As the person responsible for overseeing your organization’s online presence, ensuring site security probably keeps you up at night. You frequently express security apprehensions, yet lack the technical expertise to be confident in your site security. To address this, our team of experts has crafted a comprehensive checklist of 9 essential steps that small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) should implement to enhance the security of their WordPress websites.WordPress is renowned for its user-friendly interface and straightforward learning curve. Beneath this benefit lies a subtle trap – creators are lulled into a false sense of security because of the ease and accessibility WordPress offers. Many of those charged with creating and managing sites lack the fundamental skills required to create safe site infrastructure, implement regular site maintenance and ensure secure user access protocols. This leaves organizations vulnerable to malicious attacks. The good news is that with the right setup, consistent upkeep, and adherence to strong user security, WordPress continues to be a secure and dependable platform. Hackers find WordPress a lucrative target because 43% of all websites are powered by it. Most attacks are conducted through a barrage of automated attacks - not motivated individuals with a specific agenda against your organization. Typically hackers are looking for the easiest sites to exploit. Minimize threats by consistently executing fundamental security practices. WordPress is open source, which means that the code that runs your website may be examined by anyone including hackers. So, is it safe to use open-source platforms? For most SMB's an open-source platform is the right choice because it’s safer, more cost effective and consistent site management is more achievable. WordPress’ open-source code is maintained by the WordPress security team, volunteer developers, ethical white hat hackers, and other interested parties with good intentions. So even if a vulnerability is exposed, it’s typically identified and quickly resolved through a WordPress update. Understand that most security breaches happen for three reasons:
WordPress Security: 9-Step Checklist1. Choose Secure HostingLow-quality hosting is a major factor behind these security vulnerabilities. Invest in a Cloud, VPS, or dedicated host with good customer service. Saving a couple bucks on shared hosting is a big risk - all it takes is for one website to be infected, and the malware can spread across every site on the network. This is why you should only consider cloud, VPS, or dedicated hosting. Research potential hosting company security records. Are they security-conscious? Do they rely on the latest technology and standards? After hiring a host, perform annual reviews to ensure their ability to provide secure hosting hasn’t declined. In addition, you should look for a host that offers the following services:
2. Install an SSL CertificateA Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) certificate encrypts the data served between the user and your website. SSL grants you an https URL and a certificate to go with it, without which users will receive a red “Not secure” notification in the address bar when visiting your site. SSL’s certification is essential because it let’s users know that your site is trustworthy and safe to visit. In fact, most browsers block access to websites without SSL. Migrating your WordPress website to HTTPS can be a difficult process for existing websites. Your website is migrated by following these four steps, which can easily be automated with Really Simple SSL.
3. Back-Up Your WebsiteBackups allow you to minimize downtime and expense should a catastrophic event take place. Even if your site does get hacked beyond repair, it won’t have to be rebuilt from scratch. An automatic backup schedule should always be in place. Check to see if your host offers weekly, monthly, or daily automated backups. If this is the case, and your host backs up both your files and database, set the backup schedule and test that it’s working properly each quarter. Backups should be scheduled daily. It’s also a good idea to process manual backups any time a major site update is performed. If your host doesn’t offer website backups, or if the backup provided by our host excludes files or our database, you can also use a plugin to perform the action. It’s a good idea to have at least a solid solution for each website you own or administer, and WordPress backup plugins can provide that extra layer of protection. 4. Keep Your Plugins and Theme UpdatedIf you’ve chosen a good host and your backups are set up, you have foundational infrastructure in place. Plug-ins are the next area of concern, and you must have a process in place to keep them updated. An outdated plugin or an insecure theme is the huge gateway for infiltrating your website. Updating your site components is as simple as going to your WP admin dashboard and checking for update notifications under Dashboard > Updates. Mark any themes or plugins you want to update by ticking the boxes, then click the button at the top/bottom to start updating them. Many plugins can be set to automatically update. Chose this option if available. And check monthly to verify that all plugins are updated. If a plug-in consistently fails to update, consider replacing it with a plug-in that can be more securely maintained. More important than updating your plugins and themes is keeping WordPress up to date. It’s estimated that 40% of hacked WordPress sites were exploited because WordPress was outdated. Avoid pushing off an update because it may interfere with a plugin. Lose the plugin to save your site. Pro tip: Remove the WordPress version number from your source code. By default, WordPress websites carry a meta tag containing the WordPress version number that the site is using. Why make hackers job easier? If you are using a WordPress security plugin, many of them hide your WP version automatically. 5. Install Plugins and Themes From Reliable SourcesAnother big mistake WordPress users make is getting their plugins and themes from unreliable vendors. A bad theme or plugin can corrupt, deface, or inject malware into your pages. Third-party websites and developers are not endorsed by WordPress, and as such, you never know what you’re getting. Even if a plugin is in the official directory, it is not guaranteed to be safe. Before downloading any plugin, perform due diligence. Know how often they are updated, if they are maintained and how popular they are. WPScan offers a free directory of known plugin vulnerabilities to help in your plugin review. The same is true for themes. WordPress offers a some themes in the theme repository. Only purchase original themes from reputable vendors. Avoid “nulled” WordPress plugins and themes. Nulled WordPress themes and plugins are pirated software - stolen copies of premium WordPress products sold at a discount or given away. Nulled themes and plugins pose significant security and SEO risks. They often include malicious code — spammy links, redirects to dubious websites, a backdoor that grants unauthorized access to your data, or malware that could steal confidential information or even crash your entire site. 6. Disable File EditingWordPress comes with a set of easy-to-reach theme and plugin editors. You can find them under Appearance > Theme Editor and Plugins > Plugin Editor. These allow direct access to your site’s code. These tools are useful to experienced programmers. It’s best practice to disable file editing, as hackers can use the file editor to quickly execute malicious code or delete entire parts of your website. Disabling this slows them down. You could also turn off the theme and plugin editors with one line of code in wp-config.php. If you end up needing to edit your site or plugins, just temporarily turn them back on. Alternatively, you can edit them via an FTP client. Disabling file editing won’t necessarily prevent attackers from doing damage, but it can confuse less experienced hackers and slow their attacks down allowing time for the attack to be discovered and begin eliminating the threat. 7. Secure Your Login Process Through Multi-Factor AuthenticationOne of the most common ways hackers gain access is through brute force attacks. Automated scripts are used to guess the right username and password to access your WordPress website. A successful brute force attack can give hackers access to your website’s admin area where they can install malware, steal user information, and create havoc on your site. Brute force attacks can be stymied by requiring multi-factor authentication and strong login credentials for every user. The first step to protecting your WordPress website is to add two-factor authentication (2FA). This requires users to enter a login, password and a secondary code (from an app, email, or text message) to log in to the WordPress site. There are multiple ways to set up 2-step login in WordPress. Best practice is using an authenticator app. An authenticator app is a smartphone app that generates a temporary one-time password for the accounts that you save in it. There are many apps available such as Google Authenticator or 1Password. Learn how to set up 2F authentication in this article from our friends at Hubspot. 8. Establish Strong Login Credential RequirementsLogin credentials consist of a username and password. Most of us are keenly aware, and constantly reminded of the importance of strong passwords. Usernames are an important but often overlooked security element. Think of your password and username like your home keys: If your keys are ever lost or stolen, the finder would still need to know your address before they could use the key. Brute force attacks need to break both your username and password to be successful. Using your email address as your username is like writing your address on your key fob - it streamlines the process for hackers. Username HygieneSafe usernames are unique, memorable (but not common), safely storable, not reused, do not include personal information and do not include your email address. Avoid using these common usernames:
Password HygieneJust about everything about passwords is inconvenient. Strong passwords are challenging to create, remember, store and inconvenient to access. Good password hygiene means that every user in your system creates and effectively manages every password they use. For most of us that is hundreds of passwords. And each must be long, unique and complex. That’s a lot of passwords. Without the aid of eidetic memory, people are simply not capable effective complex password management. Password managers are fantastic tool to help users and organizations successfully manage an imposing task. These secure applications create, store and generate new passwords as needed. Most password managers can sync across several devices, so users are never without an important password when they need it. Organizations can utilize a password manager app to retain control over system access, ensure that every user follows best practices, and remotely turn access on or off. There are a variety of password managers available. Currently, two of the most reputable are 1Password and Authy. 9. Lock Down Your Login PageBy default, anyone can log into your website by going to yoursite.com/wp-admin. You can stop them in their tracks by changing the URL entirely. WPS Hide Login allows you to switch it to whatever you want. Just install it and go to the plugin settings to change it. Change your login path to something unique and difficult to decipher. For many of our clients, we utilize a combination of their client code and zip code of their HW. We use 4-letter client codes so an example would be /DCHC33109 Next, install a plugin to limit login attempts. Any person can spam your server with hundreds of requests until they guess it right. A plugin that limits login attempts will give them only a few chances before they’re locked out. It can also detect and redirect bots away from your login page. Other lock-down tools you may consider deploying are:
Keep WordPress SafeIn summary: Pick a trustworthy host with secure servers, install an SSL certificate, keep your website backed up, update your plugins and themes, and make sure all logins follow secure access protocols. Do all this and hackers will never make it beyond the gate.
Has your WordPress site ever been hacked? How did you manage to reclaim your website and clean it up? We’d love to hear your story in the comments.
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In the digital era, the competition amongst manufacturing businesses to stay visible and relevant online is intensifying. Gone are the days when demand, personal relationships and trade marketing alone could carve out your market space. Today, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) stands out as a powerful tool for manufacturing companies aiming to drive more business and sales through the internet. Here's why and how SEO can be your business's most efficient investment.
TULSA, OK February 6, 2024 // Ridgemont Resources, the leading specialty pharmacy recruiting firm in the United States, has selected Grey Partners to lead it's SEO efforts and further solidify its position as a market leader. The agency is tasked with building brand legacy through an integrated experience that creates meaning behind the brand. Grey Partners will serve Ridgemont Resources by spearheading technical, on-page and off-page SEO efforts. Through this work, Grey Partners aims to build brand strength and promote growth by engaging new and existing audiences. “We have bold ambitions,” said Chris Lowers, president of Grey Partners. “We're excited to build brand love and connect with new consumers through creativity, setting the Ridgemont Resources up for success now and for generations to come.” "We sought an SEO partner with a proven track record building brand value for our clients and candidates," said Jana Rugg, Ridgemont Resources president. The partnership comes after a competitive review process. The brand said what made Grey Partners stand out was how the agency challenged the brand to think outside traditional search optimization narratives. ABOUT
Grey Partners helps organizations be found fast, impress and grow through website design, search optimization and lead generation solutions tailored to the needs of small to medium businesses. What makes us different is our focus on your customers complete journey and our integrated full-funnel services. You'll benefit from our deep, functional expertise tempered by a broad perspective, informed analysis and focus on clearly actionable strategies. MEDIA INQUIRIES: Team@GreyPartners.com SOURCE: Grey Partners Search engine optimization (SEO) is the ongoing process of optimizing your website for search engines. Many factors play into how long it takes to see significant results. In most cases, it takes 3-12 months to see consistent improvement. Learn more in this 6-minute read.
TULSA, OK AUG. 16, 2023 // NEWSWIRE // CJ Real Estate, a real estate brokerage firm serving Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri and Kansas, taps Grey Partners to provide comprehensive marketing services.Grey Partners, which has been working with CJ Real Estate parent company, Cunningham-Johnson Real Estate Auctions since 2012, will continue it’s work with the Oklahoma-based brokerage company and will expand its support to include public relations, strategic B2B and B2C communications and marketing work for all brands under the Cunningham-Johnson umbrella. The Grey Partners team will work with executive management on strategic brand communications, website development, search marketing and lead generation for the new brand. Cunningham-Johnson are pioneers in the real estate auction industry specializing in ranch, residential and commercial land sales. With the development of the American Heartland Theme Park along Interstate 44 near Vinita Oklahoma came the call for more professional land brokerage services and greater ability to serve increased need for real estate services. “Their knowledge and experience in the real estate business is outstanding and they “do not blow smoke”, they tell it like it is. We look forward to working with them in the future.” Says Gene McComb, President of the American Heartland Corp. CJ Real Estate partner. With their latest venture, CJ Real Estate brings comprehensive real estate brokerage services capable of facilitating complex acreage transactions as well as residential real estate services. Learn more at https://cj-re.com
ABOUT GREY PARTNERS: Grey Partners is a digital marketing agency that combines best-in-class expertise and to drive profitable growth for small-to-medium businesses, non-profit organizations and solo practitioners. Attract, engage and convert more people to patrons through our integrated branding, website design, SEO, search marketing, creative content, and lead-generation solutions. For additional information, visit https://www.greypartners.com MEDIA CONTACT: Team@GreyPartners.com TULSA, OK JULY 5, 2023 // NEWSWIRE // Brainerd Chemical Company, a premier chemical manufacturer recognized as a top 100 U.S. Chemical distributor, today named Grey Partners as SEO services provider. Grey Partners is charged with enhancing Brainerd Chemical’s digital footprint to build greater competitive advantage through a robust strategic digital marketing strategy.“We’ve realized that our website is a critical need. We’re excited to see how Grey Partners will help our customer find us.” Says Neil Morgan, Brainerd Chemical COO. This win is a clear indication that the agency's business outcome-focused approach to marketing translates into client success. And, it serves as a strong validation of Grey Partners leadership in the rapidly changing digital landscape. The agency's digital design, development and SEO teams are consistently at the forefront of SERP evolution, including agency-wide initiatives driving early testing and adoption of AI-powered search across Google and Microsoft's Bing. SilverTree previously handled the account. Initial campaign work from Grey Partners for Brainerd Chemical will break in the fourth quarter of this year. ABOUT BRAINERD CHEMICAL COMPANY: Brainerd Chemical Company is one of the largest independent providers of chemicals and related services in the United States. As a manufacturer and hybrid distributor with a strategic network of facilities located in Oklahoma, Illinois, North Carolina, Mississippi, and Delaware. Brainerd Chemical Companies’ dedicated team of engineers, chemists and skilled technicians are high-hazard chemistry specialists proudly leading the way in safe, responsible chemical manufacturing and supply. https://brainerdchemical.com
ABOUT GREY PARTNERS: Grey Partners is a digital marketing agency that combines best-in-class expertise and to drive profitable growth for small-to-medium businesses, non-profit organizations and solo practitioners. Attract, engage and convert more people to patrons through our integrated branding, website design, SEO, search marketing, creative content, and lead-generation solutions. For additional information, visit https://www.greypartners.com MEDIA CONTACT: Team@GreyPartners.com 6/18/2023 0 Comments Time for a website redesign?You likely found this article because you've recognized that your current website doesn't cut it anymore. Reasons for redesigning your website are unique to each situation. The most common reasons are to boost engagement, improve lead generation, increase conversions, improve your user experience, expand functionality, rebrand or simply refresh a dated site look and feel.
Whatever your why, stakeholder expectations must be clear. Website redesigns require significant resources, time, energy, and investment. Success will depend upon your organization’s ability to define an actionable strategy with specific objectives. Read on as we guide you through the essential steps of preparing for a website redesign and outline a project checklist to keep your organization on track. Who are we helping and howWho are we helping and how?
Before diving into a website overhaul, first ask who we are serving and, how can better meet their needs. Define your user groups. Who is using your site? What information are they seeking? Each user groups will take a unique user journey as they navigate through your site. Effective user groups are well-defined with clear parameters such as:
6/5/2023 0 Comments 10 Reasons Why B2B Marketers Should Invest in Digital Marketing During an Economic DownturnDigital marketing is crucial during an economic downturn because it allows you to more quickly assess what's working and what's not so that you can optimize effectiveness, minimize waste and maximize effectiveness. But what's involved, what are the best practices, and what results can a growing business expect? First, understand that B2B buyers will complete 57% - 70% of their buying research before contacting sales. Nine out of ten B2B buyers say online content has a moderate to major effect on purchasing decisions. One study found that 59% of B2B buyers would rather do research online instead of interacting with a sales rep because they think reps push their own agendas instead of actually trying to solve the customer's problem. Digital marketing means using digital channels such as your website, search engine optimization, paid search marketing and programmatic marketing to market your products and services. There are several types of digital marketing. Using them in combination is wise, but even adding one will increase your digital reach. Decide which ones make sense for your business and what you’ll be able to accomplish with your available resources. Key Digital Marketing ToolsYour Website Your website is foundational. Research confirms that 99.8% of all first customer interactions begin on a businesses website. You must know your target audience. It's vital that your site can be found fast and impress visitors with fast load times, intuitive navigation, smooth functionality and by being instantly informative. People want what they want instantly - they don't want to have to figure out your website. Make sure it loads quickly and works on both desktop and mobile. Customers skip websites that look unprofessional or make it difficult to find what they want. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is a crucial component of digital marketing. Good SEO focuses on improving a website’s visibility and ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs). Great SEO makes a website more appealing to search engines and users. The SEO process involves optimizing various aspects of a website, including its content, structure, and back-links. Job 1 is aligning your website structure and content with Google guidelines so that your site engages your best customers who want, need and buy from you." Chris Lowers, president of Grey Partners said it best, "SEO is pivotal for small businesses. Through well-maintained SEO small-to-medium businesses can compete and win, increasing their organic search visibility, attracting more targeted and highly qualified customers, and ultimately grow faster than their competition." Email Marketing Email marketing is one of the best ways to reach people interested in your business. Give customers a simple way to sign up for emails, and you can use it as a funnel for future sales. It’s a great way to communicate relevant information to those who care. Like your website, your emails should be as clean and professional-looking as possible. Email marketing is a more efficient replacement for traditional direct mail. Mailers cant be tracked and are mostly seen as spam now. Even consumers interested in your business would probably throw out your “junk” mail. Paid Search Marketing Paid advertisements are a popular way to reach customers. Typically, a company distributes your ads to the internet, and you pay them for each click they receive. This is known as pay-per-click advertising. It can quickly scale up or down for businesses of all sizes. Ad campaigns can target consumers based on demographics and interests, ensuring that the right audience sees your brand. Content Marketing Content marketing is a way to reach your audience with original media. Rather than being a direct advertisement, it focuses on related topics that draw users in. For example, it’s now commonplace for a business’s website to have a blog. Content marketing is a great way to maximize search engine optimization (SEO). Your content can be optimized to rank higher in search results, making it more likely to be clicked on. Social Media Marketing Social media has exploded over the last decade with billions of people worldwide addicted social media. It's easy for B2B advertisers to consider social media a viable marketing tool but, smart B2B marketers know that while they may receive a large volume of traffic, converting that traffic to paying customers is often challenging. Yes, a business presence on these social platforms gives you access to billions of users but what percentage will actually buy your goods or services? Well-planned social media campaigns can expose your business to mass amounts of people and are often a wonderful marketing tool for retail goods, entertainment and services but often under perform for B2B marketers. 10 Reasons to Invest in Digital Marketing1. Reach a Broader Audience. Traditional marketing has limits. Digital marketing offers the opportunity to reach more of the right audience. You can serve your advertising to potential customers with the need and desire to purchase your goods or services at the exact moment they are searching for those products. 2. Reach a More Qualified Audience. Digital marketing lets you focus on the people most likely to buy when they are shopping or researching the goods or services you offer. It's a much more efficient and effective advertising because you know your budget is being spent marketing to those who need your goods or services. Those that are interested in your business, products, or services can choose to follow your content greatly improving your marketing ROI. People also share content with others with similar interests, giving you further reach without extra digital marketing effort. 3. Increase Brand Awareness. Digital marketing offers excellent opportunities for organic brand awareness. One of the best tools is your content. Blog posts, online courses, webinars, and podcasts are a few examples. Anyone searching for suitable topics or consuming related content could organically find yours. That will expose them to your brand and reach even more people if they share it. 4. Measure Results to Focus Your Efforts. Digital marketing channels give you access to important analytics. You can see the number of clicks on your ads, how long people watched your video, where your blog post ranks in search and more. Each piece of your marketing strategy can be analyzed in-depth. This will show you how effective your methods are and allow you to weigh their benefit and cost. 5. Compete with Competitors. Keeping up with your competitors has always been important, but digital media has ramped up the race. Businesses that don’t keep track of technology or follow their analytics will quickly be left behind. Technology can change in days, opening a new marketing path or even closing one you used. 7. Cost-effective & responsive. Digital marketing is has a much lower entry cost and you can instantly tune you campaign at eny time to optimize your response. That's a huge advantage over traditioanl advertising which requires a large up-front commitment without the opportunity to optimize - if you're not getting results that's wasted money with traditional advertising. One of the significant benefits of digital marketing is its flexibility. Changing some of your content or advertising only takes a few clicks and, you're in control of all the details. 8. Scalability. Businesses of all sizes can utilize digital marketing. Some aspects will grow organically through SEO, email subscriptions and social media. You can scale the rest yourself. Some small businesses start by doing all their marketing and then hiring it out once they’ve outgrown that. 9. Establishes a Roadmap for Your Business. Planning your digital marketing will also help you plan a roadmap for your business. You’ll be able to analyze where current customers come from and where you can find new ones. It also allows you to map out your growth and create marketing targets. 10. You Can Do It Yourself. Because the barriers to entry are low with digital marketing, small and medium businesses are able to market themselves without an ad agency or hiring a marketing team. Build Your Business Through Digital MarketingDigital marketing is more than beneficial — it’s a necessity. Customers research products online. Research indicates that website visitors determine the quality of service within 2-seconds of visiting your website. Without a engaging digital marketing presence, customers won’t find you and those that do will leave and go to your competitor.
Successful businesses know that investing in digital marketing is no longer an option, it's a necessity. If your business needs help taking your digital marketing to the next level, Grey Partners is here to help. Our team will accelerate your growth by helping you attract, engage and convert more of your best customers. We are your force multiplier delivering website design, search optimization and lead generation solutions for small to medium businesses. 5/31/2023 3 Comments How to Choose the Right Digital Marketing Agency for Your Small or Medium Business.What questions should I ask before hiring a digital marketing company?The first step in choosing the right agency for you is identifying your specific marketing needs. It’s important to understand that different agencies may offer different services. Some focus on foundational tools such as websites, SEO and SEM, others may favor social media and content marketing while larger firms may offer full-stack services. Businesses should evaluate their marketing goals, review agencies that can deliver results in the areas that matter most and then choose a firm that will truly value your business rather than treat you like a number. Dr. Michael Perusich, CEO of Kats Consultants remarked, “we often think about marketing as a mechanism to accomplish a task. But, just like the need to create great relationships with your customers, the same is true when choosing your digital marketing partner. I advise my clients to avoid firms with ‘thousands of clients’. Yes, that can be reassuring to hear but, that also indicates a high-volume, cookie-cutter approach where you are just a number. Choosing a strategic partner that truly values your business will bear much more fruit for your business in the long run.” It’s difficult to be confident about what services are offered and needed, how pricing and terms are structured and most of all, what results should be expected. And with so many choices, how do you select the right professional marketing team? In this blog post we will explore the critical questions you should ask and considerations you should evaluate before selecting a digital marketing agency for your small or medium-sized business, discuss what services marketing agencies do for you, review the elements that make up an effective digital marketing strategy and, reveal standard costs and compensation structures. Understanding these points better ensures that you’re more likely to select the right partner and create a successful relationship that generates the consistent growth outcomes you’re looking for. Let's get started! When looking to hire a digital marketing company there are several things to evaluate. Look for an agency with experience in your industry, ask for examples of past work, what tools they use to track success, how often they can meet with you, the size of the agency, how they are compensated, what specifically is included and what terms are required.
What does a digital marketing agency do?Digital marketing agencies typically provide a variety of services such as website design, search optimization, search engine marketing, social media marketing, email marketing, and SEO. Niche firms specialize in providing one or several services. Full-funnel digital marketing firms will typically offer all digital services plus graphic design, copywriting, video/audio production, branding, advertising, media planning/buying as well as public relations services.
What is an effective digital marketing strategy?An effective digital marketing strategy requires careful planning, research, monitoring and goal-based adjustment. You need to define your target audience, establish your goals, choose the right channels, plan and implement your strategy, monitor and measure your results then adjust for improvement. Effective digital marketing strategies are comprised of foundational elements no matter a business’s size, target audience or industry segment. By following these steps, you will be able to create a successful digital marketing strategy that delivers results for your small or medium business. Ask agency candidates for example digital marketing plans and look for these elements:
What does it cost to hire a digital marketing agency?Digital marketing agencies typically offer two types of compensation structures: project-based & retainer-based. Project-based compensation is charged by the hour for one-time projects such as website design, branding, or social media setup. Retainer-based compensation is charged monthly for services such as content creation, social media management, and email marketing. When asked about why they chose a retainer through a full-funnel firm, Eric Johnson of CJ Real Estate said, “We struggled to realize how our website, SEO, email, events and social media - all our marketing - works together and needs to be managed as a whole. We wasted so much time and money with one-off projects and short-term focus. I’m so glad we listened to Chris Lowers and let his team get us marketing strategically. Grey Partners is a remarkable digital marketing agency – they have us off the sales roller-coaster and enjoying steady business growth. And, we’re spending about half of what we did on project work. Go figure!” Service costs are often substantially reduced by entering into a monthly retainer agreement because it offers the same benefit for both the client and agency – consistent success. Agencies know that your success is their success. One-time projects typically won’t be good for them or their clients over the long term because websites and SEO must be continuously nurtured to be consistently successful. Check out these FAQ’s to learn more about digital marketing agency pricing:
The takeaway
Before hiring a digital marketing firm, it’s crucial to do your research and ask critical questions to ensure that you end up with a firm that complements your business needs. Ask about the firm’s services, previous success stories, industry expertise, who will be managing your account, and their pricing structure. Ensure significant experience, an understanding of your goals and objectives, a commitment to be ahead of the latest trends and technology, transparency, and the ability and desire to measure success. With a clear understanding of the digital marketing firm, you’ll be more comfortable working together toward the common goal of building your brand and achieving consistent growth outcomes. 5/17/2023 0 Comments Is Weebly a Good Website Builder?Yes, provided you don't have large-scale eCommerce needs. Weebly is simple, affordable and effective. It’s an all-in-one domain, hosting and site builder able to run a powerful site – no coding or advanced knowledge required. Simplicity is the advantage and disadvantage of using Weebly. Users of any skill-level can visually assemble and launch a responsive, SEO-friendly site fast. Although not suited for large eCommerce sites, Weebly provides small-to-medium size players with a very cost-effective option. 50 million use Weebly worldwide and it is offered in 15 languages. It is ideal for professional service providers, small-to-mid size manufacturers, non-profits or similar organizations that need a great site without the carrying costs associated with site development and management. Weebly offers collaboration allowing site owners to invite people to edit specific areas of your site and assign them different levels of access. It’s a cool feature you won’t find everywhere. The site-creation tool impresses with a clear, simple drag-and-drop interface that lets you easily build excellent-looking and responsive webpages. Novice users may not realize that the design limitations that come with ease of use also provide a layer of protection against inadvertent catastrophic mistakes that are so easy for novices to make when working in WordPress or other site-builders with more challenges structures and easy code access. Weebly offers a fair selection of template designs and integrated e-commerce tools. If you’re not able to find just the right theme from Weebly, third-party themes from platforms such as ThemeForest and WebFire give you more options – be aware that these may require more technical knowledge to implement. And, additional functionality is available through Weebly’s app center. You can find over 350 apps and integrations for site-tools, social media, pop-ups, SEO, calendars, appointments, eCommerce and more. Advanced users can customize HTML and CSS files providing greater control over website layout for users with developer skills. Weebly is fast with outstanding 99.9% uptime. Many site builders fail on this point but our testing revealed response rates in the United States from 3ms to 81ms. Outside the US speeds averaged 136.8 ms. SEO functionality is built right into the Weebly platform. Just like any site, the ability to rank highly on search engine results pages (SERPs), comes down to what’s in it. Factors like keywords, site content, and links are all critical elements of effective SEO. If you install the MarketGoo App, you can get a free SEO analysis report of your published site. What the Experts Say PC Mag rates Weebly as a good website builder with a 3.5 star rating citing well-rounded features with limited customization. Software analysts Michael Muchmore & Jordan Minor concluded that, “Weebly is an easy-to-use builder. It lets you create and publish attractive, responsive design sites, blogs and online stores, but could use more themes and a better photo repository. Website development expert Sophia Conti feels that “Weebly is one of the best ways for beginners to build a website that looks and acts like it was built by an expert. It still has some limitations, but if you want to keep costs low and have all your tools in one place, Weebly could be the way to go,” giving Weebly 4.6 stars. PROS
The Bottom Line At the end of the day, choosing between an all-in-one site builder and a custom-built site comes down to your resources and budget. If you’re looking for simple and affordable, or you’re a one-person marketing team, Weebly is an excellent choice. You’ll be able to create a nice-looking website that can be optimized to attract web traffic, without spending a lot of time or money. On the other hand, if you aren’t restricted by expertise and are able to handle building and managing your site in-house, WordPress may give you more of what you're looking for. |
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