Using WordPress as a CRM

Customer Relationship Management (or CRM) is a staple of successful businesses and has been for some time. In the early days of customer relationship management (the practice) businessmen and women used a simple rolodex (an analogue, desktop notecard binder with alphabetical place markers) to keep track of their contacts. Each entry usually consisted of a business card and a few notes on each person. This simple yet effective piece of old school hardware allowed those who used it to keep track of their growing business/social contacts and maintain little bits of useful information–such as their  last purchase, certain preferences, needs, Continue reading

FRESH Website Content is a Must!

Google Wants Fresh Content

The brownies that you made last night taste so sweet in the morning! But brownies fresh out of the oven are even more heavenly! The same goes for website content. When you created the content and posted it on your website, the search engines salivated. Google just loves fresh content. Now you have a beautiful webpage that ranks highly. Then, while you turn your attention elsewhere, your competition writes fresh content and your website rankings fall. After a couple of weeks, the content Google once loved begins to taste stale.   What is the solution? Certainly remaking a website every month is not feasible. But Continue reading

Tips On How to Attract Clients To Your Website

Attract Clients To Your Website

Your website must capture your audience’s attention enough to entice them to buy your product or pay for your services. Tips On How to Attract Clients To Your Website: Today’s consumer uses more than 60% of online resources (ie: your website) to determine whether or not to buy a product or select a service. Every business (or person) has a story to tell about your drive, your passion, and what sets you apart from the rest. Your story is what connects you with customers. Your website not only need to give a great first impression, but must also tell your Continue reading

3 Effective Ways To Ramp Up Your Social Media Marketing

The idea of connecting your business to social media networks is one that has gained serious importance over the last year or two. Google has already announced that they do factor in social media interaction to organic ranking algorithms. Bing often feeds in social media postings within search results. For the business that wants to take advantage of this, the idea of jumping in seems to be the right one. But if you’re not being smart about it, you could find your efforts getting lost in the mix of your competitors. Here are 3 effective ways to make your social Continue reading

Why Realtors should use Email Marketing

Real Estate email marketing by Paige Duewel

Email marketing offers real estate agents and brokers the opportunity to collect more leads, nurture relationships and eventually seal more deals. Take your time to properly tag and segment your subscriber base, so you can deliver valuable, targeted content to each one of your subscribers. When your customers experience your emails as valuable and you connect with them personally, they’ll be much more likely to do business with you. To build connections with many subscribers simultaneously, you can set up automated email campaigns. Your personal messages will be sent out automatically, while you’re busy showing properties. Easy and effective! How Continue reading

Real Estate Email Marketing for Seller Leads

Real Estate email marketing by Paige Duewel, Marketing Solutions HHI

Sellers expect different things from their real estate newsletter than people who are in the market to buy. Tag this subscriber group and send targeted information about the housing market, the location they’re selling in, any increase or decrease in their home value or what homes around them sold well in the past month(s). To gain more trust and to position yourself as an expert in your field, showcase what homes you’ve recently sold. This gives the seller proof that their property is in good hands with you.

Why Real Estate Agents Should Use Email to Connect with Clients

Real Estate email marketing by Paige Duewel, Marketing Solutions HHI

Real Estate Agents, Here’s How to Use Email Marketing in Your Business While there may be newer and more exciting ways to connect nowadays, most consumers still check their emails every day. Email marketing is an excellent way to get your name in front of potential clients, and it’s also a great way to stay in touch with former and existing clientele. Here’s why the modern real estate agents need to embrace email marketing.Email Marketing’s Return on Investment is Sky-High Email marketing has a ROI of 3800%, with a $58 return for every $1 spent. If that’s not reason enough Continue reading

Why use Email Marketing for your Real Estate Business?

Real Estate email marketing by Paige Duewel, Marketing Solutions HHI

It’s called the “digital marketing age” for a reason. The real estate professionals of the 21st century communicate via email, show listings using video and maintain online blogs to keep their clientele up to date. A study about real estate in the digital age showed that 93% of the realtors prefer to communicate with their clients via email, with 94% using it every day. Also, 21% of the real estate agents aged 49 or younger has a blog, and social media is widely used to attract new real estate leads and promote listings. The National Association of REALTORS® Profile of Continue reading

Social Media Marketing Essentials

Everyone knows that social media is an essential part of marketing in the digital era. How exactly to be successful at it has been a minefield of opinion, hyperbole, ignorance, and actual good advice. For those just starting out, or those who need to finally get serious about their social strategy, navigating that minefield is often a guessing game. Sometimes a “tip” or “trick” actually works; other times you just waste your time and money. In a bid to save you the time and money that others–myself included–have wasted over the last eight or so years, I’m going to spend today’s post relaying the few Continue reading

You Need A Website Now

When searching to find a service or product, a majority of people begin and end their search online websites… Why? The internet offers easy access to an array of shared knowledge – the good, the bad, and everything in between. While most visitors stumble upon multiple websites before they decide “this is my choice,” converting a visitor to a customer is the goal. Adaptability is Key… Is your website Mobile Friendly? Do you have to “Pinch and Zoom”? Responsive websites are absolutely imperative. Having a website that can be pulled up on any device is so important; we made it Continue reading

Realtor Email Marketing for Referrals

Real Estate email marketing by Paige Duewel, Marketing Solutions HHI

Client reviews build your credibility. It’s good to ask for feedback during the time you work together or when a deal is closed. After a successful deal — for example, 1 to 3 months later – it’s nice to stay in touch with the happy new homeowners or sellers. To build your portfolio and increase your credibility, you can ask for a referral. Then use these online reviews and testimonials in your email copy. Referral emails are also great to use for your industry partners, like lenders and attorneys. Was the partnership pleasant for both parties? Why not send out Continue reading

Realtor Email Marketing Follow-Up Emails

Real Estate email marketing by Paige Duewel, Marketing Solutions HHI

We all get excited when people remember things, whether it’s our birthday or to ask how that important meeting went. It shows you care! With email automation, you don’t need to have a dolphin memory to keep track of your customers. You can automate follow-up emails after each viewing (either sent directly or using a delay of some hours or a day). Ask people what they thought of the property, whether they have any remaining questions or need additional information. Another good follow-up email is one that’s being sent about a week after a client closed on a house. Check-in, Continue reading

Stay top of mind with targeted emails

Real Estate email marketing by Paige Duewel, Marketing Solutions HHI

After you’ve grouped your subscribers together in different segments, it’s time to come up with a concept for the real estate emails you’ll send out. To make the most out of your email marketing, try to automate as many emails as possible. You’ll want to have a mix of regular email marketing campaigns and automated workflows. Regular campaigns: Just sold properties New or expired listings Current events in town Seasonal information Updates Seasonal events and festivities are a good excuse to host something for potential buyers and sellers. Automated workflows: Incentive email (e.g. when a subscriber signs up to receive Continue reading

How Email Marketing keeps the Conversation going at all times

Real Estate email marketing by Paige Duewel, Marketing Solutions HHI

Working as a real estate agent or broker is all about your network and how well you can attain and maintain relationships. Since you can only plan so many real-life coffee meetups in one day, a lot of conversations will happen online. Email marketing makes this easy. Signup forms automatically collect new leads, while automated emails start the conversation. You just need to jump in every now and then to check the engagement and see where people need additional information or help. As for branding, your emails are your vehicle to having one-on-one conversations with new leads. With each email Continue reading

Real Estate Email Marketing for Buyers

Real Estate email marketing by Paige Duewel, Marketing Solutions HHI

Let’s start with a simple real estate email marketing campaign. Some people passed the exploration phase and don’t need all the extra fluff in their real estate emails. They’ve got their money sorted and are ready to buy. Offer buyer leads the opportunity to sign up for an email list that’s dedicated to their needs. Send out sneak peeks, integrate video tours and give buyer leads the opportunity to schedule an appointment (preferably directly online using a booking system). For these emails, it’s important to show listings that fit the buyer’s criteria. You can either ask about their preferences directly Continue reading

How Real Estate Agents can use Email to Reach Their Clients

Real Estate email marketing by Paige Duewel, Marketing Solutions HHI

Now that you understand how much of an impact email marketing can have, it’s time to get started! If you’re starting from scratch, begin with creating an email newsletter. You can even sign up for newsletters from other agents to get ideas. Starting an Email Newsletter for Your Real Estate Business Think about the type of information that would be most useful to your clients and aim to include that information in your newsletter. You can share your own insights, articles from other experts and even featured listings. The process isn’t too difficult, either. There are tools and websites that Continue reading

Why Realtors should use Eblasts

Real Estate email marketing by Paige Duewel, Marketing Solutions HHI

The time to stop leaving printed ads on mailboxes has come. With the unstoppable wave of digital transformation, there are many more effective ways to offer your services as a realtor. The reason why so many real estate agents have become part-time marketers is simply that it works. And within all the possibilities that digital marketing has for realtors, email marketing stands out. Email marketing is one of the most effective ways to reach out to a large number of current and potential clients in a short time. In a survey we conducted, 72% of respondents said that marketing emails Continue reading

5 Ways to Write Better Blog Posts

Website Design Goals

Successful blogging drives qualified traffic to your website and helps establish you as an expert authority on subjects that are important to your clients. However, most blogs run into problems with a high bounce rates, meaning people that visit immediately leave, or that visitors aren’t converting into subscribers, leads or customers.These problems can be alleviated with some simple modifications to your blog posts that will make them more inviting for both new and returning visitors. 1. Write About Topics Relevant to Your Audience When you brainstorm your upcoming blog post topics make sure you cater to the needs of your Continue reading

Creative Website Design For Small Business

Creative Website Design For Small Business

A properly designed website can help a small online business reach unbelievable heights. It is essential for a concern to consider few important tips for optimizing the success level of a website about to be created or reassure them for an already existing one. Here are 5 website design tips essential for small business: 1. Images speak louder than words It must be taken in to consideration during making of a website that visuals are must haves instead of overloading the pages with unimportant text. Pictures can alone speak and express thousand times better than words. Images speak a common Continue reading

Why are Websites So Important?

When searching to find a service or product, a majority of people begin and end their search online websites… Why? The internet offers easy access to an array of shared knowledge – the good, the bad, and everything in between. While most visitors stumble upon multiple websites before they decide “this is my choice,” converting a visitor to a customer is the goal. Adaptability is Key… Is your website Mobile Friendly? Do you have to “Pinch and Zoom”? Responsive websites are absolutely imperative. Having a website that can be pulled up on any device is so important; we made it Continue reading

What is the ROI of Social Media Marketing?

There is little doubt of the value of social media. You can gain a lot of readers and expand your brand. All of these efforts take a lot of time, so how do you know that what you’re getting back from your efforts is worth your time? What is your return on investment? Does its gain outweigh its cost? How valuable are social media shares? Measuring ROI with a textbook answer from a traditional business environment doesn’t always work when measuring the effectiveness of a social media campaign. It is difficult to get a precise measurement of everything involved in Continue reading

How Niche Marketing Can Help Your Business

The foundation of America is in the small business. The world is your oyster. Do those two statements sound grandiose and a bit overwhelming for your “little” small business? Well, yeah, they are. When marketing your business, think niche marketing. You don’t need the whole pie. You just need your slice of it. The tricky part is figuring out which slice you would like and then target those key words in all of your writing on your website. Each page on your site can target a different keyword or a couple of different key words. For example, the site https://berryremodeling.com Continue reading

The Trifecta of Internet Marketing

What you need to know about SEO

There are lots of pages out there that focus on specific channels to help with one element of internet marketing or another. The problem that most small businesses will find with these service providers is that their services are astronomical, even out of budget range. For the business that needs a boost, there’s a need to make sure that you’ve got three basics covered in terms of growing your online presence. Web Design No matter how much of a presence you have on social media, local listings, and other resources, you need to have some sort of culmination. Your website Continue reading

Why Blogging Matters – Google Likes Fresh Website Content!

It’s easy to leave your website be when you’re logging countless hours simply trying to keep your business afloat. However, in this day and age, a few keyword-friendly pages aren’t going to keep the traffic moving to your site. Blogs don’t need to be updated all day, every day, but you need to make sure that you’re able to keep the content on your website fresh, new and exciting every so often. Major search engines, including Google, Yahoo! and Bing, all use complex algorithms to determine where a site will rank organically. Part of that algorithm is the engagement that Continue reading

Every Business needs a LOCAL Website Designer

Paige Duewel of Marketing Solutions HHI is your Local Website Designer in Hilton Head! A business that operates locally needs to think locally, and that includes the detail on your website. Thinking on a larger scale than your business operates on could be a waste of valuable time and marketing dollars. Optimized websites for local businesses should often contain localized keywords, including cities that you operate in. Your website, unless restricted by you, is visible to people around the world. Google’s dozens, possibly hundreds, of search  algorithm elements have come together to give you the chance for your site to rank Continue reading

Local Business and Local Search is Everything

Local Search is Everything to a Business. It’s not a secret that people use their mobile phones to do all kinds of surfing. But when we separate the difference between those that use a mobile device for everyday browsing and those that use them for finding local businesses, the numbers are staggering. If you were to look at your Google Analytics (and you have a good SEO plan in place), you’ll probably find that about 20-25% of your visitors overall are mobile. However, for many local businesses, it becomes clear that nearly 90% of your users could be looking for Continue reading

10 Simple Ways to get Noticed on Google

Google+ has 400 million registered users, and over 100 million active ones, according to the company’s official announcements. (And 70% of the users are male. Odd.) So now we wonder: where are all these people? If you’ve checked your Google+ account recently, you may have noticed that it’s awkwardly silent. Maybe it’s because it’s still a new service, and people are trying to find their way around. Or maybe everybody is hiding in Communities or Hangouts, and you need a super-secret password to get in. Or maybe it’s because it has so many male users, and men don’t talk that Continue reading

Think a Mobile Website Design Isn’t Important? Think Again

Mobile Search Devices

As of the end of 2013, there were more than 10 billion mobile phone users worldwide. By the time you finish reading this article, another 400 will be added to the list. Most of the business owners that come to us for help aren’t always looking for their first website, but wondering why they’re having trouble connecting with their target audience. It doesn’t take much research to realize that more than 80% of those who reach out to us have simply let their website and its ability to have an impact on their business and bottom line go to the Continue reading

What you Need to Know about SEO

If you’re reading this, you probably have a website. If you have a website, chances are you have search engine optimization (SEO) questions — namely, what does it takes to improve your site’s visibility with major search engines? You’re not alone. After all, it can be a confusing, acronym-laden world out there. SEO is a big topic, but it doesn’t have to keep you up at night. Our team of experts created this handy guide to answer your questions about on-page SEO elements, once and for all. We’re talking about a breakdown of all the important stuff. Think it’s too Continue reading

Website Design Tips Essential for Small Business

A properly designed website can help a small online business reach unbelievable heights. It is essential for a concern to consider few important tips for optimizing the success level of a website about to be created or reassure them for an already existing one. Here are 5 website design tips essential for small business: 1. Images speak louder than words It must be taken in to consideration during making of a website that visuals are must haves instead of overloading the pages with unimportant text. Pictures can alone speak and express thousand times better than words. Images speak a common Continue reading

Web Design and Modern Technology

With modern technology, you can make your website look fantastic with all of the latest plugins, JavaScript, flashing logos etc….  But, if the basic goal of your website is to advertise your product and service, then these add-ons might actually be hurting you, rather than impressing your viewers.  A basic, streamlined and easy to navigate site is much more impressive to your viewers. For example, all of your sub pages should be easily reached from your home page.  If you have three layers of pages, then the third layer (perhaps an order form) should be simply reached on the second Continue reading

The Importance of Affordable Web Design

At Marketing Solutions HHI, we’ve helped dozens of customers give their website a fresh new look. We’re also able to create a website on an affordable level, while still offering professional services that can give the client a site that will last them for years to come. While we’d like to believe that we have a relatively inexpensive plan in place to help small and local businesses, we know they’re always on the hunt for something less expensive. The versatility of content management systems and those who support them and help them grow is growing by the day. Complicated programming Continue reading

Local Business, Local Marketing

Paige Duewel of Marketing Solutions HHI is your Local Website Designer in Hilton Head! Your website, unless restricted by you, is visible to people around the world. Google’s dozens, possibly hundreds, of search  algorithm elements have come together to give you the chance for your site to rank for a variety of keywords, depending on your niche. It’s a sad truth that businesses that operate locally want to rank for terms that are far too generic to have an impact on their local business, which is what they thrive on. Local search has become a predominant player in the world of Continue reading

Why Modern Web Design Matters

With consumers doing more internet research than ever before utilizing local businesses, modern web design has taken the forefront of marketing efforts for small businesses across the country. Unfortunately, a small business usually has limited resources to handle such a major undertaking. For that reason, several small business owners choose to push forward with their older designs in the hopes that their current organic rankings will keep the business afloat until such time that they have the necessary man power for redesign. This endless waiting game becomes a sinkhole for many businesses, not because your design is old, but because Continue reading

Do you have a Mobile Friendly Website?

Do you know if your website is responsive? Can you access all of your website pages without having to “Pinch and Zoom”? Do you have a mobile friendly website design? By 2016, over 10 billion web surfers will be on a mobile device… Is your website ready? If you answered “No” or “I don’t know”… There’s endless lingo that gets tossed around the internet marketing world, and while it might be a bunch of jibberish to you, it makes complete sense to us. In our last post, we wrote about your site being mobile friendly. We got endless feedback with Continue reading

Own Your Google Rankings and Local Search

The marketing industry is a tough one when it comes to traditional media methods. For years, large businesses have turned to online advertising as an affordable and trackable way to get their brand in front of customers. In the last five years, the biggest small businesses have taken the same route as advertising becomes less of a burden on the wallet. One of the great things that we’ve always loved about our clients is that their sites are successful. While we can’t help much when it comes to customer service (though most of the businesses we deal with do provide Continue reading

Keyword Targeting, Not a Strategy, an Art

We have no doubt in our minds that our clients think like several web surfers around the world. When it comes to keyword targeting, our thought is no different. It’s fairly easy to guess what keywords people are using to find businesses just like yours. However, what we’re concerned about when it comes to your business is finding the keywords that are actually going to drive revenue. To help demonstrate, we’re going to create a business called “Bob’s Plumbing”. Bob wants to make sure he attracts the right people to his page, and we’re out to make sure Bob does Continue reading

How to get on Top of Local SEO

Your website, unless restricted by you, is visible to people around the world. Google’s dozens, possibly hundreds, of search algorithm elements have come together to give you the chance for your site to rank for a variety of keywords, depending on your niche. It’s a sad truth that businesses that operate locally want to rank for terms that are far too generic to have an impact on their local business, which is what they thrive on. Local search has become a predominant player in the world of online marketing, and it can be an effective tool when properly utilized. A Continue reading

A/B Testing Your Website

Website AB Testing

A/B Testing Your Website With WordPress: The What, Why, And How As most of you already know, a lot of time goes into planning and building a website. There is something rather exciting about taking that idea and then launching it into a viable site, but should your work stop there? Many, when venturing into the online world, do so with the intent of making money or driving leads on your site that turn into money. And even though good design and evergreen content is a major part of conversion, it can be easily stated that no website is perfect. Continue reading

Why You Can’t Afford Not To Have a Website

Right now, someone needs your services. Right now, someone is looking online for your services. Right now, someone is finding your competition online. Right now, you’re losing valuable business opportunities. While newspaper and phone book advertising was once considered a valuable resource, the mediums by which people find us have changed drastically from less than 20 years ago. Today, the power of the world wide web has begun to take control of how people find us. But for the business that doesn’t have a web presence, you don’t know what you’re missing out on. If you’ve never had a website Continue reading

Marketing

Internet marketing isn’t something that you can just read about and get going. Well, you can, but what you’ll find is that you’ll focus on channels and use methods that aren’t considered best practices for your business. Every website functions differently, and the response from your users will reflect just how well your site and your business are performing online. It’s what you do with that response that most people don’t know about. Capitalizing on adjusting and optimizing your website performance is the biggest part of internet marketing, so you’ve got to make sure you have a solution that does Continue reading

Social Networking and Brand Awareness

Did you know that social networking not only offers you valuable brand awareness potential, but can have a heavy impact on your organic rankings for a variety of Google keywords? Managing your Facebook, Google+ or Twitter account isn’t just about posting your offering, but understanding your social network, which only an internet marketing professional truly understands. From social media marketing to video, the masses are out there, they just aren’t looking for you. With online marketing, you take your brand and your presence and put it in front of those that are interested in your product. With targeted strategies, online Continue reading

Stop Throwing Money Away! We offer Flat Fee Programs

Time and time again, we see that the world of small business owners is being taken advantage of. With lack of knowledge in the internet marketing industry and a desire to quickly pull in internet revenue streams, business owners jump at what seems to be a valuable opportunity to create a website. With empty promises of an easy to use interface and an affordable monthly fee, businesses are sucked in one by one and their marketing dollars are literally thrown down the drain. Sites like web.com, wix, and others have strong SEO power, which allows them to show up for Continue reading

What’s the difference between WordPress.com and WordPress.org?

The question of whether to go with WordPress.org or WordPress.com is a common one, and has been covered before. I’ll try my best not to repeat what’s already out there on the topic. However, I will go over some neat-o features that you may not know about WordPress.com (if you’re very used to using WordPress.org, or even another blogging site, like Tumblr, for instance). To conclude, I’ll also explain what makes the WordPress.org software so special. WordPress.com: the side of blogging you never knew about WordPress.com is undoubtedly going to be a content-focused domain where bloggers (i.e., content creators) hang Continue reading

The Elusive SEO Friendly URL

An SEO friendly URL is key to your business being found on the major search engines. Your domain URL needs to be memorable, easy to say, and contain a keyword pertaining to your business. We know there are lots of elements that come together to create complicated algorithms within major search engines. These algorithms essentially tie together several different parts of your website and allows the engine to “properly” rank your site among search results. From site speed, to content, to user engagement and everything in between, it takes a lot of time and attention to make sure that you’ve Continue reading

Optimize your WordPress Website

Cleaning Up Your WordPress Database To Optimize Your Website’s Performance Are you struggling with slow site loading times? Just a few extra seconds can make a big difference. For every additional second it takes your site to load, your page abandon rate rises. About half of your visitors will expect it to load in 2 seconds or less, according to KISSmetrics. If it doesn’t, they’re hitting that back button. Need an easy way to shave a few seconds off your load time? If your WordPress site’s been around for longer than a few months, cleaning up your database could boost Continue reading

Goal Setting for Website Designers

Website Design Goals

Running a business, even a web development business, without clear goals is like picking a direction and driving without knowing where you want to go. You can’t know if your destination is a good one or not – you just hope it is. You won’t even know when you get there. Obviously, it’s best to use a map and plan your destination. Setting clear and measurable goals is like having a roadmap that shows you the direction you should go. It helps you plan your trip and your destination. The Importance of Setting and Tracking Goals Goals have several benefits for Continue reading

How to Rank for Local Search

While local search on major search engines has the power to make or break a business’ online efforts, it doesn’t have the same ranking factors as your usual website rankings. It’s easy for your ranking to change based upon several different elements that are often dependent on the user that is doing the searching. 1. Proximity on Local Search The biggest determining factor in your Google local search ranking is going to be your location in relation to the approximate location of the user. If you’re on the other side of town and your competition is right next door, you’ll Continue reading

WordPress Web Design

You’ve probably seen countless pages that use WordPress for their website platform. The fact is that in an ever-changing world of technology, it’s easy for your older website to get lost among the millions out there that have decided to go with WordPress’ open-source technology for both designing and maintaining their website. There are several reasons behind the movement, and each business owner has their own insight. WordPress is User Friendly Unless you know code, it’s often difficult to edit files on the fly. With WordPress, designers and business owners alike have a platform that’s easy to navigate, while those Continue reading

Get Followers on Twitter and FaceBook

Before we get too involved here, let’s answer one all-important question first: Why Do You Need Followers? The number of followers you have can really boost your ego and make you feel great (assuming it’s a good number, and not a bad number), but that’s not the main reason to get followers. As Kevin Lee of Buffer’s blog explains, one thing the number can do for you is tell you how far your message will spread. Gaining a following on the social networks is social proof. It shows others that what you’re doing works. If two companies are selling comparable Continue reading

What Is Bounce Rate, Is It Important, and How Do You Lower It?

It’s a phrase that all web owners are going to hear sooner or later. What exactly am I talking about? Bounce rate. Just about everyone has something say on the subject, but some information leaves people scratching their head. What is bounce rate really? How do I study it? Should I worry about lowering the bounce rate on my site(s)? These are all great questions that are worth finding and answer to. First things first, let’s talk about what this bounce rate thing is. What is Bounce Rate Anyway? Google defines Bounce Rate this way: Bounce Rate is the percentage Continue reading

The Evolution of WordPress Drag & Drop Systems

Way back when, we didn’t have these fancy drag and drop systems. If you wanted to move something from one side of the screen to another you had to go into FrontPage, Dreamweaver, or whatever you were using to create your website, and create a place for it to exist on the screen. Then you had to cut the content (text, image, etc.,) from its location and paste it into the new location. Then you had to resize everything until it looked the way you wanted. Every change affected everything else. There was no “just grab it with your mouse Continue reading

Straight Forward Guide to WordPress Slugs

wordpress web design

A Straight-Forward Guide To WordPress Slugs When using WordPress there are so many things one might choose to learn and master that some of the most basic elements of your site can be overlooked. Especially the parts that are a bit dry and not the least bit glamorous. Like this post’s topic: The Slug. What is a Slug? A WordPress slug is nothing more than a few words, which you choose, to describe a post, page, category, or tag within WordPress. These words then appear as part of the URL (or Permalink) directing visitors to that content. The title of this Continue reading

SEO Best Practices

SEO, Google, Bing, Yahoo

WordPress SEO Best Practices In the past five years, Google has changed the meaning of SEO (Search Engine Optimization) — and boy did she bring down the hammer! All those loopholes and black-hat methods were not only throw to the side, but they also received huge punishments including loss of ranking and even being banned from Google — ouch. Since the initial Google Panda update, web owners and SEO specialists alike have been scrambling to figure out just what Google wants from them in terms of white-hat (good) SEO practices. If you’re running a WordPress-based site or you are about Continue reading

Small Business Marketing and Your Budget

Small businesses clearly don’t have the capital to work with like large businesses. At the same time, there are those small business owners that realize the value that internet marketing can have on their bottom line. Ask any small business owner whether or not he’d invest in online marketing tactics and they’ll most likely give you the answer, “If it makes me money, I’ll invest in anything.” So for those that are slow to get on the online bandwagon, consider this: while you’re keeping your money in your pocket, your competition is driving more business to their bottom line than Continue reading

Thinking Mobile Friendly Website? Time to Be Responsive!

Mobile Website Design

Is your site a mobile friendly website? There’s endless lingo that gets tossed around the internet marketing world, and while it might be a bunch of jibberish to you, it makes complete sense to us. In our last post, we wrote about your site being mobile friendly. We got endless feedback with questions asking about what mobile devices sites would be friendly for. The answer in short is…all of them! Through CSS and HTML5, we’re proud to offer responsive website design. It’s not only mobile-friendly, but it’s tablet-friendly, desktop-friendly, and friendly for any resolution that you could possibly imagine. The Continue reading

How to create your own Job Board with WordPress

What do sites like Job.ProBlogger, WP Hired, Monster, and Elance all have in common? They are all job board sites that have grown rather popular in their perspective niches. Back in the day, building and designing an online job board was very costly and immensely time-consuming. But nowadays, thanks to software like WordPress, creating a job board is much cheaper and easier to get up and running. How To Create a Job Board With WordPress As with many things in life, there is no single way to create a job board with WordPress. However, if I had to narrow it Continue reading

LinkedIn is the Adult FaceBook

Social Media Marketing

As I start my day each morning, I spend about 45 minutes reviewing the e-mails I have received from my LinkedIn contacts. Some are requests to connect, some are e-mails from individuals asking questions or inquiring about my company’s services and some are from the LinkedIn groups to which I belong. I repeat the same routine in the afternoon. I regard the 90 minutes or so that I use as one of the most important exercises of my working day. Although it seems like a lot of time to spend on one social media application, it is a very productive use of Continue reading

How Do I Get My Business To Page ONE of GOOGLE?

How Do I Get My Business To Page 1 of GOOGLE?

The words, “How Do I Get My Business To Page ONE of GOOGLE?” are some that we hear all too often. In the end, we certainly agree that showing up on Google for keywords that are specific to your business’ niche should be at the top of your priority list. But we feel the need to express how important it is to target all search engines whenever possible, and the latest ratings for comScore only help to drive our point home. Google has commanded well over 60% of the search share market for some time. However, for the first time Continue reading

Construction Hilton Head Website Design, SEO

At Marketing Solutions HHI, we love to celebrate our clients, the websites we have designed, while showcasing their businesses across Social Media! If you are a Salon, Electrician, Plumber, Remodeling Contractor, Locksmith, Property Owners Association, Realtor, Pet Groomer, Flood Vent Manufacturer, Fitness Center, or more… Marketing Solutions HHI can create a website for you! Construction Web Design and SEO Services Atlantis Construction and Consulting   Website Design by Paige Duewel, Marketing Solutions HHI

Improving Your Website With Add-ons

You may think that your website is looking better than ever. Even if your site is old, you may think that  you’ve got the best one in town. But did you know that there is always a way to improve your website? Add-ons are a great way to start! The need for people to be able to communicate with your business is crucial when it comes to your web page. If you’re not providing them with enough resources to contact you, then you’re missing out on potentially valuable business opportunities. While your address and phone number are certainly important, people Continue reading

Your Website Needs to be Modern and Fresh!

Blogging Helps Keep Your Website FRESH!

With consumers doing more internet research now, more than ever before utilizing local businesses, modern web design has taken the forefront of marketing efforts for small businesses across the country. Unfortunately, a small business usually has limited resources to handle such a major undertaking. For that reason, several small business owners choose to push forward with their older designs in the hopes that their current organic rankings will keep the business afloat until such time that they have the necessary man power for redesign. This endless waiting game becomes a sinkhole for many businesses, not because your design is old, Continue reading

Interior Designers Showroom Hilton Head

At Marketing Solutions HHI, we love to celebrate our clients, the websites we have designed, while showcasing their businesses across Social Media! If you are a Salon, Electrician, Plumber, Remodeling Contractor, Locksmith, Property Owners Association, Realtor, Pet Groomer, Flood Vent Manufacturer, Fitness Center, or more… Marketing Solutions HHI can create a website for you! Interior Designers Showroom Hilton Head Welcome to the House of Design in Hilton Head Website Design by Paige Duewel, Marketing Solutions HHI https://www.marketingsolutionshhi.com

Plumbers Hilton Head and Bluffton

At Marketing Solutions HHI, we love to celebrate our clients, the websites we have designed, while showcasing their businesses across Social Media! If you are a Salon, Electrician, Plumber, Remodeling Contractor, Locksmith, Property Owners Association, Realtor, Pet Groomer, Flood Vent Manufacturer, Fitness Center, or more… Marketing Solutions HHI can create a website for you! Local Plumbers, Website Design Butler’s Plumbing Hilton Head and Bluffton Website Design by Paige Duewel, Marketing Solutions HHI https://www.marketingsolutionshhi.com

Save Money on Website Design for your Business

How Does Your Website Represent Your Business?

At Marketing Solutions HHI, we’ve helped dozens of customers give their website a fresh new look. We’re also able to create a website on an affordable level, while still offering professional services that can give the client a site that will last them for years to come. While we’d like to believe that we have a relatively inexpensive plan in place to help small and local businesses, we know they’re always on the hunt for something less expensive. The versatility of content management systems and those who support them and help them grow is growing by the day. Complicated programming Continue reading

Appraisal Brokers Bluffton – Website Design

At Marketing Solutions HHI, we love to showcase the websites we’ve designed across Social Media! Everyone needs a website… Marketing Solutions HHI can create a website for you! Appraisal Brokers Bluffton – Website Design Hilton Head Appraisers Llewellyn Dykes Appraisal Services Website Design by Paige Duewel, Marketing Solutions HHI https://www.marketingsolutionshhi.com

Why is Mobile Website Design SO Important?

Mobile Website Design

When searching to find a service or product, a majority of people begin and end their search with mobile websites… Why? The internet offers easy access to an array of shared knowledge – the good, the bad, and everything in between. While most visitors stumble upon multiple websites before they decide “this is my choice,” converting a visitor to a customer is the goal. Adaptability is Key… Is your website Mobile Friendly? Do you have to “Pinch and Zoom”? Responsive websites are absolutely imperative. Having a website that can be pulled up on any device is so important; we made Continue reading

Long Term Apartment Rentals Hilton Head

At Marketing Solutions HHI, we love to celebrate our clients, the websites we have designed, while showcasing their businesses across Social Media! If you are a Salon, Plumber, Locksmith, Property Owners Association, Realtor, Pet Groomer, Fitness Center, or more… Marketing Solutions HHI can create a website for you! Long Term Apartment Rentals Hilton Head Website Design by Paige Duewel, Marketing Solutions HHI https://www.marketingsolutionshhi.com

How Google Analytics can help Increase Website Traffic

Google Analytics

For the average small business, a marketing budget is something that most only dream about. That being said, where there exists an opportunity to get a free marketing tool, there exists a chance to keep up with the bigger players in your industry. Google Analytics services like Omniture and Coremetrics can often come at a price that starts at a whopping $10,000 per year. It’s for that reason that Google Analytics has become a powerhouse, especially among smaller businesses. Most businesses that we interact with seem to be interested solely in their visits and where they’re getting traffic from, when Continue reading

Event and Wedding Planner Chicago

Events by L

At Marketing Solutions HHI, we love to celebrate our clients, the websites we have designed, while showcasing their businesses across Social Media! If you are an Event Planner, Salon, Pet Groomer, Fitness Center, or more… Marketing Solutions HHI can create a website for you! Events by L Event and Wedding Planner Chicago Website Design by Paige Duewel, Marketing Solutions HHI

Enhance Your Website With Add-Ons

You may think that your website is looking better than ever. Even if your site is old, you may think that  you’ve got the best one in town. But did you know that there is always a way to enhance your website? Add-ons are a great way to start! The need for people to be able to communicate with your business is crucial when it comes to your web page. If you’re not providing them with enough resources to contact you, then you’re missing out on potentially valuable business opportunities. While your address and phone number are certainly important, people Continue reading

Marketing Your Business Online and SEO

Marketing on a Budget

Online marketing isn’t something that you can just read about and get going. Well, you can, but what you’ll find is that you’ll focus on channels and use methods that aren’t considered best practices for your business. Every website functions differently, and the response from your users will reflect just how well your site and your business are performing online. It’s what you do with that response that most people don’t know about. Capitalizing on adjusting and optimizing your website performance is the biggest part of internet marketing, so you’ve got to make sure you have a solution that does Continue reading

Using Facebook Apps to Boost Your Facebook Pages

We’re not saying that we’re absolute geniuses when it comes to developing new and innovative apps for a Facebook page. But we are saying that we know there’s some pretty good value when it comes to utilizing apps on Facebook. Often utilized only by the most active social media users, Facebook apps are add-ons that anyone can implement on their page.  While some of them are free and some of them are not, they all have a value to one business or another. What do you see Facebook as? Simply a way to get your name out there? Something to Continue reading

How To Create A WordPress Review Site Using Themes & Plugins

Writing reviews for books, movies, gadgets, and more has been a ubiquitous part of the blogging experience from the very beginning. After all, it’s only natural that in the course of thoroughly covering a blog topic that a blogger might want to introduce or evaluate a product for their readership. Add affiliate marketing to the equation and the rise of user reviews as a key determining factor in most people’s purchasing decisions and you’ve got the perfect conditions for a flourishing ecosystem of WordPress review sites. Which is exactly what we’ve seen over the last several years. As a result developers have Continue reading

Property Owners Association Hilton Head – Website Design

At Marketing Solutions HHI, we love to celebrate our clients, the websites we have designed, while showcasing their businesses across Social Media! If you are a Property Owners Association, Electrician, Plumber, Remodeling Contractor, Locksmith, Hair Salon, Pet Groomer, or local Fitness Center… Marketing Solutions HHI can create a website for you! Property Owners Association Hilton Head – Website Design includes a custom Members Only Login that is only viewable to Verified Owners. This is a special feature that is customized per client. Welcome to Oakview Property Owner’s Association Website Design by Paige Duewel, Marketing Solutions HHI

Insurance Hilton Head Website Design

Insurance Hilton Head

At Marketing Solutions HHI, we love to showcase the websites we have designed across Social Media! Whether you are an Insurance Company, Salon, Pet Groomer, Flood Vent Manufacturer, Fitness Center, or more… Marketing Solutions HHI can create a website for you! Insurance Hilton Head Website Design by Marketing Solutions HHI Website Design by Paige Duewel, Marketing Solutions HHI https://www.marketingsolutionshhi.com

Salon 5200 Hilton Head – Website Design

At Marketing Solutions HHI, we love to celebrate our clients! If you are a Salon, Electrician, Plumber, Remodeling Contractor, Locksmith, Property Owners Association, Realtor, Pet Groomer, Flood Vent Manufacturer, or local Fitness Center… Marketing Solutions HHI can create a website for you. Click here to view a sample of our website designs. Salon 5200 Hilton Head Island Website includes Different Photos when screens are refreshed and 100% Responsive (Mobile Friendly)!

May Electric, The Lowcountry’s Electrician!

May Electric Hilton Head Electrician

At Marketing Solutions HHI, we love to celebrate our clients, the websites we have designed, while showcasing their businesses across Social Media! If you are an Electrician, Plumber, Remodeling Contractor, Locksmith, Property Owners Association, Realtor, Hair Salon, Pet Groomer, Flood Vent Manufacturer, or local Fitness Center… Marketing Solutions HHI can create a website for you! May Electric, Your Lowcountry Electrician for over 36 years! Website Design by Paige Duewel, Marketing Solutions HHI

How to use Categories and Tags in WordPress

You’ve written your post, and your mouse is hovering over the “Publish” button, but you can’t help but feel like you’ve forgotten something… Don’t worry, WordPress will remind you: “You must select a category before publishing a post.” And that reminds you, you should pick add a few tags as well. But when none of the categories seem to really fit your topic, and you’re not sure what tags to add without repeating yourself, what are you supposed to do? File it under “Miscellaneous”? That’s how many of us go about choosing our categories and tags: just creating them ad Continue reading

The New Google Analytics and Using it to Your Advantage

The New Google Analytics

The New Google Analytics and Using it to Your Advantage For the average small business, a marketing budget is something that most only dream about. That being said, where there exists an opportunity to get a free marketing tool, there exists a chance to keep up with the bigger players in your industry. Google Analytics services like Omniture and Coremetrics can often come at a price that starts at a whopping $15,000 per year. It’s for that reason that Google Analytics has become a powerhouse, especially among smaller businesses. But the key to unlocking the full power of Google Analytics Continue reading

How Does Your Website Represent Your Business?

How Does Your Website Represent Your Business?

When searching to find a service or product, a majority of people begin and end their search online websites… Why? The internet offers easy access to an array of shared knowledge – the good, the bad, and everything in between. While most visitors stumble upon multiple websites before they decide “this is my choice,” converting a visitor to a customer is the goal. Adaptability is Key… Is your website Mobile Friendly? Do you have to “Pinch and Zoom”? Responsive websites are absolutely imperative. Having a website that can be pulled up on any device is so important; we made it Continue reading

How Affordable a Website Can REALLY Be…

How Affordable a Website Can REALLY Be...

At Marketing Solutions HHI, we’ve helped dozens of customers give their website a fresh new look. We’re also able to create a website on an affordable level, while still offering professional services that can give the client a site that will last them for years to come. While we’d like to believe that we have a relatively inexpensive plan in place to help small and local businesses, we know they’re always on the hunt for something less expensive. The versatility of content management systems and those who support them and help them grow is growing by the day. Complicated programming Continue reading

Blogging Helps Keep Your Website FRESH!

Blogging Helps Keep Your Website FRESH!

It’s easy to leave your website be when you’re logging countless hours simply trying to keep your business afloat. However, in this day and age, a few keyword-friendly pages aren’t going to keep the traffic moving to your site. Blogs don’t need to be updated all day, every day, but you need to make sure that you’re able to keep the content on your website fresh, new and exciting every so often. Major search engines, including Google, Yahoo! and Bing, all use complex algorithms to determine where a site will rank organically. Part of that algorithm is the engagement that Continue reading

Social Media Trends You Need To Know in 2015

Social Media Trends You Need To Know in 2015

Social Media Trends You Need To Know in 2015 The social media landscape is always changing. It changes so fast that staying head of the game is a real challenge. With one quarter of the world’s population using social media, it’s in our best interest as developers and designers to stay ahead of the trends. There are several social media trends to look out for in 2015 that relate to running a website or web design business. This article will take a look at the trends that will make the biggest impact. Here is a list of things to look out Continue reading