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The 6 Most Entertaining Gambling Ads of All Time

Who doesn’t enjoy watching an ad that was executed brilliantly? And thanks to the many creatives backing the online casino industry, we have seen quite a bit of fantastic gambling ads in the past couple of years. N...
3 most competitive and challenging industries to promote online 410x260 - The 3 Most Competitive and Challenging Industries to Promote Online

The 3 Most Competitive and Challenging Industries to Promote Online

In advertising professionals usually adopt a positive outlook and believe that they can sell anything to anyone. But sometimes, this can be quite difficult. It all depends on the industry, product and what the market loo...
Blog8 410x260 - Why You Should Start a Blog Today - 7 Reasons Why Every Company Should Start Blogging

Why You Should Start a Blog Today – 7 Reasons...

We’ve told businesses or rather asked them “Why don’t you have a blog?”, and we usually get the same response – a blank stare. Why would we want to blog, is one of the answers we get sometim...
Blog7 410x260 - How to Build a Online Media Empire? 5 Things You Should Never Ignore

How to Build a Online Media Empire? 5 Things You...

So you want to start an online media company. But where to begin? You probably already have a great idea and niche in mind. Maybe you already have a hosting service provider, have a platform that you want to use to build...
Blog6 410x260 - 5 Trending YouTube Media and Marketing Channels You Should Follow Straight Away

5 Trending YouTube Media and Marketing Channels You Should Follow...

In the tech age that is advancing every second of every day, it is always best to keep an eye out for what’s hip and happening. 2017 saw a lot more of videos being published on social media platforms, and it is no ...
Blog5 410x260 - Want to Build a Website? 6 Things to Consider When Looking for a Hosting Company

Want to Build a Website? 6 Things to Consider When...

When you decide to join the rest of the world and build a website, you are going to need to start looking at hosting companies and options. Rough, right? It can be a bit of a task to browse through all the available serv...

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3 most competitive and challenging industries to promote online 410x260 - The 3 Most Competitive and Challenging Industries to Promote Online

The 3 Most Competitive and Challenging Industries to Promote Online

In advertising professionals usually adopt a positive outlook and believe that they can sell anything to anyone. But sometimes, this can be quite difficult. It all depends on the industry, product and what the ...

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Blog3 410x260 - An All Beginners Guide to Building a Website: The 7 Best Platforms to Build Your First Website On

An All Beginners Guide to Building a Website: The 7...

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Why You Should Start a Blog Today – 7 Reasons Why Every Company Should Start Blogging

Why You Should Start a Blog Today –...

We’ve told businesses or rather asked them “Why don’t you have a blog?”, and we usually get the same response – a blank...
Should You Outsource Your Digital Marketing to Another Company? Here is 5 Reasons Why You Should!

Should You Outsource Your Digital Marketing to Another...

Marketing is a full-time job. If you own a small company, you are probably going with the flow and handling the marketing yourself,...
Branding 101: 6 Tips on How to Create an Online Brand that Your Clients Care About

Branding 101: 6 Tips on How to Create...

Branding is a pretty big deal when it comes to marketing your business successfully. This is the first and lasting image of your...
Year-End Roundup: The 5 Most Influential Media and Marketing Blogs of 2017

Year-End Roundup: The 5 Most Influential Media and...

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Blog6 410x260 - 5 Trending YouTube Media and Marketing Channels You Should Follow Straight Away

5 Trending YouTube Media and Marketing Channels You Should Follow...

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Blog2 410x260 - Branding 101: 6 Tips on How to Create an Online Brand that Your Clients Care About

Branding 101: 6 Tips on How to Create an Online...

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The 6 Most Entertaining Gambling Ads of All Time

Who doesn’t enjoy watching an ad that was executed brilliantly? And thanks to the many creatives backing the online casino industry, we have seen quite a bit of fantastic gambling ads in the past couple of years.

Not only do they captivate those who watch it, but they also entertain and tell the brand’s story. One cannot help but admire what ad agencies accomplish with their creative ideas that perfectly captures what these gambling brands are all about.

In honour of some of the great gambling ads that we’ve seen, we have decided to list what we believe to be some of the best and most entertaining gambling ads of all time. These ads have stood the test of time, and successfully reached objectives.

While the majority of the ads we believe to be the best were distributed on television, some companies took a more creative approach. Let’s take a look at the most entertaining gambling ads of all time.

Ladbrokes

Who doesn’t enjoy watching an ad that was executed brilliantly? And thanks to the many creatives backing the online casino industry, we have seen quite a bit of fantastic gambling ads in the past couple of years.

Not only do they captivate those who watch it, but they also entertain and tell the brand’s story. One cannot help but admire what ad agencies accomplish with their creative ideas that perfectly captures what these gambling brands are all about.

Bet365

First up, we have Bet365’s 2013 television ad. While the 30-second ad might seem a bit void of any hard advertising, the brand managed to capture the essence of what it stands for. The online casino is known for its fantastic platform filled with a wide range of games.

The betting platform is also easy to use and easy on the eye. This was perfectly captured in their futuristic ad that portrays how easily one navigates the site, and how superior their service offering is compared to competitors.

William Hill

William Hill is a big name in the gambling world. Not only is the platform one of the biggest and most trusted, but it also boasts a wide range of games and a reputable sportsbook. It only makes sense that the brand would come up with a brilliant television ad for their online casino.

The ad takes place in a land-based casino, but there is a twist. Some visitors can be seen drinking coffee and having cookies, while others are walking around in their pyjamas. They perfectly captured the convenience one can expect when joining the William Hill casino.

Party Casino

The name of this online casino kind of says it all. Party Casino is another big name in the world of online casinos, offering punters a wide variety of games including live dealer games. This is paired with excellent customer care and loads of promotions.

In this ad, viewers can see multiple casino visitors in a futuristic setting where digital cards and chips are dealt with. Once a player wins, money and chips start falling on their heads. This is accompanied by a catchy tune. The ad perfectly portrays the operator’s high-quality services.

Paddy Power Ryder Cup

Next up, we have something different. When it comes to surprising audiences with guerilla marketing tactics, Paddy Power takes the cake and then some. Paddy Power is a Dublin-based online casino offering punters a whole range of games and excellent benefits.

During the Ryder Cup, the Paddy Power team hired some pilots who left a Twitter message in support of the European team at the Medinah Country club. Needless to say, their efforts went viral and support for the European team poured in over social media networks.

Paddy Power Brit Awards

And finally, another entry by the masterminds at Paddy Power’s marketing team. Here, the powerhouse casino employed another great guerilla marketing tactic when everyone least expected it, at the Brit Awards of all places!

Paddy Power hired two Daft Punk lookalikes to attend the glamorous event. All dressed up in their Daft Punk threads, the two walked down the red carpet only to reveal their underwear, that was, of course, Paddy Power branded.

Sometimes a great ad can do wonders for a brand, regardless of the industry. These ads have proven to be not only entertaining but successful in garnering more punters to visit and join their platforms.

The 3 Most Competitive and Challenging Industries to Promote Online

In advertising professionals usually adopt a positive outlook and believe that they can sell anything to anyone. But sometimes, this can be quite difficult. It all depends on the industry, product and what the market looks like.

If competition is quite fierce, and you are trying to promote an industry that is not easily accepted by a large portion of the world’s population, you have your work cut out for you. But that is the point of marvellous marketing done correctly.

If approached with the right goals and objectives, followed by a failsafe marketing strategy and flawless execution, promoting any business can be a breeze. Being prepared for any challenges you may face is the key to success.

Here, we put three industries under the microscope for investigation. These industries are considered to be the most competitive and challenging to promote online, for various reasons. Let’s get started.

Adult Entertainment

adult entertainment 1024x666 - The 3 Most Competitive and Challenging Industries to Promote Online

Adult entertainment poses many obstacles and challenges in terms of promotions. Thanks to several laws, promoting such products or services is practically impossible. Some of the biggest brands in adult entertainment are forced to hire exceptional digital marketers to ensure they get to reach their potential buyers.

These agencies often specialise in offering marketing solutions for adult entertainment companies and know the ins and outs of legislation regarding the promotion of adult entertainment online.

Several precautions have to be in place to ensure that the intended audience is reached, and underage individuals are not exposed to explicit content.

Gambling

gambling 1024x680 - The 3 Most Competitive and Challenging Industries to Promote Online

While gambling is less frowned upon than adult entertainment, it is an extremely competitive industry. There are dozens of online casinos looking for new punters to join their platforms and making sure they get all the signups they need can be challenging.

The promotion of gambling and online casinos also has to follow and adhere to a strict set of rules and regulations. This is to ensure that problem gambling is not promoted, and that underage gambling is prohibited.

A common marketing tactic employed by the majority of online casino establishments is to offer new signups handsome welcome bonuses to get them to join.

Alcohol

86b91e92 6b7a 4cf6 aa7b edcc8b6cbbf0 - The 3 Most Competitive and Challenging Industries to Promote Online

And finally, alcohol much like the tobacco industry is another industry that is competitive and difficult to promote online. It is illegal to advertise and sell alcoholic beverages to underage individuals, which makes it difficult to place ads in the right place.

Have you ever noticed that you have to enter your age when entering a brewery, vineyard or any alcohol-related product’s site? This is to protect both consumers and companies while abiding by the advertising of harmful substances legislation.

There are also a lot of trends in the alcohol industry, just think about craft beer and gin. This boom led to a massive market where companies have to go head-to-head to increase sales.

These industries must rely on the skill and know-how of marketing professionals to get their advertisements in front of the right market legally. Without the skills of these professionals, companies in these industries would have a hard time selling their products.

Why You Should Start a Blog Today – 7 Reasons Why Every Company Should Start Blogging

Blog8 - Why You Should Start a Blog Today - 7 Reasons Why Every Company Should Start Blogging

We’ve told businesses or rather asked them “Why don’t you have a blog?”, and we usually get the same response – a blank stare. Why would we want to blog, is one of the answers we get sometimes, and an all-time favorite “Isn’t blogging as a hobby?”.

It is rather disconcerting how businesses overlook the importance of blogging. Most of the time it is because of ignorance and downright not being informed by whoever is responsible for their digital marketing. Yes, it is true that blogging is a hobby a lot of people take part in. There are literally hundreds of different types of blogs out there. Some people blog about their day-to-day, some about recipes. Others blog about other hobbies like hiking or traveling.

But what is the significance of blogging for businesses? We’ll cover all the reasons why businesses should start blogging in this post and give you an outline of the benefits of blogging. Let’s get started.

1. Blogging drives traffic

This is one of the most obvious reasons why more businesses should start blogging. Not only will it drive traffic to your website, but it will increase your SEO efforts. Remember, bots need content to crawl, no blog, less content, lower ranking.

2. It’s simple and easy to maintain

If you already have a website, adding another page specifically for your articles should not be too difficult, in fact, most platforms have a blog section built-in automatically, all you need to do is utilize this powerful tool. As far as general maintenance is concerned, if you have a company with a couple of employees, you can take turns in creating specialized content, each one showcasing their expertise. A simple example, but what it boils down to is it won’t be as time-consuming as a lot of people would assume.

img8 - Why You Should Start a Blog Today - 7 Reasons Why Every Company Should Start Blogging

3. Blogging allows you to connect with your audience

Blogging is like having a conversation with your audience, on a daily basis (or however frequently you plan on publishing content), in other words, you are nurturing your established relationships and encouraging others to take part and notice your company at the same time.

4. Blogging is the perfect jumping place for all content marketing

Content marketing is crucial for a lot of things, including SEO, and if you have an active blog, this should be the place you want prospects to end up. Not necessarily on the blog, but at your site. If you have an active blog and social media profiles, you can easily direct followers to your website. In other words, increased traffic to your site.

5. Blogging establishes your company as an industry expert

Your Klout will increase, as would your client base. Blogging will set you apart from your competitors and give you an authoritative voice in the industry you are operating in. If you offer multiple services, include other team members and have them write for your company’s blog as well.

6. Blogging can be used as a PR tool

What’s best about this is the fact that it won’t even cost you a cent. All you have to do is create unique, helpful, high-quality content and publish it on a regular basis and boom! Free PR right there.

img9 - Why You Should Start a Blog Today - 7 Reasons Why Every Company Should Start Blogging

7. Blogging allows you to share a piece of your company culture

This means your prospects and existing clients can get to know your company, inside and out. Not only is this great for building trust and increase loyalty in customers, it is of benefit to the overall company culture. People connect much easier to an abstract concept like a brand when they can relate to it – blogging will allow you to tell your company’s story and this will make your company relatable.

We hope that we have inspired you to put pen to paper, or finger to keyboard, and get started on your company’s blog straight away! If you are interested in reading more about blogging or digital marketing, we highly recommend subscribing to HubSpot’s blog, where they share real-time news on everything inbound. If you don’t have a website yet, and not sure which platform to use, be sure to check out this post.

How to Build a Online Media Empire? 5 Things You Should Never Ignore

So you want to start an online media company. But where to begin? You probably already have a great idea and niche in mind. Maybe you already have a hosting service provider, have a platform that you want to use to build your fantastic website on. But there are things that you need to take into consideration before you get started on your journey to becoming an online media expert.

On this post, we look at 6 things that you simply cannot afford to ignore before you embark on this exciting journey of online success.

Finding a fantastic news team

You’ll need a professional team of journalists or media specialists to help you on your way. An online media company should be able to supply magnitudes of articles and content of the highest quality in real-time.

img7 - How to Build a Online Media Empire? 5 Things You Should Never Ignore

The best is to go through a hiring process where you ask applicants to submit samples of their work, links to online portfolios, social media pages, and profiles and so on. You can hire a couple of writers for a trial period to see how things go. Just remember that they should be briefed properly as to what it is your online media company is about and ensure that what they deliver is in line with your vision.

Getting an eye-catching logo

Your company’s image is the first thing that would pop into readers’ minds when they think about an article they read on your site.

Be sure you have a professional designer on hand to design the perfect logo, using the best colors for media companies. Remember to keep it simple yet striking and professional, this is your company’s image.

Deciding on what your online media empire is all about

This is a very important point that you definitely cannot ignore. You need to be very specific about what your vision for the company is.

Other things to consider include your voice, your company values, mission statement and exactly what type of content and news articles you wish to share with readers. Decide whether it will be a serious news and media company, or something more light-hearted.

Designing your website

If you plan on having an online media company, you will, of course, need a website. You won’t be able to get past this one.

Consider calling in a team of professionals, or if you think you can pull it off yourself, try to build your own with one of these platforms. Remember to keep things simple, ensure that the site is responsive so that readers can access your content on the go, and that it is updated on a regular basis with fresh and relevant content.

im6 - How to Build a Online Media Empire? 5 Things You Should Never Ignore

How you plan to make money

Very important, you need to figure out how this empire will bring you some bright bucks to light up your bank account.

Think about different options of revenue streams such as selling ad space on your site. You will need to pay the overheads, and this is an important aspect that will enable you to do so.

Bonus:  Ensure you have an active social media presence that is inline with your brand and website. Keep it updated and engage your audience.

Are you ready to start your very own online media empire? Have you considered the points mentioned in our article before reading it, or did you learn something new? We hope you have found the article beneficial and that your online media empire will be a massive success. Remember to stay true to your initial vision for your company, and deliver high-quality well-written content, engage and connect with your audience, and you should do very well.

5 Trending YouTube Media and Marketing Channels You Should Follow Straight Away

Blog6 - 5 Trending YouTube Media and Marketing Channels You Should Follow Straight Away

In the tech age that is advancing every second of every day, it is always best to keep an eye out for what’s hip and happening. 2017 saw a lot more of videos being published on social media platforms, and it is no wonder that a lot of media and marketing influencers also have their own YouTube channels.

If you are a young entrepreneur or professional marketer, it might be a good idea to subscribe to some of these influencers’ channels. They offer audiences real-time news and useful marketing tips and tricks, that is always welcome in any professional marketers arsenal. In this post, we discover 5 of the best media and marketing YouTube channels that you absolutely have to subscribe to!

#1 Mashable

Yes, this is an unmissable channel and site for any marketer or media specialist. The company is known for sharing the latest in tech, media, and digital marketing news. Of course, they also throw a bit of entertainment into the mix to keep things light!

#2 HubSpot

This is not the first time this marketing giant features on one of our lists, and it really does not come as a surprise! HubSpot prides themselves on inbound marketing, bridging the gap between consumers and service providers and adding actual, real value to everyone’s lives. Be sure to subscribe to their channel for the latest in the inbound news.

#3 Neil Patel

Our list would be bare without a mention of Neil Patel. Business owner and marketer extraordinaire, you really have to live underneath a rock if you haven’t heard of him before. His channel features tons of marketing related videos, giving everyone in the industry real-time, on-trend advice for their marketing efforts.

#4 HuffPost

More of a media channel, but still a great one to subscribe to! If you haven’t read an article on the HuffPost blog yet, you should definitely head on over there for some high-quality content and good reading. Their YouTube channel is the same – high-quality video content and articles that can cause a stir. To keep updated with all the latest news, be sure to subscribe to this channel.

#5 Moz

Last but not the least, Moz. We have also featured them on another list, but it is just because this company is incredible when it comes to digital marketing and SEO insights. If you want to become an SEO buff, this is definitely a channel you should subscribe to.

To read more on some of these influencers, head on over to this article.

We hope you have found this article insightful and that you will go subscribe to at least one of the channels mentioned here. Remember, digital marketing and media is an open conversation and everyone is invited to partake! If you have any marketing or media related questions, be sure to get in touch with one of our team members.

We’re pretty sure you cannot wait to start discovering some of the YouTube channels we have highlighted in this post. We won’t keep you waiting. Happy watching and learning!

Want to Build a Website? 6 Things to Consider When Looking for a Hosting Company

Blog5 - Want to Build a Website? 6 Things to Consider When Looking for a Hosting Company

When you decide to join the rest of the world and build a website, you are going to need to start looking at hosting companies and options. Rough, right? It can be a bit of a task to browse through all the available service providers out there, and if you have no idea what it is about you might end up with a less than favorable deal.

If you are more laid back, want to build your own site, and get everything done at once, that is also an option. Take a look at this post for a list of the best platforms to build your own site. All these platforms also offer hosting solutions, so you can get it all done in one place!

In this post, we will take a quick look at 6 questions you should ask before hiring a hosting company. So, we’ve made your job a little bit easier right there! All you need to do is read the article, and when you start going through the list of probable service providers, you will know exactly what to look for in the ideal hosting company.

website - Want to Build a Website? 6 Things to Consider When Looking for a Hosting Company

1. What is the bandwidth and storage amount?

What? What is that? Let us try to explain briefly. Most hosting service providers will have several packages on offer with different amounts of storage and bandwidth. Make sure that if it states ‘unlimited’, it is actually unlimited. Some hosting companies will cut your usage off once you have used a certain amount of storage or bandwidth. Bandwidth is the actual amount of memory you are able to upload or download. This goes for site visitors as well. Make sure you get enough if you are expecting an influx of site visitors.

2. How many domains and subdomains am I allowed to manage from one account?

One domain equals one website. So, if you are considering having more than one website (or more than one domain), you should definitely find out whether you will be able to add these to the same account you will have with the hosting service provider. This will ensure seamless management of all your domains and subdomains.

3. Does the package include email accounts? How many email accounts can I add?

The majority of hosting service providers will offer this service to you. Make sure you ask them how many email accounts you will be able to add to each domain you have with them. Another good question to ask is what features their service supports and what interface the company uses.

img5 - Want to Build a Website? 6 Things to Consider When Looking for a Hosting Company

4. Will you offer support services?

This is a very important one. Just imagine you want to load some new content on your site and notice that the site is down. Uh-oh! Make sure the hosting company will be able to offer you tech support to prohibit these little mishaps from cramping your style and hurting your company’s image.

5. Will you keep a backup of my website?

As mentioned in question #4, sometimes things can go horribly wrong. You need to make sure that you will be able to have access to updates and that updates will be made on a regular basis.

6. Do you charge extra for a domain name?

Hosting services can become expensive, and you already have to pay the developer or designer to build and design your website. If you can get a free domain name, that is a benefit right there that you should look out for!

Did you find the article helpful? Will you be ready to pepper prospective hosting service providers with the right questions before settling for the first and best one? We hope you enjoyed the article and that you will get the best hosting company for you!

Should You Outsource Your Digital Marketing to Another Company? Here is 5 Reasons Why You Should!

Blog4 - Should You Outsource Your Digital Marketing to Another Company? Here is 5 Reasons Why You Should!

Marketing is a full-time job. If you own a small company, you are probably going with the flow and handling the marketing yourself, when you find the time to do so. But, it can become time-consuming, and you would probably want to focus on the important things like keeping clients and customers happy, rather than keeping updated with the latest digital marketing trends. We’re not saying that you should not do that, knowledge is after all power, what we are saying is that it might be the right time to consider getting the professionals in and take care of your digital marketing for you.

In this post we look at benefits you can expect when hiring a team of professional digital marketers to run your promotions and plan your strategies and ensure you gather as much traction and build your business while you take care of the things that are more important to you.

1. Access to a dedicated team

Yes, you won’t have to overload your current employees with extra work or put extra pressure on yourself to take care of the marketing side of things. Having an outsourced company take care of digital marketing means nothing marketing related slips through the cracks while you and your employees focus on business as usual.

img4 - Should You Outsource Your Digital Marketing to Another Company? Here is 5 Reasons Why You Should!

2. Access to professionals with experience

Save some time not having to read up into the wee hours of the morning on how to build a website while you have a team of professionals doing this for you. Even though you should have a basic grasp of general things, experience and knowledge will ensure successful digital marketing strategies and campaigns

3. Access to important insights

Outsourcing your digital marketing to a professional digital agency means that you will have access to a fresh approach and perspective on your business. A team of creatives and researchers will definitely be able to have a more subjective view on things and this gives an added advantage.

4. Access to result-driven efforts

Even though you may try your best, you won’t really know whether your efforts are effective. When you have a team of professional marketers on your side, they will work in a methodical manner and ensure that their services and promise to you is delivered. They will also know how to track and trace results to give you in-depth feedback on their progress.

5. Access to the latest developments in the industry

When you have a dedicated team of digital marketing professionals on your side, you have instant access to the latest developments in digital marketing. As experts in the field, digital marketers have to keep up-to-date with changes and trends in the industry, which means you save time and you are always prepared for whatever happens in the sphere of your own digital marketing efforts.

Can you think of more benefits to expect when hiring professional digital marketers? Why not share your thoughts with us. At the end of the day, you need to decide what is going to be best for you and your company. Here is a very insightful infographic on the pros and cons of outsourcing your marketing. We hope you have enjoyed this post. Remember to follow our blog to keep updated with all the latest digital media and marketing news.

An All Beginners Guide to Building a Website: The 7 Best Platforms to Build Your First Website On

Blog3 - An All Beginners Guide to Building a Website: The 7 Best Platforms to Build Your First Website On

So, you need to have your own website. But where to begin? You are not a developer, nor can you afford to hire a professional agency to take care of this for you. Not to fear! There are tons of user-friendly platforms out there nowadays that anyone can use to build websites on.

Even the big guys like WordPress have become so intuitive that should you decide to use it, you will probably be able to build your own site with minimal effort. Hosting is, of course, another thing you need to look at before choosing a platform. A lot of platforms nowadays offer you the added service of hosting, so it is kind of an all-in-one package deal, which is rather cool, don’t you think?

In this post, we will take a closer look at 7 of the best platforms out there today that you can use yourself when building your own website. Whether you just need to have an online portfolio or perhaps you are own a small to medium enterprise and would like to run things on your terms. Whichever way, you have a variety of platforms to choose from. We have tried and tested these platforms and can vouch that they are, simply the best!

wix - An All Beginners Guide to Building a Website: The 7 Best Platforms to Build Your First Website On

Wix

Wix offers a wide range of templates to choose from – whether you need an e-commerce site or a portfolio, you’ll be able to ‘wow’ prospective clients or employers with an amazing site. The platform is cloud-based and features loads of benefits for newbies. Easily design and map out your site, knowing it will stun with amazing graphics.

Weebly

With an easy drag and drop page builder, you can let your imagination take flight when you put together your website. You are able to choose from multiple themes that are fresh, modern and designed with user experience top-of-mind. So whether you are looking to sell products online, have a presence so that customers can book appointments, or just show off your skills, Weebly will enable you to do so stylishly and hassle-free.

Squarespace

Squarespace was founded back in 2003 since then they have provided their services to millions of happy customers. Choose from hundreds of beautiful themes to make your web presence stand out from the crowd, customise it the way you want and add your brand’s logo. The platform is very easy to use and offers top-notch customer support.

web - An All Beginners Guide to Building a Website: The 7 Best Platforms to Build Your First Website On

Website Builder

This platform offers users more than 1 000 templates to choose from. Each template can be easily customised by a drag and drop page builder (always very handy), sites are fully responsive and integrated with social media channels, and you get access to more than 100 images from their own image gallery!

Web.com

Hosting, domain registration, you name it! From start to finish you can have your site up and running with a couple of clicks with web.com. Build your site by choosing your favorite template, dragging and dropping the elements to compile the best page layout, and populating it with your awesome content! This platform also offers e-commerce functionality and social media integration.

Sitey

Another easy-to-use platform that offers a drag and drops page builder, Sitey has more than 100 templates for you to choose from. Sell your products, have clients make bookings via a personalized booking form, integrate your social media accounts. There is literally nothing this platform does not offer. For a complete service, you are also able to include hosting in your package.

voog - An All Beginners Guide to Building a Website: The 7 Best Platforms to Build Your First Website On

Voog

Based in Estonia, Voog offers stylish and elegant websites to shop owners and anyone who needs a web presence. Whether you need to sell your products online or need to integrate your digital marketing efforts by building a responsive website, you will be able to do so easily with Voog.

Did you see any platform worth looking into? Do you have a favorite among them? We hope that this post helps you on your journey to get your online presence up and running. Even though the majority of these platforms offer the same service and features, more or less, it would be a good idea to do your homework beforehand and see which one best fits your individual needs.

If you need some more tips with regards to marketing and media or would like to know more about branding, read this article here where we discuss the importance of branding and how to build a meaningful relationship with your customers. If you have any platform that you would like to be added to this list, feel free to contact us and let us know! We love hearing from our readers.

Branding 101: 6 Tips on How to Create an Online Brand that Your Clients Care About

Blog2 - Branding 101: 6 Tips on How to Create an Online Brand that Your Clients Care About

Branding is a pretty big deal when it comes to marketing your business successfully. This is the first and lasting image of your company that prospective customers will have. Keeping that brand alive and well is a whole different bag of chips altogether.

But what does it mean to have a brand at all? A brand is something that goes beyond the logo, the image, look and feel designs. Your brand probably has a set of values, it has a culture and quite frankly can be seen as a living entity. In this post, we take a look at how you can build a strong online brand, not only a recognizable and relatable one but one that your clients will love.

At the end of the day, your marketing efforts should portray your brand in the most accurate way, consistent. This includes all communication with clients, whether it is promotional communication or mere customer care, your brand is an important aspect of your business and you should pay special to get yourself poised to beat the competition by following these simple tips.

#1 Be Branding and Brand Savvy

Okay, so you want to develop a relationship with clients. To do so, you need to start at the beginning and define what exactly it is your brand is about. What do you stand for? What are your values? How do you converse with your customers? How will you meet their specific need or pain points? These might seem like minor details, but it is very important when you want to build and nurture a loyal client base of returning customers who would be able to relate to your service or product offering and would be willing to recommend you to their family and friends. That is the sweet spot right there when your customers bring you more customers.

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#2 Ask Questions, Do Research

Don’t be shy to ask your existing customers how they see your brand and how they feel about it. In fact, this is probably the purest, most informative and most important information that you will be able to get! And if you don’t want to ask them straight out, you should definitely have other means of communication on how they can give you some feedback on your brand and what really matters to them.

#3 Focus on Solutions

A lot of brands get this one wrong, even though it is a very logical step. In branding, you don’t want to just focus on what it is your product or service does. This is referred to as hard-selling and is a sure-fire way of putting people off before even getting a foot in the door. It reminds one of those infomercials, “But wait, there’s more…”. No one likes that angle. Why not engage customers and focus your efforts on how you are going to solve their problems.

#4 Nurture Relationships

Yes, we are sure you need to make a profit, but who is responsible for that profit? Nurturing good relationships with your customers will go a long way in building brand loyalty. Who would you rather support, the hairdresser who greets you by your name and remembers the story you told them two months ago, or the hairdresser who is just not interested in getting to know you and cannot wait to just get the bucks as soon as the duty is done?

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#5 Transparency Goes a Long Way

Yes, be honest in all that you do at all times. Customers respond positively toward brands that are honest, authentic and can acknowledge that they were wrong every now and then. If you have a social presence, be sure to get back to customers as soon as you receive messages. If you can’t get to something straight away, simply tell them the truth. Don’t make promises you can’t keep.

#6 Have a Clear Brand Image

So, you’ve got a website, social media profiles, business cards, email banners, the list goes on. Is your branding on all these materials unified? Will clients be able to find you when they search your company’s name on a search engine? Or is everything a bit loose? Make sure to tie all your marketing and communication efforts up neatly to ensure you have an identifiable brand, voice, and ultimately presence.

We hope you found this article insightful and that you will get your brand on in no-time and customers loving you for it too. For more insightful information on branding, be sure to check out this article. If you have anything you would like to discuss with one of our team members, you can contact us here.

Year-End Roundup: The 5 Most Influential Media and Marketing Blogs of 2017

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Serious and professional marketers should always be in the know of the latest developments out there. Luckily, the market is flooded with tons of influencers and inspiration, you just have to know where to look for it.

At Palco Scenico, we believe that sharing is caring, and we have rounded up 5 of the most influential marketing and media blogs of 2017 just for you. So, we would recommend if you are not following at least one of them at the moment, you should start straight away!

As marketers, we should always strive to deliver better work. If not just better work than yesterday, better work than we are capable of delivering. Pushing the limits is the name of the game and you pretty much need to keep yourself updated on the latest developments in the industry on a daily basis. Thanks to the tech age we are living in, things change so rapidly, that this can become quite difficult, especially if you don’t dedicate some of your time to scan through the latest news. Make things easier for yourself by choosing to follow the most prominent influencers out there right now.

Let’s take a look at who exactly they are.

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1. Kissmetrics

Kissmetrics is one of those that have been around for a while. They offer marketers complete solutions and run an active and insightful blog. Apart from their great blog, they offer a fantastic analytics tool that is developed solely to grow businesses and see results.

2. Moz

Essentially Moz was established as an SEO service provider. The company has since its founding date in 2004, evolved a couple of times, dropped SEO, taken it back on. This is, however, a blog to start following for all the latest in SEO trends and general digital marketing developments.

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3. Neil Patel

Neil Patel only recently launched a marketing agency, in this year to be precise, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have the goods to bring to the table. Considered one of the most influential digital marketers out there today, you’d be plain silly not to follow his blog. Neil’s guides and tips on his blog is crafted in such a way that even those not clued up will be able to follow it, no problem-o!

4. HubSpot

The company that coined the term ‘inbound’ marketing – Hubspot is also not a newcomer at all, but definitely, one to follow. Not only are you able to get a bunch of free guides on the blog, they also offer young marketing professionals a chance to sharpen their skills with a load of training and educational content.

5. Content Marketing Institute (CMI)

One of our favorites – CMI is the home of everything content related. You’ll find very insightful content, tips, and guides specifically for content creation in the digital marketing age on their blog. Headed by Joe Pulizzi, another digital marketing hero, you’ll never find any useless or irrelevant information on this site.

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And that’s a wrap! We hope you have found the post insightful and that you have at least gathered one new blog to follow on your list of blogs to keep an eye on. If you have any questions related to marketing or media, you are welcome to contact our offices, we would love to hear from you. If you would like to add any other influential blogs, why not join our team by writing for us? We look forward to hearing from you.