Online Video Marketing a ‘Must-Have’ Marketing Strategy

Did you know? 85% of the UK’s internet users viewed online video content in March 2013 alone.

As one of the hottest trends to hit the internet in recent years, online video marketing is considered a ‘must-have’ tool in order to take your business to new heights. A recent ‘Infographic’ released by ‘Brainshark Incorporated’ quantifies, the relentless surge in popularity of online video marketing.

Waseem Saddique comments: “Online Video Marketing offers a unique edge to marketing a business. Many business owners say that an online marketing video allows them to ‘personify’ their business affectively humanising their company enabling them to reach potential consumers in a much more interactive and personal way.”

Online Video Marketing has not remained static, it’s not just a big hit now, it continues to thrive and grow to even higher heights. Towards the latter stages of 2012, ‘Social Media Examiner’ revealed that many marketers planned to increase their marketing efforts through the use of online video, setting aside investment funds to launch numerous online video campaigns during 2013.

According to a report released by the Content Marketing Institute (CMI), the result of increased investment into video marketing campaigns has led to a 12% increase in online video usage across B2B marketers at the start of 2013.

Waseem Saddique states: “If you’re business is considering using Online Video Marketing, the time for consideration is over, it’s time for action. Video marketing is trending phenomenally and shows no signs of slowing down.

Some key facts concerning Online Video Marketing:

#1 – 46% of UK consumers state that they would be more likely to source information about a product or service after viewing it on an online video.

#2 – Online Video Marketing is now recognised as the sixth most common content marketing strategy, with 70% of B2B and B2C marketers incorporating some form of video marketing into their overall marketing strategy.

3# - Online video database, YouTube, averages approximately 4 billion hits per day, with 61% of B2B and B2C marketers utilising YouTube to broaden the reach of their message and brand.

#4 - It’s estimated that mobile viewers will watch videos that are three times the length than those featured on PCs and laptops with predictions that the number of mobile viewers will reach 108 million by the end of 2013.

#5 – According to marketing experts, by 2014, online video could account for 50% of all internet traffic.

Waseem Saddique concludes: “Businesses should sit up and take notice of these statistics as online video will help them to reach a wider audience and increase marketing impact. Video offers longevity and holds the attention of consumers effectively.”

Founded in 2007, Waseem Saddique Marketing Services has consistently provided small to medium enterprises, as well as larger corporate firms, with a range of digital marketing & online solutions.

Things to avoid when implementing SEO techniques

In this article Birmingham based Online Marketing Expert, Waseem Saddique, offers an insight into the techniques to avoid when launching an SEO campaign.

A lot is written about the benefits of Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), however, there are also a number of SEO techniques that should be avoided in order to maximise the potential of an SEO campaign.

Here are the top 10 techniques worth avoiding:

1. The duplication of pages – They offer no benefit in improving rankings on search engines as big name search engines like Google, Bing and Yahoo will completely ignore them and in some instances they may even look to ban the site that is using them.

2. Using ‘Invisible Text’ – Invisible text refers to text that is the same colour as the background of the page that it is on. Search engine moderators have quickly identified this technique and have sought to eradicate the problem by labelling it as spam.

3.  Using keywords in comment tags – The major search engines tend not to acknowledge comment tags or even bother to index them. Therefore, it’s a pointless and time wasting exercise to add them for SEO purposes.

4. Don’t use keywords in hidden value tags – The placement of keywords in hidden value tags are viewed as spam by the majority of major search engines. Once again it is a technique that does not warrant the time or effort.

5. Don’t use keywords in style tags – Almost no search engine will acknowledge the content of style tags, so applying them for SEO purposes is a complete waste of time. 

6. Avoid the use of link exchange programs and links farms – The majority of search engines view link farms and link exchange programs as spam, as they serve just one purpose, which is to over emphasise the popularity of a website link, by trading links between participants of specially designed schemes.

Waseem Saddique comments: “it is worth noting that link farms and link exchange techniques should not be associated with reciprocal linking. Reciprocal linking is a much more ‘legitimate technique’ that sees the exchange of links between individual sites on a mutually beneficial basis.”

7. Don’t use link only pages – The majority of major search engines will not recognise link only pages. Therefore, it is always recommended to add text descriptions to link pages in order to utilise them for SEO purposes. This should also be the case for pages such as site maps.

8. Avoid meta refresh tags – As a general rule, search engines consider meta refresh tags, set under 30 seconds, to be spam. To combat the problem of this technique, Search Engine specialists have resorted to using Java Script redirects.

9. Try to avoid tiny text – Whilst the majority of search engines will permit some use of tiny text, if it is used excessively search engines will disregard articles and web pages. The reason why search engines are against tiny text is that they view it as an attempt to stuff articles and web pages with keywords.

10.Don’t use cloaking techniques – Cloaking is considered an extremely controversial technique, as it serves SEO pages to search engine spiders, whilst feeding un-optimised pages to website visitors. All search engine facilities consider cloaking to be a form of spam, however, those that do it have yielded great success from doing so, but it is frowned upon.

Waseem Saddique concludes: “Although the techniques above are considered controversial, they can still be used. What’s not accepted by some search engines may well be fine with others. The fact remains is that there is no right or wrong way to conduct SEO campaigns, you just have to be prepared to expect some criticism for some types of SEO techniques that are used.

Making words work for you

Copy is king

In an increasingly visual age, people often ask what role copy plays when it comes to marketing a business on the internet. The answer is simple, ‘copy is king’, without it images have no voice and people are left to interpret the subliminal messages that are often associated with a myriad of images featured on web pages.

Undoubtedly, the purpose of copy on a website has had to adapt to the fast paced environment of the World Wide Web. Gone are the days of static websites that are flooded with text as we begin to see more interactive sites that provoke the senses in a bid to keep our attention.

Where does copy come into it?

Copy provides the key to these images, essentially unlocking the story that is being told. However, in order to serve a purpose on the internet, particularly when marketing a business, copy has to adopt a ‘less is more’ approach.

Research shows that copy needs to have a ‘hook’ (i.e. something that makes the additional copy worth reading), be ‘punchy’ (i.e. speaking in a rhythmical tone) and most importantly bitesize in order to capture and keep the intended target audience focused. Without the principles in place, people become frustrated and begin to look elsewhere for answers.

The essential elements

· Keep it short - People NEED TO KNOW NOW! We live in an instant society, if people can’t find the information they are looking for in the first 2-3 sentences of text, you’ve already lost 75% of your audience

· Keep it simple – When it comes to copy, using the old cliché of ‘hook, line and sinker’ works wonders when applied to website text. Generate an eye-catching hook, further fed by a snippet of information and close with a call to action

· But above all, stick to the story! – If the words do not ‘SPEAK’ the voice of the images surrounding the text then ultimately your text will serve no purpose at all.

What your PPC adverts should feature this holiday season

Christmas is once again nearly here– marking that period of year in which people spend a huge amount of time doing their gift shopping online; because of this, it is also a great time to implement PPC marketing initiatives.

To ensure you get the possible results from your PPC adverts, Waseem Saddique, has produced a checklist, specifically covering this festive season.

Here are some of the items featured on Waseems checklist:

Give them an incentive with deals – Deals attract people; it can encourage them to buy when they hadn’t originally had any intention to. Offering something like “free shipping or “50 per cent off everything today only” in your PPC ads, Waseem suggests, will have people rushing to your site.

He concludes by stating: “You will get thousands of low cost clicks to your site that should convert very well.”

Change your ad text – Altering your ad text everyday can seem to be something of chore. However, different ad text will, if done properly, help potential customers have a greater understanding of their questions.

The text should specifically cater to the intent of shoppers and how they go about making purchases online, Waseem adds. He also states that you should try to let consumers know what you’re selling and how much you’re selling it for.

Marketing Expert, Waseem Saddique to set-up Marketing Agency in Brazil

Marketing Expert, Waseem Saddique is currently in discussions regarding the set-up of a joint venture with a marketing agency in Brazil.

This will be a great investment for Mr Saddique to expand his marketing initiatives overseas.

Mr Saddique is a marketing specialist and understands the key principles when it comes to total online marketing in Brazil; he is looking to invest his money setting up a marketing agency to help businesses in Brazil improve their online appearance.

Brazil has long been a follower for emerging-market internet trends and it’s riding a wave that will soon sweep the globe. The newest billion people to venture online are doing so in developing countries rather than North America or Europe.

The number of people using the internet in Brazil is growing at a fast rate. Brazilian residential internet users have nearly doubled in the last three years, an excellent initiative to venture into marketing in Brazil.

“Marketing companies in Brazil are rare, but when you do find one the price they charge is extortionate, I aim to bring together a vibrant unity of passionate designers, copywriters, developers and marketers,” says Waseem Saddique.

Waseem Saddique has a wealth of knowledge in online marketing and sales training. He has project managed over fifty businesses to provide a range of marketing services including PPC Management, Link building, Search Engine Optimisation and Google Adwords Management.

Waseem Saddique’s main experiences include online marketing, “Online marketing guarantees to maximize your exposure to customers. I believe a website must give prospective customers a reason to look around and take action. In order to sell a service, establishing trust is vital to make profit.” A number of solutions are used to maximize the impact that a company’s online marketing efforts have.

The marketing Agency in Brazil will provide inventive and cost effective online marketing strategies to develop new businesses and expand existing companies at a reduced cost compared to the average online marketing agencies in Brazil.

“We promise to deliver an excellent level of service to all of our clients. We will take care of any online marketing issues that may arise. Whether it’s SEO, PPC, social media, link building or the design and development of websites, we take care of it. We know how little things make a big difference, so we will offer a first class service to all of our clients,” says Waseem Saddique.

Click Fraud: Is Your Account Protected?

Over the past few years the internet has significantly grown. This growth has not only boosted the online advertising industry but also in particular the PPC market.

Although great things have come out of the world wide web, the ugly issue of click fraud has come about.

Click fraud, also known as Invalid Clicks happens in Pay Per Click online advertising and is considered a type of internet crime.

Since the dawn of PPC in the early 2000s click fraud has been an issue for many online advertisers.

Click fraud occurs when a person, automated script or computer program imitates a continuous number of clicks. It can be for the financial gain of the clicker, or to deplete the funds of the advertiser.

Google is continuously worked on this problem but to keep your account protected, marketing expert, Waseem Saddique offers these useful tips.

“You should always track your campaigns. There is a very important relationship between managing and monitoring your account,” Says Waseem.

Google AdWords has two handy resources that can be used to track campaigns; Account Performance and Campaign Performance. These two resources will allow you to see the percentage of clicks that Google thinks are irrelevant or ‘not good’.

“In countries where there is a low labour rate, people are employed to power click fraud efforts. It is therefore wise to choose which countries your ads will be displayed.”

By limiting the locations where you have the ads displayed, you will automatically get more conversions due to target clicks, furthermore your website will be less prone to click fraud.

“You need to be meticulous in your approach. Completely analyze and go through all details that could relate to any suspicious activity.

“Last but not the least; carefully document all your traffic analysis through reports while running your PPC campaign.”

Click fraud is preventable if campaigns are monitored and managed carefully.

Waseem Saddiques Full Online Marketing Service

With a wealth of knowledge in the online marketing industry, Waseem Saddique can create a successful website for any type of business.

Mr Saddique has expert knowledge in online marketing, including SEO, PPC, social media, link building and the design and development of websites.

Waseem provides an excellent level of service to all of his clients. Little things in marketing make a big difference so first class attention to detail throughout all online marketing projects comes hand in hand with his service.

Inventive and cost effective online marketing strategies can develop new businesses and expand existing companies at a reduced cost compared to the average online marketing methods.

Attractive content is a must when it comes to website design.

“It is very important to me that the design of a website is attractive, it needs to grab people’s attention. Websites also need to be user friendly. Simple navigation keeps users happy.”

It is important that landing pages are optimised for SEO purposes. Good SEO ensures that your website appears top on search engines. When a customer has come to your site from typing a keyword into the search engine they will find exactly what they want to.

Waseem links sites that are only relevant to the industry. This way the traffic is genuine.
“Link Building is low cost, highly effective at driving traffic and it can have a dramatic effect on your search engine ranking.”

Link building improves a website’s visibility in natural search results listings when related search terms are used.

Google AdWords is a highly effective but yet affordable way for any company, great or small to advertise online. Mr Saddique offers a range of Google AdWords management services that can sometimes seem a little daunting for new businesses. This means that companies can spend a little but yet achieve amazing results by gaining traffic to their website.

“I talk to businesses about what they want to achieve and research the keywords and phrases and write their ads so that they only encourage qualified customers.”

Mr Saddique’s full service markeiting can save a company a considerable amount of time.