Let’s face it, no matter how hard you try, you cannot please everybody, and not everyone is going to love your business. While several clients may leave tonnes of positive feedback, it only takes one harsh review to scare off potential customers.

At Webware.io, one of the critical components of our digital marketing toolkit is reputation management. We understand how vital addressing online reviews are for small and medium-sized business owners, especially if they are negative reviews. 

As specialists in digital marketing, we’ve faced a fair number of negative reviews, but instead of letting them drag us down, we turned them into a positive outcome by addressing them quickly and professionally. To give you the same ability, this week, we’re going to talk about how to deal with negative reviews on social media.

 “I’ve received a negative review, what should I do?” 

It’s every business’ worst nightmare - the negative online review that is turning away customers. Negative reviews can drastically hurt your business, and surveys show that almost two-thirds of customers form an opinion of a business after reading just about four reviews.

However, how you respond to a negative review will make all the difference. When you receive a less than favorable review, here’s what you must do: 

a. Listen carefully for feedback.

Stopping a problem in its tracks and building lasting relationships with customers starts with social listening.

Unfortunately, an angry customer won’t always speak directly to your business. To ensure you don’t miss valuable feedback, you should track all mentions of your brand, branded hashtags, and branded URLs shared on social networks - whether they include an @ mention or not.

Once you find the feedback, with a calm mind, understand what the client is saying, why it is being said and what led to the client to address it publically instead of coming directly to you. 

b. Respond quickly.

Responding to the review comment as soon as possible shows that you are interested in solving the problem that the reviewer has. 

When responding, don’t let anger and frustration take over. Apologize, if needed, and explain how this is unusual in your business. Consider offering a special deal or a discount on the purchase, if applicable.

Responding to negative reviews will not only work to appease a disgruntled customer, but it may also help grow your business and present it in a new light. 

While replying, it’s essential that you do not use stereotype replies. You must humanize your response, maintain transparency, and not be negative. It’s important that people see that you respond to every inquiry and you’re interested in your customers’ opinions. 

“Should I hide a negative review?” 

Never remove or hide negative comments! If customers take their time to post about you once, they will post again. If you remove a real comment, you can be sure they will come back: louder, angrier and more frustrated. Secondly, negative comments show that you’re a genuine, honest brand.

Think about it this way: customers enter your profile and see only good opinions which could make them think that you’ve made all these comments up. They probably start digging for other opinions on forums and review sites. Sooner or later, they’ll find negative feedback, and they might choose your competitor because they feel you’re not honest.

Don’t forget to follow up! 

Once you address a complaint, don’t forget to follow up and ensure that they are satisfied with the product or service as if they are dissatisfied with the solution or the fix you provide, they are likely to post a second negative review, which is more harmful. 

Make the client feel valued!

People like to see that businesses care about their opinions. The best way to put out the fire of negativity is by handling the customer and the situation in a professional manner. As a business owner, you can take control of the situation by responding helpfully and genuinely. Never respond negatively or defensively.

Ensure your customer feels listened to, and don’t be afraid to apologize for any inconvenience or a less-than-stellar experience to help diffuse a negative situation.

As a business, you’re likely to receive a negative online review sooner or later, but with these tips, you can use the negative review to make your business even better. 

As experts in digital marketing, at Webware.io, we offer an array of digital marketing services to ensure your online presence is well-marketed and leveraged to find customers, keep customers, and earn referrals. Our key digital marketing services include email campaign management, newsletter communications, SEO, Google AdWords, social media advertisements, content marketing, lead generation, online reputation management, and more.

To learn more about our services and complete digital marketing tool kit, please click here. If you have any questions about how we can help with your digital marketing needs, we’d love to hear from you. Please contact our experts here.

Stealth Marketing Group provides marketing & sales expertise to clean energy, telecommunications, and home improvement brands across Philadelphia and Princeton, Pennsylvania. To help them reach a wider audience, we launched their new website - www.stealthmarketinggroup.co

We wish everyone at  Stealth Marketing Group the very best of success! 

As specialists in digital marketing, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is one of the many tools we offer our clients as part of our digital marketing toolkit. And often, one of the first questions that we’re asked is, “How much time will it take for SEO to show results?”

The answer to this question isn’t straightforward as the SEO game is in a perpetual state of flux and is continually changing. 

SEO today is increasingly driven by what is called ‘phrase’ or ‘instruction’ search, as people now use questions, phrases, or instructions rather than two to three keywords. One of the primary reasons for this change is down to people using tools like ‘Siri’ and Google ‘voice search’ to speak their searches, rather than typing them in. In addition, people have also begun including more details in their typed searches as they want to find what they’re looking for faster. 

These keywords are much easier to rank for as they’re not as competitive and are much more relevant because they include more detail. As a result, traffic from these keywords converts at a higher rate. In aggregate, the number of searches in the long tail often adds up to many more searches than you would get from your “golden keywords.” Therefore, the objective, when it comes to search rankings, is not to rank for a few top keywords that remain the same over time but to focus on a much larger number of phrase or instructional searches that are growing and changing rapidly.

How long does it take for SEO to start working? Don’t stop too soon!

Earlier, the strategy was to identify those keywords that were the most relevant to a business, got the most traffic, and weren’t very competitive. We used to figure out ten to fifteen keywords that were called the “golden keywords” and would bring in the majority of the traffic. That keyword strategy is now evolving, because with rarer and rarer exceptions, there is no one keyword, and no small group of keywords, that is going to drive a lot of traffic to a website. Instead, a long tail of search is the new mantra for SEO. 

Do search rankings really matter? Output v/s Outcomes!

Search rankings matter, but they’re not the metric you should be focusing on. If, by asking “How long does SEO take to show results?” you mean “How long will it be before I get top rankings?” then you’re mistaking outputs for outcomes. Getting rankings is an output SEO firms can easily sell because they’re emotionally satisfying, but they’re worthless unless they generate the outcome you want - Leads / Activations / Sales / Service Requests, etc. That’s why you should only hire SEO firms or SEO professionals who focus on outcomes, rather than outputs.

The question you should be asking about SEO!

Now that you know how SEO has changed and that you want leads and sales from your SEO firm rather than just rankings, the question you should be asking is “How long will it take for SEO to start generating leads and sales?”

Now that we’re ready to answer the right question, the answer is - SEO success depends on a few factors. Factors such as how long has your website been around, how much SEO has been done on it previously, what shape the website is in, how much content is on it, its link profile, and others, all contribute to answering the question you’ve asked. 

Professional SEO firms or individuals will tell you that it usually takes four to six months to start seeing results. That’s usually an accurate assessment, but keep in mind that this is when the results will start coming in, and SEO results grow over a period of time. Whatever results you’re getting at six months should be considerably less than what you’re getting at twelve months. At some point, you may see your results slow down a bit, and then it may be a matter of maintaining results rather than growing them.

Many companies underestimate how much time and money it takes to be successful with SEO. SEO success by any standard rarely comes within the first three months, even with a healthy, substantial budget. 

We’ve experienced companies getting started the right way, but quit after two to three months saying, “We just weren’t getting the ROI we needed to justify the spend.” This experience highlights that these companies went into the SEO exercise with unrealistic expectations, mainly fuelled by knowledge gained from unprofessional and unreliable sources (and there are plenty of them in the market these days).

If you can’t budget for six to twelve months of SEO, you might be better off putting that budget somewhere else as paying for just a couple of months of SEO activity is no better than throwing your money away. SEO is a long-term marketing tactic, and shouldn’t be seen as a way to generate sales quickly. If companies make the proper investment and plan it for a long time, then SEO will get them the best ROI on their spend.

If you’d like to take your SEO to the next level, reach out to the digital marketing experts at Webware.io. We specialize in optimizing websites and content for improved search engine results and provide small businesses with the right tools and supporting services to nurture and manage their online presence. 

Our head office is located in Toronto, and we serve clients across Canada and North America.

To learn more about our services and complete digital marketing tool kit, please click here. If you have any questions about how we can help with your digital marketing needs, we’d love to hear from you. Please contact our experts here. 

Renée Bourget Makeup Artistry provides professional makeup services across Vancouver, Port Moody, Coquitlam, Burnaby, New Westminster, Maple Ridge, Port Coquitlam, White Rock, and Pitt Meadows, British Columbia. To help them reach a wider audience, we launched their new website - www.reneebourgetmua.com

We wish everyone at Renée Bourget Makeup Artistry the very best of success! 

Hill's Brothers Construction, LLC offers home, bathroom, kitchen remodeling, and renovation services to clients across Clearwater, St. Petersburg, and Largo, Florida. To help them reach a wider audience, we launched their new website - www.hillsbrothersconstructionllc.com

We wish everyone at Hill's Brothers Construction, LLC the best of success! 

Ever since Instagram launched in 2010, it has steadily scaled from a photo-sharing app to a marketing platform. With the introduction of Instagram Stories, IGTV, Q & A Instagram Live, new profile view, video calling, shoppable posts, push notifications, and insights along with several other new features, it is clear that Instagram is turning into the most powerful marketing tool for businesses. Last year alone, Instagram released over twenty-five innovative features to improve user experience and engage more customers.

One feature that has gained much momentum over the last two years has been Insta-stories with around five-hundred million daily active users. While the idea of Instagram stories was picked up from Snapchat, Instagram has added augmented filters, question poll, GIF stickers, hashtags, music, emoji slider, and a lot of other improvements to increase interactivity and bring in more sales. You even have the option to add multiple photos or videos from your camera roll to your Insta-story. Stories disappear after twenty-four hours, but they can live permanently on your profile through Instagram Story Highlights.

What are Instagram Story Highlights?

Instagram Highlights are archived photos or stories that you can pin to your profile. In other words, once your story vanishes after twenty-four hours, they become a part of your archived gallery. You can either create a Highlight by adding stories from your archived gallery or save it directly as a Highlight after you upload a story. Note that they will remain for your followers to see until you choose to remove it.

Instagram Story Highlights gives clarity to your profile by allowing users or consumers to identify the personality of your brand or business. Brands use story highlights to feature their events and promotions, showcase their products or services, and so on. This long-story format has helped many brands draw in more consumers and build a stronger connection with followers. However, if you want to take full advantage of Instagram stories and integrate them into your digital marketing strategies, you need to be aware of all that Instagram Story Highlights has to offer.

Here are a few ways you can effectively use Instagram Story Highlights to represent your brand in the best possible manner.

Tip #1: Categorize your highlights.

When a new user visits your profile, they will likely view your Instagram Story Highlights after reading your bio. To make a great first impression on them and potential customers, it is advisable to organize your content into distinct categories by creating multiple story highlights. For instance, if you have a catering business, you can create separate highlights for your recipes, recent events, client reviews. By utilizing Highlights to categorize your stories, it allows you to display your most valuable content to your followers and gives you the freedom to set the tone for your brand image.

Tip #2: Keep a short name for your story highlights.

By naming each story highlight, you are summarizing exactly what you do or offer in a few letters. Ideally, the entire name or title of your highlight should fit within the area. However, as it is a small space, there is a limit on the number of characters your highlight can have. Ideally, it should be up to fifteen characters long, but if you want it to be fully displayed, keep your highlight name around ten characters.

Tip #3: Use a custom cover image for each highlight.

If you want to come across as a professional brand and set yourself apart from the competition, consider uploading a custom highlight cover to give your profile a cohesive look. Make sure your cover image is not only eye-catching but also in line with your brand identity. You can either design a cover on Instagram or use more resourceful editing apps or software. To establish uniformity, try to create similar covers for your highlights; it could be adding a standard color or background, typography, image, etc.

While Instagram is continually rolling out new features and updates to help business owners boost their brand, there are other digital marketing strategies such as SEO, email marketing, content management, social media promotion that can raise brand awareness and fuel business growth.

As one of the best digital marketing toolkit providers in Toronto, Webware.io has been helping clients navigate the digital landscape and build a successful online presence. We offer a full suite of services to create and maintain a robust online strategy for your business and websites.

To learn about the services that we provide, please click here or get in touch with us here for any information you need. You can also book a live demo by clicking here.

Barrier Group is an industrial company that services the oil & gas industry across Western Canada. They offer field coating, excavation, welding, pipeline construction, and tank coating services. To help them reach a wider audience, we launched their new website - www.barriergroup.ca

We wish everyone at Barrier Group the very best of success! 

When it comes to their online presence, everyone wants to see their website rank better on search engines. To achieve this, currently, there are two methods, which are on-page and off-page SEO. However, implementing each one on their own isn’t nearly as effective as using them together.

In our previous post on SEO, we covered the fundamental terms of on-page SEO. If you missed our article, here’s a link to it so you can understand it before diving into the off-page version. That way, you can spot the distinction between different SEO terminology. In case you’ve already read it, you’re all set to expand your knowledge on SEO. Keep reading to learn what off-page SEO means, and what are the unique concepts that differentiate it from on-page SEO.

Off-Page SEO

As we mentioned, there are two main elements of SEO: “on-page” and “off-page.” Off-page practices include everything you do outside your web pages to improve their rankings. The central aspect of off-page SEO is link building.

Curated Content

Content curation is the process of gathering information relevant to a particular topic or area of interest.

Listing Directories

A directory or more specifically a business directory is an online listing of businesses. The listings provide information about specific companies like their name, address, contact information, associations, and the services and products they offer. These businesses are usually categorized, by location, activity, or size. It is essential that your business ensures that all your company information is up to date on every directory listing.

GoogleMyBusiness

GoogleMyBusiness is an internet-based service for business owners and operated by Google. It is a way of giving business owners more control over what shows in the search results when someone searches their business name.

Facebook

Facebook is one of the best social media platforms for businesses to use to reach their target market – whatever that audience may be.

Twitter

Twitter is a ‘microblogging’ system that allows you to send and receive short posts called tweets.

Newsletters or Email Marketing

Email newsletters are an email communication sent out to inform your audience of the latest news, tips, or updates about your product or company. They are often used for a variety of purposes–and they come in many different forms. Some are weekly digests of content, some are quarterly organization updates, and others promote new products. The point of email newsletters is to keep subscribers connected, engaged, and informed about what’s new with the organization or business (and often to drive sales.)

Link building

This is one of the biggest SEO terms. Link building is simply a process of getting backlinks to your page.

Backlinks

Backlinks are simply a link placed on someone else’s website that points back to your site. Backlinks are one of the most critical factors for SEO. Getting a lot of backlinks with relevant anchor text is the shortest way of improving your search engine rankings.

SEO Tools

SEO tools investigate the potential of web pages for high placement on search engine ranking pages. They provide information on backlinks and keywords as well as insights into SEO competition on the internet.

Google Analytics

It is a free web analytics program that can be used to track audience behavior, traffic acquisition sources, content performance, and much more.

New Users

The new users’ metrics in Google Analytics allows you to see how many people visited your site for the first time in a specific time. The first time a person visits your site, a Google Analytics cookie will be set, and a unique identifier will be assigned to them which will help in distinguishing the person as a “new user.”

Traffic Channels

Traffic channels provide an overview of where your site traffic is coming from and groups the traffic into seven default categories, i.e., Direct, Organic Search, Referral, Email, Paid Search, Social, and Other.

Page Views

According to the Google Analytics support site, a page view (or pageview hit, page tracking hit) is an instance of a page being loaded (or reloaded) in a browser. Pageviews is a metric defined as the total number of pages viewed.

Bounce Rate

This is the percentage of website visitors who leave without visiting another page on that website. Bounce rates range widely depending on the industry and the niche. Although the bounce rate can indicate potential content or website issues, it is not a direct ranking factor, according to Google.

Exit Rate

The opposite of a landing page, an exit page on Google Analytics refers to the last page a user accesses before their session ends or they leave the site. The Exit Pages section of Google Analytics, therefore, allows you to see which pages people most frequently end their sessions on or leave the site after viewing.

Google Search Console

Google Search Console (previously Google Webmaster Tools) is a no-charge web service by Google for webmasters. It allows webmasters to check indexing status and optimize visibility of their websites.

XML sitemap

It’s a file (usually sitemap.xml). Its primary function is to give search engines a map of all the different URLs that a website contains.

Crawl Errors

Crawl errors occur when a search engine tries to reach a page on your website but fails at it. Google divides crawl errors into two groups:

Site errors: Site errors are all the crawl errors that prevent a search engine bot from accessing your website.

URL errors: URL errors refer to crawl errors that occur when a search engine bot tries to crawl a specific page of your website.

Fetch as Google

The Fetch as Google tool enables you to test how Google crawls or renders a URL on your site. You can use Fetch as Google to see whether the Googlebot can access a page on your website, how it renders the page, and whether any page resources (such as images or scripts) are blocked to Googlebot.

Search Queries

A search query is an actual query a user enters in Google search. The Google search queries are generated impressions of your website URLs in Google organic search results. It helps in understanding the correlation between how users search and the relevancy of your pages to those queries to provide insights into how to optimize your content.

Search Pages

The search page shows you which pages on your site appear in the search results.

Black Hat SEO

Like everything, SEO has its dark side too. Black hat SEO is the name for all SEO practices that are known for being manipulative or unethical, and in the long run can hurt your website, or even get it banned from search engines.

Cloaking (page cloaking)

It’s a practice of taking a webpage and building it in a way, so it displays different content to people and to search engines. That way, at least in theory, you can get a good ranking for your desired keywords (by presenting an optimized page to the spiders) and then show real people with unrelated offers and content. While this might work from a marketing standpoint, it can also get you penalized or even banned very quickly.

Duplicate Content

If you have two separate pages within your website that have the same content on them (or very similar content), then you have duplicate content. Duplicate content is believed to be a bad thing for SEO. Google doesn’t like sites that use the same piece of content over and over again, and they often penalize them for it.

Keyword stuffing

Keyword stuffing is a practice of taking a word or a phrase and repeating it very often in a piece of text, especially when unnecessary.

If you’re looking to explore off-page SEO, you’re now fully equipped with the basic terminology. Navigating through this next level of search engine optimization will be easier as you will understand precisely what your online marketing expert is suggesting. In case you’d like to know how off-page SEO works, reach out to the digital marketing experts at Webware.io. We specialize in boosting SEO for a variety of small businesses with our all-inclusive digital tool-kit designed to help you succeed in today’s web-based world.

To learn more about Webware’s digital marketing tools and competitive online services, please click here. If you have questions about SEO and digital marketing, we’d love to hear from you. Please contact our experts here. Our head office is located in Toronto, and we serve clients across Canada and North America.

Camlife Financial Corp offers Whole Life Insurance, Health Insurance, Critical Illness Insurance, Mortgage Insurance to clients across Vancouver, Richmond, Burnaby, White Rock, Coquitlam, New Westminster, BC. To help them reach a wider audience, we launched their new website - www.camlife.ca

We wish everyone at Camlife Financial Corp the best of success! 

To help you wrap your head around the possibilities of online marketing, we’ve already covered the concept of search engine marketing (SEM). In case you haven’t read it yet, click here to catch up on the basic terms used in SEM. If you’ve already read it, you’re all set to dive deeper into the context of online marketing through Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

SEO is a process designed to navigate your target audience through the crowded online market to your website or the products and services. However, this is entirely dependent on the search queries they put into search engines like Google. To ensure you’re immediately visible to relevant prospects when they search for things related to you, there are two types of SEO techniques, which are commonly referred to as on-page and off-page SEO. In this article, Webware.io will take you through the terminology behind on-page SEO, and cover the unique concepts and jargon of off-page SEO in our next article in the search engine glossary series.

Here’s our exhaustive list of the top on-page SEO terms, used by most marketers, online marketing gurus, and marketing reports.

SEO

SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. It’s a practice of improving a site’s ranking on the search engines for given keywords. When doing SEO, you need to take care of both on-page and off-page SEO. However, the actual tasks that need to be done are changing almost every day. What worked perfectly yesterday may not work at all tomorrow, but that’s just the reality of SEO. For this reason, SEO shouldn’t be considered as a one-time task but an ongoing process.

On-Page SEO

On-page SEO practices include everything you do on your page to improve its rankings. This includes things like tuning your website’s HTML structure, improving title tags and descriptions, improving your website’s speed, checking keyword usage and density, improving the internal linking structure (the way your pages are linked to each other), etc.

White Hat SEO

As opposed to the black hat SEO, white hat SEO is a set of all SEO practices that search engines encourage you to use.

Canonical Tag

It’s an HTML link element that allows webmasters to inform search engines about duplicate content pages they’ve created. The tag is placed in the head section of the HTML structure. Here’s what it looks like:

This tag informs that the current page is a copy of the page located under the address set in the canonical tag (href). The main idea is that when a search engine sees this tag, it does not rank that page, but transfers all the rankings to the canonical page. So, in essence, it’s very similar to the 301 redirect.

Do-Follow Link

It’s a standard HTML link that doesn’t have the rel=“nofollow” attribute. Do-follow links are the most valuable ones from an SEO perspective.

Nofollow

The nofollow attribute notifies the search engines that they shouldn’t pay attention to such a link.

Keyword

A keyword may be a word, words, or phrases that an SEO professional or marketer targets to match and rank for during online searches. These words, when used on webpages, can help search engines determine which pages are the most relevant to show in organic results when a searcher enters a query. Also, keywords usually represent topics, ideas, or questions.

Meta Tags

Meta tags consist of two main elements, the meta description, and meta keywords. Meta tags are placed in the head section of the HTML structure of your page. The information contained in those tags is usually not meant for users, but for search engines. It helps them determine what the page is about. Therefore, it might be worth it to set them manually for each page or post within your blog.

Title Tag (Meta Title)

Every web page has a title tag. From a user’s standpoint the title tag is visible only in one place – your browser’s title bar and on SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages).

Meta Description

A tag that can be added to the “head section of an HTML document.” It acts as a description of a web page’s content. This content isn’t used in ranking algorithms but is often displayed as the “snippet” that appears in the search results. Accurate and engaging descriptions can increase the organic click-through rate.

Above The Fold

Content that appears on a website before the user scrolls. In email or web marketing it means the area of content viewable before scrolling.

Keyword Density

Keyword density is a number describing how often a keyword appears in a piece of text. To calculate it you need to divide the number of times your keyword appears in a part of the text by the total number of words the entire piece of text has, and then multiply the result by 100. The final result will be expressed as a percentage score.

CTA (Call To Action)

A call to action in advertising refers to the portion of the message that gets a reader to act on the advertisement.

Anchor Text

The clickable word or words of a link is known as the anchor text. This text is intended to provide contextual information to people and search engines about what the webpage or website being linked to is about.

Alt Tag

It’s an HTML attribute of the IMG tag. The IMG tag is responsible for displaying images. The alt tag or attribute is the text that gets displayed in case the image can’t be loaded (if the file is missing, for example). Alt tags have some SEO value too. Currently, Google can’t (at least at the moment) see what an actual image presents, but it can read the alt tag, so using alt tags is the preferred way of informing Google what’s in your images.

Organic Search

You do an organic search every time you visit Google, input a phrase, and push the search button.

Algorithm

A complex computer program used by search engines to retrieve data and deliver results for a query. Search engines use a combination of algorithms to deliver ranked web pages via a results page based on several ranking factors and signals.

Spider (Crawler, Bot, Robot)

A search engine spider is a unique piece of software that browses the web, looks for new sites, checks what’s on them and sends the data back to Google (or other search engines) so they can index and rank these sites.

SERPs (Search Engine Result Pages)

SERP stands for Search Engine Results Page. This is a page that gets displayed when you search for a keyword on Google or other search engines.

Now that you know the basic terms of on-page SEO, implementing it should be a breeze! If you’d like to take your SEO to the next level for better or continued top ranking, reach out to the online marketing experts at Webware.io. As specialists in digital marketing, we excel in optimizing websites and content for improved search engine results. Our technology platform provides small businesses with the right tools and supporting services to nurture and manage their online presence.

To learn more about our services and why we are known as a complete digital marketing tool kit, please click here. If you have any questions about how we can help with your digital marketing needs, we’d love to hear from you. Please contact our experts here. Our head office is located in Toronto, and we serve clients across Canada and North America. 

Abacus360 provide accounting and assurance services for individuals, businesses, corporations and non-profit organizations across Zambia, Mauritius, and Pretoria, South Africa. To help them reach a wider audience, we launched their new website last week - www.abacus360.co

We wish everyone at Abacus360 the very best of success! 

Cindy's Painting offer residential interior & exterior painting services across Port Perry, Bowmanville, Whitby, and Ajax, Ontario. To help them reach a wider audience, we launched their beautiful website last week - www.cindyspainting.ca

We wish everyone at Cindy's Painting the very best of success! 

Whether you have a startup or an established business, the chance of growing your business and reaching a wider audience is commonly possible through an active social media profile. One social media platform that has taken the world by storm in recent years is Instagram.

As an increasingly effective marketing platform, many businesses have been exploring the latest Instagram features to distinguish themselves and stand out from the competition. However, one critical aspect that companies sometimes skip or overlook is incorporating hashtags into their posts.

Hashtags are a combination of letters, symbols, and numbers that are used to categorize photo and video content. Adding relevant hashtags to your posts will help your brand, product or service gain more visibility which will translate to more engagement and an increase in followers. In fact, research shows that a post with just one Instagram hashtag will receive 12.6% more engagement than posts without a hashtag.

However, to maximize your post performance and stir up a conversation, you will need to identify a variety of hashtags that are relevant to your topic or brand. Ideally, you can use fifteen to twenty influential hashtags on each post but not more than thirty. To make sure you use the correct hashtags for your business and optimize your Instagram profile to its fullest potential, we have created a hashtag cheat sheet for the top ten small business industries among Webware clients.

1. Home Renovation/Contractors.

#homerenovation #renovation #homeimprovement #remodel #homeremodeling #bathroomremodel #remodel #remodeling #homereno #dreamhome #woodworking #makehomeyours #homesweethome #customcarpentry #porchreno #generalcontractor #finishedbasement #renovations #livebeautifully #homedesign #propertyrenovation #build #buildingsite #DIY #transformation #homesunderthehammer #homepolish #bedroomremodel #kitchenremodel #tools #contractor #contractorsofinsta #instacontractor #work #project #carpentry #construction #flipthishouse #kitchenrenovation #fixerupper

2. Real Estate.

#realestate #realestateagent #realestateexperts #realestateyourcity #yourcityrealestate #realestateinvesting #internationalrealestate #realestateinvesting #job #estate #tour #hiring #mortgage #property #tips #investing #properties #realestatenews #realestatelife #realestateagency #luxuryrealestate #milliondollarlisting #listing #listings #realtorlife #realtor #buyahome #views #househunting #viewhome #lovewhereyoulive #home #house #residential #commercial #urbanliving #dreamhome #iworkforyou #buy #sell #invest #homes #condo #recentlysold #wesellhomes #getitsold #citylife #homestaging #openhouses

3. Restaurants/Catering Services.

#restaurants #food #dinner #night #chef #cafe #friends #happy #bistro #cuisine #gastronomy #diner #appetizer #eatbreakfast #eatlunch #eatdinner #foodporn #foodie #yum #foodpics #hungry #foodgasm #foodspotting #eat #eats #sharefood #brunch #foodstagram #delicious #lovefood #foodlover #ristorante #lunch #breakfast #dinnertime #drinks #wine #canape #instafood #healthy #chefs #cooks #goingout #celebratewithfood #champagne #cocktails #beer #gourmet

4. Window Coverings.

#window #windows #curtains #curtaindesign #drapes #windowcoverings #interiordesign #shutters #blinds #shades #venetian #curtainsandblinds #windowfurnishing #renovation #homedecor #homedesign #blindsandshutters #blindsandshades #modern #contemporary #decorating #windowblinds #interiordecoration #upgrade #designers #livingroom #bedroom #rollershades #instadecor #room #instadesign #fabric #color #prints #interiors #home #light #shade #lightandshade #textiles

5. Flooring.

#flooring #flooringinstallation #installation #floorings #design #flooringdesign #designbuild #residental #interiordesign #instadesign #renovation #home #house #homedecor #homedesign #materials #floorboards #textiles #vinyl #tiles #cementtiles #dreamhome #wood #hardwoodfloors #remodel #remodeling #woodfloors #homerenovation #hardwood #maplehardwood #sandandfinish #kitchenfloor #kitchenreno #fixerupper #newkitchen #newlivingroom #homereno #livingroom #interior #residential #parquet #ceramictiles #ceramictile #tileaddiction #interiordecorator #diy

6. Skin Care Brands.

#skincare #beautycare #beautyskin #beautyproduct #bodywash #face #facewash #sunscreen #skin #review #products #facemask #beauty #makeup #feedgood #lookgood #instaskincare #instabeauty #newskincare #tester #cleansing #shower #bath #bodycare #nourish #metime #eveningroutine #morningroutine #tipsandtricks #healthy #glowingskin #healthyskin #daycream #nightcream #skincareroutine #beautycommunity #instabeauty #skincarejunkie #lovemyskin #skincareaddict #luxuryskincare #beautyguru #skincareguru #relax #pamper  #wellness #skincaretips #skinhealth #flawless #cosmetics #dryskin #sensitiveskin #oil #eye

7. Jewelry.

#jewelry #jewellery #jewelrydesign #jewelrygram #earrings #bracelet #ring #necklace #details #jewels #diamonds #gold #silver #rosegold #platinum #fashion #weddingjewelry #accessories #style #design #gemstones #pendant #designerjewelry #diamonds #gift #giftguide #giftsforher #love #shop #pendant #valentine #statement #piece #uniquejewelry #finejewelry #fashionista #gem #gems #stone #stones #jewel #bling #whitegold #lovejewelry #sparkle #engagementring #showmeyourrings #weddingring #celebrate #engaged #handmadejewelry #instajewels #diamondsareagirlsbestfriend #jewelryshop #instashop #shopmyjewelry #instajewelry #jotd #jewelrylover #ilovejewelry #antiquejewelry #ringsofinstagram

8. Lawyers.

#lawyers #lawyer #lawyerup #lawfirm #law #needalawyer #arrested #legal #litigation #realestatelaw #corporatelaw #criminallaw #team #case #casedismissed #bestlawyer #criminaljustice #criminaldefense #notguilty #fullservicelawfirm #knowyourrights #justice #familylaw #question #advice #legaladvice #counsel #legalcounsel #immigrationlaw #immigration #attorney #attorneysatlaw #lawpractice #estateplanning #injurylawyer #injurylaw #attorneyatlaw

9. Salon & Spa Services.

#salon #spa #dayspa #bodytreatments #beautytreatments #spalife #mobiletherapist #esthetician #hair #hairremoval #browwax #browwow #archexpert #browexpert #waxing #threading #legwax #beautystudio #mani #pedi #nail #nails #naildesign #nailart #nailstagram #nailpolish #nailsalon #salonlife #hairsalon #hairdresser #hairdressing #hairstylist #hairstudio #makeupartist #happyclient #salonowner #salons #longhair #shorthair #beauty #healthyhair #allhairtypes #weddinghair #relax #body #instaspa #pamper #massage #instamassage #facial #healthyskin #glowingskin #lovetheskinyourein #spaday #spatreatments #spoilyourself #beautybar #manimonday

10. Photographers.

#photgrapher #photograph #photography #photographs #photoart #art #artists #design #photoartist #exposure #digitalphotography #weddingphotographer #wedding #weddingphoto #productphotography #picoftheday #photooftheday #photographersofinstagram #instaphotographer #instaphotography #photographystudio #studio #canvas #photographyclass #photo #photos #instaphoto #photoshoot #photoaday #photographers #photoshop #photogram #picoftheday #professional #professionalphotos #professionalphotographer #professionalphotography #bestphoto #bestphotographer

This cheat sheet is a starting point for industry-specific hashtags. Other types of hashtags, like trending topics or the geographic location of your business, can also be extremely useful in getting more likes, followers, and customers. 

Instagram today has over one billion monthly active users with more than twenty-five million business profiles. Marketing professionals agree that these soaring numbers mean that Instagram is an excellent platform for businesses to reach new customers. 

Instagram is a market that small business owners still haven’t fully tapped. As one of the best digital marketing toolkit providers in Toronto, Webware.io wants to help you take advantage of every tool there is to help you expand your business, including building a customized Instagram hashtag strategy. 

If you are looking for a complete digital toolkit, chat with us in the chat box on this page! Our platform enables small and medium businesses to easily access multiple tools needed to manage and grow a beautiful, successful online presence.

If you haven’t enrolled for our Digital Service Plan, click here to join. If you have any questions, please email support@webware.io. 

Skyline Entertainment & Publishing offers audio production, audio mixing, audio mastering services to clients across Morgan Hill, Cupertino, Mountain View, Palo Alto, Redwood City, Fremont, San Jose, and Santa Cruz, California. To help them reach a wider audience, we launched their new website last week - www.skylineep.com

We wish everyone at Skyline Entertainment & Publishing the best of success! 

Search Engine Marketing (SEM) may be a relatively new concept, but it’s a highly effective means of marketing on the world wide web. It encompasses dynamic options for a promotion that allows you to reach the specific audiences you want to target. However, to derive relevant results from these promotions, you need to understand the different concepts and jargon which marketers use to prepare a solid plan that delivers the outcomes you’re after.

For instance, to know what’s the latest trend in SEM, you need to understand the technical terminology. Fundamental knowledge of the digital marketer’s vernacular will enable you to interpret their marketing methods, make tweaks to your SEM strategy, and easily read your marketing results.

To help you get a grip on the technical aspects of SEM, the digital service experts at Webware.io have compiled a list of the top SEM related terms, which leave small businesses at a disadvantage when it comes to online marketing.

SEM.

SEM stands for Search Engine Marketing. In other words, it means “marketing via search engines.” Promoting your products or services via search engines can be done in two main ways. Either you optimize your site, so it appears at a high spot in organic search results, or you pay for the clicks directly. With the latter option, your site is listed under the “sponsored listings” section which is a very prominent place in the search results.

Google Ads Tool.

Google Ads Tool is an online advertising platform developed by Google, where advertisers pay to display brief advertisements, service offerings, product listings, video content and generate mobile application installs within the Google ad network to web users.

Search Advertising.

In online marketing, search advertising is a method of placing online advertisements on web pages that show results from search engine queries. Through the same search-engine advertising services, ads can also be placed on web pages with other published content.

Display Advertising.

Display advertising is advertising on websites or apps or social media through banners or other ad formats made of text, images, flash, video, and audio content. The primary purpose of display advertising is to deliver general advertisements and brand messages to site visitors.

Clicks.

When someone clicks on your ad, like on the blue headline of a text ad, Google Ads counts that as a click. Clicks can help you understand how well your ad appeals to people who see it. Relevant, highly-targeted ads are more likely to receive clicks.

Impressions.

An impression is counted each time your ad is served on Google’s ad networks. Impressions help you understand how often your ad is being seen.

Click-Through Rate (CTR).

Click-through rate (CTR) measures how often people click your ad after it’s shown to them, which can help you understand the effectiveness of your ad.

Avg. CPC.

Average cost-per-click (CPC) is the amount you’ve paid for your ad divided by its total clicks.

Avg. Pos.

Avg. Pos. is a statistic that describes how your ad typically ranks against other ads. This rank determines in which order ads appear on the page.

Conversion.

An action that’s counted when someone interacts with your ad (for example, clicks a text ad or views a video ad) and then takes an action that you’ve defined as valuable to your business, such as an online purchase or a call to your business from a mobile phone.

Conversion Rate.

Conversion rate shows how often, on average, an ad interaction leads to a conversion. It is “Conversions” divided by the interactions with your ad.

Total Amount (Ad Spend).

The estimated total amount of money you’ve spent on your campaign, ad set, or ad during its schedule.

Now that you have more clarity on the terms that contribute to search engine marketing, you’ll find that doing SEM research is much smoother, your online marketing reports are easier to read, and you better understand the potential of your SEM program before launching it.

If you’re wondering how to use all that you’ve learned here to boost your digital marketing efforts, reach out to the digital service experts at Webware.io. We offer you a complete digital marketing tool kit designed to help small businesses like yours to easily navigate the online world. We help you establish your presence online successfully through self-sufficient websites and online stores, SEO, and digital marketing services.

To learn more about our services, please click here. If you have any questions about how we can help with your digital marketing needs, we’d love to hear from you. Please contact our experts here. Our head office is located in Toronto, and we serve clients across Canada and North America. 

Eve Parisa Photography offers photography services to clients across Port Coquitlam, Coquitlam, Burnaby, Maple Ridge, and Vancouver, British Columbia. To help them reach to a wider audience, we launched their new website last week - www.eveparisa.ca

We wish everyone at Eve Parisa Photography the very best of success! 

Future Care Packaging Inc. provide eco-friendly and biodegradable straw manufacturing services across Canada, Midwestern and Northeastern United States. To help them reach to a wider audience, we launched their new website last week - www.futurecarepackaging.com

We wish everyone at Future Care Packaging Inc. the best of success! 

Digital Marketing is on course to surpass all traditional marketing techniques and develop into the eventual face of marketing. So as a small business owner, the sooner you implement a robust digital strategy for your business, the sooner you’ll start seeing results.

To help you take advantage of all the benefits that Digital Marketing has to offer, Webware’s David Marcus will be hosting a one hour workshop on Digital Marketing Solutions for Small Business at Staples Store 25, 375 University Avenue in Toronto.

The workshop will include a walkthrough of the key aspects of digital marketing for small businesses, how to drive new businesses online, as well as how to pick the right strategy for your business and measure your digital success.

Join David Marcus, Senior Vice President of Business Development at  Webware, as he takes you through the world of digital marketing and how to make it work for your small business. 

Date & Time: May 8, 2019, 6:00 pm EST

Location: Staples Store #25, 375 University Avenue, Toronto, ON M5G 2J5

Join from home or anywhere @ Virtual Zoom Meetings: https://zoom.us/j/727112064

Speaker: David Marcus

For more information, call us at 1-844-WEBWARE.

To register for the in-store seminar, please click HERE, or sign up for the online version of the seminar by clicking HERE.

Webware.io, a Toronto-based company focused on helping small businesses achieve online success, today announced that it has received $2 million in strategic financing from an elite group of investors led by renowned industry veteran Moss Kadey.

As Founder and CEO of Mossco Capital Inc., Kadey is a strategic investor specializing in consumer goods, real estate and technology companies. Among the brands he has been involved with from start-up to exit are Bumble and bumble and BECCA Inc. (each sold to Estée Lauder Companies), Oribe Hair Care (sold to Kao USA Inc.), and the North/South American Brita business (sold to The Clorox Company). Also providing funding are Ira Gluskin and Gerald Sheff, founders of Gluskin Sheff + Associates, one of Canada's top wealth management firms.

The investment will allow Webware.io to build upon recent momentum, including the launch of a strategic, bricks-and-mortar partnership with Staples Canada. It will also help grow the company's rapidly expanding presence with small businesses across North America searching for a powerful, easy-to-use website platform.

"An investment of this size from some of the industry's pre-eminent financiers underscores their confidence in our vision. It also gives us the ability to further strengthen our platform and provide small businesses with a solution that will take their operations to the next level," says Cory York, Co-Founder and CEO of Webware.io. "We're excited by what we have achieved so far, and this brings us even closer to realizing our strategic goals."

"To succeed, small business owners must harness the power of online technology to build deeper connections with their customers and establish a robust e-commerce channel," says Kadey. "The Webware.io digital toolkit is uniquely suited to help them do this, and we look forward to helping the company enter the next stage of growth."

About Webware

Webware.io is a complete digital toolkit designed to help small businesses easily navigate the online world. Webware's technology and services are used by IBM, Kernels Popcorn, Staples Canada, and over 10,000 businesses across 400 cities in North America. With Webware.io, a business has access to the technology and support required to get online and become successful. The toolkit includes a website and e-commerce platform, social media management, email marketing, blogging, search engine optimization (SEO), reputation management, and more. Visit webware.io for more information.

SOURCE Webware.io

For further information: Cory York, cory@webware.io; Shalynn Mortillaro, (437) 349-5314, shalynn.mortillaro@citizenrelations.com

Article Courtesy: https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/webware-secures-2-million-in-funding-to-fuel-growth-and-expansion-833895503.html

E-Fitness offers stretching classes, pilates classes & other fitness classes to clients across Rosedale, Toronto. To help them reach to a wider audience, we launched their new website last week - www.e-fitness.ca

We wish everyone at E-Fitness the very best of success! 

Vegas Taco Bar offers taco catering and Mexican food catering services across Las Vegas, Henderson, Paradise, North Las Vegas, Summerlin, Boulder City, Enterprise, and Providence, Nevada. To help them cater to a wider audience, we launched their new website last week - www.vegastacobar.com

We wish everyone at Vegas Taco Bar the best of success! 

Nobody likes burning their fingers, but sometimes, the business decisions we make, backfire and put a strain on our finances. As digital marketing is still a burgeoning industry, it’s nuances aren’t fully understood, and small business owners often fall for the smoke and mirror tactics of agencies that offer digital marketing services.

The truth is, the dawn of social media has opened innumerable avenues to market your products and services successfully. Whether you’ve been running a successful business for decades, or maybe you’re the new kid on the block, digital marketing can propel your business to the heights you’ve dreamed of. However, to get there, cutting out any mistakes that may be made along the way becomes essential.

As a growing digital marketing service provider, at Webware.io, we understand the struggles small business owners face and want to help you overcome the challenges that come your way. To help you navigate through the web of digital marketers and select a team that best suits your requirements, we’ve put together a list of the most common mistakes people make when hiring a digital marketing agency and how to avoid committing them.

1. Not working with a full-service digital agency.

Some agencies may offer digital marketing services such as social media marketing, but they do not specialize in producing impactful websites and SEO services. As these services usually work in cohesion, it’s important to ask for a demo and verify the services offered. Experience in creating a robust website, launching appropriate digital marketing services, and placing ads and content to generate the maximum number of eyeballs is essential for a successful venture. Also, a reputed agency will provide monthly reports with insightful analytics to highlight factors such as bounce rate, impressions, clicks, and other vital data.

2. Choosing the cheapest digital marketing agency.

Price is a major constraint for most companies, but going with the cheapest digital agency could damage your brand image in the eyes of your customers if the work is not up to the mark. A reputed marketing agency will enhance your brand perception instead of damaging it, which is why it’s important to set a reasonable budget and also expect to pay a competitive rate for exceptional work.

3. Approaching an agency without a clear marketing goal.

It’s essential to have clear digital marketing goals and carry out research before you start approaching digital marketing companies. You do not want to end up taking on services that are unnecessary, based on recommendations from the agency. You know your business best, so make sure that the company you choose aligns with your overall mission and vision and not the other way round.

4. Not getting a plan from the digital agency.

When you work with an agency, it’s important to ask for a plan that includes timelines, goals and which platforms they will be using to enhance your brand. Your company may be more successfully promoted on Facebook and Instagram if you‘re into retail, or it may receive better traction on Linkedin and Twitter if you’re primarily B2B. Email marketing and newsletters could also help your strategy, so explore a customized package based on your needs.

5. Working without a marketing budget for campaigns.

Every company needs to have a marketing budget for the year. You will have to consider what percentage of your budget you are setting aside for digital marketing and the budget for traditional marketing. Getting a beautiful website designed will be a one-time cost, but digital marketing services usually get charged on a monthly retainer basis, so this needs consideration. Also, running ads on digital marketing platforms increases the visibility of your brand, but it’s important to set a budget, so you do not end up overspending.

6. Not checking the reputation of the firm.

A company who is providing digital marketing as a service should have a strong reputation online. It’s vital to check the company’s social media handles and read reviews and ratings from past clients. Also, the kind of language, images, and videos used on the website will give you a clear indication of the caliber of the company.

If this article made you sit up and think about your digital strategy, maybe it’s time you consulted a professional. Webware.io is a digital agency that provides all the tools you need to succeed in today’s web-based world, on one platform. We work with you to provide website design, e-commerce solutions, blogging, email newsletter management, social media marketing, reputation management, and more. Our head office is located in Toronto, and we serve clients across Canada and North America.

To learn more about our services, please click here. If you have any questions about how we can help you or digital marketing, we’d love to hear from you. Please contact us here. 

Mee Moving provide commercial and residential moving services to clients across Red Deer, Calgary, Edmonton, and Lacombe, Alberta.  To help them reach to a wider audience, we launched their new website last week - www.meemoving.ca

We wish everyone at Mee Moving the best of success! 

At Webware.io, we take great pride in ensuring our clients are happy. As a result, our clients love us almost as much as we love them! Here are a few nice things our customers have said about us recently.

★★★★★

“It has been a pleasure working with Webware.io. They have been patient and diligent in creating and launching my website exactly the way I want it. More importantly, they have a comprehensive strategy and well-managed program to create, launch and keep my website ranking high and driving traffic as well as supporting me in managing my social media and SEO objectives. Highly recommended.”

- Brian Pieters, www.brianpieters.com

★★★★★

“My experience so far with this company has been top-notch! Great service, the staff is very professional and organized, and I am pleased with my new website. Overall they have exceeded my expectations to this point.”

- Kirk Eaton, www.kirkeatonmortgage.com

★★★★★

“I came in contact with Webware.io in 2018, and I am impressed so far. The way of communication and response is outstanding. My website now looks like it’s made by a professional team. Webware.io team gave me a lot of information and knowledge to understand today’s world of advertisement. I am happy with their service so far.”

- Gurmit Cheema, www.gurmittax.com

★★★★★

“I had been thinking about updating my website, and I was cold-called by one of the Webware.io salespersons. I knew I needed help, so I decided to give them a try. I have been very happy with their services so far. The staff is helpful and professional. Their scheduling keeps me on track and reminds me to do the things I need to do but might not want to do. They are responsive when I have questions.”

- Angelo Valenti, www.thecompanypsychologist.com

★★★★★

“This group allowed us to raise the bar with our corporate website and social media presence. They are very organized and methodical, yet make you feel comfortable with your decisions every step of the way!”

- Norm Houle, www.houleandassociates.ca

★★★★★

“Webware.io has helped us launch our new website as they stated they would, very timely and professional. They helped us with each step, and we worked together to get exactly what we wanted. The site looks and functions just as we wanted it to. I look forward to working with them over the next several months to engage in our digital marketing.”

- Janice Mayer, www.bso-pdx.com

★★★★★

“I have started a new business venture with Webware, and their services have been nothing short of awesome! They have helped me and my business with a fantastic web design that is already driving attention by potential clients. Thank you Webware!”

- JC Rositas, www.cnproductions.net

★★★★★

“If you don’t need to reinvent the wheel with your website, Webware.io is good value for money. They built the site based on my direction, and it looks very professional. I started out with a package deal and can keep adding to the site as I need. They also help with SEO as part of the package.”

- Roxanne Coffelt, www.coffeltcpa.com

★★★★★

“The team at Webware.io have helped me launch my website in a much shorter time that I would have been able to do so on my own. They are easy to get a hold of and great to communicate with. I am happy to have found them!!”

- Kevin Sterling, www.centrosome.ca

★★★★★

“Very knowledgeable, organized and methodical. They deliver on their promises!”

- Alan Simpson, www.alansimpsonphotography.com

★★★★★

“They have created a very beautiful website for my Strong Dragon Training business. They are always very helpful, and with every single call that I have with them I always learn a lot and keep on top of marketing strategies to grow my web presence.”

- Strong Dragon, www.thestrongdragon.com

For the best tools to succeed in today’s web-based world, reach out to the experts at Webware.io. We’re dedicated to providing first-class digital marketing solutions and want to prove it to you. For more information, please visit our website at www.webware.io or contact us here.

John Willmott Architect, Inc. offers architectural and interior design consulting services to clients across the GTA. To help them reach to a wider audience, we launched their new website - www.jwarchitect.com

We wish everyone at John Willmott Architect, Inc. the very best of success!