiration

Google states that 43% of U.S. holiday shoppers that used Google said they did so to get gift ideas, and 64% said they did so for discovery and inspiration. This is very important for retailers. Search visibility is critical to capturing these shoppers. Include gift guides in your company’s blog. In addition, promote your products to your target audience at the right time across Google surfaces, like Search, YouTube, Gmail, and the Shopping tab. This takes SEO, website optimization, PPC, Google Ad creation, social media marketing, and other digital marketing services. All this can be overwhelming to maintain. If you are struggling to market your business while trying to run it, let the team here at Miller Media do it for you. 

Need help preparing for future holiday marketing strategies? Call 248.528.3600.

The post Google Seasonal Shopping Insights From this Year to Help Prep for Next Year appeared first on Miller Media, Digital Marketing Agency, PPC, Industrial Web Design, WordPress.

1. Image Extensions 

The consumer visual experience when browsing products and services online has become more critical as time passes. Image extensions help create a more visually appealing search ad that will draw in your target market. Image extensions appear on both desktop and mobile devices while enhancing the relevance of your search ad by including images of your business’s products or services in the ad. Image assets for these extensions perform best when they are closely relevant to queries within the ad group or campaign. They should convey useful information to your potential client and match the experience they will find on your landing page. Google has other requirements in terms of content and quality that need to be followed to make sure you campaign is successful. If you are struggling with extension or ad creation search for a digital marketing agency that can help you with google ads. 

2. Structured Snippets

Structured snippets extensions list specific aspects of your product or service. This extension has a predefined “header” for values. You do not need landing pages for each product or service because they do not link to your website. This good for businesses that do not have a complete website yet, but still want to get the word out about their product or service. Each snippets extension has a “heading” such as:

• Amenities
• Brands
• Destinations
• Degree programs
• Courses
• Featured hotels
• Insurance coverage
• Neighborhoods
• Service catalogs
• Models
• Show
• Styles
• Types

After selecting the header, enter the values such as “free Shipping” for amenities or any unique features your product or service has that your competition may not. This ad extension can add value by giving your potential client more information and differentiating your ad from competitors who are not using this extension.

3. Price Extensions 

Price extensions are a great alternative for businesses that do not have product feeds or is a service-based company. They can instead showcase products and services with price points. This extension presents themselves in search results below the main ad text which can lead to attracting greater attention to the ad as well as a curiosity to dive deeper into the content of your business’s website. You have a minimum of three and up to eight items, or cards, that can be added per price extension. A potential client can then scroll through and click on items individually to view. Like the structured snippets, Google has predefined types of price extensions:

• Brands
• Events
• Locations
• Neighborhoods
• Product categories
• Product tiers
• Service categories
• Service tiers
• Services

Each card has a header and description of 25 characters each, appearing above and below the price. This is important for business that do not have one set price point. A price qualifier can be added such as “from”, “up to”, and “average.” Price extensions can be added to the account, campaign, or ad group level. Note that adding to the ad group level is a great place for more detailed items to be tailored to a subgroup for example: “European cars” vs. “German cars.” These ad extensions can also be scheduled for a start and end date, along with custom hourly scheduling. This is ideal for seasonal or holiday promotions. 

4. Call Extensions 

Call extensions serve a phone number with your ads that is redirected to your official phone number. Since mobile is the primary device for search, you want to connect potential clients directly with your sales or customer service team by phone call. Use the PPC platform forwarding numbers. They will show your call information, call conversions, and valuable search data on how people are finding your business’s phone number. Note that a phone call can be counted as a conversion, defined by the number of seconds a caller is on the phone call. Also, the number of seconds should be defined based on each business’s unique phone behavior for closing callers. If phone call lengths are below this threshold too frequently, or many calls are missed, it’s a good time to review optimization ideas:

• Are too many “wrong” numbers coming through? 

This could be due to the ad being triggered by different business names or competitors based on keywords. Check search queries and ask phone repetitives what they have been hearing from callers. These keywords can be used as negative keywords.

• Too many missed calls? 

Ensure the ad is scheduled during business hours only when someone is available to answer that call. That could mean not running ads during the holiday shutdowns, for example.

• Calls from physical locations not serviced by your business. 

Adjust geotargeting to be more accurate. Also use this instant as an opportunity to learn more about these callers and the current market demand around your product, service, or industry. 

Let us help you with your Google Ads.  Call 248.528.3600.

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How do I create a Google Business Profile? 

You can create your profile through Google Search and Maps. First, sign into your business’s Google Account. Then go to “create a profile”. Next up, you enter the name of your business or select your business from the list of suggested businesses as you type. After that search for your business category. Once that is done, click “Next” and enter whether you have a location customers can visit. Follow that task up with entering the service area of your business, phone number, and website URL. After that you should be finished and all that is left is to choose a verification option. For more details visit Google’s Support Page or contact us, we’d be happy to help in addition to any Google related services. 

Bonuses to Have that Help Your Business  

Google Business Profile lets you select various attributes to let customers know special details about your business. These attributes also appear on your products in the Shopping tab when you add then to your Merchant Center account. Examples of attributes are women led business, black-owned business, LGBTQ+ friendly, etc. 

Performance Max campaigns help bring buyers to your stores by promoting your locations to shoppers when they are browsing on Google Maps, Search, YouTube, and the Google Display Network. This advertising strategy formally known as local campaign can help drive foot traffic by sharing store openings, special in-store promotions, updated business hours, and specific products that are available in nearby stores. Pair this with local inventory ads. Local inventory ads let potential clients know whether the products they’re looking for are available before coming into stores. You can showcase products that are available in your nearby stores on Google Search and highlight your fulfillment options like curbside pickup, pickup today, and pickup later. 

Measuring the impact your online ads can be done with Google’s Smart Bidding. This part of measuring in-store visits is vital for meeting your business goals. Use “Smart Bidding for store visits” or “Smart Bidding for store sales” to maximize total sales. Bid the right amount to attract the right customers. It does not matter whether they end up purchasing online or in your store. This is an important tool for helping increase sales and ensure you continue to be a business. 

Need help with using Google Business Profile or Google Ads? Call 248.528.3600.

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41% of shoppers go to Google when discovering a new brand according to their survey across countries. As your company’s brand grows, it’s important to appear across places where potential customers may be browsing and to create real value that is meaningful and distinct through your content. Immersive and creative content in channels such as video, search, and feeds on Google can help build brand awareness. It will also help you differentiate your brand from your competition with shoppers who are in the market for products or services like yours.

Connect with Customers Through Video Marketing 

Over its lifetime YouTube has evolved from purely an entertainment platform to a place where viewers go to learn, stream, and get inspired by their next purchase. Google found that every day people watch over a billion hours of video and generate billion of views on YouTube. That is a huge amount of people and opportunity to create potential new customers. Video reach campaigns can help spread your brand’s message, product advertisement, or service demonstration reach as many people as possible in your target audience demographic at a reasonable cost. This is perfect if you are small business or if you marketing budget is tight. 

Let Your Business be the Answer When Users Search and Browse 

According to the guide, 61% of consumers in surveyed countries around the world say they visit multiple websites before settling on what to buy and who to buy it from. This means shoppers do not always have a specific company in mind when they search the category they are interested in. They usually search for reviews or articles first to help inform their decision. There are many ways to highlight your good reviews or demonstrate trustworthiness. Here are some important items in include in your digital marketing strategy to achieve this:  

• Broad match keywords & Smart Bidding

 Broad match can save time, simplify your Google account, and increase website traffic by finding all relevant searches that are expected to perform. Combine with Smart Bidding to set the right bid for each search within your performance goals.

• Responsive search ads

Responsive search ads combine creativity with machine learning to help show relevant ads to users. If a customer is searching Google without a specific brand or product in mind, you can put your products in the spotlight by appearing in these searches.

• Image extensions 

Compelling visuals can help you differentiate your brand from companies that sell something similar with shoppers across Google. To optimize your ads’ performance, use image extensions to complement your existing text ads with relevant visuals that engage your audience and drive a call-to-action.

• Discovery campaigns 

Discovery campaigns can help you deliver highly visual and inspiring personalized ad experiences to your target audience who are ready to discover and engage with your brand. With this solution, you can reach up to 3 billion users on feeds across Google and YouTube with a single campaign.

• Audience solutions 

To build consideration among users who are actively looking to make a purchase, use in-market audience targeting. This drives action from new customers who share similar characteristics with existing customers, use similar audiences. To reengage existing customers across the web, use Customer Match. Telia Norge increased their revenue by 15% and conversion rate by 22% among existing customers using this service. 

Ready to optimize your marketing plan with these Google tips? Call 248.528.360

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According to Google’s Retail Marketing Guide 48% of consumers in surveyed countries around the world say they get inspiration for purchases when they are online. Shoppers browse across Google and YouTube to discover new brands and products that are relevant to them. Their methods go as follows:

• Inspiration forms when watching YouTube Videos. 
  • 78% of people surveyed in the U.S. say they feel they get the highest-quality info about products when shopping or browsing on YouTube

• Browse Google Images

• Scroll through Google Discover to catch up on interesting topics

Engage Customers as They Research 

Before making a purchase, customers seek information from trusted sources to compare products and narrow down their options. Best in category, prices, and the latest reviews are important factors customers look for. 89% agree that YouTube creators give the best information about products and brands. YouTube reviewers hit all the important factors and more trusted due to the fact the person is visible vs a star review that is faceless and could be interpreted as a bot. Consider YouTube reviewers when coming up with a social media marketing plan. 

Consumers also look up information and articles on Google Search. 40% of shoppers go to Google when researching a purchase they plan to make in-store or online. It is important that your SEO strategy is up to date. Check your website’s ranking on Google SERPs. If it not where you want it to be you may need to work with a digital marketing agency on your on-page and off-page SEO techniques. And if your budget allows, invest in Google Ads. 

Convert Customers Looking to Purchase

Convincing potential clients is key. Shoppers buy from brands that can provide a seamless experience. 31% of consumers in surveyed countries say they are researching online more before purchasing to avoid out-of-stock situations, inventory blockage, and shipping challenges or delays. They want to be able to buy a product online as soon as they find it or see what a local store has in stock. 

Utilize Google Maps, especially for local business traffic. Google Maps searches for “shopping near me” have grown globally by over 100% year over year. Maps also use to be GoogleMyBusiness app. Currently you can set a profile using Maps. Create and maintain your profile so you can be found easily. 

The Shopping tab is an underrated tool business often forget about. Almost half (49%) of consumers in surveyed countries expect to be able to buy from any store online. You want your online store to show up in the Shopping tab. Make sure in your website’s CMS your product details like name, price, and description are accurate and visible. 

Update your marketing plan based on these tips today! Call 248.528.360 

The post Customers Use Google to Browse, Research, and Buy appeared first on Miller Media, Digital Marketing Agency, PPC, Industrial Web Design, WordPress.

Where Do Google Autocomplete Keywords Come From?

Danny Sullivan, a public liaison for Google search, explains it in his blog post on Google Autocomplete:

“How do we determine these predictions? We look at the real searches that happen on Google and show common and trending ones relevant to the characters that are entered and also related to your location and previous searches.”

Are The Predictions Different in Various Countries?

The country you are in also effects what predictions Google Autocomplete generates. For example, you travel to Michigan, USA for a business conference and need a hotel. The top 3 perditions Google Autocomplete suggests are “hotels in Detroit”, “hotels in Traverse City”, and “hotels in Ann Arbor”. If you change locations, Google will “follow” you, and your Autocomplete options will adjust accordingly. 

Are Google Autocomplete Predictions Different for Various Languages?

Predictions differ based on the language(s) you are using to enter queries into Google. If you set your default language to English, you will be shown English predictions. If you decide to add other languages that you understand, say, Spanish and Arabic, you’ll also be shown predictions in those languages.

Does Your Search History Affect Google Autocomplete Predictions?

Google considers your search history when showing predictions when you are logged into your Google account. When you see a prediction that has a “Remove” option next to it, know that this is a prediction based on your search history. If it is removable it shows up as an “X” on the far right. Google remembers that you searched for whatever query but recognizes it may have been a one-time search.

What is the Google Autocomplete Guidelines?

Not all search queries are appropriate to display as predictions. Here are the types of predictions go against Google Autocomplete policy:

• Violence and gore
• Sexually explicit, vulgar, or profane language, though medical and scientific terms are allowed
• Anything related to hate speech or approval of hateful acts
• Sensitive information or terms about named individuals
• Dangerous predictions, meaning searches for things that could allow serious harm to people or animals to happen

Google admits that while they do their best to remove inappropriate predictions. They don’t always get it right and provide a way to report a prediction.

Create a SEO marketing strategy with Google Autocomplete in mind. Call 248.528.3600

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1. Content Campaigns
2. Contest Campaigns
3. Email List-Building Campaigns
4. Holiday Campaigns
5. User-Generated Content Campaigns
6. Event Campaigns
7. Product Launch Campaigns
8. “Ditch Your Old Product” Campaigns
9. Brand Awareness Campaigns
10. Partnership Campaigns
11. Give-Away Campaigns
12. Deal/Sale Campaigns
13. Google Ad Campaigns
14. Customer Loyalty Campaigns
15. Referral Program Campaigns
16. Influencer Campaigns
17. Thought Leadership Campaigns
18. FAQ Campaigns
19. AMA Campaigns
20. Viral Marketing Campaigns

Start your campaign today calling 248.528.360. 

The post 20 Proven Effective Marketing Campaign Ideas appeared first on Miller Media, Digital Marketing Agency, PPC, Industrial Web Design, WordPress.

Sitelinks:

Over 66% of SERPs in the U.S. are sitelinks. Sitelinks are links that will allow search users to find specific content beyond the homepage. Google displays a sitelink search box followed by four sitelinks to popular pages. 

People Also Ask:

This feature can appear anywhere on a SERP. It typically displays 5 of the top questions asked about a search query. When someone clicks on a question under the “People Also Ask” section, it will display the answer to the question, along with a link to the source for the answer. It will also automatically generate additional questions related to the one the user just clicked.

Reviews:

You see in the ratings in the local pack for local business reviews. The stars you see in shopping ads. Google may also display star ratings and review counts within organic search results.

Images:

When Google anticipates that a search query would best be answered visually, they use the images feature. This feature can appear anywhere throughout the SERP. When clicked upon, the link goes to Google image search results for the query with additional details about the image clicked.

Videos:

Like the image feature, the video feature of SERPs can appear anywhere throughout the page. Google displays a section of videos from YouTube after four ads, a featured snippet, People Also Ask, and five organic search results.

Knowledge Panels:

Knowledge panels are automatically generated boxes of useful information, compiled from various sources around the internet by the Knowledge Graph. They generally appear on the right side of search results.

Local Packs:

When there are local results that match your search query, you may see them appear in a local pack. Listings in a local pack typically appear with reviews, an address, and hours of operation. According to the Local Pack-O-Meter, 35.7% of approximately 60 million search queries in the U.S. contained a local pack in March of 2022. Over the past year, it has fluctuated from 33% to 33.9%. If you have a local business this feature is extremely important to you. 

Featured Snippets:

Featured snippets generally appear at the top of SERPs, offering a portion of content from one of the top organic search results for a particular query. For example, a search for [how to update my WordPress website] may generate a featured snippet with a video from YouTube that answers the query. Other formats of featured snippets include numbered or bulleted lists. Featured snippets sometimes fall below Google Ads for certain search queries and can also come in table format. 

Google Ads: 

Sponsored results from advertisers using Google Ads may appear at the top and bottom of SERPs. After organic listings, a People Also Ask section, and top stories, Google displays an additional three ads, followed by related searches.

Shopping Ads:

In addition to standard text ads, Google also offers retailers the ability to create shopping ads for their products. Shopping ads often display the name of the product, price, retailer, and product rating.

Carousels: 

Carousels generally appear at the top of SERPs, offering fast answers to the search query.

For example, a search for [computers] results in a carousel of images with the most popular computer brands that other Google users search for.

Instant Answers: 

Instant Answers is a search feature Google uses to display answers to a search user’s query at the top of the SERP. Google may also provide instant answers at the top of SERPs for the following types of queries:

• Weather.
• Movie locations.
• Calculator.
• Translating a word or phrase.
• Calculating the number of days until a specific date or upcoming holiday.
• Finding out the score of a recent sports game.
• Determining the age of someone based on their birthdate.
• Getting the dates to popular events, like conventions and festivals.
• Seeing the current share price and market summary for popular stocks.

Top Stories:

If a search query has related news stories, Google may display a section of top stories from media outlets. In this SERP for MacBook, Google displays the top stories after shopping ads, organic results, People Also Ask, and more shopping results.

Tweets:

A small percentage of SERPs will feature tweets relevant to the search query. After the first organic search result and a people also ask section, the latest tweets from your official Twitter account appear.

Apps;

Google search users on mobile devices may see features that are only available on mobile. Google displays apps from the Apple store after three ads and a list of apps from sources across the web.

Product Comparisons: 

Google can take product information and display it in search results for users looking to compare products. You can see a side-by-side list of the product images, reviews, price, and additional details. When search users click on the detailed comparison link, Google displays additional details about the products compared, along with the option to add additional products for comparison when relevant.

Top Products:

Unlike shopping ads, the top products feature showcases unadvertised products related to a search query. When you click on a product, additional details about the product appear. Google displays reviews from third-party sites, prices from multiple retailers, top insights from media outlets, and reviews from multiple retailers.

Jobs: 

Google helps job seekers by aggregating jobs from various sources across the web and displaying them within SERPs for queries like [jobs near me].

Wondering how these features can help your business? Call 248.528.360.

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