Machine learning – what is it?

Machine learning is an area of research on algorithms that can learn themselves thanks to the analysis of collected data. For example, self-learning machines can gather information about certain behaviors of Internet users and reduce them to general patterns, and on this basis, estimate with high probability how they will behave in the future. So you can say that algorithms learn from their own experience.

Let’s explain it in a slightly simpler way. Suppose we have an algorithm that should distinguish photos of dogs from photos of cats. To teach him this, we give him the so-called test data, i.e. a database of photos of both animals, of course with an indication of which of them is in the photo. The algorithm analyzes these photos and learns which features are characteristic for a cat and which are for a dog. Once he knows it, he can get a completely different photo, from outside the test base, and he will be able to indicate which animal is on it – because experience will tell him.

Of course, however, the algorithm must have a lot of information to avoid making mistakes. If we give him 10 photos of rottweilers and 10 photos of dachshund cats for analysis, he may not be able to correctly indicate what york is. There is simply no data on the basis of which he could conclude that the dog can be smaller, built differently, etc. However, if there are millions of photos of various breeds of dogs and cats in the database of the self-learning machine, its “experience” will be so great that it will be able to catalog subsequent photos with almost no mistakes.

Machine learning in everyday life

Such algorithms surround us in everyday life in many situations. Almost all of us use them, although we often do not even realize it. An example would be e-mail. Every day we get important messages, notifications from applications and websites, as well as completely junk e-mails. It is these machines that, on the basis of a lot of data, determine which messages are to be sent to the main mailbox, which to the community tab, and which simply to spam.

Uber, for example, also uses self-learning machines. By analyzing previous trips in a given time period, day of the week, city, etc., the algorithm predicts where the interest in the service will most likely be the highest in the near future. The system then sends vacant drivers to these places to reduce the waiting time for a ride and increase the number of journeys. Uber also uses algorithms in other aspects, such as estimating arrival time or price for a service.

Another giant that uses machine learning is Facebook. Algorithms based on our behavior in social media show us the ads and posts that we are most likely to be interested in. At the same time, they take into account even those reactions that we may not be aware of ourselves – even a slightly slower scrolling with a specific material.

Where else do self-learning algorithms work?

We also see the operation of self-learning machines on a daily basis, for example on Netflix, when the platform offers us movies and series to watch. Algorithms analyze descriptions of video materials, grouping them into micro-categories, and then, based on our previous choices, propose the next items that are probably the best for us. The recommendations are shown not only on the basis of the productions watched, but also our behavior on other websites – including Facebook (e.g. likes).

American Express, on the other hand, uses machine learning to keep its customers safe. Algorithms are used to analyze the transactions and detect anomalies among them, i.e. fees differing thematically or in terms of amount from others. Whenever a disturbing activity occurs on the account, they report suspected fraudulent activity to prevent any further abuse.

Automatic optimizations in Google Ads

Machine learning is also used by, for example, the Google Ads system to provide customers with the highest possible profit from the campaign. How it’s working? When we set up a campaign, the algorithms learn how the audience behaves, when they are active, which ad texts bring the most conversions. They draw regularities from the collected data and optimize the ads to bring the best effect. Their performance manifests in the use of Enhanced CPC, Smart Bidding Strategies, and Responsive Advertising on the Search Network. For example, if for some reason there is a sudden increase in interest in your product or service, they can adjust their bids almost immediately to maximize your benefit. Likewise, in a responsive ad, algorithms select the best-working headlines and ad text to maximize conversion.

Self-learning machines monitor all your ads non-stop and bring you tons of optimization daily. Each of them, even a very small one, means that the budget is better used, thanks to which more customers can be acquired for the same amount. The more data such a machine has a chance to collect, the better it forecasts future events, and thus refines the campaign. Such algorithms make their own decisions and introduce changes, which is why they give advertisers more time for other promotional activities, not related to AdWords / Google Ads campaigns.

What can you use machine learning for?

Machine learning can be used in business to improve many processes. Using algorithms, you can, for example, track business trends and set up action strategies. On the basis of the collected data, you will find out when your products are gaining popularity and plan your advertising campaigns or other marketing activities according to these trends. An appropriate self-learning system also allows, for example, to create a list of the company’s best customers. Based on the interaction with the website or other communication channels, it is possible to determine to which group of recipients it is best to target sales messages.

Machine learning can also measure how effective the company’s employees are and how changing conditions (such as remote work) affect individual performance. Some entrepreneurs also use artificial intelligence to plan their business development. Based on the collected data, machines can estimate the probability that it will be beneficial for the company before taking a new initiative.

Types of self-learning machines

The example described above with pictures of dogs and cats shows the learning of supervised machines. In this case, the algorithms know what the effect of their actions is supposed to be – for example, that they are to distinguish a cat from a dog. In this model of operation, they check which features of both animals will be useful in comparisons to achieve this goal. This type of machine learning can be used to classify images, recognize speech, or even segment corporate customers.

Another type of machine learning is unsupervised learning. In this case, the algorithms do not get the “goal” from the human serving them, which they should achieve after processing the material. They analyze the collected information and look for relations and patterns between them and draw conclusions based on them. The man taking care of this system is not able to predict the result of the machine’s work, because it simply resembles human observation of the environment. This machine learning system can be used, for example, to detect anomalies or irregularities.

The intermediate version is partially supervised learning, which consists in the fact that machines receive and marked data, assuming what the machine has to learn, and unmarked, where it has to find common elements and draw conclusions from them.

Are the algorithms wrong?

Self-learning algorithms, of course, can make a mistake in their predictions and make a bad decision – just as it can happen to a human. However, this usually only happens at the beginning of the machine operation or when the algorithm has very little data at its disposal. Therefore, it cannot be assumed that the effect of the “young” algorithm will be spectacular in the first phase. The more time it takes to gather information, the better the results, which is easily seen with many applications, websites and search engines on the market.

Algorithms can therefore be unreliable, but less so than a human who has many limitations, such as subjectivism, fatigue or distraction, when analyzing data. So when you think about developing your business nowadays, you cannot ignore the role played by modern self-learning machines – they are an element that may decide about the success or failure of the enterprise.

In the past, in order to perform targeted surveys, it was necessary to hire specialist interviewers or those that did non-participant observation to study consumer behavior, which was thoroughly laughed at in the Swedish movie “Kitchen Stories”, for example. Currently, you can also cooperate with various types of research institutes that support the business world, but instead of spending a large portion of funds on it, it is better to use generally available knowledge and specialized tools that are available for free or for a small fee. With a dose of self-denial, anyone can become an expert in determining the target group.

Target audience – it all depends on the size of the business

When you run a small business, you often know your customers and their needs very well. In this case, questions like – “how to determine the target?” or “how to reach the target group?” they don’t make much sense. However, the matter becomes more complicated when the company is of a considerable size and most of its potential clients are completely anonymous. And how to convince people you don’t know?

This will only work if you properly target and create models of customers (so-called personas) who may be interested in your product or service. A teenager with crazy internet marketing has completely different needs and a middle-aged woman who prefers calmer advertising content. A solid, personalized message can hit the recipient’s sensitive points, evoke emotions and encourage him to engage, which is a necessary part of the relationship between the company and the client, which is what content marketing is based on.

Persona

No, we won’t talk about another well-known Swedish film here, but about the basic issue related to defining the audience. Persona is a model of our ideal recipient, its characteristics, which include such matters as gender, age, level of education, place of residence, preferences, worldview, marital status, life practice, current needs or level of life satisfaction. The company cannot afford to create content (such as SEO-compliant articles, video content marketing) that completely falls short of the expectations of the recipients who would be interested in the products or services you propose.

You should think about your personas as close friends who you want to meet, offering them to fulfill the most secret consumer dreams and make their lives a bit happier. Everyone lives in their own fairly closed world of beliefs, thoughts, visualizations, which is often referred to as being in their bubble, in their tunnel, so young people will not be interested in maternity-related content, and their parents will find the rebellious advertising campaign just plain.

That is why it is so important to always be a few steps ahead of your audience, trying to anticipate potential trends. For this purpose, it is worth continuing education, reading the industry press and portals, following the content placed under the hashtags important from your point of view, reading comments on social networks and opinions, and of course using tools to define the target audience.

Target audience – two basic tools

Thanks to individual, specialized analytical tools, you can learn about the characteristics of your target group in great detail. The most popular tools to help target audiences are:

Facebook Audience Insights
Virtually every modern company uses social networks, because this is where they can meet and establish close contact with their customers, presenting the latest promotional materials. Facebook gives you great opportunities to look behind the curtain and check the data on people who have received your company posts and how the recipients reacted to this content (whether it was hidden, liked or shared).

In addition to basic information about the target group, such as gender, age, place of residence, thanks to this system you can also check the relationship status of your fans or websites that are close to them. This helps you plan your strategies and collaborate with famous people or companies with whom you share your fans.

However, when publishing video content marketing on Facebook, it is worth paying attention to whether the material is viewed in its entirety or whether it is abandoned by viewers at some point. Such information helps in better targeting of content and allows you to create content that will please, amuse or evoke emotions in your recipients.

Google Analytics
Thanks to this platform, you can check what type of people the people visiting your website are. What are the characteristics of customers who quickly run away from it, and what are those who stay a little longer or make a purchase? Google Analytics allows you to examine, among others the age, gender, interests and industries they are close to, as well as how they navigate around your site. It is worth setting your promotional activities for the type of people whose visits to your website usually end with a purchase or the desired action. At the beginning of your business path, it is worth playing with targeting your target group by making a series of marketing tests. Sometimes you can opt for advertising texts written in a looser, more direct style, and other times you can choose more serious content (although even funeral services can be advertised cheerfully). The recipients of your marketing strategies will show you the right way by their positive or negative reactions or, for example, lack of them. Reality can surprise you sometimes and you may find that your target audience is completely different than you might have expected.

What is http?

Http stands for Hypertext Transfer Protocol, which is a protocol that allows data to be transferred to the Internet. It is responsible for communication between the client (browser) and the server where all the files that make up the website are stored. In practice, thanks to it, it is possible to display the requested page to the user.

The http protocol has been used for this purpose since the 1990s. It has been extended in such a way that it is possible to simultaneously send large amounts of data based on various parameters. Thus, it has also become possible to create and display more complex websites. HTTP communication is based on a fairly simple process of sending data between the client and the server. The client sends a query to which the server responds by sending this data to the person concerned.

What is specific to the http protocol? First, it does not store previously transmitted data. This means that they must be downloaded from the server each time the website is accessed, which delays the entire process, but at the same time avoids overloading the servers. That is why a system of cookies (so-called cookies) has been implemented, which collect data and allow pages to load faster. Furthermore, http does not define how information is transmitted from the server to the browser and therefore risks intercepting sensitive information.

What is https?

Https is short for Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure. The addition of the last word means that it is simply http protocol with added security. In this case, the data sent between the web browser and the server are encrypted with an SSL or TLS certificate. This means that they are protected against hitting the wrong hands. Thus, the https protocol protects information about the website owner and its users, preventing their interception or change. Its use is therefore particularly important wherever personal data, payment data etc. are transferred. Currently, however, the https protocol is used more and more often and is becoming a standard for all types of websites. Online security is considered a priority. Thanks to this, users can use various types of services that require data entry without fear of their leakage into the wrong hands.

https – why is it worth it?

Any website owner can go from an address prefixed with http to the one with https in the beginning. It is connected with the necessity to implement the SSL encryption certificate – it costs several dozen dollars a year. For the certificate to work properly, you must also configure the website files and the external tools used, and use appropriate redirects so as not to lose the earned position in the search engine. It is best to entrust all this work to an internet marketing agency that will ensure a smooth and comprehensive process.

But is it worth it? Of course. The current emphasis on data security is not a temporary trend, but a tendency that will not only continue, but even deepen with the development of new methods of data protection. This is something that Internet users pay attention to more and more often. There are more and more aware people, so it is definitely not worth lagging behind. At the same time, changing the protocol to https confirms the credibility of the website and the entire company and has a positive effect on its reputation. It is worth emphasizing on your website the care for the safety of customers to gain prestige and trust. It is also information for business partners or investors who will be much more willing to do business with a company that attaches importance to high security standards.

https and Google – does encryption affect positioning?

The largest search engine in the world, i.e. Google, does not hide its concern for the security of Internet users’ data. Algorithms take into account factors such as credibility and quality of the domain, and this is also related to ensuring the security of users. This means that implementing the https protocol can have a positive impact on the positioning of your website. Thus, it is a profitable investment that will help you get even more customers. It’s also worth knowing that currently Google warns users trying to enter a site that should be using the https protocol (as it collects sensitive data), and it doesn’t!

Of course, the mere use of the https protocol is not enough to get the website much higher in the search results, especially since it is now becoming a standard and more and more companies use encryption certificates. However, this is certainly an important factor that will allow for greater effectiveness in terms of positioning and credibility building activities.

http vs. https – what to choose?

In view of the information presented above, the matter is quite clear: switching to https protocol is a low cost, but many benefits for the website and the entire enterprise. It allows you to make sure that the website will work properly in every browser and will not be blocked by filters ensuring the safety of Internet users. It also allows you to improve your position in search results and increases the prestige and trust in the brand, which is appreciated by both customers and business partners.

What is a brand?

The word brand can be understood in many ways. In the past, they were identified only with the name and logo placed on the company’s products in order to distinguish them from those from other manufacturers. In the late 19th century, trade symbols began to be registered to protect them. It was then that people began to appreciate the strength of a recognizable and trusted brand. Today, this word has a much wider meaning. A modern brand consists of many aspects. It can be assumed that these are all the tools that help shape the character and identity of the company, as well as its reputation. The elements of the brand include both a characteristic logo and a specific color, sound, name, slogan and public relations activities. It must have a strong personality – something that distinguishes it from the competition, and at the same time determines which target group will be interested in it.

The concept of a brand is associated with branding, i.e. a set of tools used to create a distinctive brand. Combined with marketing techniques, this results in brand marketing, i.e. a field dealing with brand promotion.

Brand marketing – what does it mean exactly?

More specifically, brand marketing is all activities that promote a specific product or service in a way that creates a brand image. Its goal is to create a consistent communication with customers that will reflect the identity and values that describe a given brand. It also cares about acquiring new customers, reaching a specific target group. One of the main tasks of brand marketing is to increase brand visibility and recognition, of course, while taking care of a positive and intriguing image. A successful strategy in this direction should make customers want to interact with the products of a given brand. Importantly, brand building is distinguished by long-term, strategic and perspective action. Short-term goals are of little use in this context.

Why is a strong brand so important?

A strong brand gives you an amazing advantage in the business world. It is primarily an indicator of customer trust, experience and other distinguishing features. Thanks to a strong brand, you can not only reach a much larger part of the market, but also increase the value of your products. Customers are able to pay more for trustworthy, reliable or related to a certain status or lifestyle goods. By offering a unique world of experiences impossible to obtain anywhere else, you gain new customers and multiply your profits. You also create a community around the brand, or even the so-called fandom, i.e. a group of loyal customers.

Apple is a perfect example of a very strong brand with a huge crowd of committed and loyal customers. It is a combination of recognizable style, high quality and unique products positioned as those that use breakthrough technological solutions. Combined with the original style of communication and the sense of belonging and lifestyle promise Apple products seem to make, this creates an unparalleled mix. This is why the brand is not only recognizable all over the world, but also enjoys so much adoration among a large part of its recipients. In addition, other brands try to copy various aspects of its business or style. Are Apple products really the best? One could argue here. However, it is not the most important thing for its recipients – what counts is the remaining elements of the brand that encourage the purchase of new gadgets.

Branding – the most important first step

If you are building a new brand, it is worth spending a lot of time on careful branding at the beginning and then developing a long-term brand marketing strategy. These are not very easy, and at the same time time-consuming and costly processes. Their goal is to build a unique image of the company, as well as evoke emotions in consumers that will be clearly associated with it, create a bond and encourage them to get to know the brand better.

At the first stage, it is worth answering a few questions, such as:
– what is the brand identity,
– what makes it stand out, what it expresses itself,
– how it is perceived,
– what is associated with,
– how to communicate, etc.

This is a good starting point to consider defining the brand and the main aspects of the company’s operations, as well as developing a brand strategy – of course in combination with market research, target group analysis, etc. Then, you should formulate a brand mission that will be understandable and unique at the same time.

Of course, as part of branding, you need to develop a brand name, logo and slogan, which will then appear in every message related to it. In addition, you need to decide on the elements that make up the company’s visual identification system – develop a book of signs and sample graphic templates for various promotional materials. It should not be forgotten that all these elements should be consistent and create an unambiguous and characteristic message for a potential customer. Branding, however, is also highlighting the unique and distinguishing features of the brand and confronting them with the needs of the market. Its purpose is to partially “appropriate” the emotions of customers and reach their awareness.

It is worth noting that although branding is identified with new brands, the already existing ones sometimes decide to carry out this process again, refreshing their image or changing the direction of activities. Such a process is called rebranding and may include both a slight change of the logo or the company’s color scheme, as well as the entire philosophy and mission of the brand. Contrary to appearances, this is a very common practice, and even the best decide on it – this is why they stay at the top, because rebranding allows you to adapt to the current market requirements.

How to build an appropriate brand marketing strategy?

It must not be forgotten that all decisions made in connection with branding and brand marketing must fit into the company’s long-term plans. They should be based on:
– brand mission and vision,
– characteristics of the target group,
– willingness to convey emotions,
– consistency in all the company’s moves.

How to create a successful brand marketing strategy step by step?

Brand vision
Every company should know what it wants to be known for and how it is going to stand out. It is this vision that should be matched with the provisions of the marketing strategy, not the other way around. Therefore, first you should specify which field you want to dominate. Perhaps you want to be a leader in the latest technology like Apple, a source of motivation for athletes like Nike, or a leader in meeting all the immediate needs of consumers like Amazon. There are many possibilities. However, you should carefully specify the way you want to be described, recognized and remembered.

Target group
Specifying your target group is an extremely important step for any company, regardless of the industry and its scale of operation. Many budding businessmen have a problem with this, claiming that they want to hit “everyone.” It’s a straightforward path to unsuccessful and ineffective marketing efforts. Meanwhile, a strictly defined target group, at the same time divided into the so-called personas, i.e. the main types of customers, will greatly help in adapting brand communication to the needs of potential buyers. Specify the gender and age of your people, define what they are guided by when making purchasing decisions, what values they have and what are their habits in this regard, as well as where they work, who they live with and what they expect from a product like yours. Only by knowing who you are talking to can you do it well. Therefore, the stage of identifying the target group should certainly not be taken lightly.

Brand history
Every brand has a history. It can be used to build an image and create a bond with the consumer. This story does not have to be dramatic, full of emotions or twists and turns. However, it is worth ensuring that it has several elements characteristic of good film scripts or books – heroes who are easy to like and a certain progression, preferably indicating a problem or difficulty, and then solving it. This will allow customers to get involved in the history of the brand and want to be part of it.

Competition
It is also worth taking a few moments to get to know your competition. Only then will you know what you can do better. Remember to then focus on what makes you stand out and include that in your marketing message.

Coherence of actions
Effective brand building is largely based on consistent communication. You have to make sure that the interactions of the brand with customers are always characteristic and recognizable – this is how you build trust and gain consumer loyalty. The point is that the first contact with the message allows you to find out which company you are dealing with, and preferably immediately evoke pleasant associations related to a given brand. Perhaps you know the feeling when driving on the freeway, you suddenly see the characteristic golden arches in the distance and you immediately feel like a fries or a cheeseburger. This is how it should work!

However, you do not have to act with a flourish, like the biggest players on the market. All you have to do is start with consistent online communication. It is worth investing in online marketing because it can offer very good results with little financial outlay. Bet on a carefully maintained website and social media profiles, take care of the continuity and integrity of the message, interact with consumers. Provide them with valuable content, be it in the form of articles, videos, infographics, short information, etc. Use consistent language and visual elements to evoke clear associations about the nature and identity of the brand. At the same time, you will build credibility, authority and trust.

Don’t make false promises
False promises and the discrepancy between the marketing message and the facts are one of the fastest ways to sink a brand. If your emphasis is on the quality of your product, make sure it is flawless. If you create the image of a friendly brand that puts the customer’s good and satisfaction first, take care of their impeccable service both before and after the purchase. It sounds obvious, but some companies still have a huge problem with it. Of course, in order to be successful, it is important to ensure quality in all aspects of your business. However, keeping the promises you make in your marketing communication should be your highest priority.

Do you know Volkswagen? All over the world, her cars are associated with something safe, practical, reliable and trustworthy almost “always”. In 2015, however, it became known that the results of laboratory tests of exhaust emissions of diesel engines used by the brand were falsified. It found that Volkswagen had programmed the engines to reduce emissions only during testing. Within days of the scandal’s outbreak, the value of the company’s shares fell by a third, the CEO resigned and several other high-ranking employees were suspended. The scandal was also publicized in the media, and public confidence in the company has clearly decreased.

Arouse emotions
Currently, the biggest brands base their image on emotions. If you want yours to be included in this group, you need to make sure that it is desirable and associated with consumers. Creating an emotional bond between a brand and its customers is possible even without the multi-million dollar budgets at the disposal of global concerns. Creativity and grassroots work is what counts.

Effective brand marketing – what to avoid?

There are many pitfalls that you can easily fall into when developing your company’s brand marketing strategy. However, a few errors appear most often. At the same time, they are classified as the most severe. What are these mistakes?

No analysis of competitors’ activities
Imagine that you create a vision of your company and develop a complete marketing strategy. Then you start creating campaigns and promotional materials. However, during the distribution it turns out that your competitors have already done something very similar … A nightmare! Contrary to appearances, this happens quite often, and the only way to avoid this problem is thorough research. Before putting anything on the market, you need to thoroughly familiarize yourself with the past activities of companies operating in the same industry.

Inconsistent message
The so-called creation should always be consistent with the brand image and its activities so far. Using completely different treatments with each new product may seem interesting and original, but in reality it only introduces chaos and deprives consumers of the opportunity to create deep, lasting associations with your brand. Thus, her strength is weakening! Choose a uniform style for all promotional messages and make sure that they always speak with one voice. The language and tone of speech should also be unique to your brand.

Lack of a long-term vision
As mentioned at the beginning, brand marketing is all about long-term goals. Without the signposts of the brand’s mission and goals, it is very easy to blur the direction in which the strategy is headed. As a result, you create an ineffective, inconsistent message and waste the resources and time used.

Brand marketing – a way to success in business

Nowadays, the concept of brand is of great importance. It is she who sells a certain lifestyle, sets trends and creates a world to which consumers want to belong. If you want to be successful, it is worth putting special emphasis on brand marketing. Regardless of whether you want to conquer the world, the largest concerns, or you want to dominate the local market, it is a strong brand that will help you achieve these goals. The more you put into creating and developing it, the easier it will be for you to achieve new successes.

What is a 301 redirect?

A 301 redirect (Moved permanently) is a mechanism that indicates that a given page has been moved to another address. It works automatically – that is, it does not display information about the “move”, but immediately directs to the correct page under the new URL path. Thanks to this, e.g. search engine robots and Internet users do not have to wander in search of specific content.

There are several types of redirects, but 301 is the most popular of them. It means a permanent move, i.e. a permanent change of the website address. This solution is very convenient from the user’s point of view, and at the same time extremely important for SEO. Thanks to the redirection, the website does not lose its position or power and can continue to work on it.

When is a 301 redirect used? The most popular types

A 301 redirect might be necessary for a variety of reasons. It is (usually) done in a .htacces file – just use the appropriate code. There are several most popular types of such an activity. Examples and the codes needed to make them can be found below.

301 redirects from the address from “www” to “without www”
Page addresses can be with or without “www” at the beginning. If this issue is not sorted out, it can create chaos and the traffic will be broken down into two separate addresses, which is extremely bad for SEO.

Therefore, in such cases, the 301 redirect is most often used, which allows you to choose the preferred form of saving the website address. This makes the user go to the target page, regardless of whether he types in the browser bar, for example, “www.yoursite.com” or “yoursite.com”. This solution has a positive effect on optimization and determines the user’s comfort.

Sample code:
RewriteCond% {HTTP_HOST} ^ www.yoursite.com $
RewriteRule (. *) $ Http://yoursite.com/$1 [R = 301, L]

Domain change
Changing the domain name is a relatively common procedure. In this case, you should take care of redirection so that users can easily find the new address, and Google robots do not consider the transferred content duplicate content, which is highly inadvisable in terms of SEO.

It is extremely important to ensure that the 301 redirect concerns not only the home page, but also other tabs. The best solution is to use them to set direct paths to new addresses for each subpage. It is worth trying, for example, so as not to discourage users by meeting the wall, i.e. entering a website that no longer exists. It is also the only way to move your site without losing traffic.

It’s best to implement a 301 redirect before migrating data to a new address. This allows crawlers to correctly read your actions: as moving your site rather than creating a completely new one with duplicate content.

Sample code:
RewriteCond% {HTTP_HOST} ^ yoursite.com $
RewriteRule (. *) $ Http://yoursite.com/$1 [R = 301, L]

Change from HTTP to HTTPS
Using the SSL protocol involves changing the address from HTTP to HTTPS. Then you should also redirect.

Sample code:
RewriteCond% {HTTPS}! = On
RewriteRule (. *) Https: //% {HTTP_HOST} / $ 1 [R = 301, L]

A slash (“/”) at the end of the address
The same address that differs only by the slash at the end (for example, “www.yoursite.com” and “www.yoursite.com/”) are two separate pages for Google. Failure to redirect in this respect is a very common mistake, which causes the algorithm to read your content as duplicate content, and thus getting a high position in the search results is basically impossible.

Sample code:
RewriteCond% {REQUEST_FILENAME}! -D
RewriteRule ^ (. *) / $ / $ 1 [L, R = 301]

Wildcard redirection
The wildcard feature helps you easily create new subdomains. However, in practice it also means that entering any string of characters before the address of your website will display its content, creating a copy of it. Sometimes Google robots index such pages, creating incredible chaos. Then, the search results may show several (or even several dozen!) Versions of the same address, e.g. for example www.yoursite.com also www.tyoursite.com, ww.yoursite.com or e.g. yoursite.yoursite.com . It is very dangerous and may result in penalties from Google. Solution? A 301 redirect that will take users and Google bots from each subdomain to the home page.

RewriteCond% {HTTP_HOST} ^ (. +). Yoursite.com $
RewriteRule (. *) $ Http://tyoursite.com/$1 [R = 301, L]

Other types of redirects

Let us remind you that the 301 redirect is used only in the case of a permanent change of the website address. However, there are also many other possibilities of transferring Internet users to another address and sending an appropriate message to the search engine robots. Other types of redirects available are:

– 302 (Found) – temporary, allowing the content to be moved to another address and then returned to the original source;
– 303 (See Other) – used with forms sending data using the HTTP POST method, enabling redirection to a specific address in response to this form;
– 304 (Not Modified) – informs the browser that the data in its memory is up-to-date, has not changed, so it does not have to be downloaded from the source;
– 305 (Use Proxy) – allows you to use a given resource only when using a specific Proxy server, displays a message with the server address;
– 307 (Temporary Redirect) – temporary redirection, does not allow to change the request method from POST to GET.

What to remember when using 301 and other redirects?

It is worth remembering that redirects are not only beneficial for users, but also facilitate the work of Google robots and help ensure proper indexing of the page. So they have a positive effect on both UX and SEO. Using them skillfully, you can “painlessly” move pages to new addresses, and also allows you to carry out many other activities without compromising the position of the site.

However, be careful when using redirects of different types. Using too many commands may result in the formation of a loop, and the resulting error 310 – Too many redirects, which prevents you from hitting a specific page.

Competition in the market is growing year by year – no matter what industry you operate in. Therefore, it is obvious that you are looking for newer and newer methods that will guarantee that the customer will reach you and not another entity. You win primarily with the good quality of products or services. However, this is not all. After all, a customer needs to:

A. be aware that your brand exists,
B. know that you offer solutions that they need (and feel the need to reach for them),
C. be convinced that your products meet his needs and are better than what the competition offers.

That is why marketing is such an important element of the sales process. However, the question remains: what? In modern terminology, two types can be distinguished: inbound and outbound marketing.

Outbound marketing vs inbound marketing

In recent years, there has been a lot of talk about inbound marketing – it has become extremely popular and is increasingly used in the digital space. Outbound marketing is somehow contrasted with it – often as less beneficial or outdated. But is it really so? Not necessarily. It all depends on how you approach it.

Before we go into a specific analysis, however, it is worth explaining both concepts to understand the difference between them.

What is outbound marketing?

Outbound marketing is outbound marketing (this statement does not hide anything from us), i.e. any activity in which the company addresses the client, directly encouraging him to take advantage of its offer. The initiator of the entire process is a brand that has a whole range of tools at its disposal.

As you may have guessed, inbound marketing is inbound marketing (this statement does not hide anything from us). In practice, it is about communicating with the market in such a way that the customer himself expresses his interest in your offer, and then lead him down the sales funnel to the finalization of the transaction.

At first glance, the inbound strategy seems to be more attractive and effective. Indeed, in many situations the “inbound” direction is the best one to choose. However, not always.

What are the advantages of outbound marketing?

The key advantages of using an outbound strategy are:

– full control over the course of communication
Inbound traffic is focused on interaction, to a large extent relies on the reaction of recipients to the message. This is where you speak more, waiting for specific actions from potential customers.

– the ability to achieve quick results
Inbound strategies are usually long-term in nature. But what if you want to carry out a quick sale in your e-shop? Then you reach for a specific, direct advertising message and direct it to a wide audience.

– possibility of application on a large scale
Outbound are activities that you can address to a mass audience – e.g. to radio listeners or to all recipients of a given website. Contrary to appearances, you also have the option of targeting, but of course it will not be as accurate as in the case of the Internet.

What about the disadvantages?

Like any advertising strategy, this one has two sides of the coin. So you need to remember that outbound marketing messages:
– can be considered disturbing and undesirable – if the campaign is not carried out properly,
– can be ignored – it must be remembered that the huge number of advertising messages that reach us has made the recipients used to “filtering” them,
– can be expensive – requires active actions throughout the campaign, its carriers (television or press) are usually expensive, and moreover, the target groups are less targeted, which means that the investment is less effective.

Therefore, you must use the tools in this range wisely. However, this does not mean that outbound marketing is a thing of the past. On the contrary! There are many ways to use it effectively!

What are outbound marketing tools?

The tools used in this communication strategy are basically all techniques that are aimed at advertising the product and encouraging the customer to take advantage of the offer. However, you can very specifically indicate the most commonly used among them. Here is their overview – both in digital and traditional channels.

Let’s start with the most traditional forms of outbound marketing – outside the world of the Internet.

ATL
All “Above the Line” channels in traditional media. It is mainly about: TV and radio advertisements, outdoor advertisements, advertisements in the press.

… All those that are well known and widely used both by large concerns and local companies. Their disadvantage may be the high cost of publication. The advantage – wide coverage and reputation.

Direct marketing
We are talking here both about direct contact with the customer, conducted by sales representatives, but also about telephone contact – when the telemarketer calls with a specific offer.

POS, leaflets etc.
Any catalogs, advertising leaflets, folders and the like are also a direct offer to encourage the customer to make a specific product.

Outbound marketing on the Internet

Of course, outbound techniques are also commonly used in digital advertising. There are many tools that you can use in this area. Here is an overview of the most widely used.

Paid advertising (PPC and PPV)
The most popular form of promotion on the Web – consisting in the publication of various types of banners and other messages. This group includes all ads that are published on websites, but also in search engines and social media. It is about, for example:

– Google Ads – and therefore paid promotion in search results, in the form of sponsored links, but also promotional banners,
– Facebook Ads – and therefore about ads that are displayed both on the wall and in the side panel of the website,
– banners and (recently less popular) pop-up ads.

It is worth remembering that there are different accounting systems. The most popular are pay-per-click, where you pay only for ads that have been clicked, and pay-per-view, where payment is made in relation to the page views of the message.

It may seem that the challenge for this promotion system is the fact that many people use software to block such advertising messages. Nevertheless, more and more portals encourage their recipients to unblock promotional content or protect themselves against it by preventing access to the content while using a blocker. Therefore, reasonably prepared outbound marketing ads create an opportunity to effectively reach the customer.

You cannot forget about remarketing, i.e. the strategy of displaying personalized advertising banners, based on the user’s cookie files. It is a very effective outbound tool that directs a potential customer straight to the offer they were already interested in.

Mailing
Mailing is often viewed in terms of inbound promotions. Indeed, it is often the case that a company obtains leads from potentially interested people, and then sends e-mails encouraging people to read blog articles etc. ? What if the messages are purely advertising? While many of these messages can be classified as spam, some will “make it through”. So when such messages are sent on a mass scale – and this is a relatively cheap solution – there is the prospect of profit.

SMS messages
Although in order to receive them, you must subscribe to a specific SMS newsletter, it is a typical form of outbound advertising. The recipient usually receives very specific advertising messages, with information about current promotional campaigns or discounts available to him. The company therefore directly encourages to take advantage of its offer and aims to obtain a quick conversion.

Is it working? This form of promotion can be beneficial, for example, when the target group includes many middle-aged people. They are still attached to sending traditional SMS messages in exchange for communication using Facebook Messenger or WhatsApp.

On-site advertising
So, all those that appear directly on the company’s website. The website itself is obviously a promotional tool. However, you can use additional tools to increase conversion. Those from the outbound catalog include, for example:

– pop-up pop-ups – e.g. those with messages about promotions or with a discount code for purchases,
– on-line chats – they also appear on the website, not called by the recipient, to encourage him to contact,
– web push notifications – i.e. pop-up notifications for the client or “flashing” page header in browser tabs.

These types of messages can be highly effective and carry a lot of sales potential.

How to conduct outbound marketing and what mistakes should be avoided?

Outbound marketing, as you can see, can be an effective sales tool. Nevertheless, the method of conducting activities must be adapted to the expectations of a modern recipient.

Remember: times of intrusive communication, in which the client might feel pressured and persuaded, are a thing of the past. That is why in outbound communication it is worth focusing on:

– relative personalization of communication – wherever possible. When preparing each advertising message, its purpose should be precisely defined, the expected reaction of the recipients, as well as the characteristics of the target group,
– advisory tone – modern sales is about accompanying the customer in making decisions, and not about persuading him by force,
– skillful selection of outbound channels – others will be suitable for running a nationwide campaign, and others for promoting a niche e-shop.

And finally, the most important thing: if you want to achieve marketing success, mix inbound and outbound strategies. If you are not sure how to find the balance between the two tools, get help from experts.

Why is it so important? The answer to this question is simple. Specialists:

– they will analyze your market situation as well as what you have to offer to your customers,
– define what the target group of your recipients looks like – outline their personas, thanks to which you will know who and in what form to address,
– they will adjust marketing tools to your budget and the time range of the goals to be achieved,
– prepare a specific advertising publication plan – with the selection of media, tools and specific messages,
– they will watch over the effectiveness of campaigns and report their results.

Thanks to this, you will be sure that the funds invested in the inbound and outbound promotion will work for themselves and return in the form of an expanded customer portfolio.

Not every blog is the same, because the light, entertainment content promoted by popular influencers is different from those posted on store, company or expert blogs. In the first case, bloggers and vloggers want to gain the largest number of so-called followers who will ensure their popularity, publicity, viewership and, as a result, earnings. Companies and services, through blog content placed on the site, attract users who can become their potential customers. However, in both cases there are several rules on how to effectively promote your blog.

How to start a blog?

Only a dozen or so years ago, the blog was associated with a kind of online diary, through which users shared their thoughts. Today, blog is a powerful marketing tool that positively affects the position of a page in the search engine. As a result, you can earn on consistent and consistent blogging activities. Blog is an important medium of communication with recipients – not only for the popular blogosphere, but also for e-commerce, companies and services that promote their activities on the web.

However, each time – regardless of the industry – the fundamental task is to set goals that you want to achieve by running a blog.

Friendly platform – whether you are the owner of a store, a company promoting various services, or a lifestyle blogger, your blog should not be visually deterrent. Transparency and clarity, which is enriched by good photos, is half the battle to keep the user on the blog.

Who is the recipient of the blog? – this is one of the most important questions you must ask yourself before starting your creative activity. It is for a specific group that you have to adjust the content and the way of communication that will be most attractive to them.

What are the recipients looking for – bet on strategies, think about what entries will be the most attractive for your group of recipients, what they can search on the web, what phrases to enter to find interesting entries.

Social media – a profile in Social Media is an important medium for building relations with the recipient: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat and even Linkedin – depending on the industry and the group of recipients create a profile that will be a kind of communicator between your website and the user.

Read and watch the competition – your blog is just crawling, you expect quick results after a short time. Promoting your blog effectively is a labor-intensive and demanding task. It is worth – especially at the beginning – to observe the actions of the competition, its way of communication with the user and the way of blogging.

Thematic niche – if your business that you want to promote on your blog belongs to a so-called thematic niche, then be sure to use your unique knowledge and promote it on your blog. This is an opportunity to share expert knowledge of the topic that will be important to users.

Blog promotion – how?

How to successfully break through with your blog, in the jungle of such powerful competition – this is a question many are asking. The nature of the blog is of great importance here – whether they are traditional entries, vlogs or a social media channel. The purpose of the blog is also important. It is currently necessary in e-commerce, in agencies, services and companies that have the chance to gain new customers through blog entries. Online sales are steadily increasing, and business owners must constantly seek new ways to attract customers. A unique product at a good price is one thing, but the user must still find it. A blog is a great place to promote your activities and services, subtle definition of the company profile, but also to share substantive, industry knowledge.

Valuable content – the content contained on the site are the most important when successfully promoting a blog. In e-commerce and services, content should be consistent, closely related to the company’s operations, but also specialized in its message. The content on the blog must respond to the user’s needs through queries and key phrases that he enters in the search engine. If a potential customer of an online shoe store wants to buy shoes for a winter expedition to the mountains, then your blog text should thoroughly answer this question through an article, for example with the heading: “Winter shoes in the mountains – which to choose?”. A user who hits the post and is content about its content can automatically decide to buy this footwear in your store.

Do not treat these entries with disdain, share the knowledge available to you, do it in an exhaustive, substantive way so that the client feels that you are a specialist in your field. Write a text you would like to read yourself and which will answer your questions as a potential customer.

Does the length of characters in the text matter? Of course. The expert text should have a minimum of 6,000 characters with spaces, and the longer the text, the better. The content on the blog cannot bore the user, which is why they should contain reliable, specific information – necessarily enriched with relevant headlines, key phrases, bold and bullet points. The reader will then not be tired of reading the content, and in addition will be able to pick out the issues that interest him.

Remember that despite having, for example, social media, your blog will “live” mainly thanks to the search engine. And if so, they have all the guidelines associated with the traditional positioning process when building it.

Remember to enrich the text with photos described by the alt and title attributes. Images on the page not only increase the attractiveness of the text, but also affect the positioning of the page.

Accurate and thought-out headlines – popular titles and subheadings, marked with the character from h1 to h6, are indispensable elements in any text. They significantly affect the positioning of the site and thus promote the blog. Headlines must match key phrases and queries that a potential customer can enter on Google, such as “How to promote a blog.” Avoid in the titles of insignificant wording that will not lead the crawlers to your text and thus do not push blog content to a higher position in the search engine. Catch the micromoments, i.e. answer the user’s questions such as: what, how to do, I want to know.

Track current trends – in every industry, contemporary trends that guide potential customers in making the final choice are important. Blog trends are important in terms of content, popular topics and top issues. Keep up to date with what’s going on in them, for example through social media.

Comments, forums, other blogs – be in constant interaction with the user. Respond to comments or participate in other blogs and forums, but provide valuable content and conduct substantive discussions so that the administrator does not recognize these activities as intrusive self-promotion.

Systematics and consistency of actions – the first entries are optimistic, but the lack of quick effects effectively deters from further actions. Do not worry about the initial, poor results. The positioning of valuable content on the blog can take up to several months. It is important to create content systematically and reliably, because it affects the positioning of the page.

Effective promotion of a blog is a time consuming and demanding discipline and consistency in action. Many are discouraged when they don’t see the results after a short time. Blog promotion is not only your own entries, but also tracking trends, responding to the needs of users, sharing in forums and comments, being active in Social Media and searching for new, valuable and unique topics for subsequent entries.

Search engine optimization plays a significant role. They can be made effective by expert content, relevant headlines, key phrases and queries, images with alt and title attributes, internal and external linking, and consistency of actions, which is appreciated by indexing robots.

Youtube Video Builder – what is it?

Youtube Video Builder is a new tool from Youtube, created for companies that want to advertise on this site, but are not able to make their own advertising film. With YouTube Video Builder you can create a video that can then be used for an advertising campaign. This tool allows you to create a movie tailored to your device and for the needs of the selected campaign type in very simple steps.

What is the process of creating a video ad on Youtube Video Builder?

Step 1: Registration
To create a movie in Builder you must first register. The verification process takes about 24-48 hours, and confirmation of account creation is sent to the e-mail address provided earlier. The required email must be a Google email, and therefore connect to our Google account and YouTube channel. Youtube channel has virtually everyone who also has a gmail account. It is worth, however, that the email with which we log into Youtube Video Builder was immediately connected to our company’s channel.

We create a video with a view to its later use in an advertising campaign, so we can add our Google Ads Customer ID account number when registering. However, this is an additional option and if we do not have an account at this stage, or if we do not want to add it yet, our email is enough.

Step 2: Choose the movie layout
By entering Youtube Video Builder, we first select the layout, i.e. the type and format of the video that we want to create. We have over 10 different layouts to choose from:

– a video promoting the application (in vertical and horizontal version),
– a video of the brand (15 or 6 seconds),
– video showing the function of a product or service using phone animation,
– a video showing the product or brand (15 seconds),
– a video informing about the current promotion,
– a video emphasizing the product’s value or benefits of the service,
– and more.

Each layout contains a short description and a demonstration video in the style of which you will be able to create your own promotional video. In addition, with each example we will find information:

– how many photos we will be able to upload,
– how long will the video last,
– what dimensions will it have,
– how many blocks of text we can add (including call to action),
– can we add our logo (in a version with a transparent background and a selected color).

Step 3: We create the video ad layout!
We choose the layout that suits us and move on.

Then we can set two brand colors and upload our two logos.

We move to uploading the photos that we want to use for the campaign. In each case, we have provided the exact dimensions of the photo and the maximum file size for photos (this, in most cases, is 2 MB.)

Tip!
It is worth that the photos or graphics that you intend to use in the video, were designed by a graphic designer who will match the colors and icons that match your company’s image. Your photos should help tell a story that includes the benefits of your product, service or brand. So if we have such an opportunity, it is better not to use so-called stock photos.

If our graphics do not meet the requirements of Video Builder, we will be notified. At our own risk, however, we can try to go further and create a video with the graphics.

Step 4: We choose the font, soundtrack and compose advertising texts
Depending on the movie layout we choose, we can add the appropriate number of texts, including the text that appears on the movie and the final CTA.

Then we have the option to set the font (all suggestions available on Google fonts are available). The inability to upload your own font or own sound and the need to choose one of the proposals available in the database is one of the biggest disadvantages of Builder.

Creating movies is simplified so that every person, even one who has never had anything to do with video creation before, could create an advertisement. This is a big advantage of Youtube Video Builder. However, to create a relatively personalized video, which will be based on the assumptions of the visual identity of the brand, you will need to work a bit and review and adjust the available variants.

Step 5. We have the first video!
Youtube Video Builder automatically creates a video for us in just a few seconds. Of course, after all the slides have been put together, we can edit the movie. By clicking “save” our video is saved on our channel as “unlisted video”. We also get a link redirecting us to the video – already embedded in our channel, which we can enrich with a description, tags and another title.

Step 6. Video advertising on Youtube
The created movie can be left on the channel and made available to our viewers or used in an advertising campaign on Youtube.

The ads displayed on YouTube belong to the Google Ads family. Yes! Google Ads is not only search engine advertising or product cards. It is also a giant advertising network, which consists of over two million websites, films and applications in which YouTube can be displayed as an advertising medium. Google Ads is also a promotion in the Gmail inbox and on the website and in the YouTube application. So your video has great potential to appear not only on Youtube!

Within the advertising campaigns displayed on pages and in the YouTube application, several different types of ads can be distinguished. Each of the available formats has a slightly different way to attract the attention of viewers and can be displayed in a different place on the website. Available types of video ads are: True View In-Stream, True View Discovery and Bumper Ads. In addition to the basic types of ads mentioned above, there are several additional options that advertisers can use.

Tips for video advertising

A. Attract attention – right from the start!
Remember that the first seconds count (statistics say that only three!) And it depends on them whether the user will pay attention to your ad. Regardless of the format and type of the advertisement, users can view the advertisement in full or click the “continue” button. Only in the case of Bumper Ads type ads lasting 6 seconds, the user cannot click “skip”. For TrueView in-stream ads, viewers can choose whether they want to view the ad in its entirety, or after 5 seconds of viewing, they want to skip.

B. Friendly faces you want to watch
If your company creates the concept of an advertising movie, it would be worth including people in it! Why? According to YouTube research, friendly, connected and recognizable people at the beginning of the film can lead to increased viewership. In addition, people’s faces can convey emotions that can be relatively difficult to convey in a simple video created in Youtube Video Builder.

C. Sound also matters!
Although in social media it is often recommended to add subtitles to videos, because of the way they are viewed by users (usually in mute mode), however on YouTube the sound matters (and what!). Viewers expect sound on YouTube, and research shows that sound is associated with stimulating attention and a positive response to the brand. So if you decide to choose a sound from the available base, choose one that will refer to your brand and will be associated with it positively.

D. Add some humor.
Viewers are more likely to watch ads that make them laugh. Youtube research even says that humor is associated with greater brand awareness and recalling ads. Of course, this tactic cannot be used in every case, so use it only if it matches your brand’s language and communication.

E. Remember the ABCD formula
ATTRACT – attract attention from the very beginning of the film,
BRAND – build a brand, show your brand in a natural and meaningful way,
CONNECT – connect with recipients through emotions and telling stories. Invite them to interact, check what they say about your video online and be inspired by their comments!
DIRECT YOUR AUDIENCE – direct viewers to the place where you care (for a specific product or service page, company profile or a specific tab on the website). Use the right call to action.

F. Show product in use!
One of the basic principles of creating product videos is that instead of focusing on the benefits of the product, show how it can help or solve the problems of potential customers.

G. Encourage recipients to interact!
Thanks to the interactive features available on the YouTube platform: info cards, end screens and call-to-action overlays, you can make it easier for your viewers. You can find all additional functions in Youtube Studio.

Builder Youtube Video and other video creators

Most of the available online tools for creating movies or animations are based on a very similar “step by step” scheme in which you can create video yourself. Same with Youtube Video Builder. At the beginning we choose a pattern (so-called template or layout). In the case of paid tools (most offer several days or selected options also for free), we adjust the video according to our preferences. And here, most often, there are differences between the creators! And at this stage we can start comparing the functions they offer.

And the differences are big! Starting from the available templates, the number of which in YouTube Video Builder is relatively small (currently 16 different variants). In popular creator, we can choose from among 30 – 50 templates, which can then be converted to another size (suited e.g. for mobile or desktop, or also to a given advertising space or ad format).

What’s more, Youtube Video Builder allows us to combine several graphics (previously prepared) into an animated video. Unfortunately, we do not have the option of animating the movements, e.g. on graphics, which makes the whole movie look like a slide show.

Speaking of history, its presentation on several slides will certainly be more difficult than through several interconnected animations. Therefore, the videos created in Youtube Video Builder will be rather more raw, advertising. It will be very difficult for us to create an animation that will arouse emotions (unless it is information about large promotions!). For videos promoting products or reminding about promotions or special offers, Youtube Video Builder should be enough.

Summary

Youtube Video Builder is very average compared to other available creators. It is a simple and quick solution for those who want to diversify their advertising activities with video advertising, but do not have excessive requirements for the creation itself. The upside of the tool is definitely that it is completely free, and by creating video we can be sure that it will comply with the standards of video advertising in Google Ads. Nevertheless, if you want to use the created video on a larger scale in an advertisement on Youtube, it is worth investing a small sum and creating the video in another creator. These will allow you to personalize the film more and relate to the emotions of viewers.

Meta description – what is that?

Description is part of the meta tags that are located in the source code of the page in the <head> section.

<meta name = “description” content = “Short description of the page.” />
Meta description on the home page and subpages, you can also easily and quickly edit on most content management systems (CMS).
The <description> tag together with <title> is the first contact for the user with the page to which the phrase entered in the search engine leads.

It is the meta tags that often influence the final decision of a user whether he considers a given site worth clicking. The title and short description of the page should therefore answer the questions that are searched for using the keywords entered in Google.

Impact of meta description on positioning

Some time ago, the meta description tag had an impact on website positioning in search engines. Unfortunately, it did not fully fulfill its function, because instead of a neat description of the content of the page, there were – often after the decimal point – keywords related to given issues contained in the content of the site. The multiplication of phrases – yes – was beneficial for the site, which – from the current perspective – a spammy procedure, climbed up. This phenomenon began to be aptly called keyword stuffing. These practices, however, involved so-called Black Hat SEO, so in 2009 Google decided to change the algorithm, as a result of which the meta tag description was excluded from direct impact on positioning. Currently, meta description does not affect the position of the page, but it is important for the click rate.

Therefore, the meta description has an indirect impact on positioning, as it is a kind of showcase of the site. A brief description may interest a potential user, because the information and key phrases contained in it show that a given site will be a potential source of knowledge. Therefore, description must attract attention, contain words that will be important for a given page and subpage, and – what is important – this short description should have a certain number of characters that is visible in the search results. The meta tag description does not affect positioning, but has a positive effect on CTR, or click rate.

What should a good meta description look like?

Meta description should refer to the substantive values ​​of the page or subpage to which it was assigned. As with all content on the site, short descriptions for each tab should be unique so that the content does not duplicate and not duplicate. The description content itself is also very important, as it must answer the question asked by the user, so it cannot be general and devoid of substance. If you type “what is meta description” in the search engine, then both the title and description of the pages displayed in the SERP should lead to the answer. It is good when the meta description in its content will have a question you asked. However, it may not be general, referring to all content that a user can find on the site. It is good practice to include call-to-action in the description, which may encourage clicks. Always before creating the description, think about what information you would like to find in it and what would make you enter a given website.

The length of characters is very important for both title and meta description. In this case, more is not better – quite the opposite. A good headline of the page displayed in the search results should be between 55 and 60 characters, and description between 155 and 170 characters with spaces. How can you check it? The length is easily determined with almost any text editor, but in the case of title and description it is worth using the available tools.

In addition, the page view and meta descriptions can be seen in the page code using the CTRL + U keyboard shortcut.

To sum up, a good meta description is one that:
– is unique,
– answers user questions,
– is substantive and encouraging,
– has a key phrase,
– it is 170 characters including spaces,
– contains call to action.

No meta description – what happens then?

Even if you don’t create a description, this space is not left empty. Description downloaded by the search engine from the page content that best responds to the user’s query. This description is then far too long, and the information it contains is not necessarily substantive and valuable. Lack of meta descriptions can result in a high bounce rate.

The description mat, together with the title, is an important message for the user about what content he can find on the page. If the meta description is consistent, encouraging and contains relevant answers, then there is a high probability that the site will be attractive to him and decide to click on it. Description has no direct impact on positioning, but it can definitely affect the user’s decision to search for information on a given page, which will significantly increase its CTR.

PDF file – the most important information

PDF, or Portable Document Format, is a document format designed by Adobe. Established in 1992. Work on the PDF was ongoing as part of the Camelot project. The PDF format was primarily to be used to convert paper documents to digital. The creators of Portable Document Format have also set themselves the goal of ensuring that electronic versions of documents can be sent to anywhere, displayed and printed on any computer. Today we know that this goal has been achieved.

PDF has gained considerable popularity over the years and is used to create various content. The widespread use is due to the many advantages of PDF files. The most important are:
– easy to open PDF files on most computers,
– simple navigation within the document, which facilitates the efficient reading of even long texts,
– the ability to prepare materials in this format for printing,
– small size of documents,
– easy transfer of PDF files.

Google indexes PDF files?

PDF files have been used for years. For a very long time one of the myths was that PDFs could not be indexed by Google search engine. However, reports indicate that search engines with this file format have been doing very well since 2001, as long as they are not password protected or encrypted. The content of PDF files is analyzed by Google robots in the same way as the content contained in the page code. The case with links that are in the PDF document looks the same. Simply put, Google search treats links from PDF files in the same way as HTML links. The only difference is that for PDFs you cannot set nofollow attributes. All this shows that for Google search engine it doesn’t matter if the content is placed in a PDF or HTML document. For SEO, the most important thing is relevant content and its keyword saturation.

When it comes to indexing PDF files, it’s worth noting that search engines really like them. They are often much higher in search results than traditional HTML files. Despite this, many companies still do not use the potential of PDFs in positioning.

How to optimize PDF for search engine?

For PDF documents to have a positive impact on SEO, they must be properly optimized. This gives them a chance to display high in search engine results. It is worth remembering that in order for PDF to affect SEO, it should be text-based, which only gives bots the option of loading content. Therefore, if you want to use PDFs for SEO, you cannot place them as an image – the search engine will not load it and will not take it into account at all. How to further prepare the PDF file?

– Name it – the title of the PDF should reflect its content and contain keywords; this will allow Google robots to determine what is in the document; rules that should be followed: it is a title about 50 – 70 characters long, natural and encouraging to click on the link; the PDF title can be completed in the wizard; it allows not only to enter the title, but also the author, subject and keywords; it is best to complete all fields;

– Take care of the PDF file size – the smaller the document size, the faster the page loads; this is not only positive for SEO, but also provides comfort for web users; the easiest way to reduce the PDF file size is to choose medium or optimal quality instead of the highest when saving or exporting a document; it is worth noting here that smaller files are faster indexed by search engines;

– Choose a URL – the PDF should have a friendly URL; sometimes it is broadcast automatically by CMS; however, you must check whether it is too long; too long a link is not good for SEO and does not meet user-friendly rules; short addresses can not only be easier to remember by the user, but also look good in search results; the URL does not translate directly into SEO, but the keywords contained in it will be highlighted in the search engine and thus are more visible to the user;

– Add ALT attributes – in PDF files, apart from text, there may be photos / pictures; if they are listed, the ALT and title attributes should be completed; this data must be completed with each graphic; this will help robots read PDF better;

– Link internally – for PDF files to actually impact SEO, they must be internally linked; the content of the documents should include links to the internal subpages of the website and thus indicate relevant sections of the page to Google bots and Internet users;

– Optimize content and avoid duplicate content – the text that is contained in the PDF document must be prepared in accordance with the same rules as those per page; this means that you need to optimize your document; it includes content saturation with keywords, the use of subheadings, paragraphs, bullets, graphics, tables, italics, bold; the text in the PDF should also be valuable, useful and provide the necessary information to the reader; it cannot be copied from other files or websites – search engines will treat this as duplicate content.

– Adapt PDF to mobile devices – UX issues are very important for SEO; are preparing an e-book or manuals in PDF, it is worth thinking about mobile device users; In order for the document to be easily read on the phone or tablet, it is important to use the right font size, matching the file to the screen size, ensuring readability and visibility of the images.

PDF files – is it worth positioning them for SEO?

The use of PDF files for SEO has its undoubted advantages. Note, however, that in some cases you may encounter navigation problems between the PDF file and the rest of the site. You also lose full control over the length and organization of content – content placed in PDF cannot be placed via CRM. Speaking of disadvantages, you must also remember that PDF documents are not as flexible as HTML pages – they do not have code that can be modified in any way. Still, using PDFs for SEO is profitable and worthwhile. It is worth to bet above all when:

– There are many PDF documents that have already been created and they are of great substantive value to users;
– Developing a PDF document is more aesthetic and transparent in terms of UX than placing text on an HTML page;
– The content is specially prepared for printing or downloading, e.g. e-books, brochures, price lists, regulations, leaflets, etc.
– Creating separate subpages, i.e. converting PDF to HTML would be too expensive and time consuming.

The possibilities that you have in using PDF in SEO are many – we are limited only by imagination. In PDF form you can save all documents created by the company, both of practical and marketing significance. Saturating them with internal links and keywords will allow you to use PDFs as another tool to help your website rank in the search engine.

The PDF format is the universal one, easy to use and distribute. It is often used to create various documents, including those with a marketing tone. PDF files can contain substantive guides, useful ebooks, leaflets, brochures, quotes. They are also a great tool for creating user manuals or instructions, regulations, price lists, etc. From the point of view of SEO PDF is not an ideal format, but extremely useful. Its proper preparation will bring benefits in the form of an increase in the CTR index and an increase in the level of traffic to the website (including organic results), and will also translate into the website SEO results.

Summary

– PDF files can “wander like hamsters” so take care of all attributes in the file, especially the correct linking to services or products – thanks to which you will get extra traffic
– it is good to prepare a template on letterhead with an active link to the home page on the website
– file repositories are great at SEO – especially where you sell services (e.g. legal) or devices (e.g. user manuals)
– apart from PDF files, DOCs position well
– if you want to have traffic from Google Graphics save the PDF file as an image and optimize
– you can use UTMs to track traffic from PDF files
– do not duplicate content from a page in PDF
– a page with embedded PDF can be very strongly linked and popular, and then cross-canonical to another subpage simply does not work
– use PDF files as training materials – they index well and generate traffic
– if you have a lot of educational videos, prepare a transcription and upload it to a PDF file (if you do not have space on the page)
– if you use external issue service to embed directories – quit – build your own repository and keep the client at your place. Well, unless you don’t have an IT structure for it.