Tag: content marketing

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Digital Marketing

What Makes Social Link Nashville’s Leading Marketing Agency

Images of social media apps on a phone
Images of social media apps on a phone

Fueled by creativity and driven by strategy, Social Link’s full-service, award-winning marketing agency is designed to serve the most important aspect of our work — our customers. 

Since 2008, Social Link has been assisting businesses with our suite of marketing services meant to fast track our clients past the competition. Becoming Nashville’s leading marketing agency wasn’t easy, and holding our spot at the top has been even more challenging. 

However, after years of maximizing our clients’ potential, creating cutting edge campaigns, capitalizing on data-driven insights, and most importantly, utilizing our team of talented marketing experts, Social Link has cemented itself as the premier marketing agency in Nashville. 

  1. The Process

Social Link’s experienced team of marketing specialists are the backbone of our process, vaulting our core set of offerings over the competition. With this talented team uniting to offer ten core marketing, design, and development services, Social Link has the most versatile set of resources for you and your business. 

But here’s our big secret — our process is your process. Social Link is designed to understand your needs, your audience, and your strengths in order to curate a marketing strategy finely tuned for your business. 


Social Link has proven itself as the most versatile marketing agency in the area — so whether it’s creating memorable social media content, stop-you-in-your tracks branding, or sophisticated website designs, we’ve got you covered. Let’s take a look at all of our services that place us above the rest with a bit more detail. 

  • Marketing Strategy: Social Link’s marketing strategy process involves evaluating our clients’ needs, objectives, and customer base in order to not only work for you, but partner with you. At Social Link, we know customers are key, so we’ll build personas based around your audience, and use strategies through channels that work best for you. From there, it’s all about creating campaign goals, then delivering on them. 
  • Branding & Graphics: Eye-popping visuals that capture audiences’ attention are crucial to grabbing and keeping customers around your business. Thankfully, Social Link uses its team of designers to either redefine your brand or expand upon it. 
  • Social Media: While everyone has a social media presence, they might not have the expertise of Social Link’s social media team to make their business pop on feeds everywhere. We develop specific sets of goals for businesses and use expert tactics to deliver on those goals.
  • Lead Gen: Social Link offers cutting-edge resources like CRM software, Pay Per Click tactics, smart email marketing and more in order to generate leads for businesses around Nashville and beyond. 
  • SEO & SEM: It’s all about putting our clients at the top of the results page, and thanks to site audits and our SEO expertise, Social Link puts you first. 
  • Video: One of our specialties, Social Link crafts powerful video productions that align with your marketing goals in order to elevate your business through visual storytelling. 
  • Website Development & Design: From the technical to the fine touches, Social Link stays with clients through every stage of the web development and design process. Specializing in creating tailored online solutions that grab the eye and empower your business, Social Link pushes the boundaries of web development. 
  • UI Design: Whether it’s on your phone, tablet, or laptop, your site should be reachable, readable, and responsive at all times, that’s where Social Link’s refining process for UI design shines. 
  • App Development & Design: Nowadays there’s an app for everything, and there should be one for your business, too. Collaborating with clientele on their vision for their dream app, Social Link can make them a reality. 
  1. The Product

Social Link’s versatile suite of marketing services creates a work process that is unique for each and every client. But enough talking, we’ll let our work speak for itself. 

From down the street to across the globe, Social Link has deployed marketing campaigns for businesses since 2008 and there’s no slowing down now. While we’re not afraid of partnering with businesses around the world, here’s a few examples of our local work, showing why Social Link is the best in Music City. 

  • Kitty Hawk: Social Link was honored to create the branding for Nashville Airport’s newest eatery, Kitty Hawk Eat + Drink. From start to finish, we took pride in designing this playful, yet sophisticated dining option. Branding strategy, logo design, concept development, and package design were all a part of Social Link’s process in designing this airport eatery. 
  • The Titans Press Box: As our second endeavor at Nashville’s airport, Social Link was able to treat even more BNA travelers, this time with The Titans Press Box. In a collaboration with the Tennessee Titans, we crossed the franchise’s already strong brand with an immersive dining experience through brand assets such as coasters, paintings, and other decorations that put The Titans Press Box at the top of flyers’ lists. 
  • John W. McDougall: Social Link is proud to say we helped add more to an already revered Nashville business in John W. McDougall. As an industry leader in metal manufacturing and fabrication, our team sat down with the legacy brand to craft a new logo, a reimagined web presence, social media marketing tactics and most importantly, an overhaul to their overall brand. 
  1. The People

While we’re proud of our process and the final products it produces, Social Link would be nothing without the people behind it all. 

Our team is composed of industry-leading experts who specialize in each of our core functions. From designers, to influencers, to website-builders, we’re used to maximizing our talents to craft results bigger than ourselves. Powered by teamwork, dedication, creativity, and a can-do attitude, our fun-filled work environment is one that fosters innovation and collaboration in order to get the best results for our clients. 

Speaking of our clients — Social Link takes pride in creating tailor-made marketing strategies by working hand-in-hand with the businesses we partner with. We pride ourselves on providing exceptional customer service that’s focused on transparent communication and constant check-ins. 

Simply said, we’re nothing without our clients. So while we have national reach, Social Link has used its experts to ascend to the spot of Nashville’s leading marketing agency, and there’s no stopping us now. 

Categories
Digital Marketing Online Marketing

The Role of Resolutions: How Brands Can Tap into New Year’s Goals

Confetti and decorative items scattered on the floor, symbolizing celebration and the New Year.
Festive confetti scattered on the floor, representing the excitement and joy of the New Year.

The New Year is the ultimate season for fresh starts, bold ambitions, and setting goals. For brands, this period presents an incredible opportunity to connect with consumers. With millions of people setting New Year’s resolutions—whether it’s getting in shape, improving finances, or developing new skills—businesses can align their products and services to support these aspirations. By addressing these goals, brands can craft authentic campaigns that resonate deeply with their audience.

Why New Year’s Resolutions Are a Marketing Goldmine

Every January, people across the globe set resolutions that reflect their goals and challenges for the coming year. This creates a prime opportunity for brands to position their products and services as tools for achieving these goals. From fitness and financial growth to personal development, aligning your offerings with these aspirations can boost brand relevance and build trust with your audience.

For example, studies have shown that fitness resolutions are among the most common goals people set each year, creating a natural fit for health and wellness brands. Similarly, marketers can explore the psychology behind New Year’s resolutions to craft campaigns that motivate and inspire action. Brands that show genuine support for these resolutions not only foster loyalty but also drive sales during this optimistic season.

Aligning Your Brand with Popular Resolutions

1. Fitness and Wellness Goals

Staying active and improving health are among the most popular resolutions. Businesses in the fitness and wellness sectors can use this opportunity to engage with consumers who are ready to make a change.

Fitness gear brands can promote “New Year, New You” sales, while gyms might offer discounted memberships to encourage sign-ups. Wellness apps like meditation platforms can highlight how starting the year with a clear mind can set the tone for success. According to Shape, fitness-related resolutions are not only common but also highly motivating for consumers.

If your business is exploring these strategies, you might also find value in learning how to craft a perfect New Year’s marketing campaign.

2. Financial Planning and Savings Goals

Improving financial health is another frequent resolution for the New Year. Personal finance apps can highlight tools for budgeting and saving, while banks might offer incentives for opening savings accounts. Financial advisors could host free webinars on how to set realistic financial goals.

To understand what motivates these resolutions, NerdWallet provides helpful tips on creating effective financial strategies. Adopting digital marketing tips tailored to financial services for businesses in this niche can amplify your reach.

3. Skill Development and Learning

Learning new skills or improving professional expertise is another common resolution. Platforms offering online courses can promote discounted classes on in-demand topics like coding, design, or leadership development. Career-focused brands can also use free resources, such as eBooks or webinars, to attract and nurture leads.

As online learning trends continue to grow, brands can draw inspiration to stay ahead of the curve. Additionally, offering engaging educational content can help you reach new audiences effectively.

4. Personal Development and Mental Health

From better time management to reducing stress, personal growth is a key resolution for many. Journaling brands, for example, can position their planners as essential tools for tracking progress and achieving goals. Mental health platforms might offer free trials to encourage exploration of their services, while productivity apps can emphasize the importance of staying organized for success.

For insights into why these resolutions resonate, Psychology Today delves into the science of goal setting and self-improvement. On your own platform, sharing mindfulness and productivity marketing tips can keep audiences engaged.

Best Practices for New Year’s Resolutions Marketing

  1. Be Inspirational: Create uplifting campaigns that inspire confidence and excitement for the year ahead.
  2. Leverage Personalization: Use data to craft messages tailored to individual needs. For instance, an email might feature resolutions like “Save More in 2024 with [Brand Name].”
  3. Show Tangible Results: Include testimonials, success stories, and case studies to highlight how your brand delivers on promises.
  4. Create Urgency: Time-limited promotions like “Start the Year Right – Offer Ends Soon!” can drive conversions.

Measuring Campaign Success

Track your campaign’s effectiveness using these metrics:

  • Conversion rates on resolution-focused offers.
  • Engagement on social media (likes, shares, and comments).
  • Website traffic from related promotions.

Aligning Your Brand with Resolutions

By connecting your brand to New Year’s resolutions, you can foster meaningful relationships with your audience. Whether it’s helping them achieve fitness goals, master their finances, or develop new skills, your products and services can become essential tools for success. With a thoughtful strategy, New Year’s resolutions marketing can pave the way for a prosperous year—for both your business and your customers.

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Branding Digital Marketing Video Marketing

The Rise of the Holiday TV Commercial: How Classic Ads Shaped Consumer Behavior

A close-up of a glowing lantern lamp, evoking warmth and nostalgia during the holiday season.
A glowing lantern sets the mood for cozy holiday celebrations.

Holiday commercials have become a beloved tradition, sparking nostalgia, fostering emotional connections, and significantly influencing consumer behavior. From early iconic TV ads to the modern, emotionally driven holiday commercials that dominate social media, these campaigns have reshaped how we view gift-giving, shopping, and even holiday traditions. But what makes these ads so impactful?

This blog explores the history of holiday TV ads, their cultural influence, and what marketers can learn from their success. Along the way, we’ll highlight brands like Coca-Cola, John Lewis, Hershey’s, and M&M’s that mastered the art of storytelling to create unforgettable holiday moments.

The Emotional Connection: How Holiday Ads Tap Into Nostalgia

The most successful holiday commercials are those that stir deep emotions, often using nostalgia, warmth, and togetherness to resonate with audiences. For example, the John Lewis Christmas commercials in the UK have set a gold standard in emotional marketing. Beginning in 2007, these annual campaigns often tell heartfelt stories paired with soft, evocative music.

Classic examples like The Bear and the Hare (2013) and Man on the Moon (2015) illustrate how these ads make the holidays feel personal and magical. These campaigns don’t just promote products—they evoke a feeling.

For marketers, this is a reminder that emotional storytelling creates strong brand loyalty. Whether through touching visuals or compelling music, connecting with viewers on an emotional level ensures long-term engagement.

The Power of Simplicity: Hershey’s Kisses Bells

Simplicity often outshines complexity, and Hershey’s Kisses proved this with their 1989 ad featuring “We Wish You a Merry Christmas.” The ad, showing Hershey’s Kisses ringing like bells, has remained a staple of holiday advertising for over three decades.

The success of this ad lies in its minimalism. It uses a straightforward concept to build an emotional association with the holidays, demonstrating that less is often more. For brands overwhelmed by the competitive holiday landscape, this is a powerful lesson.

To create impactful videos like Hershey’s, consider working with experts to bring your vision to life. Visit Social Link’s video production services for creative support.

Humor and Whimsy: M&M’s Holiday Magic

Humor can be just as powerful as sentimentality. The iconic M&M’s Christmas Commercial featuring the animated M&M characters provides a lighthearted take on holiday traditions.

This approach works because it appeals to a broad audience, making the holiday season feel approachable and fun. Incorporating humor can help brands stand out in a crowded marketplace, offering a memorable and relatable message that viewers are eager to share.

Building Holiday Traditions: Coca-Cola’s Iconic Campaigns

Coca-Cola has been a leader in holiday advertising for decades, from the Coca-Cola Santa Claus campaign to the Holiday Truck commercials. Coca-Cola’s ability to weave its brand into the holiday season is unmatched.

The Coca-Cola Santa Claus campaign is particularly noteworthy for how it redefined Santa Claus’s modern image. By associating their brand with the warmth, joy, and generosity of the season, Coca-Cola created a campaign that became a holiday tradition. To learn more about this iconic campaign, check out our blog on Coca-Cola’s Santa Claus.

Marketers aiming to replicate such success need a strong campaign strategy. Learn how Social Link can help you build a strategic plan that connects with your audience and drives results.

The Role of Music in Holiday Ads

Music is an integral part of holiday commercials, often elevating their emotional impact. The John Lewis Christmas ads are famous for pairing touching visuals with nostalgic songs like “Somewhere Only We Know.”

The right music can make an ad unforgettable, leaving a lasting impression that viewers associate with the brand for years to come. For marketers, this is a reminder to prioritize sound design when crafting campaigns.

Key Lessons for Modern Marketers

Holiday TV commercials offer timeless lessons for today’s marketers:

  1. Evoke Powerful Emotions: Align your campaign with emotions like nostalgia and joy.
  2. Simplify Your Message: Simplicity often resonates more than elaborate concepts.
  3. Use Humor Wisely: Humor can make your brand relatable and memorable.
  4. Build Traditions: Create ads that become a part of your audience’s holiday season.

At Social Link, we specialize in crafting emotionally resonant campaigns, from strategic planning to video production. Let us help you bring your brand’s holiday vision to life. Visit our Marketing Strategy page to get started.

Conclusion: The Enduring Power of Holiday Commercials

The rise of the holiday TV commercial is a testament to the power of storytelling, nostalgia, and emotional connection. Brands like Coca-Cola, John Lewis, and Hershey’s have shown us that great holiday ads are more than just marketing—they’re cultural moments.

As you plan your next campaign, draw inspiration from these iconic commercials. By crafting a meaningful, memorable story, your brand can create a holiday tradition that resonates with audiences for years to come.

Categories
Branding Digital Marketing

Coca-Cola’s Santa Claus: Redefining a Cultural Icon

A Coca-Cola can lying on ice, showcasing the iconic red label and branding.
A classic Coca-Cola can resting on a bed of ice, showcasing its refreshing appeal.

When it comes to holiday marketing, few campaigns have left as indelible a mark as the Coca-Cola Santa Claus campaign. In the 1930s, Coca-Cola’s partnership with artist Haddon Sundblom not only revolutionized advertising but also forever changed how the world envisions Santa Claus. This legendary Coca-Cola Santa Claus campaign is a masterclass in branding, cultural influence, and emotional storytelling. Here, we delve into its history, impact, and the lessons modern marketers can draw from its enduring success.

The Birth of Coca-Cola’s Santa

Before Coca-Cola’s campaign, Santa Claus’s image was inconsistent. Some depictions showed him as a tall, thin figure, while others portrayed him as a small, elf-like character. In 1931, Coca-Cola set out to create a version of Santa that embodied their brand values of warmth, happiness, and refreshment.

To achieve this, Coca-Cola commissioned Haddon Sundblom, an artist renowned for his vibrant and lifelike illustrations. Inspired by Clement Clarke Moore’s poem “A Visit from St. Nicholas” (commonly known as “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas”), Sundblom painted Santa as a jolly, plump figure in a red suit with twinkling eyes and a warm smile. The resulting image captured the magic of the holidays and was an instant success.

Explore the official history of Coca-Cola’s Santa and browse archived illustrations here.

Why It Worked

  1. Emotional Connection
    Coca-Cola’s Santa embodied the spirit of the holidays: generosity, joy, and togetherness. These ads went beyond selling soda—they sold the feeling of Christmas. By associating their brand with such cherished emotions, the Coca-Cola Santa Claus campaign created a lasting emotional bond with their audience.
  2. Consistency
    One of the most remarkable aspects of the campaign was its unwavering consistency. Year after year, Coca-Cola featured Sundblom’s Santa in their holiday advertisements, reinforcing their association with the festive season. This repetition established Coca-Cola as a staple of holiday traditions.
  3. Cultural Impact
    The Coca-Cola Santa Claus campaign didn’t just define the brand—it redefined Santa Claus. The red suit, jovial demeanor, and overall aesthetic became the global standard for how Santa is portrayed. By aligning their brand with a universally beloved cultural figure, Coca-Cola achieved unparalleled influence.

The Legacy of Coca-Cola’s Santa

Even decades later, the Coca-Cola Santa Claus campaign remains a powerful holiday symbol. Sundblom’s original paintings are preserved as cultural treasures, and the campaign continues to inspire marketers worldwide. Coca-Cola demonstrated how a brand could weave itself into the fabric of holiday traditions, ensuring their message resonates for generations.

Discover more about Coca-Cola’s legacy with these YouTube holiday ads and curated collections of Santa-themed memorabilia on Pinterest.

Lessons for Modern Marketers

  1. Evoke Powerful Emotions
    Align your brand with universal emotions like nostalgia, joy, and generosity. Emotional connections ensure your message endures.
  2. Maintain Consistency
    Repetition of themes, visuals, and messages helps reinforce your brand identity and builds trust with consumers. Consistency can turn your campaign into a beloved tradition.
  3. Achieve Cultural Relevance
    The most successful campaigns don’t just sell products—they shape culture. Aspire to create content that becomes an integral part of your audience’s lives and traditions.

For marketers looking to replicate this level of impact, crafting a cohesive and culturally relevant strategy is essential. Learn how Social Link can help you design campaigns that resonate by visiting our Marketing Strategy page.

How Social Link Can Help

At Social Link, we specialize in crafting marketing strategies that connect brands to their audiences through compelling storytelling and innovative campaigns. Whether you’re looking to establish a consistent brand image or create emotionally engaging content, we have the expertise to guide you.

Visit our services page to see how we can help your brand create marketing campaigns that inspire, engage, and drive results.

Conclusion

The Coca-Cola Santa Claus campaign exemplifies how advertising can transcend commerce to become a cultural phenomenon. By creating an emotional connection, maintaining consistency, and influencing cultural perceptions, Coca-Cola didn’t just sell soda—they defined the holiday season for generations.

For marketers today, this iconic Coca-Cola Santa Claus campaign offers timeless lessons on the power of creativity, emotional resonance, and strategic execution. At Social Link, we’re here to help you apply these principles and build your own unforgettable campaigns. Let’s make your brand a holiday tradition.

Categories
Digital Marketing

2025 Local Marketing Trends: What Businesses Need to Know

Digital Marketing’ sign displayed on a wooden desk, symbolizing the evolution of local marketing strategies heading into 2025.
Embracing future-focused strategies—from hyper-personalization to AI-driven outreach—will help local businesses thrive in 2025.

In an increasingly hyper-local world, small and midsize businesses can’t rely solely on broad, generic strategies to stand out. As we approach 2025, successful local marketing will be less about casting wide nets and more about targeting the right customers in the right places at the right times. Gone are the days when a simple Google Business Profile or a handful of community events guaranteed a steady stream of foot traffic. Instead, business owners must embrace emerging technologies, demographic shifts, and new patterns of consumer behavior.

This guide explores the most significant local marketing trends poised to shape 2025. From tapping into hyper-personalized content and AI-driven outreach to leveraging new social platforms and local commerce features, we’ll break down what these changes mean for your business—and provide actionable steps to help you stay ahead of the curve.

Let’s get you started on upcoming 2025 local marketing trends!

1. Hyper-Personalization at the Neighborhood Level

Consumers crave relevance. By 2025, blanket promotions will lose effectiveness and be replaced by hyper-personalized marketing that varies by neighborhood, interest group, and even individual block.

Key Tactics:

  • Localized Landing Pages: Instead of a single website page serving all audiences, create neighborhood-specific landing pages. Highlight unique offers, and testimonials from customers in that area, and store images for authenticity.
  • Geo-Targeted Ads: Use geofencing technology to deliver mobile ads to users near your store or within a defined radius. Craft ads that reference local landmarks, events, or sports teams for instant relevancy.
  • Content Tailored to Community Interests: If you operate a local bakery, consider blogging about neighborhood farmers’ markets or seasonal community festivals. Incorporate city-specific keywords for improved search rankings and stronger local connections.

Why It Matters:
Hyper-personalization ensures that customers feel seen, understood, and valued. This approach builds trust and goodwill, increasing the likelihood they’ll choose your business over a generic competitor.

2. AI-Driven Customer Engagement

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing how businesses interact with customers. As chatbots, voice assistants, and predictive analytics become more advanced and affordable, local businesses can leverage AI to make smarter marketing decisions and offer better customer support.

Practical Implementations:

  • Chatbots for Local Recommendations: Implement AI-powered chatbots on your website or messaging apps to answer FAQs, give personalized product recommendations, or guide users to the nearest storefront location.
  • Predictive Offerings: Analyze customer purchase histories and online behavior to predict what they’ll want next. Offer personalized discounts or remind them of seasonal maintenance services before they even realize they need them.
  • Voice Search Optimization: With the rise of voice assistants, ensure your website and Google Business Profile are optimized for voice queries. Include natural language keywords and “near me” phrases in your content.

Impact on Local Marketing:

AI helps businesses operate more efficiently, segment audiences, and anticipate customer needs. By 2025, harnessing AI will be a hallmark of competitive local brands, enabling them to deliver superior customer experiences around the clock.

3. Video Marketing Takes Center Stage

Video has long been a powerful marketing tool, but its role in local marketing is set to intensify. Short-form videos, live streams, and hyper-local video ads are fast becoming the go-to format for engaging local customers.

Winning Video Formats:

  • Behind-the-Scenes Content: Show customers how your products are made, introduce your team, or give a tour of your workspace. Authenticity resonates with local audiences who appreciate transparency and community spirit.
  • Customer Testimonials & Case Studies: Highlight satisfied local clients or share mini-documentaries that showcase community initiatives you’ve supported.
  • Reels & TikTok Shorts: Short, snappy videos on platforms like Instagram Reels or TikTok can quickly grab attention and encourage sharing among your target community.

Why It Works for Local:

People love seeing businesses as part of their neighborhood fabric. Video humanizes your brand, turning casual viewers into loyal patrons who feel connected to your story.

Need Help with your next Video?

4. Social Commerce on Niche Platforms

By 2025, social media isn’t just for branding—it’s for selling. While Facebook and Instagram remain strong channels, emerging platforms and localized social networks are gaining traction. With integrated shopping features, users can discover, learn about, and purchase products without leaving their favorite apps.

Recommended Approaches:

  • Facebook and Instagram Shops: Ensure your product catalog is fully integrated into social platforms. Tag products in posts and Stories so customers can easily tap, view details, and buy.
  • Local Social Groups: Join or create community-focused Facebook or Nextdoor groups. Offer exclusive local discounts, respond to member questions, and build relationships that lead to recurring sales.
  • Influencer Collaborations: Partner with local micro-influencers who have built loyal, regional followings. Their endorsement can boost credibility and drive in-store or online traffic.

The Local Advantage:

Social commerce collapses the marketing funnel—discovery, evaluation, and purchase can happen in a single session. For small businesses, this level of convenience and immediacy can outpace traditional marketing methods.

5. Sustainable and Community-Centric Messaging

Consumers are placing greater emphasis on sustainability, social responsibility, and community well-being. By 2025, local businesses that authentically integrate these values into their branding and storytelling will attract more loyal customers.

Actionable Steps:

  • Highlight Local Sourcing: If you run a restaurant or café, emphasize your partnerships with local farms, breweries, or artisans. Show how buying from you supports the neighborhood economy.
  • Eco-Friendly Initiatives: Communicate efforts to reduce waste, use eco-friendly packaging, or support local environmental groups. Transparency here encourages consumers to choose your brand over less community-focused alternatives.
  • Host Local Events: Sponsor local charity runs, hold meet-and-greets with local professionals, or run workshops that educate customers about sustainable choices.

Why It Matters:

A strong community-centric narrative not only differentiates you but also encourages word-of-mouth recommendations. Customers are more likely to become brand ambassadors when they believe in your mission.

6. Enhanced Local SEO and “Near Me” Optimization

Local search continues to evolve. By 2025, “near me” searches and voice commands will be even more common. Optimizing your online presence for local queries ensures your business remains visible at the exact moment customers are ready to buy.

Local SEO Best Practices:

  • Claim and Update Your Google Business Profile: Keep your hours, address, phone number, and services up-to-date. Add high-quality images and respond promptly to reviews.
  • Hyper-Localized Keywords: Incorporate your city, neighborhood, and street-level details in meta descriptions, title tags, and headings.
  • FAQ Schema and Q&A Sections: Answer common local queries directly on your site. Structured data markup can help search engines highlight your content in featured snippets, improving click-through rates.

The Result:

Better local SEO ensures you show up when it counts. The more visible you are in these “decision-making moments,” the more foot traffic and inquiries you’ll receive.

7. Hybrid Online-Offline Experiences

As boundaries between online and offline experiences blur, businesses that create seamless transitions will gain a competitive edge. Customers may discover you via social media, check inventory online, and then visit your physical store the same day.

Ideas for Integration:

  • Buy Online, Pick Up In-Store (BOPIS): Let customers purchase on your website and collect their products at your storefront. This convenience bridges the digital and physical worlds.
  • Virtual Consultations: Offer online appointments or virtual product demos that lead to in-person visits. This approach is ideal for service providers like salons, gyms, or medical practices.
  • In-Store QR Codes: Provide QR codes that customers can scan to learn more about products, read reviews, or access special discounts, enhancing the in-person shopping experience.

Outcome:

This hybrid strategy creates a fluid customer journey. By meeting consumers wherever they are—online or offline—you’ll foster stronger loyalty and higher conversion rates.

8. Data-Driven Decision Making

As digital touchpoints multiply, businesses have more data at their fingertips than ever before. But data alone is meaningless without interpretation and action. By 2025, local marketing success hinges on your ability to turn data into insights that inform every aspect of your strategy.

How to Leverage Data:

  • Track Customer Behavior: Use analytics tools to see which pages get the most visits, what products sell fastest, and how seasonal trends affect foot traffic.
  • A/B Testing: Test different headlines, images, or CTAs on your landing pages. Small tweaks can lead to significant improvements in conversions and sales.
  • CRM & Personalization: Implement a Customer Relationship Management system to segment customers, tailor email campaigns, and send personalized offers based on past purchases.

The Payoff:

Data-informed strategies reduce guesswork and enable you to invest marketing resources where they’ll have the greatest impact.

How Social Link Can Help

Navigating the evolving landscape of local marketing in 2025 can be daunting, but you don’t have to go it alone. At Social Link, we specialize in helping businesses thrive in their local communities. Our comprehensive services include:

  • Local SEO & Content Strategy: We’ll optimize your Google Business Profile, integrate hyper-local keywords, and develop a content roadmap that resonates with your target audience.
  • AI-Driven Campaigns: From personalized chatbots to predictive analytics, we’ll help you implement AI tools that streamline operations and enhance customer satisfaction.
  • Video & Social Commerce Integration: Our creative team can produce compelling video content and set up seamless social commerce features to drive sales and engagement.
  • Brand Development & Messaging: We’ll refine your brand voice to highlight your community values, ensuring that every aspect of your marketing reflects your commitment to local customers.

With Social Link’s expertise, you can stay ahead of 2025’s local marketing trends—transforming challenges into opportunities and ensuring your business remains the top choice in your community.

Conclusion

By 2025, the most successful local businesses will be those that evolve quickly, embrace new technologies, and address the changing expectations of their communities. Hyper-personalization, AI-driven outreach, video storytelling, social commerce, community-centric branding, and seamless online-offline integration form the bedrock of tomorrow’s local marketing strategies.

Whether you’re a neighborhood café, a boutique retail store, or a professional service firm, staying informed and adaptable is crucial. Apply these insights now, and position yourself for sustainable growth and ongoing relevance in the years to come.

Categories
Social Media Social Media Marketing Uncategorized

Why you need a Social Media Manager

Whether you are an individual or a business trying to boost your digital marketing strategy, hiring a social media manager has many benefits. With millions of businesses actively advertising on online platforms, it is essential to have a plan in place to strengthen your online marketing game. A social media manager can go a long way to firmly establish your business and provide valuable content to market your brand efficiently. 

Business owners have to wear many hats to keep their businesses afloat. So even if you deeply understand organic social media growth, you may not have the time to manage it on your own. Fortunately, you can rely on the expertise of a social media manager to assist you in bringing your brand name to the masses through the power of social media. 

Who is a Social Media Manager?

A social media manager is responsible for managing and maintaining the social media accounts of a company. They oversee many processes, including strategizing, posting content, customer engagement, and more. Their ultimate goal is to boost a company’s social media presence using the right tools and provide online content that aligns with its objectives. 

Benefits of Hiring a Social Media Manager

Save Time

The first thing you will notice after hiring a social media manager is how much time you are saving by delegating your tasks to professionals. When running a business, staying on top of every aspect of your venture can take a lot of work. A social media manager can oversee everything from creating posts to planning strategies and following trends so that you can steer your focus toward more critical tasks. 

As important as catering to every aspect of your business is, it is equally important to manage your time wisely. A social media manager can streamline your marketing tactics, giving you more time to give to other elements of your business. 

Boost Brand Recognition

Every niche comes with its set of limitations and competition. However, you might be surprised that specific industries sport rather fierce competition. Hiring a social media manager is a no-brainer if you are involved with such niches and would like to boost the appeal of your business. 

Social media managers will ensure to depict your brand’s image in the right light, and that other people recognize the true essence of your company. They are not just responsible for creating engaging content for your business but also monitor the response from other people and fine-tune your marketing strategies accordingly. 

Create Engaging Content

Consistency is the key to succeeding in any online market. For your business to stay afloat in this competitive era, it is imperative to keep pushing fresh and engaging content to your followers. However, it becomes challenging to grow followers if you are not engaging with them regularly. 

Outsourcing your social media management duties to a professional team allows you to steer your focus away from content curation and toward more pressing tasks. It is also worth noting that publishing low-quality content can dissipate your audience’s interest. A social media manager can help you avoid such a situation by updating your account optimally. 

Manage Customers in Real-Time

It is hard to overstate the importance of good customer service. No matter your niche, the likelihood of customers returning is higher after a positive experience with your company. Good customer service can go a long way to strengthening the foundation of a business. 

With a social media manager taking care of your company’s best interest, you do not have to fuss about responding to customer comments, complaints, or requests. They can boost your brand’s appeal in simple but effective ways, such as by cutting down customer wait times and resolving their queries promptly. 

Reporting and Tracking

Hiring a social media manager is a great way to improve your existing campaign and fine-tune your online content to align with your company’s values. They can keep your brand agile – by switching strategies, outlining long-term goals, and boosting engagement with followers – and provide real-time reports on your campaign. 

Based on feedback from visitors, they will mold your marketing campaign to reflect your services/products and values better. At the end of the day, their efforts will provide tremendous value to your business and root out underperforming strategies. 

While you may be capable of envisioning the right path for your company’s online profile, having someone contribute their 100% to your brand’s image and objectives can yield much better results in the long run. If you are unsure where to start, consider working with a marketing agency like Social Link, which can help you implement the right marketing strategies on social media platforms. We offer the best-in-class social media marketing services to help your business grow sustainably. Contact us today to learn more or get started. 

Categories
Digital Marketing News

Social Link Receives Awards As Best Digital Marketing Agency in Tennessee

Social Link has been awarded as the best digital marketing agency in Tennessee. This month, they have received two awards for their excellence in digital marketing, including the UpCity “Best of Tennessee Award” and the Expertise “Best Digital Marketing Agencies in Nashville.”

UpCity is a company that recognizes and awards businesses that have excelled in their work within a certain focus area. The coveted UpCity award is given to businesses that have shown excellence and gone above and beyond in their field. Expertise.com has done the research and compiled a list of qualified and quantified professionals that readers can trust. By featuring only the best of the best, the Expertise.com award guarantees the quality of your business and the work done.

These awards are significant to Social Link because they recognize their marketing efforts throughout this year within their community and globally. As a full-service marketing agency, Social Link offers an array of services such as social media marketing, content marketing, and digital marketing. Their team of experts works hard to create custom strategies for their clients that are not only effective but also unique to their brand. These awards are a testament to their dedication to providing quality service and results for their clients. 

A Nashville digital marketing company that started in 2009, Social Link aims to be a one-stop marketing agency for any business. They offer professional resources and services to help start, grow, or scale their business model. Whether their client’s focus is Website Development, Social Media Management, Search Engine Optimization or any other digital marketing strategies that you need, Social Link has experts to help any company succeed. Their mission is to ensure alignment between their client’s marketing efforts and business goals.

Throughout the years Social Link has had business growth that has allowed the company to expand its reach to more than just Nashville. Today, Social Link has helped businesses in Fort Lauderdale, Tampa, Memphis, and internationally.

Social Link is a digital marketing company that helps clients achieve their marketing goals. With a small but mighty team, Social Link understands the importance of creating a strong relationship with their clients. Social Link’s team is of skilled and experienced professionals who are dedicated to helping clients reach their target audiences through various digital channels. Social Link specializes in creating and executing customized marketing plans that are designed to achieve specific objectives.

Social Link Offers a Wide Range Of Services

Social Link is honored to be named one of the best digital marketing companies by UpCity and Expertise.com. This recognition is a reflection of our commitment to providing high-quality services to our clients. We offer a wide range of services, including branding and graphics, marketing strategy, social media, lead gen, SEO/SMM, video, website design, app design, UI/UX design, website development, and app development.

Preview of our Services:

Marketing Strategy: The first step in taking your great idea to action is developing a strategic marketing plan. As your Digital Marketing Agency, we work with you and your team to understand your business objectives and customer base. From there, we provide a custom strategic marketing plan to achieve your goals.

Branding & Graphics: As a digital marketing company, we understand that every business needs its unique brand that speaks to your company’s values. We bring your message to life with our creative, colorful, and engaging designs. Social Link specializes in creating content that will capture your audience’s attention and leave a lasting impression.

Social Media: Social media is a great way for businesses to connect with potential customers and clients. Social Link helps businesses boost engagement and reach new audiences. With our help, you can maximize the impact of your social media campaigns and connect with your target audience in a more meaningful way.

Lead Gen: We help our clients create interest in their products or services through targeted online marketing campaigns. By reaching out to potential customers and providing them with valuable information, we’re able to generate leads that can be converted into sales. If you’re looking for help generating leads, Social Link is the perfect partner. We’ll work with you to create a customized digital marketing campaign that will reach your target audience and generate the results you’re looking for.

SEO: We have a team of experienced and knowledgeable SEO experts who are dedicated to helping our clients achieve their desired results. We optimize and ensure that your website works with Search Engines.

Video: We can create anything your business needs, from short product clips to full-scale commercials. Our team of professional videographers and editors are passionate about what they do, and they have the experience and expertise to produce top-notch videos that will help your business succeed.

Website Design & Development: Website design and development is essential for any online presence. Our digital marketing company specializes in full-service marketing, which means we have the experience and skills to create a custom website that meets all of your standards. We’ll work with you closely to ensure that your website is an accurate reflection of your company’s unique style and personality. In addition, we’ll help you to stand out from the competition with an eye-catching and memorable design.

App Design & Development: We believe that a mobile app can be a powerful tool to help build brand recognition, improve customer engagement, and allow businesses to stand out from their competition. By developing a mobile app, you’re creating a direct marketing channel and providing value to your customers.

We are proud to be a trusted partner for businesses of all sizes, and we look forward to continuing to provide the high-quality digital marketing services that our clients have come to expect from us.

Example of our Work

Again, being named the best digital marketing agency in Tennessee is a huge honor. The Social Link team has worked hard to provide our clients with the best possible service, and it’s gratifying to be recognized for that. Our team wants to thank all of our clients for their trust in us, and we promise to continue working hard to deserve that trust. If you’re looking for a digital marketing agency that can help you achieve your goals, consider Social Link. Thank you again for this honor!

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Digital Marketing

Why Hire A Full-Service Marketing Agency?

Running a business is hard work, and it helps to have a dedicated team to help you. If you do not have the time or resources to promote your brand fully, hiring a full-service marketing agency to handle this responsibility on your behalf makes sense. Social Link is a Nashville based marketing agency that offers a complete range of services, including branding, social media advertising, website design and development, and so much more.

Here are some great reasons to hire the Nashville marketing agency Social Link.

Get Help with Your Business Plan and Marketing Strategy

You have an idea, and it is time to put it on paper. But where do you begin?

Social Link provides an excellent strategy for assisting you in developing your business plan from start to finish. They help you research your market and determine where you belong. They assist you in identifying your target audience and choosing the best strategies to promote to them.

Once you have determined your marketing goals, they will assist you in reaching them by utilizing their dedicated team of specialists to carry out their strategic marketing plan. 

Reduce Hiring and Training Expenses

Hiring new employees requires a significant amount of time and effort. You are devoting much time away from your business to focus on resumes, interviews, and training. Professional and well-educated marketing personnel might also be tough to come by.

When you work with a full-service marketing agency that offers a comprehensive range of services, you get access to an entire team of people that are experts in their fields and have years of experience. They understand the market as well as the requirements necessary for you to achieve your objectives.

When you work with a full-service marketing firm such as Social Link, you have access to dozens of employees who each have their area of expertise. Therefore, as an alternative to employing a dozen staff members for one-time requirements, Social Link will connect you with one of their staff members to finish the project.

This not only saves you a significant amount of time and is cost-effective but also ensures that your project is completed successfully the very first time.

Bring On New Customers

Acquiring new clients is the primary focus of marketing, but how can one differentiate themselves from the multitude of competing businesses?

An experienced agency can help you navigate saturated markets and make your brand stand out. With strategic planning, you can target the right customers using social media advertising and email campaigns.

Because SEO is one of the most critical factors in reaching the top of the search results list, Social Link can help you find the keywords you need to include in your marketing strategy so that you may get to the top of the list and become the most well-known company in your industry.

A full-service marketing agency can bring your brand to the top of rankings and use paid advertising to get your target audience to you.

Complete Branding

It is essential to ensure that your brand is consistent across all of your different marketing platforms. This encompasses online platforms such as websites and blogs, social networking platforms, email, and even video. 

Developing a successful brand begins with the development of a logo, as well as visuals and colors. Having a consistent approach while using them is essential so that people can connect the imagery with you.

Your company’s reputation is another aspect of branding to consider. You want people to view you as informed and professional while not compromising your integrity or the message you want to convey. 

Social Link is aware that this is an essential step for any company. As a result, they invest the time necessary to understand your objectives and your company completely.

With the business, Oh Grate, they built an entire brand from the ground up, thanks to their full-service marketing agency.

Tech Gurus

Technology and the most recent developments on social media platforms or applications are not always easy to understand for everyone. Developing a website is entirely foreign to most people.

Access to a knowledgeable web design firm can significantly assist you as you navigate the process of developing your social media presence, website, and digital footprint.

You need to create a web design that is easy to navigate and truly conveys what your business is about. It would be best if you had contact pages that work and product information that can be easily accessed. When you work with a full-service marketing agency that offers web development, such as Social Link, you can access web design and animation options that you might not have considered before.

You have the option of commissioning them to design and develop an app based on your ideas, or they can design and create an app that interacts with your company’s webpage and is available to your consumers to use.

News and information are constantly shifting, as are trends. What is new this week will be out of date by tomorrow. Any business wants to go viral, but few succeed because they do not apply the correct SEO or content marketing methods.

Social Link can assist you in deciding what social platforms would benefit your social media marketing strategy and what marketing campaigns will reach your new and current clients. They can provide new ideas for content marketing and give a fresh perspective on your current strategy.

Working with this full-service marketing agency can help you develop a strategy based on what’s new and trendy. They can generate branded content marketing and identify the social platforms to distribute it on. They can use analytic data to determine how your consumers find you and the best approach to stay in touch with them. 

Diagnosis Problems

If you currently have a brand, a website, and a logo, why would you want to alter any of those things?

The question is whether your business’s goals and website, logo, and brand continue to connect. The answer is typically no in these situations.

When you partner with a full-service marketing firm, they can comprehensively review your existing branding and advise you on whether any adjustments are necessary. Maybe your company has expanded, or perhaps your target market has shifted. Your brand should evolve in tandem with these changes.

Social Link designed a website for Academic Writer from the beginning to the end Academic Writer. They provided graphic design, web development, and social media management to this business owner, giving their business a fresh perspective and look.

Social Link can assist you in navigating the process, discovering issue areas in your existing marketing plan, and developing new strategies aligned with your newly minted brand. 

Try New Things

Working with a full-service marketing agency familiar with your group’s mission and objectives is in your best interest if you have ever considered experimenting with a fresh marketing approach. They can assist you during the learning curve and provide valuable input on your ideas.

If your company has never produced a marketing video before, rather than searching for a video production company and having to explain everything to them, it might be beneficial to work with a full-service marketing agency that is already familiar with you and your business. 

With the marketing plan that Social Link develops for your company, they will not only give suggestions and assist you in putting them into action, but they will also take your ideas and make them a reality. 

Get the Results You Want with Full-Service Marketing Agencies

When it comes to any marketing strategy, the return on investment is the aspect that needs to be scrutinized closely by organizations. If your marketing effort isn’t producing the results you were hoping for, a marketing firm offering a broad range of services can help you identify problem areas and develop solutions.

Social Link will examine every facet of marketing efforts and social media engagement. They go through data, polls, comments, and analytics to identify areas of opportunity and even find new ways to convey your brand’s message.

When searching for a reputable marketing agency, you should look for organizations that provide full-service marketing that meet your business goals. Find one willing to work with your concepts and ideas and assist you in developing those aspects further and determine the most effective methods to achieve your goals.

Social Link is a Nashville marketing agency that has assisted dozens of businesses in finding the appropriate marketing strategy to meet their objectives and requirements from the beginning to the end.

They can assist you with the development of your website, as well as the management of your social media platforms, search engine optimization, and other digital marketing strategies. They have the experience, understanding, and insight necessary to pull everything together and make it function properly.

Categories
Web Design

Six Things Designers Need From You Before Designing

graphic designer with program editing software on laptop computer screen, vector design illustration

If you’re looking for talented and creative graphic designers to help make your business or organization look its best, you’ve come to the right place. As a Full-Service Marketing Agency, we are passionate about creating visually appealing designs and effectively communicating your message. Social Link’s Graphic Design Team has experience creating eye-catching logos and marketing materials. Our Senior Graphic Designer, Kristi, prides herself on putting our clients first and ensuring that the final product exceeds their expectations!

Designing involves a lot of collaboration between the designers and the clients. For the project to go smoothly, there are some things the client needs to provide upfront. Here are six things that you, as the client, can do to make sure your designer has everything they need to create a successful design project.

Example of Social Link’s Graphic Design team creating logo’s for a client of ours!

Your logo is an essential part of your brand identity; think of it as the face of your business. Your company’s logo should be unique, memorable, and reflective of your brand. It’s essential to have a logo you’re proud of because it will appear on everything from your website to your business cards to your social media accounts.

2. Brand Guidelines

Brand guidelines are essential in ensuring a consistent brand. Brand guidelines are rules and standards that explain how a brand should be represented. They help businesses communicate what the company is, what it does, and what it stands for. Think of brand guidelines as a sort of ‘rulebook’ that sets out your brand’s overall look and feel.

Why do designers need brand guidelines? Put simply, they help to ensure that the final product is an accurate representation of your brand. Without brand guidelines, designers may inadvertently create something that doesn’t align with your company’s core values or message. By providing clear guidelines upfront, you can avoid any miscommunication or misunderstandings down the line.

3. Target Audience

As a business owner, you know that your target audience is essential to your success. After all, it’s who you’re marketing to and trying to reach with your products or services. A target audience is a group of people defined by specific demographics, behaviors, and interests. When designing, your target audience is one of the most important considerations.

A designer should always ask before designing: “who is your target audience?” your target audience will be a critical factor in determining the look, feel and overall style of your designs. Why? Because by understanding your target audience, designers can create content that resonates with them and reflects your brand’s values.

4. Your Goal Or What You Are Trying To Achieve

A good designer always starts with a goal in mind. What are you trying to achieve with your design? Are you trying to sell a product or promote a service? Are you trying to build brand awareness or drive traffic to your website? Once we have a clear understanding of the goals, designers can begin to create a design that will help the client achieve their objectives. Graphic Designers can also create an effective end product by keeping the goals in mind throughout the entire design process.

Chady is a client of ours that we had to take time to research the competition before creating designs that represent their brand.

5. Competitors

Knowing your competitors is important for any business, but it’s especially important for designers. Before starting a project, designers need to understand the landscape they’re working in. Who are your competitors? What do they look like? What are their strengths and weaknesses? This research helps designers create a unique and differentiated design that will help them stand out from the crowd. It also gives them a sense of what’s possible and what’s been done before. Here are three reasons why competitors are important to your designer:

1. Competitors help to define the playing field.

2. Competitors provide a benchmark for measuring success.

3. Competitors can inspire new and creative solutions.

By keeping an eye on your competitors, you can stay one step ahead of the game and ensure that your company is always moving forward.

6. Inspiration That They Love

As a designer, one of the most important things to know is what your inspirations are. Taking the time to share your inspirations with your designer is essential in creating a space you will love for years to come. This helps to give a starting point for the design process and ensures that the final product is something you love.

Inspiration is what fuels design when designing for our clients!

By giving your designer these essential pieces of information, you can be sure that you will have a logo and brand identity that accurately represents your business and helps you achieve your desired goals. By providing as much detail as possible upfront, you are setting your business up for success. Now that you know the six important things to give your designer contact Social Link today and let us start creating designs for you!

Categories
Digital Marketing Web Design

Results with Adobe XD 

As a Full-Service Marketing Agency, we’re always looking for new and innovative ways to help our clients succeed. With Adobe Xd, we’ve found a powerful tool that helps us achieve great results for our clients. It allows us to create designs that are both professional and engaging, which helps us stand out from the competition. XD allows us to quickly create mock-ups and prototypes which gives our clients an easy-to-review URL for feedback and client thoughts. 

What is Adobe XD used for?

You may be wondering what Adobe XD actually is. Right from the source, according to an article, Adobe wrote, “Adobe XD is a powerful and easy to use vector-based experience design platform that gives teams the tools they need to create the world’s best experiences collaboratively.” Adobe XD is a user interface design software program that can create prototypes for a variety of digital products, including apps, games, marketing campaigns, voice assistants, and websites. We have found that Adobe XD is an essential tool in our workflow, and we use it to help us with a variety of client projects.

Adobe XD’s Unique Features

In today’s world, everything is on a screen and will continue to be that way in the future. The unique features of Adobe XD make it stand out from other design software programs, and we have found that it is the perfect tool for our team to use when working on client projects. It has many features that make it unique compared to other design software programs, including its ability to quickly create mock-ups and designs being easily shared with clients or team members.

When asked, our Senior Designer why she prefers XD over other applications she said “I prefer XD for websites because the platform easily allows you to create responsive websites and I love how easy it is to share your design without building up file names such as, “this-is-the-last-final_FINAL.pdf”. This also allows for our developer can easily access all of the assets”

Adobe XD Unique Features Include:

  • 3D Transforms allow us to rotate or move objects in space while adding the appearance of depth to give the look of an immersive dimension. Using 3D transforms we are able to select components, enable 3D transforms by clicking the 3D cube icon, and rotate objects by using the canvas controls in the property inspector.
  • Components allow us to create a design once and be able to reuse it everywhere while cutting down our time on duplicating designs. Components start with designing a UI element, then selecting the layers to make a component, and finally adding states to have different interactions.
  • Repeat Grid allows us to repeat galleries, menus, and lists. With a simple click and drag, we can turn one single element into repeating grids. Using Repeat Grid boosts our workflow while putting all of our elements in the right place.
  • Video & Lottie Playback allows us to embed videos and render animations on clients’ websites and apps.
  • Auto-Animate allows us to add motion effects, smooth transitions, playful interactions, and motion effects to our designs. This creates animation to keep your audience engaged.

How We Use Adobe XD To Create Our Client’s Projects

At our agency, we rely on Adobe XD to create stunning visuals for our client’s projects. From initial concepts to final designs, XD provides the tools we need to bring our ideas to life. With its intuitive interface and powerful features, XD helps us to communicate our vision clearly and efficiently. In each stage of the design process, XD lets us iterate quickly and make changes easily. And because it’s built for collaboration, we can easily share our work with clients and get their feedback.

We are excited to continue using Adobe XD as part of our workflow, and we know that it will help us achieve even better results for our clients in the future. Xd’s intuitive interface and powerful features have allowed us to create winning designs for our clients time and time again. Let Social Link help you create more engaging content with our proven techniques, including Adobe XD! 

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Blog Tips and Tricks

Why Goal Setting Is Important

2022 Goal, Plan, Action checklist text on note pad with laptop, glasses and pen.

If you want to achieve the best life possible, it’s essential to focus on goal setting and time management skills. Life can be overwhelming and it’s easy to lose track of what you want to achieve if you don’t have a plan. Goal setting helps you to take control of your life and achieve your objectives by providing direction and a next goal to focus on. By setting goals, you can stay on track and make the most of your time.

But you may not realize that setting goals are one of the most important things you can do for your business and personal life. In this blog post, we’ll discuss the importance of goal setting and provide some tips on how to create effective defined goals.

The Benefits Of Goal Setting:

One of the benefits of goal setting is that it gives you a clear destination to work towards. When you have a goal in mind, you can stay focused and ensure that your efforts are going towards something meaningful. Without goals, it’s easy to get off track and start working on things that don’t matter.

Another benefit of goal setting is that it helps you to measure your progress. If you’re not setting goals, then it’s difficult to tell whether or not you’re making any progress at all. But when you have specific goals in mind, you can follow your progress and see how far you’ve come. This can motivate and help keep you moving forward even when things get tough.

There are a few other benefits of goal setting as well, such as:

– Allowing you to break down big projects into manageable tasks

– Helping you to identify priorities

– Giving you a sense of satisfaction when you achieve your goals

How To Set Effective Goals:

Now that we’ve discussed some of the benefits of goal setting let’s talk about how to set effective goals. One important thing to remember is that your goals should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART). Let’s take a closer look at each of these criteria:

– Specific: Your goal should be clear and unambiguous. It should be easy to understand what you want to accomplish.

– Measurable: You should be able to follow your progress towards your goal. This will help you stay on track and motivated.

– Achievable: Your goal should be something that you can realistically achieve given your resources and time frame.

– Relevant: Your goal should be important to you and aligned with your values.

– Time-bound: Your goal should have a deadline to keep you accountable and focused.

The Different Types Of Goals You Can Set:

Goal setting is essential to leading a successful and fulfilling life. By taking the time to set outcome goals, we can develop a clear sense of what we want to achieve. This, in turn, provides us with a roadmap for achieving our goals and boosts our self-confidence. In addition, setting goals helps us to set priorities and manage our time effectively. By breaking big goals into manageable steps, we can stay focused on the task at hand and avoid becoming overwhelmed. There are many different types of goals that you can set, but some common ones include professional goals, financial goals, fitness goals, relationship goals, and personal growth goals. Let’s take a closer look at each of these:

– Professional goals: These are goals that relate to your career or business. You may set a goal to get a promotion, start your own business, or land a new client.

– Financial goals: These are goals that relate to your finances. You may set a goal to save money, pay off debt, or invest in a new property.

– Fitness goals: These are goals that relate to your health and fitness. You may set a goal to lose weight, eat healthier, or exercise more.

– Relationship goals: These are goals that relate to your relationships. For example, you may set a goal to find a partner, spend more time with family, or make new friends.

– Personal growth goals: These are goals that relate to your personal development. For example, you may set a goal to learn a new skill, read more books, or travel to new places.

How To Stay Motivated When Working Towards Your Goals:

One of the most challenging things about goal setting is staying motivated when things get tough. There will be times when it feels like you’re not making any progress, and it can be tempting to give up. Looking at the big picture can help to keep us motivated, as we can see the progression we are making towards our future goals. Ultimately, goal setting is a helpful tool that can play a vital role in helping us to reach success. If you want to achieve your goals, it’s essential to find ways to stay motivated. Here are a few tips:

– Set smaller goals: If your goal feels too daunting, then break it down into smaller goals that you can work on one at a time. This will make it feel more manageable and less overwhelming.

– Find a role model: Look for someone who has already achieved what you’re striving for. Seeing someone else succeed can be related to your personal development. For example, you may set a goal to learn a new skill, read more books, or travel to new places.

– Set a deadline: Having a timeline for your goal will help you stay focused and motivated. Make sure to give yourself enough time to achieve your goal, but don’t be too lenient either.

– Find an accountability partner: Share your goal with someone else and ask them to check in on your progress. This can help you stay accountable and on track.

Tips For Achieving Goals:

Goal setting also allows you to see the future and work towards specific skills or outcomes. To achieve goals, personal and professional success often begins with setting goals. But simply setting a goal is not enough–you also need to have a plan for what to achieve. Here are a few tips to help you turn your goals into reality:

– Get organized: Create a plan of action and ensure that all your resources are in place before you start working towards your goal.

– Set a realistic goal: Make sure that your goal is something you can realistically achieve given your resources and time frame.

– Find a support group: Many people are striving for similar goals as you. Connecting with others can give you motivation and inspiration.

– Reward yourself: Celebrate your accomplishments along the way and reward yourself for reaching milestones. This will help keep you motivated to continue working towards your goal.

By focusing on achievable goals, you can move closer to your best life each week. Remember, setting goals is not a one-time event – it’s a continuous process that should be revisited regularly. Let goals guide your decisions and actions today so you can create the life you want tomorrow. With these tips in mind, you’ll be well on your way to achieving all of your goals.

Author’s Note: Thanks for reading! I hope this blog post has helped you understand why goal setting is essential and how to set practical goals. If you found this blog post helpful, please share it with your friends and followers! 

Categories
Online Marketing Social Media Tips and Tricks Uncategorized

How to Create Sharable Instagram Content

How Do You Create Shareable Content On Instagram?

With over one billion monthly active users, there’s no doubt that Instagram is a popular social media platform. Instagram is constantly changing, which means your content has to be adaptable. If you have been on Instagram lately, you may notice that the like count is not as important as it once was. Recently, the more shares you receive on a post is much more valuable than a like. A massive way for your content to stay relevant is by creating highly shareable content. Your content marketing strategy should resonate with your audience so much that they want to share your post on their platform. Sharing posts on Instagram is the most efficient form of advertising for your business. The more shares you have on an Instagram post, the more exposure and growth you will get.

The content you post is valuable, but only if it is shareable. In this blog post, we’ll share some tips for creating content that will be engaging for your followers and help to promote your brand. Creating shareable content is essential for any business that wants to succeed on social media, and these tips will help get you started.

Ten Proven Tips to Create Shareable Content

1. Know Your Target Audience

By understanding your target audience, you can ensure that your Instagram strategy is always on point. According to Shannon Shipman’s blog, creating content for Instagram is the best way to expand your reach, having your audience share your content is invaluable. It is essential to know who you are trying to reach with your content. It would be best if you first took the time to understand your target audience. Only then will you be able to create content that resonates with them and gets them to take action.

To start, take a look at who is already following you and assess what types of posts they tend to engage with the most. Look at the demographics of your followers and try to identify any common interests or characteristics. By understanding your target audience, you can produce content that appeals to their interests. Remember that your target audience may change over time, so it’s essential to regularly assess who they are and what they’re interested in. 

2. Visually Appealing Content

When it comes to creating visually appealing content for Instagram, there are a few key things to keep in mind. First, consider the overall aesthetic of your feed. Is it cohesive and pleasing to the eye? Make sure that the colors and styles of your photos complement each other. You should also pay attention to the composition of your photos. Frame your shots thoughtfully, and experiment with different angles and perspectives. Also, don’t be afraid to get creative with filters and editing tools. A little tweaking can go a long way towards making your photos pop. By following these tips, you can create visually appealing content that will stand out on Instagram.

3. Keep Your Posts Consistent 

If you want to be successful on Instagram, it’s essential to keep your posts consistent. That means posting regularly, using consistent hashtags, and maintaining a consistent overall look and feel to your feed. People will be more likely to share your content if it is aesthetically pleasing and easy to consume. Creating a consistent feed will make your page more visually appealing and increase the likelihood of shares. By keeping your posts consistent, you’ll be able to build a following more efficiently and connect with potential customers. Additionally, consistent posts will help improve your search engine optimization, making it more likely that people will find your business when searching for related terms.

4. Relatable Content

As anyone who’s spent time on Instagram knows, relatable content is key. Whether it’s funny memes, relatable anecdotes or pictures of products they need, people are always drawn to content that speaks to them on a personal level. And there’s no better place to find this kind of content than on Instagram. With its massive user base and a vast array of content creators, Instagram is the perfect platform for finding relatable content that will resonate with your audience. To find relatable content ideas for your Instagram, start by brainstorming what you already post that gets the most engagement. 

What are your most popular posts? What do they have in common? Is there anything you can do to make your other content more relatable? You can also look to other accounts in your industry for inspiration – what kind of relatable content are they posting that’s doing well? Take note of any trends you see and consider how you can put your own personal spin on them. Remember, the best relatable content is all about connecting with your audience on a personal level. 

5. Appeal To Your Audience’s Values

The way to a person’s heart is often through their values. When creating content for Instagram, it’s essential to consider what your audience cares about and how you can speak to those values while also creating content around your values. Your audience is looking for the knowledge that your values and products match their values and beliefs. Connecting their values with content shows them that you care. When you appeal to your audience’s values, you create a connection beyond likes and comments. You create a community of people who share your passions and who will champion your brand.

6. Use Carousels To Make Your Content More Shareable

Carousels are a great way to make complex information more digestible. They are also eye-catching and allow you to include multiple images in one post, which makes them more shareable. When a product or service has been mentioned before or if someone has read the title, it’s likely the caption will help them understand the problem and get results. How can we post a photograph that we’re looking for? Make a carousel and add a graphic if possible for this second image.

7. Create graphics

Everyone loves to share Instagram posts that are quotes or graphics. They can quickly learn your information by simply reading what is posted on the graphic instead of the caption underneath the post. People are more likely to share visually appealing content. Creating graphics is a great way to make your posts stand out and increase the likelihood of shares. 

8. Write Long Captions

 Captions are a great way to engage with your audience and give them more information about your post. The longer the caption, the more likely people are to read and share it. Longer captions are more shareable than shorter ones because they provide more context and information about the post. Writing long captions also allows you to include more keywords, which will help SEO and allow your content to be found by people searching for those terms.

If you’re in business, it’s essential to keep up with social media trends. A social media trend is defined as a topic that gains popularity on social media within a short period of time. Social Media is a powerful communications tool that can help you reach new customers and grow your business. People are more likely to share content that is timely and relevant. Keeping up with trends will ensure that your content is always fresh and shareable. That means posting interesting and engaging content, using the right hashtags, and connecting with other users. By staying up-to-date on the latest Instagram trends, you can ensure that your business is using this powerful platform to its full potential. 

There are a few key ways to keep up with trends. First, follow industry-specific accounts and influencers. They will often be the first to know about new trends and products. Second, use social media listening tools to track specific keywords and hashtags. This way, you can quickly see when something new pops up. By following these steps, you can keep up with the latest trends and ensure that your business is always ahead of the curve.

10. Engage With Your Followers

If you are not active on your account – why should your followers be?

To engage with your audience, you need to understand what they want and how they want to receive information. It is essential to ensure that you are constantly providing relevant and interesting content. This can be achieved by carrying out research beforehand to understand what topics they are interested in and then crafting your messages accordingly. Commenting on and liking other people’s posts will make them more likely to do the same for you. Engaging with your followers will also make them feel appreciated, which will make them more likely to share your content as well. It’s essential to keep in mind that engagement is a two-way street, so be sure to listen to feedback and take it to heart. By engaging with your audience, you will build relationships and loyalty, which can lead to success for you and your audience.

Now that you have the tips for creating shareable content….

Let’s recap! By creating sharable Instagram posts, you need to be relatable, know your audience, and keep up with trends. By following these tips, you can create shareable content that will help you grow your Instagram following and exposure. What have you found to be the most successful strategy for creating sharable content on Instagram?

If you want help creating sharable content, Social Link is here to help. Our social media experts have the experience and knowledge necessary to create content that your followers will share. We can also help you implement some of the tips listed above to make it easier for your followers to share your content. Contact us through our marketing proposal page to get started today! 

Follow our Instagram Page @Sociallinkco too!!

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Certified NGLCC Business: How Your Business Can A NGLCC Business

Social Link is certified as an LGBT-owned business by The National LGBT Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC). The NGLCC gives opportunities to business owners, companies and organizations, like Social Link, that may be viewed as a minority. The National LGBT Chamber of Commerce prides itself on being not only an LGBT business community voice but the largest advocacy organization that is “dedicated to expanding economic opportunities and advancements for LGBT people, and the exclusive certifying body for LGBT- owned businesses.” Social Link, a Nashville LGBT-owned Inclusive Marketing Agency, is proud to be certified as an NGLCC Business!

Who is the NGLCC? 

The co-founders Justin Nelson and Chance Mitchell started the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC) in November 2002 when they realized the impact of the LGBT community had gone unnoticed in the American economy, even though economic equality is, and has been, a huge part of the LGBT equality movement.

The LGBT community is an essential part of small businesses that make the United States economy thrive. Starting this organization around a coffee table, they knew that NGLCC needed to showcase LGBT business owners, taxpayers, employers, and providers of healthcare needed to have a voice. Now the voice of the nation’s 1.4 million LGBT business owners and 1.7 trillion enterprises add to the national economy each year. The business owners that the NGLCC represent have created many inclusive job opportunities for businesses and organizations while creating innovative business solutions nationwide! 

The National LGBT Chamber of Commerce also enjoys the support from over 200 corporate partners and executive leadership that strives to promote pro-business and LGBT inclusive policies. The dedicated mission of the NGLCC has been to create an organization that could support LGBT business owners and the diverse talent within the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities.

Due to the amazing team and board the NGLCC has, they have succeeded. Today, the NGLCC is expanding globally and reaching five continents while bridging economic opportunities and LGBTI human rights for the LGBT community. 

The National LGBT Chamber of Commerce has an extended network of local affiliated chambers across the country and the world that you can become involved in to start making a difference in the LGBTQ+ community. Being members of your local chamber is a key to promoting LGBT businesses. If you join your local chamber, the LGBT Business Enterprise certification fees are waived – YAY! 

 How to become a certified NGLCC Member 

The NGLCC is the exclusive, third-party certification body that verifies that eligible businesses are majority-owned by LGBT individuals and subsequently grants Certified LGBT Business Enterprise designation to such companies as part of its LGBT Supplier Diversity Initiative. The NGLCC helps certified LGBT Business Enterprise companies move their Business toward relationships that can offer opportunities for a lifetime.

To qualify for the certification, your company has to be at least fifty-one percent owned, operated, managed, or controlled by an LGBT person or persons that are a United States Citizen or have a lawful permanent residency.  

The Four Steps to become a Certified NGLCC Member

According to nglcc.org, applying for the certification only takes four easy steps.

  1. The first step is to visit my.nglcc.org to complete the online application process. Once you are registered, you will build your business profile. This allows you to showcase your enterprise to the other Certified LGBTBE® suppliers, NGLCC’s 140 Corporate Partners, and members. Once you build your business profile, you will be able to submit your supporting documentation to verify your eligibility for the certification. Once you are done building your business profile, a member of the NGLCC’s Supplier Diversity Team will be in touch with you to get you in contact with your regional manager. 
  2. Once you complete your application will schedule your site visit with your Regional Manager (so exciting)! This site visit will allow the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce to verify the information you submitted in your application and understand how the NGLCC can support you long-term so you and your Business can flourish for years to come!
  3. Then, after the Regional Manager visits, your application will be reviewed by the National Certification Committee. 
  4. Finally, once your application is approved, you can participate in the Certified LGBTBE® Orientation Webinar, where you will learn how to use the resources of the Supplier Diversity Initiative.
Happy Pride month!

 Benefits of Being Certified 

Social Link, owned by Brady O’Rourke, a member of the LGBT community, knows the importance of the NGLCC certification. The NGLCC certification has been beneficial for Social Link’s Inclusive Digital Marketing Agency. By Social Link being certified LGBTBE®, our Business has had the opportunity to compete for sourcing contracts with NGLCC’s Corporate Supplier Diversity Partners, eligible for the annual NGLCC Business and Leadership Conference, sourcing opportunities emails from the NGLCC, and being able to participate in mentorship programs, leadership trainings and networking events. 

Now that you know the history of the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce and the importance of being certified and the steps to take to be certified, you are on the road to maximizing your business opportunities, network with local LGBT businesses and allied business owners, have local programs and events and so much more! 

The NGLCC is all about inclusion!

Click here to start the certification process:

Click this link to start the process with the NGLCC today: https://www.nglcc.org/get-certified.  

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3 Tips For Improving Your Mental Health

Tips To Improve Your Mental Health
mental health awareness month

3 Tips For Improving Your Mental Health

OK, so here we are in Mental Health Awareness Month, brought to us since 1949 by Mental Health America. All well and good, but what with getting back into the office after 2+ years of pandemic-related isolation, and inflation, and whatever else is getting on our nerves today, there’s just no time for taking a mental health break.

That’s the problem — the stresses and strains of today are exactly the right time to be focusing on mental health. How we feel affects every decision we make. If our stress is so high we yell at the person in front of us in traffic for not moving as fast as we’d like, or find ourselves arguing with a nature documentary, it’s time to reprioritize mental health.

Mental Health Tips From Social Link
Additional Mental Health Tips on our Instagram. @sociallinkco

Here are three fast ways to start looking at our psycho-emotional state and get back into alignment:

Kick The (Bad) Habits: Garbage in, garbage out. If all you’re eating is fast, overly processed food (“I’m so busy!!”), rethink the plate. More fruit, more vegetables, less salt, less sugar. This doesn’t mean you have to go on the latest “I Lost 10 Pounds In An Hour!!” post-COVID fad diet, just that it’s time to pay more attention to what you’re eating.

I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead: Heard this one? It’ll be a self-fulfilling prophecy if you’re only getting a few hours of sleep a night. The occasional all-nighter for a huge deadline is one thing, but if you’re routinely burning the midnight oil, your health will suffer.

See Something? Do Something: An estimated 44 million Americans suffer from some kind of mental disorder. That means if you’re feeling out of sorts, whether that’s a lethargy you can’t kick or being angry at everything, you’re not the only one. According to Mental Health America, some of the signs that may point to trouble include: confused thinking, prolonged sadness or irritability, feelings of extreme highs or lows, excessive anxiety and social withdrawal.

If you think you may need help, err on the side of caution and reach out. Your employer may have an EAP program, or your health insurer can put you in touch with a therapist in your community. If those options aren’t available, Mental Health America strongly recommends calling call 911 or going to the nearest emergency room if you are in crisis or call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) to reach a 24-hour crisis center, or text MHA to 741741 at the Crisis Text Line.

Follow along with Social Link for more tips!

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Mental Health Awareness Month 2022 Goes “Back To Basics”

Mental Health Awareness Month
Mental Health Awareness Month 2022

Mental Health Awareness Month 2022 Goes “Back To Basics”

Ever take a “mental health day” when the work stress got to be too much? No one is immune to life’s pressures, which is why Mental Health Awareness Month is a timely reminder that it’s OK to slow down and check in with yourself.

The annual observation, sponsored by Mental Health America, has been around since 1949, so the notion of protecting our mental health is not new. This year, the theme is “Back To Basics,” a timely reminder that having a strong foundation of awareness around mental health can help prevent problems from becoming too severe.  

Many other groups, such as the National Alliance on Mental Illness, or NAMI, get the word out during the month of May as well. This year is no different, with NAMI nothing that “After the last two years of pandemic living, many people are realizing that stress, isolation, and uncertainty have taken a toll on their well-being.” Our goal is to provide foundational knowledge about mental health & mental health conditions and information about what people can do if their mental health is a cause for concern.

A mental health issue should never be stigmatized

Millions of Americans live with mental illness. Unfortunately, they often are singled out because of that diagnosis, and treated differently. That kind of reaction is why many people never seek out therapy or other kinds of care in the first place. During May, it’s essential to educate ourselves, as well as those around us, on what mental health is really all about — and to advocate for policies that support those living with mental illness, their families and caregivers.

With that in mind, here are a few terms to be aware of, compliments of Mental Health America.

Coping skill: a strategy to help you deal with difficult situations and lessen unpleasant emotions, thoughts, or behaviors

Lived experience: first-hand, personal experience dealing with a mental health or substance use challenge

Mental health concern: anything that causes a person to believe their mental health may be suffering; could be a symptom, a group of symptoms, or a diagnosable mental health condition

Mental health condition: a set of related symptoms that have been recognized by the mental health community; includes conditions defined in the DSM-V, ICD-11, and by people with lived experience 

Neurotransmitters: chemicals that carry messages throughout your brain

Self-stigma: negative attitudes and shame regarding an individual’s own mental health, resulting from internalizing public stigma.

The more we know about mental health, the more we can be 1) aware of our own status and risk factors, and 2) the more supportive we can be to friends and family who have a diagnosis or are in a rough spot and need assistance. 

Taking care of our bodies through diet and exercise is essential for physical health. Too often we don’t pay the same kind of heed to our minds, which are working overtime every day to make decisions, interact with others, handle stress and much more. The aforementioned diet and exercise, along with enough sleep, seeking professional care when feeling overwhelmed and taking some down time (the elusive work-life balance) is vital for good mental health.

Why not make this month the time to put some new, good habits into place?

Follow along with Social Link for more tips!

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How a Content Management System (CMS) Works—and Why You Need One for Your Business

corner of laptop showing wordpress.com
working with wordpress

There was a time when adding new website content required a web developer. To update the website, a developer would create a file on their computer, then transfer the file to a web server via an FTP program. It was far from a user-friendly experience.

Fortunately, those days are long gone. Today, content management systems allow users to create, edit, and publish content to their website without any technical complexities. By far, the most well-known and widely-used CMS is WordPress. It’s estimated that WordPress powers around one-third of all websites on the internet.

Other popular CMS platforms include Wix, Weebly, and Squarespace. These website-building applications have empowered virtually anyone with basic computer proficiency to create and manage their own website. But how do content management systems work? In this post, we’ll explain what’s going on “under the hood” of a CMS application—and why it’s a must-have in today’s digital landscape.

What is a content management system?

CMS platforms enable users to create websites with relative ease. But what are they exactly? Simply put, a CMS is a software application that streamlines the content management process with easy-to-use interfaces. For example, if you want to publish a new blog post on your website, a CMS interface makes that as effortless as typing a word document.

Here’s what the back-end of WordPress would look like to a user that wants to create a new blog post:

[Source]

As you can see, the user is able to add text, format the post, upload media, and publish with the click of a button.There can be many other features and functionalities included in a CMS, but this example demonstrates one of the most essential concepts.

How does a content management system work?

To understand how a CMS works, you must first understand how a website works. Your website is powered by the data within its database. That database is made of tables, which contain information for how your website should be displayed. Every page on your website is rendered based on information from one of your database tables. There’s a data table for your home page, your ‘about’ page, your blog posts, etc.

To modify your website or add new content, you’ll need to update the tables in your database. That’s where a content management system comes into play. A CMS is a graphical user interface that allows you to manipulate the data in your database. The interface is designed to be as easy-to-use as possible. So, by using the interface of a CMS, you can modify your website’s database without any knowledge of coding or database structure. For example, if you create a new blog post within your CMS interface, that post is automatically entered into your website’s database for you (making it an official part of your site).

two women at desk looking at laptop
 

Content management systems are built around the WYSIWYG concept (what you see is what you get). They allow users to create/edit website content as it appears, rather than dealing with the code behind it. At the end of the day, this makes managing web content easier, faster, and more accessible.

Why do you need a content management system?

As we’ve seen above, content management systems are all about ease-of-use. With a CMS, adding new web content and blog posts is relatively effortless, allowing you to publish more content at a higher frequency. But why does constantly adding new content matter to your business? Two words: Content Marketing.

In the digital age, web content is a valuable marketing asset for businesses of all sizes. Publishing new content has direct business benefits, including:

  • Increased search engine traffic
  • Increased engagement with your target audience
  • More inbound leads (resulting from the two notions above)

A strong content marketing plan requires fresh content to be published on your website—which is part of the reason a CMS is so important for your business. A CMS helps you implement your content needs efficiently, which allows you to make the most of your content marketing efforts.

At Social Link, we specialize in elevating businesses with proven digital strategies (including content marketing and web development). If you have any questions about content management systems or would like to learn more about how Social Link can grow your business, request a free consultation.

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3 Tips for Building a Healthcare Website that Works

A heart figurine and a stethoscope.

A guide to healthcare digital marketing

More than ever, consumers are making healthcare decisions online—and that means healthcare digital marketing is more important than ever. An astounding 89 percent of internet users search for health information online, according to iHealthBeat. 55 percent of users will even use the internet to find a specific medical treatment or procedure, and nearly the same number will search for information about doctors or other professionals online.

It’s crucial that healthcare companies market themselves well to online consumers. Healthcare websites can’t just meet minimum standards. They’ve got to stand out. That means implementing the best practices of web development and web design, then tailoring for the specific needs of the healthcare industry. Here are three web development and web design tips that will help your healthcare website convert visitors into customers.

1. Know your audience … and yourself

It’s one of the first principles of content marketing: know your audience. When you start to dig into that during web development, and you’ll find that to define your audience, you must first define your own organization. Who do you want to target? If your website should speak more to established customers, you’ll want to highlight your patient management system most, with a prominently placed login option. If you’re looking to bring in new business, you’ll need something else featured on your site.

You need a holistic view of customer behavior, including both quantitative measurements and a qualitative understanding of the needs that drive them. This knowledge should inform your web development and design. And just as the healthcare market is always changing, the needs of your audience (and maybe the audience itself) are always changing. Your audience analysis efforts must be ongoing and adaptive.

The best websites create an immediate action for users, whether it’s as simple as clicking through to another page, or as complicated as making an appointment. Your content strategy and homepage layout will need to be carefully calibrated to achieve these goals.

2. Create content that offers value

The best way to attract visitors to your website (and keep them there) is to immediately provide them with something of value. Blogs are a popular and effective way to do this—just be sure to share material that your potential customers would find interesting. For the best healthcare digital marketing results, consider everything you know about your customer, then provide content that addresses their needs. Guides, tools, case studies, and other resources that relate to your specific service are particularly influential.

The Cleveland Clinic and Mayo Clinic are two great examples of traditional blogs that use patient stories, informative articles, explainers, and even recipes to engage readers. Articles like “Poor Posture Hurts Your Health More than you Know: 3 Tips for Fixing It” provide relevant information that visitors can put to use right away. Professional resources and tools are another powerful method to activate customers. Medical records management provider HealthcareXL makes free white papers and tools available on its website, including a cost-computing spreadsheet that medical practices can download.

Health system Banner Health produces infographics with titles like “Concussion Myths and Facts” and “Winter Poison Safety” aimed at both individual visitors and at health practitioners, who can use them as posters or educational tools. Arkansas Children’s Hospitals maintains an Industry Prevention Center with safety guides and videos for parents. Your content can also be used to drive ongoing campaigns that involve customer participation. United Healthcare’s 2015 We Dare You initiative challenged visitors to complete challenges meant to increase healthy lifestyle choices and post the results to social media using the hashtag #WeDareYou, then randomly selected winners to receive weekly prizes.

Lastly, don’t discount simple entertainment as a way to show a more personal side of your business—getting a visitor to laugh has its own value. For an example, see Becker’s Hospital Review healthcare-themed Valentines (a sample: “Roses are red / violets are blue / I love you as intensely / as doctors hate meaningful use stage 2”).

Whatever the content of your website, make sure it is professional, relevant, and useful to the visitor. If your site becomes a resource for online readers, it’s likely that it will soon become their provider of choice as well.

3. Design your site to balance the modern and the timeless

Everyone consumes content visually. The web design of your site will create visitors’ all-important first impression. Indeed, surveys by Adobe have shown that nearly 40 percent of all internet users will leave a website if they find the design uninteresting. So you’ll need a look that says something. It’s not enough to simply “make it look good.” Your website needs to look good—for a purpose. Thoughtful and intentional design is critical to a successful healthcare digital marketing strategy.

For best results, consider two important aspects of healthcare that are most visible to customers and patients: technology and personal care. Customers want the cutting-edge technology of advanced medicine (think a gleaming white labs and brightly colored brain scan), paired with the individualized attention and empathy often associated with an earlier era of medicine (like the personalized touch of a familiar family doctor). A thoughtfully designed healthcare website can convey both.

Informed web designers should be able to impart a current, clean, and sleek look to your site. A modern site will convey that your organization uses the most modern technology; an outdated website will lead visitors to assume your medical care is equally outdated. At the same time, knowledgeable designers should use photo choices and illustrated elements that give your site an inviting feel—that’s the bedside manner that projects warmth and personal care to your potential customers. Balance the modern appeal of technology with the caring feel of that personal touch, and users will be inclined to become customers on their first visit to your site.

The Goal: Build Trust

All the tips listed here aim towards a singular goal: building trust with your customer. Know your audience, create content that offers them value, and then present it all with an effective design. In the healthcare industry, trust is even more critical than in other businesses—your customers may literally put their life in your hands. If you’re looking for a healthcare digital marketing partner that can help you build trust with your customers, give us a call. Social Link is an award-winning, full-service digital marketing and mobile development agency. Get in touch at 615-873-0707.

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5 Content Marketing Tips From Video Game Designs

Group of three friends playing video games in office after work

When we’re not working hard for our clients, many of us at Social Link love playing video games. Not just because they—and they are—but because all the time we’re fighting zombies and bashing koopas with Mario, we’re also learning a lot about audience engagement. A website is doing very well if it keeps your attention for mere seconds. Social videos can attract your eye for as long as a minute. Video games can keep you engaged for hours.

It’s a good thing we never listened to Mom when she told us to put down the console and go outside, because now we can pass our wisdom along to you.

 

#1. There’s Always a Bigger World to Explore

Designers knows that part of every player’s objective is to inhabit a completely different universe. The more complete the video game’s world feels, the more likely the player will stay engaged. Doors lead to nowhere. Objects show signs of rust. The world’s logic and rules are complete and consistent. Whether you’re meeting enemies or friends, the encounters are always memorable.

In the same way, great content isn’t just about the article or video in front of the customer’s eyes. It’s the first step in a greater journey. One article should always lead to the next. Details and examples must be highly relevant: don’t just quote statistics, explain why they matter. Introduce human faces wherever possible—your company’s spokespeople are the heroes and allies of your content universe. When people consult your library, they’re not just looking for facts. They’re looking for guides to a bigger world.

 

#2. Twitch Gameplay

Twitch gameplay is the game developer’s term for situations where the computer forms its own response to a player’s ability to react. Let’s say you’re playing a shooter game and the player is just a little too slow on the draw. The computer will adapt and slow down its next attack so they player doesn’t get frustrated and give up. On the other hand, if the player’s hitting too many targets, the computer will speed up its response time to make sure that the player doesn’t get bored.

Smart content has its own version of “twitch play.” For example, if you’ve developed a support library to help customers discover your product, help them self-segment so that they start at their own appropriate level of knowledge. Include lots of opportunities for feedback (“Did this article answer your question?” “Need more?”) and make sure there’s always a human being whose name is attached to the answers. This will help your customers stay engaged at a pace that’s natural for them.

 

#3. Make It Story-Driven

Video game designers have many techniques to keep a player immersed in the game, but it’s only when everything presented as part of a story that meaning begins to emerge. Plots progress with each level and mission. Relationships with other characters are formed as they tackle challenges together. When the climax finally arrives, it’s genuinely satisfying because a story’s central conflict has been resolved.

Content marketing should always build towards a greater purpose. Doing so helps people see that their decision to engage was time well spent. When someone steps away feeling like there was something of value, you can always guarantee they’ll be back for more.

 

#4. Create Levels

Is there any feeling in the world that compares to mastering a difficult level of a video game? Not if you’ve fallen down the same rock face a hundred times while aliens shoot at you from the clifftops. The feeling that you’ve “won” a level creates a sense of triumph—as well as an incentive to move directly on to the next level of the game.

Great content should also bestow a sense of accomplishment. How-to guides should be task-based: not, “Learn how to use X feature” but, “Using X feature to create Y.” People don’t go searching for information they don’t immediately need… so make sure that your content always answers their need to achieve a specific outcome.

 

#5. A Reason to Return

Bad games never get finished. Good games get played through once. Great games get played many, many times over. Sometimes it’s because they’re fiendishly difficult, or because they create a fully realized universe, or a way to engage with friends. Some games tell great stories, while others are simply about blowing off steam. But they always focus on creating a reason to come back.

Customers will seek out your content because they have a specific question or are looking for a particular solution. If you don’t have the right answers, they’ll leave quickly and never come back. But even if you’ve got the right answers, don’t assume you’ve got a friend for life. To win their loyalty, you need to build trust in your ability to deliver a consistently superior experience. That’s as much as about how you deliver information as the content itself. Do you put a human face on your writing? Is the content correctly tagged and segmented? Are the instructions easy to follow? Is there always somewhere to go for questions? If so, you’re giving your customers many reasons to seek you out the next time they need help.

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Whatever game you’re playing—ecommerce, lead generation, or branding—Social Link has the in-house expertise and resources to translate your brand story into tangible results. Get in touch and let’s get started!