How to Grow Your Brand with Social Media Advertising: Step-by-Step Guide

 Social media advertising is a hyper-direct way of targeting potential customers by running paid ads on social media platforms, and today it accounts for 33% of all advertising spend by brands. If your aim is to reach a targeted audience quickly and efficiently in a cost-effective manner, social media advertising is a must-have in your digital marketing toolkit. 

But how exactly do you get started with social media advertising and how can you use it to grow your brand? These are the questions that we will tackle with this blog and guide you towards creating an effective social media advertising strategy for your brand. 

Here’s what we’ll cover:

1. What is social media advertising?
2. 5 types of social media ads
3. Top social media advertising platforms
4. How much does social media advertising cost
5. How to create your social media advertising strategy
6. 5 pro tips on social media advertising

Pro tip: If you want to stay ahead of the curve, you must focus on video ads as a part of your social media advertising strategy. You can easily create these using InVideo’s online ad maker.

1. What is social media advertising?

Social media advertising allows businesses and creators to target prospective buyers and relevant audiences through laser-focused ads. It's one of the fastest and most direct ways to get in front of entirely unaware prospects and retarget people who are already a part of your marketing funnel. 

As compared to traditional advertising methods, social media offers greater control over who will see the ads because of more targeted data collection and analysis algorithms. These ads can therefore help you: 

- Build and boost brand awareness
- Expand the reach to broader audiences
- Maximize traffic and generate quality leads
- Enhance brand recall and visibility 
- Get a better Return On Investment (ROI)

With that, let’s take a look at the different types of social media ads you can create for your advertising strategy. 

2. 5 types of social media ads 

All social media platforms allow you to share content and ads in multiple formats. For an effective strategy, you need to figure out which formats work best for your brand and then double down on those. Here’s a round-up of the five most common types of ad formats and what makes them important:

1. Video ads

With a relatively lower barrier to entry as compared to traditional advertising channels and an increasingly high return on investment, video ads promise a stronger connection with the audience and deliver a less disruptive experience. That explains why the two top social media platforms—Instagram and Facebook—are expected to rack up $136 billion in advertising revenue in 2022 alone!

The dynamic nature of video ads makes them one of the most effective choices in a landscape where attention spans are shortening by the day. Effective video ads grab attention and then clearly communicate the intended message to the intended audience. For a better understanding of the various kinds of video ads, you can make for your social platforms check out this blog.

This ad by Oreo shows what an effective video ad can look like. This new product release ad is aimed at spreading the word about a new variety of Oreos. It works great as a top-of-the-funnel ad because, in 5 seconds, the video spotlights Oreo’s new product and its main selling point—the biscuit’s thinness. It also comes with a catchy caption and a clear CTA. 

You too can create similar video ads using InVideo’s online ad maker where you get access to a diverse range of fully customizable templates to create scroll-stopping ads in minutes.

2. Image ads

Till the advent of video advertising, image-based ads were and probably still are the most popular types of social media ads you will find. Photo-only ads are the most uncomplicated format that promises better results than any other ad type, according to a Facebook study. 

The key to unlocking these results lies in the design and copy of your ads. Instead of creating friction in a user’s social media browsing experience, create ads that blend into their feed. Show more human faces using your product/services and present your USPs using the most natural yet impactful language. 

This photo ad by Disciple shows how it’s done with this intriguing ad. The company featured one of its employees in the ad and on-brand visual elements to make the design pop. The one-line caption and compelling CTA work well to make the users click. 

3. Story ads

Story ads became popular first with the advent of Snapchat and then later Instagram and Facebook stories. More than 500 million daily active users browse through Instagram stories. Let that sink in for a while. 

When it comes to social media advertising, story ads, particularly on Instagram, are one of the fastest-growing avenues for ad placement. The good news: story ads haven’t reached saturation yet. Plus, story ads can easily blend into organic content that users watch. They don’t stand out as ads and as a result, do not create a jarring experience for the viewers. So, brands have untapped real estate on Instagram and Facebook stories to run ads and expect better visibility and click-through rates. 

Sleepyhead shows how it's done with this story ad. The ad places the product right in the centre with its top features mentioned at the bottom. The photo includes a homely setting to merge this ad between organic stories. It has a short CTA button at the end to drive traffic to the product page. 

You can easily create video Instagram story ads for better impact. It’s super easy to do using InVideo’s Instagram ad maker. 

4. Carousel ads

Carousel ads merge video and photo ads into a single swipeable post. If you aren’t already aware of the massive popularity of carousels, this might come as a happy surprise—carousel ads enjoy a 72% higher click-through rate than most other ad formats. 

These interactive ads create a showcase for multiple products in a single ad. Alternatively, brands can also highlight different features of a single product in multiple slides. This ad format also works best for sharing multiple testimonials. 

Lluvia Pro’s Instagram carousel ad perfectly exemplifies this format. The brand uses a combination of video and photo posts to highlight its shampoo’s USPs, including a CTA. 

5. Interactive ads

Interactive ads are the most unexplored format on social media platforms today. The ads essentially bring your design to life and encourage users to interact actively and engage with the ad content instead of only consuming it passively. 

Interactive ads solve the challenge posed by decreasing the value of static ads. People want more activity on their social media feeds. Using this format, brands can efficiently deliver an entertaining experience and win the viewers' attention. These interactive elements positively impact the users and work in your favour. 

Take these poll ads as examples of interactive ads that engage the audience. Both brands added a graphic, caption, and CTA in their ad along with a simple poll that makes the viewer think for a second. 

3. Top social media advertising platforms 

Now that you have an idea of the different ad formats you can use, let’s look at the most popular advertising platforms for your social media ads because the choice of platform has a direct impact on the success of your advertising strategy. 

A. Facebook

Facebook is one of the first and the biggest social networks for advertising. With close to 3 billion monthly active users, Facebook is a jackpot for marketers to experiment with ads for different funnel stages. 

Facebook’s micro-targeting capabilities make it a great platform for running ads. You can narrow down your target audience based on multiple factors. Besides, 41% of marketers consider FB’s return on ad spend (ROAS) the highest among all social media platforms.

The variety of ad formats to choose from is another big factor behind its popularity, giving marketers the flexibility to experiment with different formats. Here are the five ad formats available on Facebook:

1) Feed ads

The photo or video ads on the FB feed are called feed ads. Since these are standalone ads with a lot riding on the creative itself, marketers have to pour in their imagination to produce something out-of-the-box. 

Semrush’s short video ad shows the impact a great video can make. The brand uses minimal motions coupled with a short copy that genuinely speaks to the intended audience. 

How to create feed ads?

Designing a feed ad is the easiest of all ad formats. Decide the type of ad you want to create—photo or video—and chalk out the ad’s central message. Once you’ve finalized the basic details, create a compelling design or video optimized through A/B testing to ensure that it resonates the most with your prospective buyers. Learn more about making a Facebook ad here. 

If you want to work your magic with video ads, InVideo has a massive collection of pre-made templates to make life easy for you. Search for a relevant keyword, theme, or industry to find tens of templates, pick a template you like the best, and you're all set to create a scroll-stopping video ad. 

2) Story ads

Full-screen mobile ads are all the rage. With Facebook story ad placement, you can capitalize on the growing popularity of stories to boost brand visibility. These ads also drive conversions since 62% of people are more eager to buy from a brand after seeing a story ad. 

Story ads allow you to deliver a more immersive experience with a full-screen view. Plus, they can also generate customer interest and consideration lift for your brand. Take inspiration from KFC and Kettle Brand’s story ads on Facebook.

How to create story ads?

Marketers can run Facebook stories for boosting traffic, conversions, app installs, lead generation, and a few more objectives. While you can go for single-image ads, videos work best on full-screen stories. Create a short but compelling video about your product/service that hooks the viewers’ attention. You can also use this space to offer a teaser to your branded videos and increase visibility. Here are some story ad templates from InVideo to help you get started. 

Remember to not place any text or brand logo in the 14% area from the top and bottom. You should also reduce the amount of text in your ads, keeping it under 20%.

3) Carousel ads

Carousel ads allow up to 10 images in a single ad. It’s best for eCommerce businesses to highlight an entire catalogue of products. Product or service-based companies can use a carousel ad to highlight different value propositions. 

Convosight, for instance, created a four-slide carousel post highlighting its product’s key features and customer testimonials. Each slide has a unique CTA copy with the sign-up button to increase product sign-ups. 

How to create carousel ads?

Marketers can use carousel ads to advertise a wide collection of products or present different USPs of a single product/service. You can use a combination of images and videos to make your carousel ads more interactive. 

Setting up a carousel ad is easy on Facebook Ads Manager. You have to first choose the objective for your ad. Then you can add the specifics for the campaign, such as the A/B test, budget, placement, and audience. Go on to complete the ad setup by selecting the creatives or products and adding the links for each CTA. With that, you’re done!

If you want to create attention-grabbing carousel ads with effects, text and music, use one of InVideo’s readymade templates and get professional-looking ads ready in minutes.

4) Slideshow ads

Slideshow ads use micro animations to make the content more appealing and eye-catchy. Unlike a full-fledged video, slideshows combine different images into a slow-moving video, like this one by Felix Gray. 

This ad presents different images for the same pair of glasses in a slideshow format. So, it's not exactly a video but includes subtle motions to make the ad look like one. 

How to create slideshow ads?

Marketers create a slideshow ad to show a product from different angles. You can also use slideshows to highlight various features of your offering and combine different images.

Visit the Facebook Ads Manager and start a new campaign by selecting your objective and audience. Once you define your budget and audience, add the images you want to include in the slideshow and arrange them in the right sequence. Then add text and music, if required, and you’re all set to publish the ad.

You can also use slideshows to highlight various features of your offering and combine different images. You can easily begin by using this simple yet intriguing, carousel ad template by InVideo:

 

5) Shoppable ads

The shoppable ad format works best for eCommerce businesses to present a catalogue of products and give users a quick and convenient option to buy—taking them from the awareness to the purchase stage as seamlessly as possible. 

Take a look at this collection ad by The Spruce to create your own. The furniture brand paired a simple caption with a collection of its products to nudge people down the funnel. Its CTA encourages people to learn more about the subscription and visit the website. 

How to create a shoppable ad?

Marketers can make a shoppable collection ad in three template styles:

- Storefront: includes one main video and three photos to drive traffic to the website
- Lookbook: includes multiple photos or videos to replicate a print catalogue and share the brand story
- Customer acquisition: focuses on lead generation and conversions by increasing the click-through rate

Once you finalize a template, add your products and photos, include relevant links, and set the campaign details to publish the ad.

B. Instagram

81% of Instagram users discover new products and make purchase decisions via ads. That figure shows how Instagram is no longer just a photo-sharing app; it’s a marketer’s goldmine. With a wide range of ad formats for brands to experiment with, IG is a level ahead of most other social network platforms. 

Since Instagram ads are integrated with the Facebook ad manager, all the micro-targeting options are available on IG as well. Besides, Instagram users are 58 times more likely to engage with branded content than Facebook and enjoy 2.8 times higher ad recall value, making it the perfect place for marketers

Here are the five ad formats available on Instagram:

1) Feed ads

Feed ads are photo or video ads paired with a caption and a CTA. Instagram offers seemingly endless CTA options to add to photo ads for different objectives, such as app installs, catalogue sales, store traffic, and reach. 

Marketers can use these ads to create these single-image ads with minimal creativity that blends into a user’s organic feed. This would increase the impact of the ad without creating a jarring effect on the viewers. 

Consider this ad by Dip Your Toes as an example. The ad includes a simple collage of three products with minimal copy and caption. 

How to create feed ads?

Feed ads work best for driving awareness and increasing the reach. Marketers can capitalize on this ad format to retarget website visitors and maximize brand recall. 

To create a stellar IG feed ad, first select your campaign objective and target audience. Analyze your audience to see what ad type resonates the most with them. Design a graphic or produce a video ad based on your audience’s preferences, then pick a good caption and CTA before hitting publish. 

InVideo can do the heavy lifting for you to create scroll-stopping video ads. Browse through thousands of ad templates to create a unique ad with interactive animations, text, elements and music.

2) Story ads

Instagram stories enjoy massive popularity and can do wonders for advertising. These full-screen ads can produce better engagement and click-through rates since viewers have to simply swipe up to act on the CTA.

Besides, since story ads are more immersive, they hold a viewer’s attention for longer. Here’s an example from Bodywise with a simple stop-motion animation video to draw the user into the ad and make them pause the screen to view the entire video. 

How to create story ads?

Marketers can create story ads directly from IG's native editor or design a separate creative. Videos tend to work best on story ads. So, focus on short and snappy videos that reflect your brand personality. 

Before you start designing your ad, decide the objective and what you want people to do once they view the ad. Since users tap through stories really quickly, design your ad in a way that delivers the message. Place your branding up front to improve the ad recall value and add punchy music to create a great viewing experience. 

If you’re looking for a quick and easy way to produce videos for this ad format, InVideo has you covered. You can choose from a range of story ad templates with text animations, great music, and product placement to start driving conversions. 

3) Video ads

Video is another wildly popular ad format on Instagram. Video ads allow you to show your products or processes in action to convey the core value propositions. Videos conveying a story also capture and retain viewers’ attention.

Marketers mostly use IG reels and stories for video ad placement, such as this ad by British Airways. The 10-second ad quickly highlights the airline’s central message with a simple CTA to book now. 

How to create video ads?

Instagram is gradually becoming a video-first platform, and video ads work like a charm in any format. When creating a video ad, remember to include human faces more than design elements to create a more natural viewing experience. 

Make sure your video starts with an irresistible hook in the first few seconds for viewers to see the entire ad. Instead of making your videos too sales-y, build a rapport with the viewers and offer them the promise of solving their pain points. Put this content in the right aspect ratio and you’re ready to hit publish!

Use InVideo’s range of readymade and fully-customizable templates to get professional-looking video ads ready in minutes.

4) Carousel ads

Carousel ads present a compilation of up to 10 images and videos in a single swipeable post. You can add a unique caption and CTA for each image/video to direct traffic to the correct webpage. 

Marketers create carousel ads to spotlight a collection of products, primarily for eCommerce—like this ad by Creatures of Habit. The ad includes a collection of 10 products with a different caption to specify each product’s name. 

How to create carousel ads?

Instagram carousels enjoy the highest engagement rate among all content formats on the platform. So, a carousel ad can bring higher visibility and boost brand awareness. eCommerce brands can also run carousel ads to promote a sale for particular products or launch a new catalogue. 

Creating a carousel ad is the same as making a multiple-image post. Select up to 10 photos or videos that you want to include in your ad, customize the caption for each media, and edit them if required. You can also pick catchy and uncommon CTAs to intrigue the viewers. 

5) Shopping ads

While Instagram introduced its shopping feature only in 2020, it's been a massive hit among users, with 44% using IG to shop weekly. This popularity of the shopping feature makes IG shopping ads a worthy investment. 

These shoppable ads come with a product tag and checkout options to enable a quick and smooth shopping experience. So, brands can drive engagement, re-engage existing shoppers, and reach net-new shoppers through this ad placement. 

This ad by H&M shows how it's done. The ad shows a catalogue of four products. When a user clicks on it, the ad opens up a gallery of products, leading them to the H&M website. 

How to create shopping ads?

Shopping ads are ideal for eCommerce businesses. Brands can create a catalogue of their best products and send the user from the discovery to the purchase stage in only a few clicks. Since these are photo-only ads, create high-quality images to appeal to maximum viewers and compel them to hit that shop now button. 

Before you start running these ads, set up your IG shop to allow users to check out easily. For starters, you have to select the business objective and specify the ad budget. Set up the instant checkout options to let potential buyers quickly place their orders. In the end, you can select your metrics for these ads. 

C. Twitter

Twitter is a booming hub for marketers, mainly in the B2B domain. The social network offers unique targeting options based on keywords and engagement levels. 

The best part: you only pay when the users take action—the engagement and impressions are completely free! So, if you run an ad to get more traffic on your product page, you'll only pay for the number of clicks on your ad. 

Twitter ads perfectly complement your organic content marketing strategy for social media. It enhances brand interaction and allows new audiences to discover your brand. Besides, Twitter enjoys a wide variety of demographics, suitable for brands targeting different age groups.

Here are the three ad formats available on Twitter:

1) Promoted tweets

When you promote a tweet to expand its reach and boost engagement, it becomes a promoted tweet ad. This tweet works like a regular tweet with the option to like, retweet, and comment. However, it comes with a promoted tag at the bottom. 

This tweet by GitHubIndia is a great example. The tweet includes an announcement for a workshop with a video about what the workshop will include. The tweet’s CTA is to visit the workshop’s website to register and block your calendar. 

How to create promoted tweets? 

Promoted tweets work best for the awareness stage of the funnel. It spreads the word about your company and enhances brand recognition. 

When promoting a tweet, cut the fluff and jump straight to the point instead of confusing your audience. Pair up your text with strong visuals to make the tweet more appealing. Don’t add any unnecessary hashtags and focus strictly on delivering your message. 

InVideo has many fully customizable tweet ad templates that you can use. Simply shoot or compile your footage, replace it in the template, enhance the ad with text, music and animations and you’ll have it ready in minutes!

2) Promoted accounts

If you want to increase your number of followers, Twitter allows you to promote your brand account as well. The promoted account ad reaches people who aren’t following you and spotlights the main parts of your profile, like the display and cover images, the account name, username, and bio. 

Promoted accounts come with a prominent follow button and a promoted tag, like this tweet by The Barista Bar. This ad will pop up on the users' feed and in the "Who to follow" section. 

How to create promoted accounts?

Promoted account ads are best-suited for brands just starting their Twitter marketing strategy. It can put you in front of a broader audience and build some stable momentum as you scale. Since these follower ads will pop up in several places, make sure your account has a catchy headline, display picture, and cover image. 

3) Promoted trends

Another way to maximize engagement and increase the ROI from Twitter advertising is to run promoted trend campaigns. A promoted trend appears in the top 10 list in the “Trends for You” section.

Promoting a trend can drive conversations around the hashtag and improve brand consideration. For instance, The Barista Bar promoted a trend with its hashtag to encourage people to talk about the coffee brand and tweet using this hashtag. The brand created a lot of buzz and significantly increased its following as well!

How to create promoted trends? 

Marketers can promote a trend to highlight a unique brand initiative or generate buzz around a new launch—people are 3x more likely to click on this ad format. Come up with a creative and unique hashtag that instantly clicks with your target audience and attracts a high number of tweets. 

These trend ads run for 24 hours, bringing significant traction from the intended audience. Use trend takeovers before a big announcement—like a product launch or a new seminar. You can also pin a relevant tweet on top, followed by user tweets. Use creative swapping and Tweet Engager targeting to maximize the ROAS. 

D. LinkedIn

LinkedIn is a platform for decision-makers, especially for B2-B players. Every four in five LinkedIn users has the power to make buying decisions. So, if you’re not running ads on the platform, you’re leaving money at the table. Plus, LinkedIn ads are comparatively simpler to make. 

Here are the three ad formats available on LinkedIn:

1) Sponsored content 

Sponsored content on LinkedIn works similarly to a promoted tweet. When you boost an organic post to reach a wider audience and get more engagement, your post will appear the same as usual, only with a promoted tag under the brand name. 

Here’s an example from Forbes to see this ad format in action. Forbes published a blog with a short snippet in the caption. This promoted post garnered hundreds of likes and views for the blog. 

How to create sponsored content?

Sponsored content works equally well for company pages and personal profiles. This ad format maximizes your usual traction, profile visits, and follower count. So, it's best suited for brands looking to amplify awareness and visibility. 

Remember to add an image or video in your sponsored posts to improve performance. A headline <60 characters using the word ‘you’ to address the audience can produce better results. You can focus your message on sharing advice, educating the viewers, or presenting interesting offers. 

2) Text ads

LinkedIn also offers text ads that require minimal effort and work on a cost-per-click model, similar to Google ads. These text ads are visible on the right side of your feed when using the desktop version. 

Brands can add a uniquely creative, pick a clear heading, and add a short description for these ads. While they don't promise excellent results, they're worth the investment for small or medium-sized companies. 

How to create text ads?

Creating textual ads on LinkedIn is easy. Visit the campaign manager and create a new ad campaign. Add your text and graphic for the campaign and include the right link to redirect users. Make your text as enticing as possible to get people to click. Then hit publish to make your ad live.

3) Graphic ads

Like all other platforms, LinkedIn also allows companies to run photo-only ads with a creative, caption, and CTA. These are the most common ad formats on the platform since they advertise a brand while working as an organic post. So, users can engage with the ad and click on the CTA to maximize the results. 

Here’s how Trello used this ad format to expand its reach. The ad contains a clear design that showcases the product and promotes its primary value proposition. Coupled with a short and punchy caption and a powerful CTA, the ad does its job perfectly well!

How to create graphic ads?

When posting a graphic ad on LinkedIn, create an appealing design that strikes the right chord with your audience. You can also use rich media to level up your ads. Once you have the design ready, focus on clear and crisp messaging that can potentially convert the audience. 

Add a shortened URL with the caption and top it off with a strong URL to produce the desired results. 

Also, LinkedIn, just like other social media platforms allows you to run video ads. You can either promote an organic video post or run a separate video ad through the Campaign Manager. It’s best to create short-form video ads on LinkedIn as reportedly, videos under 30 seconds reported a 200% increase in completion rate. To know further, check out this article by LinkedIn on best practices to create video ads.

You can also easily create LinkedIn video ads using InVideo’s online ad maker, and create visually-attractive ads that convert, even if you’ve never created a video before.

E. Snapchat

Snapchat is a big hit among millennials and GenZ, with nearly 20% of app users under 35 years. Snapchat has lucrative opportunities for brands targeting the younger generations, given this demographic profile. Plus, marketers can get started with Snapchat advertising for as little as $5 and skyrocket their visibility. 

Here are the four ad formats available on Snapchat:

1) Snap ads

A snap ad includes a single image or video that works the same way as an IG story full-screen ad, asking viewers to swipe up. You can create a snap ad video of up to 180 seconds and add a CTA to drive action.

This ad by Blinkit shows minimal creativity with a CTA to install the app. The ad highlights Blinkit’s biggest selling points and sells an offer at 75 off on the first order.

How to create snap ads?

Marketers can replicate Blinkit’s snap ad by creating an on-brand ad graphic or video. Since it’s only six seconds long, make the creative as innovative as possible to hook the viewers’ attention from the very first second. 

InVideo can make your job easier with a fantastic video ad template. Select, edit, and publish ads using any templates. Try this one for starters. 

2) Collection ads

Snapchat collection ads present a catalogue of products for users to view and buy instantly. Like Facebook collection ads, this ad format includes many product images that redirect the user to the product page to finish their purchase. 

Nykaa used this format to convert an influencer video into a collection ad by making a collection of all the products used in the video. A viewer has to only click on any products to land on the product page and place an order. 

How to create collection ads?

eCommerce brands can make the best use of collection brands. Add photos and videos for multiple products or highlight various USPs for a single product using collection ads. 

Focus more on the hero message—the main photo or video in your ad. Make it convincing enough for viewers to click on the product links. Pair up your design with a strong CTA. To ensure that your ad gets maximum clicks, try not to include multiple products and keep them safe zones (~450px) clear of any text or logos. 

3) AR Lenses

Augmented reality lenses were first introduced on Snapchat and have since become a great feature for advertising. Businesses can design unique face lenses that promote their offering or brand. When Snapchatters post pictures and videos using a branded lens, it directly increases brand recognition and creates buzz.

FabFitFun created this fun lens to sell its offer of $10 off for the first box. The beauty brand designed a cosmetics-related filter to give users a virtual feel of its box.

How to create AR lenses?

Marketers can follow FabFitFun's lead to get creative with Snapchat lenses. It's one of the unique ad formats that drive organic visibility for a brand. 

One of the first things to consider when designing branded AR lenses is the experience you want to deliver. Focus on your product and create lenses that best depict its user experience. You can also consider gamified lenses that boost engagement. Other styles include makeup, face paint, and accessories. 

4) Commercials

Commercials come with a six-second window before a viewer can hit the skip button. These snap ads show on a user’s curated feed and can easily blend into other stories, like this ad by Liberty Mutual Insurance. The ad features real humans going about their daily lives to create a more natural appeal for the video. 

How to create commercials?

Commercials are great for brands with a video production team. You have to come up with an irresistible hook that entices people within the first six seconds and retains their attention till the end. This would ultimately nudge them to take the desired action. Use linear storytelling in your commercials to sustain the viewers’ attention till the end. Reflect your brand personality in your creatives that make people share the ad with more users. And if you want to create videos for these ads instead of using images, you can do so using InVideo’s online video editor. 

F. Pinterest

With a monthly active user count of 433 billion, Pinterest has endless results to offer social media ad teams. Its use as a search and discovery tool means Pinterest users come to the platform with commercial search intent. So, running ads can naturally translate to more conversions. 

Here are the three ad formats available on Pinterest:

1) App Install Pins

App install ads show CTA-driven pins that redirect people to the App Store or Google Play Store. These ads show a clear install button and serve only one purpose—to boost app downloads. 

This ad format is designed for brands with a mobile app. So, if you're an eCommerce brand or a SaaS solution offering a mobile app, use the app install pins to multiply app downloads. 

2) Shopping Pins

Shopping pins are one of the most shared ads on Pinterest. Since most Pinterest users come to the platform for inspiration and research, brands run shoppable pins to convert this research activity into sales. 

You can add different tags on a pin for various products. When users click on any tag, they're redirected to the product page to place an order. 

How to create shopping pin ads?

Shopping pins are the same as Instagram shoppable ads. You only need to add a tag for each product and link the product page to take the viewers to the desired web page—swiftly completing their journey from discovery to purchase.

You can create buyable pins from your Pinterest Business account. Add your products to a hidden board first and add a descriptive copy with a CTA to these pins. All you need to do is promote each pin as a shopping pin. 

3) Video Pins Ads

Pinterest users consume over one billion videos in a single day. Creating video pin ads can bring an additional boost to your brand reach and bring more potential buyers into the funnel. These ads work the same way as standard pins with a promoted tag to differentiate them from the organic feed.

Kohl's video pin ad focuses on educating the audience to ultimately drive sales. Unlike a traditional ad, this video pin shares tips on a brand-centric topic to inform the viewers about Kohl's products. 

Image Source

How to create video pin ads?

Marketers can create video ads for Pinterest from virtually any type of video—whether it's promotional or informational. Aim to meet your video's search intent, and users will automatically take action if they find it helpful. 

You can recreate Kohl’s educational ad tactic and make a scroll-stopping video ad using InVideo templates. Here’s a great template to get started with

4. How much does social media advertising cost? 

Ads can be heavy on your pocket. The costs with social media ads can add up depending on how big you want the reach to be. So, before you start drawing out a strategy for social media ads, it's crucial to understand how much a campaign might cost and estimate a realistic budget.

A report by The Content Factory estimated the range for social media advertising to be within the range of $1000 and $20,000 per month. This cost varies for different platforms, such as:

- Twitter: $2,000-$4,000 per month
- Facebook: $2,500-$5,000 per month, highest being $9,000
- Instagram, Snapchat, Pinterest: $1,000 or more individually

Another report by Falcon calculated the average cost per impression for different platforms. Here are the insights:

- Twitter: $6.46
- Facebook: $7.19
- LinkedIn: $6.59 
- Instagram: $7.91

Multiple other factors come into play when you're fixing up your advertising budget. However, these figures would give you an estimated range, to begin with. 

5. How to create your social media advertising strategy

Your advertising efforts might fall flat if you don’t have a solid strategy to guide your campaigns. A start-to-finish advertising strategy outlines all tactics and techniques required to achieve the expected results. 

Here are six steps to chalk out the perfect roadmap for advertising through social media:

Step 1: Prepare the right groundwork 

Create a proper foundation for your ad strategy by answering the most basic questions. Start by defining your ad campaigns' what, why, and how. Consider these questions:

- Why do you want to run this campaign? What are the goals you want to achieve through this campaign?
- Who are you targeting? What does your primary target audience look like in demographic and behavioural traits?
- What does your audience want to see? What are your ideal buyer’s likes, dislikes, and shopping preferences?
- How do you want to portray your brand? What is your brand voice and personality that these ads should reflect?

Answering these questions will create the foundational framework you need to produce stellar ads that increase the return on ad spend. 

Step 2: Define your biggest selling points

The trickiest part of strategizing social ads is the content you'll present. Once you've completed the first three steps, your research will guide you towards ideas that can potentially produce significant results. 

To ensure that you’re capitalizing on the best material, do this simple exercise:

- List down your buyers’ biggest pain points
- Identify your value propositions for each of these pain points
- Write down your brand differentiators that set your apart from the competition 

You can convert any idea for these three points into an ad that offers people a unique, must-have solution. 

Step 3: Create compelling ads 

The success of your ad campaigns boils down to your ad creative’s overall appeal. If your photos or videos fail to hit the right chord with your audience, your ads will not produce the best results. 

Here’s how you can create convincing ads that persuade people to take action:

- Decide the main goal and messaging for your ad
- Choose the platform, ad format, and media type to create tailored designs 
- Create quirky visuals that align with your brand personality and campaign goals
- Decide on a powerful CTA that maximizes clicks

If all these steps seem like too much work, use InVideo’s social media video maker. Select a relevant template from the massive template library, tweak the templates to match your ad’s message, and resize the video for any platform in a few minutes. 

Step 4: Spy on your competition 

Competitor analysis is a crucial step in chalking out your social media ad strategy. Take this opportunity to see what your competition is up to and create a plan to one-up their social advertising game. 

Follow these proven strategies for competitor benchmarking:

- Conduct a competitor analysis to identify gaps in their strategy and find opportunities
- Leverage social listening to monitor their ad activity for relevant keywords
- Stay on top of all social media advertising platforms to understand which competitor is doing well on which channel

Spying on your competition is the easiest way to discover what resonates with your target buyers without spending a penny from your ad budget. 

Step 5: Audit your existing social media performance

If you think social media advertising is wildly different from organic marketing, think again. Ads on social media are increasingly becoming an extension of organic marketing because brands don't wish to disrupt a user's average browsing experience. 

So, marketers turn to their organic feeds to pinpoint what kind of content gets the maximum engagement. Once you find out the type of ideas your audience likes, convert them into any ad format and experiment!

This collection ad by Sephora perfectly complemented the beauty brand’s organic feed and created a stand-out experience for the viewers. The brand used Custom and Lookalike Audiences for this collection ad. This snappy ad resulted in a 41% higher click-through rate than any other Sephora ad. 

Step 6: Track, review, iterate, repeat 

Testing and optimizing your ads for the best performance is a no-brainer. However, most brands forget to track this performance once their ads go live. 

Once you start seeing some results—good or bad, document them from scratch. This is important to visualize your campaign’s progress over time and understand the factors leading to success or failure. 

All social media platforms offer in-app analytics to measure ad performance. However, you can also consider tracking UTM parameters for your website traffic to get granular insight into each platform's contribution. 

6. 5 pro tips on social media advertising 

So, you’ve prepared a fail-proof strategy for social media marketing ads. You’ve also assembled a dream team to execute the campaigns from start to finish. But despite all this preparation, success might not come easy in the face of fierce competition. 

So, how do you set your ad posts apart from the streams of advertisements flooding social media feeds? Here are five easy tips for creating the secret sauce for success:

Tip #1 - Double down on video ads

Video grabs attention, eases comprehension, and boosts retention. A video ad combines all these benefits with a higher click-through rate on social media channels. So, increase video content production to create the right impact with your paid marketing strategy. 

The best part is that video advertising is increasingly gaining momentum as more social media platforms incline towards video content. So, brands can quickly capitalize on video ads with the right resources to produce good content. 

Here are a few best practices to level up your video advertising game on social media:

- Create a script and storyboard for your video before jumping into production
- Test videos on the phone to identify the ideal placement of the caption 
- Accurately size your videos for the platform where you’ll post them
- Focus equally on the thumbnail for in-feed ads to capture viewers’ attention

If you want to scale your video advertising efforts, you can quickly create video ads through InVideo’s readymade templates. Simply shoot your video, replace it in the template, and add music, effects, overlays, and text to make your ads more engaging and clickable.

Tip #2 - Prioritize mobile-friendly design

Almost all social media platforms are mobile-first. This is evident because over 3.25 billion users access social media apps from their phones. So, creating mobile-friendly ad designs is the only way to deliver a frictionless viewing experience. 

Keep mobile in mind at every stage of your strategy, from ideation and scripting/writing to designing and optimization. 

Follow these tried-and-tested practices to ace mobile advertising:

- Pick media over text to convey the message quickly
- Keep your copy crisp and concise irrespective of the space you get 
- Aim to match content consumption patterns for video ads
- Create videos with subtitles or text animations for non-audio viewers

Most social media activity happens on a small screen. So, your designing and testing process should be on a mobile instead of a desktop. 

Tip #3 - Show more human faces 

You’d be surprised to know that nearly 92% of ads with human faces get more attention than ads without humans. It all boils down to building an instant connection with your audience and winning their trust in your brand. 

A human face literally humanizes your brand and gives viewers something familiar to relate to. Besides, human photos can also increase memory retention and help with brand recall. 

So, whether you’re creating a brand story ad, a static ad, or a slideshow, including human photos to promote your product can produce better results. Sleepy Owl’s video ads went viral on social media because of their interesting take on advertising. Their mute ads featured their marketing manager making coffee and promoting different products.

You can follow Sleepy Owl’s lead and make intriguing ads using InVideo’s diverse range of readymade templates with sound effects, music, text and overlays to stop the user from scrolling without taking action from your ad.

Tip #4 - Be crystal clear about targeting 

No two ad campaigns are the same. Each campaign on every social platform will target a different audience and keywords. So, your advertising strategy has to clearly map out the target users for every single ad you’re planning to run based on:

- Ad format
- Platform
- Content-type

For instance, if you run a story ad on Instagram, buyers from younger generations are more likely to come across it. On the flip side, a collection ad on Facebook is more suited for older buyers.

So, jot down the micro-targeting specifics for each ad to enhance the outputs from your campaign. 

Tip #5 - Create custom audiences 

A custom audience goes beyond the boundaries of your primary audience filters to reel in more people who might be interested in your offering. Instead of confining to the social media channel’s filters, a custom audience factors in website visitors, email subscribers, and people in similar brackets. 

You can build warm custom audiences to rope in people who have previously interacted with your content or profile. Here are a few criteria to create this custom audience set:

- Users who have engaged with any of your posts in the last 2-3 months
- People who visited your brand profile in the last month
- Users who visited your website in the last month
- A list of users who have subscribed to your email but do not engage with your social media activity

Custom audiences are the key to unlocking massive reach and engagement for your ads on social media. So, create a custom audience for each platform to optimize your ad performance. 

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Wrapping up

Social media advertising can supercharge your marketing strategy to amplify brand reach and skyrocket engagement, ultimately resulting in conversions. Bookmark this guide to come back to when you’re creating your social media ad strategy from the ground up. 

To know more about video advertising, give this post a read. And if you’re more of a visual learner, our YouTube channel is filled with sharp video editing tips and tricks so you can level up your video game.

Blogs,Business,Business Opportunities

 

Blogs, Business, Business Opportunities If you are planning to move to or from Chennai then it would be better that you hire packers and movers in Chennai so that you can experience a better move and leave all the packing and moving work to them. But the thing is that if you are ending the lease or you are selling the house, you should always leave it in tip-top condition. The cleaning checklist for your move depends on the size of your house and how clean it is already. Here is the checklist that is going to be very useful for you in cleaning your house: 1. Removing all your personal items The first and foremost thing that you have to do is to remove all the personal items from the house. This includes everything starting from the furniture to the items that you have kept on the shelves. 2. Clean the floors Vacuum the floor properly once before you live. Make sure you vacuum closets, stairs, nooks and all the places in the house that are difficult to reach so that you can clean everything in the house that you have with you. 3. Wipe and dust everything once Use some liquid cleaning solutions and a roll of paper towels or clean cloth to wipe down kitchen countertops, bathroom shelves, bookcases, doors and windows and all such places in your house that can accumulate some amount of dust. 4. Clean all the cabinets as well Make sure that you clean inside all cabinets. You never know what gets accumulated in your kitchen cabinets like food crumbs; vegetables and the like so it is better that you clean them first and then move further. 5. Clean the appliances As time passes by you will see that all the appliances that are made of stainless steel are covered with markings and some prints. If you can use spray or vinegar then you should also do that because it cleans the surface where it gets accumulated. 6. Scrub and clean toilets, sinks, showers and bathtubs Once you’ve finished vacuuming and dusting, roll up those sleeves and start on the bathrooms. All toilets, showers, bathtubs and sinks should be thoroughly scrubbed and cleaned. Any mould, rust or mildew should also be eliminated from the bathrooms before moving out. 7. Clean out closets When you have packed all your clothing and accessories, don’t ever forget to wipe down closet racks and hanging rods. Make sure that you hang all the rods properly and double-check that all personal belongings have been removed from there. 8. Remove all the nails from the wall If your landlord or buyer has asked you not to remove the nails, hooks and wall anchors that are placed on the walls, then you should remove them before the move. 9. Don’t leave any holes in the walls Once you have removed all the holes from that wall then make sure that you remove the nails as well so that you can protect them and then you should protect them for better convenience. 10. Give a touch-up with paint When you remove the nails and anchors from the wall then they are supposed to be touched up with the help of paint so that you can pack them properly. Once you will give them a touch up then the walls will not be untidy or uneven if you have done it properly. 11. Clean your freezer properly It is very important to clean your freezer properly and remove all the contents that are present inside it. If you have a disinfectant spray then it would be better that you wipe it properly. It would be better if you remove all the remaining crumbs present in your freezer. 12. Wipe the stove as well As we all know that there are a lot of residues that get accumulated on the stovetop so you should clean it properly. In case you have the gas range with you then you should also clean the area that is present beneath the stove as well. Then you can also make a cleaning solution so that you can clean it with it and then wipe it with the help of a damp cloth. 13. Mop floors When you have finally completed doing everything then it is the best time to mop the floor so that all the dust and dirt that might have fallen on the floor while cleaning then it will remove things for your own convenience. Have a happy and safe move!

 

Most Important Beauty Tips Every Woman Must Know   Fitness, Health As the connective materials (fibroblast) come into the hurt region, they start mending the spot by creating bovine collagen. Often acne (bad acne scar laser) surgical marks result in the cutis concave or chorus behindhand, an impossible red-coloured business owner that will not diminish. This bad acne scar procedure needs to be specifically completed by a dermatologic cosmetic surgeon. This calls for options like the substance, trichloroacetic plaque created by sugar, salicylic acid solution or lactic p. Visit here to learn more about skin-related problems and their solutions. Regardless of if the scar issues originate from an accidental injury or from surgery, scarring may be undesirable if they’re in an evident place on the human frame. Just after this sort of acne breakouts scar removing cures skin needs to heal and appear simpler. Keep yourself watered. There are only some of the places where acne breakouts show up but it's frequent in other areas of the body like the rear and upper body. Now, healthcare and healthy strategies can reduce the appearance of keloid scar problems, hypertrophic surgical marks, and atrophic scar problems, which are quite normal. There are also certain natural scar dishes that could be invaluable for treating acne scarring, including ice cubes dice scar cure, sweet scar treatment method, white wine vinegar for zits scar cure, tea leaf shrub oil, organic extra-virgin olive oil, and almond oil. Abnormal disintegration can result in additional destruction of the skin and is an entryway for hazardous microorganisms that causes furthermore disease. Get more natural health and fitness tips by following this link. There are actually all-natural strategies to scar lessening that work equally efficiently for every scar treatment item. In order to clear away your scar issues, you will need to take off the old skin tone to advertise new dermis progress. It’s observed in people with many sebaceous follicles in the dermis particularly the confront. Hop Over To This Site The good news is, that you will discover treatment possibilities accessible to individuals who have small and even larger keloid scarring. Which is often elevated by causing compact, but essential adjustments to your diet, as a method to further accelerate the restorative healing of scar problems. so if you’re searching for instantaneous success you’re just in for discontent. More positive aspects would be experienced with a TCA Remove to include much better circulation and flow to epidermis muscle that energizes the creation of new pores and skin cellular material. Educated skin experts learn how to assist you to stay clear of the possibility of unwanted side effects or additional complications. Consuming a lot of many fruits, coupled with fruits and vegetables may help in ridding yourself of acne scar eradication. Tretinoin can establish quick and positive modifications in your skin layer, but because it’s a properly sturdy material, it puts on underneath health oversight. Click here to get detailed information on beautiful skin. Its combined efficiency assists not only to take out acne breakouts but in addition to clearing out the scar problems remaining by earlier types. But, similar to the previously referred to bad acne choice helmets, we are seeing much fewer scientific studies done to demonstrate whether or not one of the helmets on this variety is in fact significant for hatred zits. With these therapies the epidermis is not injured so there isn’t a downtime as soon as the cures. A Microderm remedy exfoliates the skin by nearly fine sand-smoking the uppermost skin tone stratum. Trigger the production of natural antimicrobial proteins. Did you know about the varieties of pimple scar removal treatments which you can use for your confront to get rid of acne? If you need to learn more, follow this link to get beauty tips for women. The moment it dried out, rinse your skin with chilly waters. Obtaining pimples is one of the most awkward and stressful encounters anyone experiences throughout teenage life. Balanced, all-natural food is probably the finest resource for any person trying to learn how to eliminate acne scars

 

What are the four common types of blogs?
Internet, Business
Personal blogs  One of the blogs that are a pioneer in the blogging industry and famous among the women's communities is personal blogs. The first type of blogging started with a personal blog in the late 90s. Personal blogs started when people penned down their own blogs by sharing their stories, advice, thoughts, and opinions. Among all other types of blogs, the most traditional form of blogs is personal blogs. The audience gets to know about the personality and traits of the blogger in their blog posts. Personal bloggers don’t follow any protocols or abuse any rules for blogging. A personal blog can be about their political views, hobbies, skills, and passions. Bloggers of this type can make blog posts related to any topic. A personal blog can be built by signing up for a domain on a particular website. You can write blog posts by publishing them on the internet. Readers get to know about their opinions, political views, passion, hobbies, or anything related to the blogger’s daily life. Readers can know more about your blog, and web traffic will increase when you share the link to your own blog post. Business blogs  Business blogs are oriented specifically toward business-related purposes. Business bloggers write about their work and earn their living by writing the topic on these blogs. The main reason for a business blog is to generate more leads for gaining more business profit. This blog helps to make more customers. Business blogs are professional as compared to personal blogs. These blogs contain writings that follow industrial trends and promote their particular business. The business blog posts are aligned to the industry standards strictly. For instance, an e-commerce business blog can start with how to increase sales in e-commerce. The main aim of business bloggers is to generate leads and then store them from the audience. Business bloggers prefer writing engaging posts in their blogs to promote their business. You get a potential lead when a visitor signs up on your mailing list and makes a successful business transaction. Niche blogs  In niche-based blogs, particular topics are covered rather than targeting different topics. These blogs include content marketing blogs, movie blogs, basketball blogs, car racing blogs, music blogs, Java blogs, health and fitness blogs, food blogs, etc. If you want to begin your career by becoming a professional blogger, start your journey by making a niche blog. This blog type is built around a specific area of interest or passion. With time these blogs get better, and you start gaining more revenue. To make a successful niche blog, you need to discover what niche you’re passionate about and define your targeted audience. It is done based on likes, age groups, gender, demographics, dislikes, etc. The next step is creating niche content and then promoting your niche blog post to the audience. This will fetch you more success than personal or business blogs. Affiliate blogs  To generate income through affiliate marketing, blogs are built known as affiliate blogs. If you generate a portion of the sale amount, then you’ll get a small percentage of the sale amount. Affiliate bloggers write product reviews, which makes readers buy those specific products via affiliate links. You can get a small kickback if you make a transaction. Affiliate blogging holds a significant value in the blogging community, and around 81% of brands make affiliate programs for improving marketing. 84% of bloggers make affiliate marketing posts to grow more customers.

 

Benefits Of Listening To Music While Studying   The idea of listening to music while studying is a very common one for students. Some students may be surprised to learn that it can actually help them study and retain information better than they would without the sound. Dopamine and memory information processing occurs in many areas throughout our brains and most people experience some degree of memory formation when learning new things. When you listen to music while studying, it helps to activate multiple parts of the brain at once. Simply put, having both auditory stimulation along with visual information being processed by your brain can help improve memory retention. The dopamine released during this process is partly responsible for helping us remember what we are doing and why. Dopamine is released when you are doing something that's enjoyable to you, especially when it brings on some type of pleasurable reward. You remember better while listening to music because your brain releases dopamine every time it hears new information, which makes you want to listen more intently and therefore remember it more clearly. This explains why some students have a hard time focusing on their studies, as it is usually not an enjoyable process for them. If you can put yourself in a good mood whenever you need to study, it will help improve your memory and attention span. Your brain doesn't remember meaningless information as well as it does the things that mean something to you. Put yourself into a good mood by listening to your favourite music, and you'll find that it's much easier to focus on what you need to learn. The music doesn't have to be loud for this process to work either. If the volume is too high, it can actually make you even more stressed while studying because of all the other extra noise. When you study, try to play the music that is instrumental without any words being sung along with it. This will help improve your concentration because you won't have anything to distract you from the information that's being presented. Another thing that can help improve memory retention while studying is listening to low volumes of different types of music. For example, try listening to classical music one day and soft rock another. This creates a different mood in your brain that will help you learn what you are being taught. Listening to music makes studying more enjoyable for many students. When you study in a good mood, you remember information better. Music helps activate the different parts of your brain that are responsible for storing memories and improving concentration. This is why having music on when you need to focus can improve memory retention by up to 15%. If you want to make studying more enjoyable and remember things better, try listening to music. You will also learn that you improve your creativity as well as allow yourself to relax more when you listen to music as opposed to not listening at all. Finally, you will learn to study in a way that is more appropriate for your brain type.

 

Top 4 Benefits of Television Advertising!   Advertising, Marketing, Business Planning a campaign can be difficult as it needs a lot of things that need to be kept in mind before framing a television advertisement. Well, television is a medium that is known to be a primary medium for grasping video content to many viewers. Although, with the arrival of many new mediums of advertising, like social media ads, etc., people's interests have seen a serious shift. This makes it even more important to put the effort into a television ad so that it can impact the users in the same manner as the social media ads. The very first thing which is essential while framing a social media ad is to be clear with the message of the ad. You as an advertiser need to be very sure and particular about the message which you want to make reach the audience. As an ad is an expensive medium for showcasing your brand to your audience, it becomes necessary to choose the content, timing, and target audience wisely. So, that you can reach the right audience at the right time. Today, in this blog you will be guided about the advantages of television ads so that you can have greater results with high turnover. Top 4 advantages of running a television ad! 1. Helps in attracting a large audience Well, a television ad reaches millions of homes and with that, it reaches thousands of minds. This can be helpful for your brand as it not just influences a large number of people towards your website but also compels them to take the decisions related to buying. The biggest advantage of a television ad is that it compels the audience to see the product even once and this is possible only when your ad is framed in a very interesting and engaging manner. 2. Visuals and sound go hand in hand When you are choosing graphics for your television ad, do not forget to choose the right sound effects. This is because a soundtrack makes a lot of difference in a video ad. It makes the audience stop and looks at the ad instead of leaving too soon. It also helps your audience to understand the message more deeply. Along with that, keep the pitch of your advertisement neutral and not too promotional. Why? Because people would not want to see promotions but engaging content. 3. Empathize with your audience As per a television commercial production company, if you frame a television ad in such a way that engages your audience and makes them relate to your ad, it proves to be the biggest factor for audience retention. Retaining your audience is a very tedious task and hence just making your content move in such a direction that makes your audience laugh, cry, happy, sad and thrilled. This way they will come to your platform again and again in search of more such content. 4. Build the brand’s legitimacy and reliability Well, when you advertise on a platform such as television, your audience thinks that you are an authentic and genuine brand. However, they might not trust the other mediums too easily as television is better than other platforms, any day. So, with the help of television ads, brand recognition can be done easily and with guaranteed results. Final Takeaway! Well, a television ad can be an expensive medium but it plays a vital role in taking the brand to the next level. If you are just starting up a new venture and want to gain rapid growth, then opting for television advertising would be the most feasible decision.

 

5 Tips for Creating the Best Website Content Strategy   Advertising, Business, Marketing See Why Now’s A Great Time To Update Your Website – And How Designing a website that drives conversions by giving potential customers what they want can be a long, difficult process. Among other things, it’s got to look great, the user interface has to be just right, and you have to find ways to say everything that needs to be said with as few words as possible. Believe it or not, even after two decades of designing websites, creating something that checks all those boxes still feels like no small feat. It requires patience, dedication, and a suite of specialized skills that’s nearly impossible for one person to master. So, I want to share some of what I’ve learned over the last 20 years. In this article, I’m going to explain how you can design the most effective website content strategy and ensure your website is on the right path, instead of on the road to nowhere. How to Create the Best Website Content Strategy 1) Do a Brand Analysis Just like a house, a great website content strategy requires a proper foundation. 1)So, the first thing you need to do is an analysis of your brand. This is the foundation upon which every part of your website is going to rest. A comprehensive brand analysis will be made up of many different aspects, including an assessment of your target audience(s), your unique selling points, and the pain points of potential customers. Here are some questions you should ask yourself when conducting the analysis of your brand: Who are my main competitors? What are the characteristics of my ideal customers? How can I establish an emotional connection with this audience? Which words can I use to establish that emotional connection? What types of images can I use to evoke an emotional response? Why should someone do business with me instead of my competition? What specific problems can I solve, or needs can I fulfill for my ideal customers? What are some of the struggles, obstacles, or problems potential customers are facing? You should go into as much detail as you can when answering these questions – the more information, the better. Then, once you’ve conducted this analysis, you’ve got everything you need to start creating your content. 2) Be Specific One of the most frustrating things for business owners is trying to figure out how to convey the right message in a way that’s succinct and straightforward. When we write or design something, it always seems to make sense to us, but no matter how captivating or concise we may think it is, what really matters is the perception of potential customers. This is why an initial brand analysis is so important. It’s a way to get inside the heads of your ideal customers and try to understand things from their perspective. For example, recently, my team and I have been working on a website for a payment processing company. One of the things we want to draw attention to on their home page is what sets them apart from the competition. But in our rush to push these points, the fact that this is a website about payment processing ended up getting buried, and we had to go back to the drawing board. So, make sure to be as specific as you can, and don’t ever assume your audience will understand what you’re trying to convey just because it makes sense to you. First and foremost, you need to consider things from the perspective of potential customers. There are countless things to consider when designing an effective website content strategy, so if you want to know more, this blog should provide some additional insight. This article will give you several things to consider when it comes to your website content, especially as it relates to search engine optimization concepts, including header tags, local search, and more. 3) Be Concise At this point, you’re probably wondering, “Why is it so important to be concise?” Well, I’m sure many of you are aware of Microsoft’s notorious study on the human attention span, but for those of you who aren’t familiar with it, let me explain. Back in 2015, Microsoft Canada conducted a study that attempted to analyze people’s attention spans through a combination of a series of games, a survey, and neurological research conducted using electroencephalography to monitor brain activity. The study had several key takeaways, but what ended up getting all the attention (and Microsoft ended up getting all the credit for) was actually data from a research institute called Statistic Brain that Microsoft referenced in the study. According to that data, the average human attention span is about eight seconds, which is, at least according to Statistic Brain, lower than the average attention span of a goldfish. In other words, you’ve got about eight seconds to capture a potential customer’s attention before they click away from your website. With that said, when you’re creating the copy for your website, you should try to restrict your writing to one-sentence paragraphs wherever possible. As sad as it is to say, people just don’t like to read, and when they see a huge block of text, their eyes are going to glaze over, they’re not going to read it, and you’ve already lost them. So, when you’re writing your website content, make sure to be as concise as you can, and in general, try to use as few words as possible. 4) Focus on Your Customers A favorite faux pas of many a business owner is to make everything about them and their brand. I’ve seen countless websites that read like this. They talk about how much the brand is dedicated to its mission, how much they love their customers, and how great their products and/or services are, but they fail to put any focus on their customers. As Donald Miller said in Building a StoryBrand, “The customer is the hero, not your brand.” Our client Yvonne of Douma Leadership immediately addresses her target audience with a promise of helping them with their business outcomes. This simple statement is one of the most powerful messages I’ve ever received, and it’s helped me to redefine the way I think about marketing. I’m not saying it’s bad to create a mission statement or discuss how you started your business on an about page, but the fact of the matter is very few people actually care about your company, its values, and how it got started. At the end of the day, what customers want in a website is something that puts the focus on them and tells them what you can do for them – what problems you can solve, what needs and desires you can fulfill. For most people, everything else is pretty much irrelevant. So, when you’re designing your website content strategy, try putting potential customers in the spotlight, and position yourself as the guide that’s going to help them on that long, arduous journey towards fulfilling their needs and desires, or solving their problems. 5) Conduct Keyword Research When you’re trying to target your ideal customers, nothing is more important than keywords. You can analyze your brand till the cows come home, be as succinct and specific as possible, and put the spotlight on potential customers all you want, but if the right people aren’t finding your website, all those efforts will be in vain. Luckily, once you’ve done your brand analysis, a lot of the work is already complete, as you’ve already defined your target audience(s). But now that you know which audiences to target, you’ve got to figure out what they’re searching for, so you know what keyword phrases to use. There are many tools you can use to conduct this keyword research, and whichever one you choose, the principles remain the same. First, you choose your target audience(s), and then you find out what they’re searching for. Next, you have to consider how that relates to your business and think about how you can inject those keyword phrases into your website content. But don’t be too broad. For example, if you’re a Vancouver-based plumber, and your target audience is made up of people who are looking for a plumber in the Vancouver area, it doesn’t make sense to target the term “plumber”, as this is way too general. Instead, what would make more sense is to target a much more specific phrase, like “plumber in Vancouver” or “Vancouver plumbing service”. In any case, no matter what keywords you’re trying to target, make sure to use them sparingly and inject them into your content in a way that is grammatically correct and sounds natural. Does this seem like too much work for you to handle? Designing an effective website content strategy can definitely be overwhelming, but when you work with a professional website marketing company you don’t have to do everything yourself. We can help design your website content to ensure your ideal customers can easily find you online.

 

Top Tips To Successfully Become Your Own Boss   Advice, Business, Career More and more people are choosing to leave salaried positions to explore the possibilities of becoming their own boss. During nationwide lockdowns, furlough schemes, redundancies, and a freefalling economy, people have begun to question their worth in society. With many people taking the chance to bring their dreams and aspirations to the forefront of their priorities, we take a look at some of the things you need to consider if you are to start working for yourself. Who Are You? This seems like such a simple question, but one that many new startups forget to ask themselves until it is too late. You need to know who you are as a business, as a competitor, and as a person. Whatever sector your new business falls under, you need to have a clear voice in a busy market so that you don’t get lost in the crowd. Unique Selling Point (USP) What makes you special, and why would consumers choose to come to your business over the competition? Customers are often overwhelmed with options and want to quickly identify which brand to choose to meet their needs. Your product or service does not need to be unique, but the way you sell it should be. Check Out The Competition Whatever your product or service, there will be others out there doing the same thing as you. Before you settle on a business plan, research the market and see what is working for your direct competitors, and more importantly - what is not. You wouldn’t want to enter a running race with a broken leg, so why start a business with the same disadvantage. Understanding them can also help to identify an edge over your competition, allowing you to have the best possible chance of being a success. Understand Your Target Market It is pointless trying to sell beef burgers to a vegan - know your market, and understand your customers/clients. You could be the very best in your field, but if you are pitching to the wrong people you will never make it a success. You need to look at buying habits and on-trend products that could help or hinder your business journey. Before you commit, try gathering consumer feedback and surveys so that you can tailor your business to your clients. Find out what they are looking for and what they are willing to pay. Not only will you find invaluable information, but if you play your cards right you will also secure loyal customers that are happy to shout about you to others. Branding Your brand is everything. You need to be instantly recognisable in a sea of competitors, whether it's your name, logo, catchphrases, or design. If done well, you can become synonymous with your product - like Hoover or Sellotape, or a household name like Roald Dahl or Linda McCartney. Get some professional advice when it comes to elements such as your logo. Having the right image can be the difference between success and failure. Costing Whether you are providing a service or a product, there will be a cost to you, before you make any money. Keep a tight record of every element of cost to your new business so you can accurately reflect this in how much you charge. Take into consideration your time, especially if you are providing a service rather than a product. Understand The Language Even if you are a sole trader that does not need to interact with other businesses, it is important for you to learn the common business terms and policies. Knowing these will give you a better sense of how to push your business forward. If you do not understand the basic terms in business, you run the risk of missing out on vital information, funds, and opportunities. ‘Here I Am!’ What is the point of starting a business if no one knows about you? In this day and age, word of mouth will only get you so far. Today you need to have an online presence in order to cater to the internet shopping culture. When people want to shop for a product or a service, the first thing they do is look online. Getting a website and learning how to maintain it allows you to tap into the worldwide market. Many online services allow you to create a website on your own, or you could seek a website designer to help you. Personal Touch If you are selling a product, it's the personal touches that make you memorable. Sending an item with a handwritten note - or service with a compliment slip - will gain your loyalty and make your customers/clients more likely to purchase again in future and recommend you to their friends. Enjoy Yourself! The road to owning your own business - or being your own boss - can be long and tedious. Stay focused, believe in your product/service, listen to advice, and enjoy the journey!