So, right about now your newsfeed is probably littered with predictions for internet marketing in 2015, ringing in the New Year with “insider knowledge” in your pocket, blah, blah, baitclick. What a drastic change from each one of the past ten New Years blogtrends, no? Do you want to know what is going to happen with internet marketing next year in no uncertain terms: the same thing that is happening right now.
The Most Exciting Prediction in the World
Here it is: trends are going to continue; they are not going to reverse. Things that are working right now are going to continue to work and slightly change as the weeks turn into months. Things that are not working any more will stop being used. If something new comes out that works, people will start to move towards that tool/technique.
Brilliant, no? Actually, what I’m really trying to get at here is that the current trends are only going to get more in-depth. And as for new trends, you’re going to have to keep your ear to the ground and your eyes to blogs to follow them. Don’t rely on a once a year prediction blog to set your internet marketing strategy for 2015, this is the age of real time pivoting and actionable metrics. If you aren’t plugged in 24/7, you’re run the risk of missing out on something big and falling behind.
But if you are really dying to know what I think about the marketingtrends that will be the hottest in this upcoming year, I guess I can put in some picks for you, but as I said, your best gauge for next year’s success is your own intuition and your own research. After all, isn’t it your money and livelihood on the line?
– Mobilemarketing will continue to be on the top of everyone’s “must” list but honestly, unless you’re running a huge website, I’m going to go ahead and tell the truth: every one has been predicting this trend for the past four or five years. When are we “there” and not “striving for there” already? If your site isn’t mobile-friendly by now, chances are you’re not in business.
– SEO will continue to be blurred along with content creation and social media. What we have now is a digital marketing operation that is focused on driving traffic and sales. Or conversions. Or whatever you want to call them. The point is, the once finely delineated departments of internet marketing are all lumped together. Watch for this mixed cauldron to continue to be stirred until unrecognizable as separate entities.
– Content will still be king. SEO will still be dead. Everybody will continue to say it and argue about it, but the fact remains that the more quality content you have that is written for your customers and not for search engines the better ranking and sales you will have.
– Metrics and analytics will continue to be super-important as well real-time pivoting, so if you aren’t paying attention to what customer behavior yet, your time is rapidly drawing near to being “too late.”
Now, before you say there was nothing of value there, remember what I said earlier. You are the only one who can bring value to your internet marketing and it’s not going to come from the predictions of a quick email on 2015 internet marketingtrends. I don’t care who writes it, the fact of the matter is, you have to pay attention year round if you want to get to the heart of the matter.
A Google user wandered into Matt Cutt’s personal blog and noticed that it uses WordPress. The visitor wonders how Matt is able to keep his site safe from hackers given the platform’s tendency to suffer from attacks. Matt shares three of his strategies:
Update Frequently
Hackers exploit known vulnerabilities in old versions of WordPress. The best way to prevent these attacks is to exercise diligence in installing the latest updates. These will contain fixes for old bugs and keep your blog shielded from attacks. Unfortunately, too many webmasters don’t bother to keep track of the newest updates. They are prime targets for hackers.
Customize the HT ACCESS File
The “.htaccess” file can be used to control admission to the WP administrator panel. It can be changed to allow only a very small number of IP address to have access to the admin directory. These may be explicitly listed so that those coming from unknown address will be automatically barred from entering the site. These people will get a 403 error code. On the other hand, those coming from your home IP and other listed addresses will be allowed in.
Use a Secure Password
Finally, Matt uses a fairly long and complicated password that’s difficult to crack for added security.
Social media has opened up some new doors in terms of marketing to your local consumers. Most of them are using these social media platforms, so there’s no reason why your business should not put yourself right in front of them.
In case you are still waiting to get started, I have put together a list of 5 great reason why your local business needs to get started with Social Media.
* More and more people are searching for businesses on social media sites. In fact, approximately 1/3 of consumers say that they usually search for and check out a company’s Facebook, LinkedIn, or Twitter page before considering a purchase. If the company is new and has no social media page, these consumers typically move on and look for a company with a social media presence. When a business has social media sites, it helps customers feel more at ease about purchases and in their mind, reinforces the company’s credibility.
* Customer service has never been easier and more convenient. Instead of customers having to wait days for a returned call or email, you can quickly resolve issues in real-time. You also have a simple way to engage with many customers all at once, which helps promote a sense of trust between you and your consumers. In addition, you’ll be able to give your business its own unique personality which will attract like-minded people.
* Social media helps your company get more online visibility. The more pages you have, the more likely your company will rank higher in the major search engines. Social media sites already rank strongly in Google and other essential search engines. If you have a presence in the popular social media sites, not only will your social media accounts rank higher in searches, but your company website can be pushed higher as well. If you’re in a high-competition industry, having your business presence show up on the first page of search engine results is imperative.
* The way consumers shop for products and services has dramatically changed. People are conducting more business via the Internet and social media sites than ever before. A good majority of consumers who shop online are regularly active on at least one social media site. Most of these consumers become social media fans of the businesses and companies they purchase from, and almost all would post positively on social media sites about their experiences with these companies.
* Social media is free. Aside from optional advertising costs that you can usually purchase for a nominal fee, creating and using social media doesn’t cost a penny. It’s free exposure for your business and a way to reach customers worldwide. Despite Internet hoaxes and rumors claiming that the top social media sites will start charging, all of the major sites have confirmed that the services will remain free. In addition, not only is social media here to stay, it’s expected to grow exponentially as users can now use their smartphones to check out their favorite sites.
