• Want to promote your small business with the help of SEO? 
• Do you want to use the potential of SEO for business?
• Do you want to gain visibility, engage audiences, and promote your products efficiently?

To find out how to develop SEO strategies and use the best tools and techniques for website promotion, read this article. SEMrush SEMrush is the most powerful and flexible competitive intelligence tool for online marketing. Use it for SEO, PPC, social media, video advertising research and much more. SEMrush helps to:

• Compare competitive domains
• Conduct a deep link analysis
• See competitors’ best keywords
• Uncover their online marketing strategies
• Create an effective video ad campaign
• See your competitors' video ad strategies, etc.

Tips:

• Use SEMrush to find the right keywords for SEO and PPC campaigns.
• Try to collect all data in one custom PDF report for comprehensive analysis.

SEOquake If you want to improve as well as promote your website, you must use this browser extension. This extension helps in SEO audit, internal and external links and much more. This tool is easy to use and helps to study a website in a detailed manner. Tips:

• Review all SEO metrics with the help of SEOquake.
• Use SEOquake to identify website errors and warnings.
• Review your site’s mobile and desktop compliance.

  Keyword In Keyword In is the most popular keyword research tool. It helps to find short and long-tail keywords in an easy manner. You can use it for both Google Adwords and PPC programs. It also helps you to find new phrases to optimise your site for SEO. Varvy SEO tool Use Varvy to understand the concepts of SEO. This tool helps you to review Googlebot access, mobile devices, security, accessibility, page speed and much more. Tips:

• Test your site using Varvy to see if it follows the Google guidelines.
• Use it to know about paid links, sitemaps, etc.

Slerpee tool Use Slerpee to see how your site looks in the search results. Use it to fine tune your SEO strategy, it also tells you about Meta titles and descriptions. Slerpee is a user friendly tool and allow people to improve their website’s overall performance Tips:

• Use it to check Google SERP preview in real time.
• Use it to view on-page keywords and density.
• Change your Meta titles and descriptions according to the results.

So, use these powerful SEO tools to promote your online business and reap benefits.

Digital Marketing platforms are changing like never before.  So, it is important to understand the latest digital marketing  developments and recalibrate strategies accordingly. Here are a few latest digital marketing platforms: Snapchat (The most advanced social media platform) Snapchat is the latest image messaging and multimedia mobile application. It lets you talk with friends, view live stories, etc.  Social media marketers cannot ignore this platform as it is more effective and popular than any other social platform. Tips:

• Use Snapchat to create teasers for upcoming products/services.
• Use this application to upload photos or videos of your products to attract users.
• Use this versatile platform for real-time marketing.
• Create multimedia messages for your targeted users.
• Organise contents and offer rewards and coupons to users.

Facts:

• Snapchat is an invaluable marketing tool.
• Snapchat is a convenient mode of communication.

Live video streaming  Live video streaming is one of the best ways to provide video content in real time. With streaming video, a web user does not have to wait to download a file. Use Meerkat & periscope to provide live streaming videos. These two applications help you to broadcast and explore the world through live videos. Tips: Use Meerkat & periscope, if you have a larger audience’s database.

• Use these applications to educate people about your company/brand.
• Use these applications to improve your branding efforts.
• Connect these apps with Facebook and Twitter accounts for live streaming.

Instagram Instagram is one of the most powerful visual platforms. Use it to improve your brand identity and attract the maximum number of people. However, for optimum success, you need to share high quality images. It is a known fact that Instagram drives more traffic than any other social channel. Facts:

• Instagram has more than 500 million users.
• 75% of Instagram users are outside the US.
• 90 % of Instagram users are younger than 35.
• Instagram usage has doubled in the last two years

Tips: Join the community and encourage people to share their images.

• Use Instagram management tools like Sprout Social.
• Use community hashtags and organise contests.
• Take advantage of user-generated content marketing strategies.
• Build trust by using relevant and high quality images.

Pinterest  Pinterest is spreading like wild fire. In fact, it is trending since its launch. Marketers use it to improve their presence and attract users. This platform helps to promote products and services, attract organic traffic as well as share image/video content. Tips: Share high quality and trending images to make your presence felt.

• Connect with more and more people having similar interest.
• Be active and reply to feedbacks regularly.
• Add Pinterest browser button to your favourite browser for better working.

Facts: According to survey, more than 25% of consumers buy a product or service after discovering it on Pinterest.

• 73 % of active users prefer to follow a beauty brand on Pinterest.
• Pinterest allows online businesses to find, understand and engage their audiences.

These are some of the latest digital marketing platforms that will rule the web. So, devise your marketing strategies accordingly and enjoy the sweet smell of success.

Small business owners always struggle to achieve local rankings, as they fail to devise innovative and creative local marketing strategies. Here are a few innovative ideas for small businesses: Embrace content marketing Regardless of the type of business you have, strategic content marketing can be beneficial for you. Embrace content marketing using different types of content formats to convey your messages. For best results, use: •    Blogs •    Infographics •    Case studies •    Presentations Also create compelling videos to communicate with your audiences. This is a great way to retain  existing customers and attract new customers. Facts: •    Around 61% of consumers say they feel better about a company that delivers custom content. •    According to a research, interesting content is one of the top 3 reasons people follow brands on social media. Benefits: •    Content marketing helps to build brand reputation in local market. •    High-quality content published to a website can increase website rankings. Create a business profile Business profile is your identification. Hence, create your business profile on authoritative and recognised websites for better visibility in local region. However, you must provide complete information while creating listings so that users can find you. Benefits: •    Business profile listing improves local visibility. •    Business listings provide an opportunity to tell your company’s story and connect with followers. Tips: •    Create a business listing that is informative, error-free and well managed. •    Always keep your listing updated. Rely on social media Take advantage of social media. It doesn’t matter if you want to dominate local or global markets, you simply can’t afford to ignore social media. Facts: •    Social media helps businesses to maintain relationships. •    Social media marketing helps to achieve realistic goals. •    Social media assists businesses to improve their conversion rate as well as ROI. Use Social Media Management Tools Whether you want to dominate local or global regions, use social media management tools to grow your presence as well as save time. These tools help to manage social communication and monitor social activities. Benefits: •    Social media management tools streamline engagement. •    These tools provide analytics and custom reports to understand user behaviour. •    These tools help to improve social media marketing strategies. Email Marketing Newsletter Email marketing newsletters are the best ways to connect with audiences and keep them informed. Small business owners should create creative and informative newsletters to establish better relationships with customers. Benefits: •    Email Marketing is cost effective, reliable, and measurable form of communication. •    Newsletters are easy to create, track and share. •    Email marketing is useful for sending a commercial message to a group of people irrespective of their location. Facts: •    According to a study, 72% people prefer to receive promotional content through email. •    Email Marketing is a long-term investment. So, start using these marketing ideas today to increase sales and revenue right away.

Content has the ability to improve a business’s productivity. It can transform any business, lift its bottom line and help to succeed.  Hence, content marketers should focus on creating quality content. Facts: •    Well-written content influences buyer’s buying behaviour. •    Professional content improves the overall understanding of buyers. Here are a few effective content writing tools: Atomic reach High-quality content is the key indicator of your company’s professionalism and expertise. Therefore, use "Atomic reach" to gain real-time guidance. Moreover, this easy-to-use tool saves time, effort and cost involved in creating all forms of content. Skyword If you want to create a sustainable and measurable content, use Skyword. This platform makes it easier to produce, optimise, and promote content. This platform also helps to build meaningful and lasting relationships with users. Tips: •    Use it to bring scalability to your content marketing program. •    Use it to highlight specific assignments and keep them organised. ContentIdeator ContentIdeator is the most popular content research and ideation tool. This tool helps content writers to discover their competitors’ content marketing techniques. Use it to analyse content, spot trends, popular subjects, and competitors’ psychology behind content marketing. Tips: •    Use it to develop a great content marketing strategy. •    Use its SEO tool for on-page optimisation as well as to boost website traffic. •    Use its free copy writing tool to generate sensible headings. •    Use its blog title generator tool to get inspiration for your posts. Daily Page Use this tool to get daily writing inspiration. This tool provides daily reminders as well as writing scores. This tool helps you to become a better writer and editor. Tips: •    Use Daily Page to receive daily prompts. •    Use it to get daily writing ideas and updates. Twords Twords is the most amazing writing tool (web application) that helps you to reach your writing goals. This tool helps you to track your writing and editing efforts. Tips: •    Use it to identify goals of writing projects. •    Use it to improve your writing. Write Use this easy-to-use writing tool to improve your writing experience. This tool has great features, such as passcode app activation, tagging and content sharing options. Poetica Use this plugin to see the real-time editing of content. You can easily make changes inline as if you are writing on paper. This plugin saves time and helps people to work together on  the same platform. Tips: •    Use it to streamline your editorial work flow. •    Use it to create high quality content. •    Use it to track changes and share your posts instantly. All the above mentioned writing tools are helpful in creating high quality content.

Conversion rate optimisation is the need of the hour. Needless to say, it has become an important element for the survival of any e-commerce website.  It is a process, which focuses on optimising sponsored ads and landing pages as well as websites by using the time-tested design and other psychological elements. In a nutshell, CRO or conversion rate optimisation is all about improving the efficiency of a website. According to online experts, CRO is vital for businesses mainly for three reasons:

1. Attracting traffic.
2. Enhancing the value of a website.
3. Meeting business objectives and improving revenues.

Fact: Conversion Rate Optimisation is the key to success.   However, it must be noted that there are still some marketers who do not believe in conversion rate optimisation because they think it’s a sheer waste of time, money and effort. In fact, they are wrong; the fact is e-commerce businesses can’t survive without it.   Statistics:

• Only 44 percent of companies use split-testing while trying to optimise conversion rates.
• According to Econsultancy, the use of testing among companies has increased from 27 percent to 38 percent.
• According to EyeViewDigital, videos on landing pages can improve conversion rates by 80 percent.

Things to check before starting conversion rate optimisation:

• Does your website have a simple website design?
• Does your website have clean and clear call-to-action?
• Is your content readable, informative and creative?
• Does your website improve the shopping experience of users?
• Does it have proper graphics?
• Does your website match the standards of usability?
•  Does your website have simple navigation?
• Does your website have social proof?

If you think your website is not performing and conforming to the standard guidelines, you should adjust your website immediately. For that you should focus on the following essential elements:

• Relevance  – You should write relevant content as well as include effective images into your e-commerce website.
• Usability – You should keep your navigation clean and simple.
• Clarity – Write simple sentences so that they can convey your messages.
• CTAs – Use CTAs wherever possible.
• A/B testing – Always perform A/B testing to get clear picture of your site’s performance.

Facts:

• A/B testing helps to measure the effect of implemented changes.
• According to Steelhouse, A/B testing is the most used testing method for improving conversion rates.
• According to Steelhouse, using correct targeting and testing methods can increase conversion rates up to 300 percent.

Bonus conversion rate optimisation tips:

• Always add social proof to your website.
• Use product reviews and testimonials.
• Keep your site’s navigation structure simple.
• Make your website mobile friendly.
• Use intuitive website designs.
• Improve the page load speed of your site.
• Start reward or loyalty programs.
• Add relevant videos, images, and infographics to your site.

In a nutshell, conversion rate optimisation will not only help you to improve the overall revenue of your business, but also build its value and credibility in the market. So, focus on it to attain a unique position in your niche.

Conversion rate optimisation can be defined as a system for increasing the percentage of visitors to a website that convert into customers. Online business owners always strive to improve their conversion rate. It is a complex task,  resulting in big gains. Facts: •    Conversion rate optimisation (CRO) helps to improve revenue growth, investment trends and sales, as well as operations. This technique is relevant for the future course of actions. •    Conversion rate optimisation is invaluable for both small and large businesses because it significantly impacts bottom lines. •    Conversion rate optimisation is a long-term process. •    CRO helps to gain more exposure and traffic, measure and analyse your online marketing results. Here are a few benefits of Conversion rate optimisation: Helps to understand customers Marketers need to understand their customers’ needs. Here begins the role of CRO; it helps marketers to understand  behavioural patterns of users. Based on findings, marketers can recalibrate their websites. Attracts more customers CRO improves customers’ shopping experience. In a nutshell, the better the user experience, the more the number of customers. Moreover, CRO is a cost effective process. Increases  Profits This is one of the most apparent benefits of conversion rate optimisation because a minor positive change in your website can increase the overall conversion rate. It is better than advertising because it provides immediate results. No doubt, CRO works as the backbone of online businesses. Secret weapon It is effective, well tested and cost effective. It not only complements your other SEO and SEM strategies, but also acts as a secret weapon in your arsenal. Intensifies  traffic One of the biggest advantages of CRO is that it converts your current traffic into sold leads, besides that it also attracts new traffic. Lowers marketing cost If you are fed up of injecting money into your PPC or other marketing strategies, go for CRO. It is a great way to improve sales while reducing overall cost of customer acquisition. Fact: CRO helps to understand the underlying complexity of a website and improves its revenue generating capacity. Helps to beat competitors CRO is one of the safest, reliable and effective ways to beat competitors. It helps you to win customers’ trust and confidence. Improves brand reputation CRO helps to build brand reputation as well as improves its overall value. Facts: •    A colourful call-to-action button can increase conversion rates. •    A/B testing is necessary to improve conversions. •    Small changes in website’s navigation, images, and content positioning can potentially impact on conversions. . •    Gathering qualitative and quantitative data is helpful in understanding user behaviour, buying patterns as well as measuring overall productivity of a website. •    Success in business depends on strategic CRO techniques and its ability to adopt changes. Conversion rate optimisation improves your web presence, brand value and productivity. So, embrace it to embrace success.

• Are you an SEO professional?
• Are you an online business owner who wants to embrace online marketing?
• Interested in planning your SEO strategy for better results?
• Want to know about free SEO tools to streamline your marketing activities?

Every online business owner should use advanced SEO tools and techniques to streamline their marketing activities. There are many tools that can boost the overall presence of a website. Following are a few advanced SEO tools: Google PageSpeed Insights If you want to achieve high rankings, you must use this tool. It helps you know about the page load speed of your website as well as makes your site fast on all devices. Facts:

• PageSpeed Insights analyses the content of a web page and suggests ways to make it faster.
• Google PageSpeed Insights is a free tool.
• Google PageSpeed Insights helps to avoid extra plugins and compresses heavy images.

Tips:

• Optimise your website according to suggestions.
• Compress heavy images and use simple code.

Google My Business Google My Business is one of the most productive ways to reach your local audience. This tool helps to drive local traffic. Local businesses should take advantage of Google My Business listing to reach new customers in the least amount of time. Facts:

• Google My Business helps business owners to list their full address with images.
• Google My Business helps business owners to achieve instant visibility in SERPs.
• Google My Business is a free tool.
• The information you provide will appear on Google Search, Maps, and Google+.

Tips:

• Make sure you display correct information about your business.
• Always keep your listing updated.
• Post pictures to connect with users.  
• Use bulk upload tool to add all your business locations. (multiple business locations)

Google Trends If you are not using Google Trends, use it now. Google Trends is the latest tool which helps you to know the latest trends, data and visualisations. In other words, you will be able to explore trending topics, news, top charts, searches, YouTube searches and much more. Use it on a regular basis to improve your marketing activities. Facts:

• Google Trends allows users to compare the volume of searches between two or more terms.
• Google Trends shows news related to search-terms.

Tips:

• Use Google Trends to explore trending search topics.
• Google Trends shows data on the basis of location and language.

Google Alerts Use Google Alerts to receive daily news on a specific topic. Marketers use it to know about their competitors. You will receive daily alerts through mails. Google Alerts provides alert notifications, which help users to adjust their marketing strategies or get fresh content ideas.   Tips:

• Use it to track the latest publications, news, updates and much more.
• Use Google Alerts to receive alerts on your favourite topic. 

So, whether you are an SEO professional or a business owner, use these free tools to stay ahead in the competition.

Blog writing is important for generating leads. It is one of the most trusted methods to attract users. Today, most business owners recognise its importance; unfortunately, they do not take it seriously. Facts: Blogging can be implemented to foster a healthy business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-consumer (B2C) relationships. Worldwide article writers and blog marketers not only write regularly to improve their blog’s reach, but also promote it systematically on top platforms. Facts:

• Blogging is considered an integral part of an online marketing.
• Blogging helps to retain existing users and attract new ones.

Statistics:

• Blogs can make you promote a service or a product effectively.
• Websites with Blogs have 434% more indexed pages and 97 % more inbound links.

Here are a few techniques to write a blog creatively: Keywords To gain optimum advantage, you need to include your keywords wherever possible. Of course, relevance is the key. So, you should infuse it naturally across the blog. Tips:

• Consider keyword density and proximity while using keywords.
• Use long-tail keywords to attract traffic.
• Study your most successful competitors to know their strategy.

Length Never write posts of same kind and same length because it can make your blog monotonous and frustrate users. Include interesting elements for better readability and usability. Tips:

• Minimum length of a post should be 400-500 words.
• Maximum length of a post should be 1000-5000 words.
• Use standard formatting.
• Develop and maintain an editorial calendar.
• Use quotes, headings, and subheadings for better readability.

Visual appeal Try to integrate high quality images into your posts because they help users to understand more. Tips:

• Try to include at least 1 image or video to your post.
• Use bold, italic, and coloured text for better visibility.

Categories and Tags Use categories and tags so that users and search engines can find your blog. Tips:

• Use both short and long-term keywords for categories and tags wherever possible.
• Increase your blog’s linkability.

Internal linking Use internal linking to strengthen your blog. This is helpful for users as well as search engines. Tip: Use call-to-actions across the blog post. Sharing   Share your blog posts on social media sites to improve visibility and readability. Tips:

• Integrate social buttons into your blog.
• Use Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter to share your blog.

User-generated content Encourage readers to leave comments and feedbacks. Try to engage them.  This will help you to understand their concerns and improve your blog’s reach. Facts:

• UGC increases authenticity and conversion rates.
• User-generated content (UGC) influences consumers.

Show related posts To help your users, show them related posts. This will not only improve overall navigation, but also help search engines to crawl your blog efficiently. Tips:

• Always shows related posts to help users.
• Use real life case studies and surveys.
• Write analytical articles to reflect your perspectives.
• Guide users and save their time, efforts and money.

These blog writing techniques will help you a lot.

To improve the overall visibility of an online website, it is important to use various online and off line marketing techniques. All you need to do is to use complete SEO, SEM, email marketing and many other tactics. Statistics:

• 80.8% of buyers check out websites.
• 66% of firms plan to increase online spending.

Search engine optimisation (SEO) - SEO is a great way to add value to your website while raising brand awareness. Implementation of SEO with a proper understanding of concepts of search algorithms, keyword Meta tag, keyword density, headings, links, site structure, dead URLs, canonicalisation, pagination, keyword stuffing, spamming, etc. can do wonders. Tips:

• Use both SEO and PPC for greater visibility.
• Write and promote fresh content to build quality backlinks.
• Use keywords appropriately in text, links, and image attributes.
• Add essential components to your website: reviews, sharing functions, etc.
• Focus on developing meaningful relationships rather than improving conversion rates.

Fact: "Customer experience should be the core of any optimisation process". Video marketing Facts:

• Video marketing is one of the most effective mediums for marketers.
• Videos can easily communicate business messages.
• Videos improve click-through rate and increase traffic.

Use videos to promote your brand, products or services, a great way to influence customers. According to certain studies, videos are more effective than any other marketing campaigns. In fact, short videos can do wonders. Tips:

• Use brand logo in your videos.
• Use CTA at appropriate position.
• Promote your videos on YouTube, Vimeo, Vine, etc.
• Create and share inspiring stories.

Create an instagram style Instagram can build your brand in style. All you need to do is to share beautiful images of your business. For better results, maintain consistency throughout your posts. Followers who watch videos are 85% more likely to buy products. So, share videos frequently. Tips:

• Share "how to" content.
• Use photo editing applications: VSCOcam, Snapseed, Aviary, etc.
• Like, comment, and share photos regularly.
• Create and share inspiring collages to attract people.

Facebook Marketing Facebook Marketing improves brand’s reach and engages the maximum number of customers. Hence, you should share quality images, videos, presentations, animated GIFs and infographics to grab users’ attention. Tips:

• Share your brand’s story.
• Explore multiple storytelling techniques to evoke emotions. (Emotions trigger actions.)
• Create and share posts of your employees.
• Share exciting offers.
• Try to create audience friendly posts.
• Use Facebook tools and features to deliver your messages. (Use Live video broadcast feature)

Content marketing Google is smart enough to distinguish well-crafted content from junk, so, write quality content for your audiences. To write effective content, you need to understand their needs and aspirations. Statistics: According to a survey, 78% of CMOs believe that custom content is the future of digital marketing. Tips:

• Write analytical articles and case studies.
• Create engaging infographics and presentation slides.
• Use facts and statistics in your content.
• Write for human beings rather than search engines.
• Promote content on niche sites such as Reddit, Tumblr, SoundCloud, SlideShare, etc.

Fact: "Content is the backbone of every online marketing activity". Provide features and comparison guide of products on your website To attract and help users, you should provide them with features and comparison guide of products. This will help them to improve their understanding and take decisions. Tips:

• Along with comparison guides, you should also explain products’ features in bullet form.
• Use CTAs wherever possible.

The above mentioned marketing ideas are effective and feasible. So, use them to improve your site’s visibility.

• Do you want to make your website SEO-friendly?
• Are you looking for easy-to-use SEO techniques?
• Do you want consistent rankings?
• Do you want to uncover your site’s efficiencies, and drive revenue from SEO?

White hat techniques are there to help you to achieve and maintain rankings. However, it is not always easy to follow these techniques as they require in-depth knowledge and skills. What is White Hat SEO? "White Hat SEO is a proven practice that is used for improving search performance of a website according to the guidelines of search engines”. It would tantamount to discarding the entire spammy activities (Black Hat SEO). In a nutshell, White hat SEO is all about writing quality content, using keyword-rich Meta tags, making a website easy to navigate and much more. In fact, maintaining the integrity of a website can make a huge difference. However, it is a difficult task and requires consistent efforts. Fact: Implementing White Hat SEO practices is a great way to create an ethical and successful website. Keyword research This is the most neglected part of SEO because most business owners still consider it a sheer wastage of time and money. It is the backbone of SEO, especially White Hat SEO; hence, to understand market and industry, it is always good to research keywords. Tips:

• Use SemRush, SearchMetrics, Keyword Discovery Tool, Keyword planner, etc.
• Try to include as many keywords as possible.
• Select both short and long-tail keywords.
• Choose keywords that are most hit.
• Select keywords according to objectives of your business.

Content Never forget content is for users not for search engines. However, people try to manipulate search engines by using varied deceptive techniques, like hidden text, doorway pages, scraped content, etc. Search engines never like such tactics and eventually penalise websites. Therefore, it is always safe to write original and useful content for online success. Tips:

• Avoid using tools generating content automatically.
• Avoid participating in link schemes.
• Optimising pages with irrelevant keywords or texts to attract search engines.
• Create useful content for your industry and audiences.
• Give credit to original source.

Optimisation Some business owners think that it is easier to optimise websites by stuffing keywords and key phrases, which is a wrong notion. In fact, Google understands such tactics and eliminate them from search results. Facts:

• "Google needs to know about your website’s content to place it in the right SERPs for the right search terms".
• Search engines gives importance to domain age, website’s authority, anchor text, localisation and usage data.

It is important to optimise a website’s content in a proper way. For that, follow Google’s guidelines. Tips:

• Focus on keyword density and proximity.
• Never underestimate Keyword’s prominence while optimising a website.

Site’s architecture   Complex structure, lengthy navigation paths, too many subfolders and redirections deter users as well as search engines. Hence, keep your site’s structure as simple and clean as possible. It is also important to use internal links and limit external links for optimum advantage. If possible, keep the navigation simple. This improves usability of a website. Tips:

• Use breadcrumbs to ease navigation.
• Use crawlable links for search engines.
• Integrate sitemap into websites.
• Use Webmaster tool to check penalty.
• Keep your site’s URL as simple and readable as possible.

All these White hat SEO techniques will improve search engine rankings.