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Is Blogging Still Worth It in 2026? A Web Developer’s Honest Take

Author: Sean H. Website Facebook Instagram LinkedIn

If you’ve been following digital marketing discussions lately, you’ve probably noticed the same question popping up everywhere: is blogging still worth it in 2026? The answer, as with most things in the web development world, is more nuanced than a simple yes or no.

For years, we’ve told our clients at Design Web Louisville that content is the best long-term investment. Write regularly. Use your natural voice. Talk about subjects that matter to your business and your customers. Answer specific questions that help people solve real problems. Target those long-tail keywords that bring qualified traffic to your site.

That advice still holds true, but the landscape has shifted significantly. Here’s what we’re seeing in 2026 and what we have been reading in the SEO forums. Now, keep in mind some of the sources are anecdotal, but that has always been the forefront of understanding how SEO works. When working in a black box, we have to learn to trust our intuition and then verify. So, if this feels like we are taking lobbing shotgun shells from the hip, it is because we are, and that method has kept our teeny tiny no advertising model of website design sales ahead of all the big agencies in town, so, you know, don’t knock it and enjoy the ride. 

The AI Impact: Large language models and Traffic

Let’s address the elephant in the room. Large language models like ChatGPT are fundamentally changing how people discover information. One experienced SEO professional on Reddit put it bluntly: “LLMs feed on your content and then show it at the top of Google search. After working hard, you will feel that there is no credibility for your hard work.” But is that the case really? Maybe, but it depends on what kind of content you create. Here is what we have seen. 

While AI tools are effecting traditional blog traffic, 95% of ChatGPT users still use Google for search and half of them prefer to click through to the source if it promises quality content including, and this is the kicker, great visuals. Why, well because while Ai may be using your content to answer a simple question, it now adds your pages feature image as part of the citation. That is new and it is a game changer. 

Historically the only way to get an image on the homepage is to pay to be placed in the ad slot, but now, if you are used in citation, you get a sweet free slot right next to the Ai summary, and stats tell us, if your image is well designed, your page title targeted and your excerpt refined, people will click through. More interestingly, the results for the Ai source at the time of this article are not location bound! (Holy national-reach Batman!) You can see in my example picture below the results for “who is the best personal injury lawyer in louisville ky” pulls from a law firm in… California!? Ok, so I am sure that Google will work this bug out in the very near future, but for those of you who have been dutifully writing great content and including excellent page feature images, you now have a free seat on the seo train to every city in the english speaking world. Even after Ai learns to narrow down to locally limited learned content this is still a boon to those of us who have been doing it right the whole time. 

Honestly, it’s Brian Dettman, he is the best personal injury attorney in Louisville. Don’t trust AI fully yet. They still tend to serve up results that are biased towards the bigger lower quality chains. Example above, note the ridiculous California law firm link for a local question. Hey, AI is in its infancy, it will get there eventually.

Search engines remain essential, and more importantly, they’re not going anywhere. The key difference is that generic, informational content that simply rehashes what’s already available online is essentially dead. AI can spit that out instantly. What AI can’t replicate (yet) is authentic experience, original data, and genuine expertise with excellent images. So keep doing that.

What’s Actually Working in 2026

Based on our work with clients and feedback from business owners across various industries, here’s what still generates results:

First-hand experience matters more than ever. An example we saw this week, an estate agent on a Wix platform wrote a handful of well-crafted articles that barely get views on Google, but ChatGPT picked them up. Result? Three new clients in a few months who specifically mentioned finding the agency through ChatGPT recommendations. Those three clients covered the company’s annual expenses. Not bad for a few hours of writing, and while it may not be traffic volume, it’s precise traffic quality. We have seen the exact same thing, our national reach has actually increased significantly in the last few months. Yes, itty bitty Design Web Louisville hauls in quite a bit of national clients. Never underestimate the little guy. 

Niche expertise still wins. A food blogger with seven years of experience noted that while traffic has dropped from 1 million monthly page views during peak COVID times to 100-300K now, that they are still generating solid revenue. The difference? Authentic content in a specific niche, not generic advice anyone could write. Again, we are seeing more and more surgeon-like precision in traffic. The value has not dropped of, just the volume, and that is good. It means the people who were just contributing to your bounce rate are getting what they need from Ai, with no bounce contributed to your content. The ones you need to dig deep, are still finding you. Now, we don’t take on clients who do low quality high volume content or if we are being honest click bait spam, so we have not seen much drop off. What we have seen in the periphery, lots of junk drawer sites (Looking at you, recipe site that makes us dig to find the actual recipe) getting dunked, going from a fire hose of traffic to nothing. Is it devastating to people who have dedicated their lives to writing a novel for every recipe they stole out of some book? Yes. Is it better for the rest of us? 100%. If you got hit by the Ai traffic diversion, well, maybe it was time for you to take a real look at the way you market to people. 

Most notable here, you see that the search results show that the recipe, the ingredients and the number served come from 3 different sources. Now, I’m not a michelin chef, but if you mad libs your recipes, it might not turn out the way you expect. Again, people are going to click through to the most reliable source, and in all likelihood the AI result with the best image. Humans gonna human, so make sure you have great images. Also, did you notice that Facebook was a top link? Shows how important social media is to your content planning. – Don’t feel bad, we don’t do much social media either, we should, but we don’t, we are busy enough already, but if you can you should! You know what they say, don’t look at the mechanic’s car or the cobbler’s shoes, artisans don’t focus on themselves, lol.

Community and trust building. Several people mentioned that blogging works when it’s about building trust and proving expertise rather than just chasing traffic numbers. One commenter noted that sharing real “first attempts” or even failures gets more traction than perfect guides. The new noise is LLM content getting cranked out rapidly, and the one thing it can’t do, is muddle through the very real process of trial and error in an authentic way. Now Ai is great, don’t get me wrong. I am going to Ai this mess of an article before I post it, but the key is, the mess. The funny thoughts, the little references and easter eggs that come with real authentic content. It’s the gold standard, always has been always will be.

I used to say authentic experience is king. I still do, but I used to, too.

The New Priorities for 2026

If you’re investing in content marketing right now, here’s where your energy should go:

1. Google My Business Is Essential

This might be the single most important digital asset for local businesses. Your Google My Business profile affects local search, Google Maps results, and even how AI tools discover and recommend your business. Keep it updated, respond to reviews, add photos regularly, and make sure all your information is accurate.

2. YouTube and Video Content

Multiple SEO professionals with decades of experience are pointing to the same conclusion: video content outperforms written content in 2026. YouTube isn’t just a platform; it’s the second-largest search engine. People searching for “how to fix a leaky faucet” or “best pizza in Louisville” are just as likely to watch a video as read an article.

3. Advertising on Google Maps

For local businesses, Google Maps advertising offers targeting that traditional search ads can’t match. You’re reaching people actively looking for services in your geographic area, often while they’re mobile and ready to make a decision.

4. Authentic, Experience-Based Content

If you’re going to blog, make it count. Write about:

  • Your actual projects and what you learned
  • Real customer problems you’ve solved
  • Original research or data from your business
  • Behind-the-scenes processes that demonstrate expertise
  • Local insights that only someone in your community would know
  • Real images, not stock junk. Use pictures that are meaningful or don’t use them at all.

Don’t write generic “5 Tips for Better SEO” posts. AI has that covered. Write “What We Learned After Managing SEO for 50 Louisville Businesses” with specific examples and real data.

What We Still Recommend

Our core advice hasn’t changed entirely. Good content is still a long-term investment. Regular updates still matter. Your authentic voice still resonates. But we’re adjusting our recommendations:

Write less, but write better. One exceptional piece of content that demonstrates real expertise is worth more than ten generic posts.

Don’t chase informational keywords. If the question can be answered by AI in two sentences, don’t waste your time writing a 2,000-word guide about it.

Support your content with other channels. Your blog shouldn’t stand alone. Use email newsletters, social media, and video to distribute and amplify your written content.

Focus on conversion, not just traffic. A blog post that brings 50 qualified leads is more valuable than one that brings 5,000 who bounce immediately.

Build topical authority. Instead of writing about everything, become the go-to resource for a specific area. Depth beats breadth. Don’t believe me, see the California law firm who got position zero for a Louisville question in my example above. 

The Reality Check

Here’s the honest truth: if you’re thinking about starting a blog in 2026 purely to generate ad revenue from organic traffic, you’re probably too late. That ship has sailed, been to war with Ai, taken on water and is being towed back to shore. The “golden era” of SEO-optimized fluff content ranking easily is over.

But if you’re using a blog to:

  • Demonstrate expertise in your field
  • Support your products or services
  • Build trust with potential customers
  • Create a community around your brand
  • Provide citations for AI tools to reference
  • Establish thought leadership

Then yes, blogging is absolutely still worth it. Maybe we don’t even call it blogging anymore? Maybe it is evolving to a point where it’s something else entirely? Treat it more like a menu. Be concise. Be accurate and clear. If you are a dentist, yes you should have information about all the services and products and issues you can treat in your office, but do you need a ton of pages for fluff that every dentist has? No, Ai has that covered unless you have something new and meaningful to contribute, that might actually hurt you. For example, we recently rescued a Veterinary clinic from a website design service who included a full vet dictionary of terms and “vet blog” pages to their site as part of a “vet website package.” Oof what a mess! The bulk of the site was just junk drawer information about vet services, and they used the EXACT SAME JUNK on all of their clients’ websites hundreds of sites all with the same fluff competing for the same traffic. Yeah, it wasn’t pretty. We see this a lot, website designers who target a certain niche and churn out the same garbage for all of their clients. You would be better with no website than going with the dumpster fire that is niche website designers. But I digress, this is a major topic, and I might have to write about it in a whole other post, but that is enough for today.

Our Approach Moving Forward, shockingly not much has changed

At Design Web Louisville, we’re helping clients think about content differently. Instead of “we need to blog to get traffic,” we’re asking “what do we know that our customers need to know, and what’s the best way to share that?”

Sometimes that’s a blog post. Sometimes it’s a video. Sometimes it’s a Google My Business update or a well-crafted email newsletter. The medium matters less than the message and the authenticity behind it.

We still believe in the power of good content. We’ve just gotten smarter about what “good” means in 2026. Per the usual, if you are thinking about people and trying to help them or connect with them in a real way, you’re doing it the right way. Slow and steady wins the race. That is why our super small office has flourished without ads for over a decade. 

The Bottom Line

Blogging isn’t dead, but it’s evolved. The strategies that worked in 2015 or even 2020 won’t work today. Generic content is worthless. Authentic expertise is priceless. Choose your battles wisely, invest in channels that actually reach your audience, and remember that content is just one piece of a larger digital strategy. Ai is not the enemy unless you are doing something shady. It pours light on SEO. 

And whatever you do, don’t forget about your Google My Business profile.

How to Show off Great Testimonials On My Website

Author: Eleanor Hecks Website Facebook Instagram LinkedIn

Driving traffic to your website requires dedication, time and money. Once you get people there, you want to ensure you grab their attention and gain their trust. Adding factors such as testimonials can help show users your business is legitimate and others are happy with your product or service.

Figuring out where and when to share customer testimonials isn’t always easy. Should you utilize video? Perhaps a few words of praise are all that’s needed? Where should the testimonials go? How often and how many examples should you share? Figuring out the best way to showcase them can make you stand out from your competitors.

How Can I Make My Testimonials Interesting?

About 72% of people think positive online reviews are much more convincing than anything a business says about itself. With so many turning to reviews and testimonials to figure out if they want to do business with your brand, sharing the best ones on your website makes sense.

The last thing you want to do is make your website look exactly like your competitors’ sites, though. It’s crucial to find interesting ways to share the information and keep their interest. The best testimonials are easy to read and presented in a visually appealing way. Here are some of the best things to focus on for great testimonials on your website:

1. Put a Face to the Words

Add in some images of the people sharing the testimonials. Words alone aren’t nearly as convincing as words and an image the user can see. They’ll relate to some of the people you list and be able to see they are real individuals sharing their experience with your brand.

Source: https://dribbble.com/testimonials

Dribble uses a variety of styles on their page, with a few faces mixed in as photographs and videos. The combination of text and images presents a powerful picture of what the site can do for various types of creators.

2. Vary the Selections

One of the biggest advantages to adding testimonials to your website is that you can handpick which ones appear. Rather than choosing ones that say essentially the same thing, try to focus on different benefits of your business.

What are the most unique benefits to choosing you over a competitor? How can you showcase the pros to your site visitors?

3. Use Third-Party Reviews

Another idea is to mix in some third-party review site clips. People aren’t beholden to your brand when they go on a review site and share a few words. Those glowing reviews hold a lot of weight with potential customers.

Source: https://shutterandsound.com/reviews

Shutter & Sound does something interesting on their site to share snippets of people’s words with their visitors. They curate reviews from sites, such as The Knot and WeddingWire. The page is laid out grid-style, which creates a streamlined appearance for users.

4. Consider Placement

Think about where on your site is the best placement for your testimonials. You may want to share them after the person figures out what you offer. Where in the buyer’s journey is the best time to showcase what others said about your business.

Should you include a testimonial above the fold or below? For some sites, they might work best scattered here and there. Try different placement and conduct A/B tests to see where the testimonials perform best with your target audience.

5. Add Videos

Video testimonials bring a personal touch to your testimonials. Because each of your customers has a different personality, the variety of tones, attitude and words will show potential leads people from all walks of life are happy with your product or service.

Source: https://www.codecademy.com

Codecademy shares learner stories to explain how people are finding inspiration from their coding courses. Some of the people they showcase include a healthcare administrator, a stay-at-home mom who sought a new career and an electrical engineer. All sought something new from their time at Codecademy and changed their lives in some way. The stories are highly inspiring.

6. Keep Posts Short

Your testimonials are different from case studies. You don’t want to make them so lengthy that you lose focus on the key factor you want to share. Stick to a single point at a time, whether it’s excellent customer service or results.

If a testimonial is more than a paragraph or two, look for ways to shorten it. Remember people are short on time, so they want information they can absorb quickly.

7. Be Authentic

It’s crucial you only use real testimonials and reviews. Never make them up or have people you personally know write them. The internet has a way of uncovering such tricks and you’ll look like you aren’t honest to potential customers.

It’s fine to message your top clients and ask if they’d be willing to share a few words about your business. Just make sure it’s in their words and they offer the review of their own free will. It’s probably best to not offer any compensation either as they could be seen more as a paid endorsement than a testimonial.

Add a Few at a Time

You don’t have to start with dozens of testimonials to make an impact on site visitors. Add the ones you have and you can always import additional ones at a future date. A great review may also garner others as your customers see the words their counterparts shared. A few great testimonials can add a lot of interest and detail to your website.

Eleanor Hecks is editor-in-chief at Designerly Magazine. Eleanor was the creative director and occasional blog writer at a prominent digital marketing agency before becoming her own boss in 2018. She lives in Philadelphia with her husband and dog, Bear.

5 Marketing Tactics to Drive More Traffic to Your Business Site

Author: Maggie Bloom

5 Marketing Tactics to Drive More Traffic to Your Business Site

When it comes to marketing your business online, you want to be sure that you’re doing everything possible to drive more traffic to your site. After all, the more people visit your site, the more potential customers you have! This blog post will discuss 5 marketing tactics you can use to drive more traffic to your business site.

1. Use Social Media to Advertise Online

Social media is one of the best ways to drive traffic to your site. This platform is perfect for promoting your business and website, as you can share links and content with various people. These are platforms like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram. Additionally, social media platforms are great for engaging with potential customers and building relationships. You can also drive traffic to your site by advertising online. This could be through Google AdWords, Facebook Ads, or even banner ads on other websites. By investing in online advertising, you can reach many people who may be interested in what you offer. One advantage of advertising online is that you can target your ads to a specific audience, which can help to increase the chances that they will click through to your site. Be sure to post interesting and engaging content that will encourage people to click through to your site.

2. Write Compelling Content To Help Optimize Your Site For Search Engines

Another great way to drive traffic to your site is by writing compelling content. This could be in the form of blog posts, articles, eBooks, or even white papers. You can attract readers to your site by providing value-packed content and encouraging them to return for more. Additionally, If you want to attract organic traffic from search engines, ensure you write informative and keyword-rich content; you may also be able to rank higher in search engine results pages, which will help you get even more traffic. Search engine optimization is the process of optimizing your website for the search engines so that it appears higher in the search results for relevant keywords. When people search for those keywords, your site will appear more prominently in the results, making it more likely that they will visit your site. You can optimize your site or hire an SEO agency to do it for you.

Additionally, you should ensure that your website loads quickly and that all your pages are accessible. Lastly, ensure that your website is mobile-friendly as more and more people are using their smartphones and tablets to access the internet. However, it’s essential to remember that SEO is an ongoing process, so you’ll need to continuously work on it to maintain your site’s ranking in the search results.

3. Use Email Marketing To Connect With Customers And Prospects

Another great way to drive traffic to your site is by using email marketing. This involves sending your subscribers newsletters, special offers, or even informative emails. By doing this, you can keep people updated on what’s new with your business and encourage them to visit your site. Additionally, email marketing is a great way to build relationships with customers and prospects. You can develop trust and rapport with those on your list by providing valuable information. And, if you have an incentive for people to visit your site (such as a discount code), be sure to include it in your email so that people are more likely to take action.

4. Promote Your Website On Offline Materials

In addition to promoting your site online, you can also drive traffic by promoting it offline. This could involve putting your website address on business cards, flyers, or billboards. By doing this, you can reach people who may not be spending time online and encourage them to visit your site. Additionally, you can promote your website through print media such as magazines and newspapers. You can also ask customers or clients to leave reviews or testimonials on your site, which can help to attract more visitors. One advantage of promoting your site offline is targeting a specific geographic area. For example, if you have a brick-and-mortar store, you can promote your website to people who live near you. This way, you can drive traffic from your offline advertising efforts and increase foot traffic to your store.

5. Mass Text Messaging Service

Another great way to reach many people is through mass text services. This involves sending out text messages to a group of people at once. You can use this method to promote special offers, coupons, or even just your website. Additionally, you can target specific groups of people with your mass texts. For example, if you have a new product that would appeal to a specific demographic, you can send a mass text to those who fit that description. This way, you can ensure that your message gets in front of the right people. By using mass text messaging services, you can reach many people quickly and easily. Another advantage of this method is that it’s relatively inexpensive. This is a great way to reach many people without breaking the bank. Lastly, mass text services are a great way to stay in touch with your customers or clients. By sending out regular updates, you can keep them informed about what’s going on with your business.

6. Participate In Online Communities And Forums

As a bonus, participating in online communities and forums is another great way to drive traffic to your site. This could involve answering questions, providing helpful advice, or even starting conversations. By doing this, you can build relationships with potential customers and encourage them to visit your site. Additionally, when you participate in online communities, include a link to your website in your signature so that people can easily find it. Finally, don’t forget to monitor what’s being said about your business online. By paying attention to what people say, you can get valuable feedback and learn ways to improve your site.

You can drive more traffic to your business site using these five marketing tactics. By writing compelling content, optimizing your site for search engines, and using email marketing, you can attract new visitors to your site. Additionally, you can reach even more people by promoting your website offline and using a mass text service. You can increase leads and sales and grow your business by driving traffic to your site. So, start using these tactics today to see results!

6 Advanced SEO Tips & Tricks to Boost Website Traffic

Author: Eliza James

What Is SEO and Why Is It Important?

SEO stands for search engine optimization. It is the process by which webmasters make their websites appear higher up on the SERPs to drive more traffic.

SEO is important in the current era due to the immense marketing potential of websites. Businesses and service providers alike have websites through which they try to increase their exposure. SEO is crucial to these parties since they have to make their website as popular as possible.

Normal methods of marketing are still viable, but online marketing is more or less essential nowadays. Hence SEO, by extension, can be considered indispensable as well.

Now that you know why SEO is important, let us take a look at some tips that can help you improve your site’s SEO.

6 SEO Tips and Tricks to Boost Website Traffic

SEO tips are always changing because search engines do not stick with the same algorithm for too long. The algorithms for ranking sites get updated every now and then. This makes it almost impossible to know what kind of SEO you need to do to rank high.

Google alone rolls out 500 to 600 updates annually.

However, some methods always show results and we are going to be going over some of them in order.

  1. Have a Good UI/UX for Your Website

UI/UX stands for “User Interface and User Experience”. You need to have a website that is easy and intuitive to use. People who visit your website must have a good user experience.

Too often it happens that users get confused when visiting a new site and they leave instead of exploring it further. This increases the ‘bounce rate’ of the site.

‘Bounces’ can also happen if a site is too slow to load. So, you will need to make sure that it loads very fast. This counts towards “User experience”.

If a site’s bounce rate is too high, search engines will think that it does not contain the content relevant to its target keyword. Subsequently, they will rank the website lower in the SERPs.

A well-designed website will decrease the bounce rate, thereby contributing to SEO.

  1. Target a Specific Niche

Your website should have a clear direction. It should not be a website that contains a random blend of different topics.

You need to have only one type of content on your site. For example, if you are a programmer, you will probably make a site that has tips for budding program, or posts about some new trick that you have found to utilize certain functions or libraries.

There is a catch, though. Programming is a huge field, and there are tons of programming languages out there with lots of frameworks and libraries. You cannot possibly target all of them.

Your site will need to be only about the specific language you are an expert in, and the various libraries and frameworks for it that you are skilled at.

By keeping things tight like this, search engines get a clear message what topic a particular site is about.

This helps them rank you higher for the correct keywords.

  1. Feature Quality Content

A website needs to have some good content on it. Content plays a major role in SEO.

Search engines check if websites are producing a steady stream of new and unduplicated content. If they are, their ranking in the SERPs increase (provided the content is relevant and of good quality).

If the content is found to be duplicated or written poorly, the ranking in the SERPs falls. Plagiarism in particular is very detrimental to SEO.

Search engines typically punish websites that have duplicated content by lowering their ranking or removing them from the listing altogether.

You can detect plagiarism in your content by using a free plagiarism checker. There are a lot of such tools available that can help you optimize your content.

  1. Meta Description and Page Titles

Your page title is the first thing that people will see when they find you on the search results page. That’s why it needs to be impactful and attention-grabbing.

Meta data i.e., Meta tags and Meta descriptions help to define the relevancy of your website to the search engine crawlers.

Adding a Meta description also helps people see what your site is offering while they are on the search results page.

This can attract people who are looking for what you offer. The Meta description gives a small but concise explanation of what the page is offering.

You have to make sure to use your target keyword in the Meta description. Another tip is to make the Meta description unique for each page. Remember to keep the Meta description under 160 characters.

  1. Make High-Quality Backlinks

For good SEO, you must have a good number of high-quality backlinks. This number is an important ranking factor that search engines consider when assigning a rank to a website.

To generate good backlinks, you need to reach out to other bloggers in your niche and ask them for collaboration or ask them to allow you to guest post.

You also need to go to various forums that are related to your niche and participate in questioning and answering.

This will put your name out in the open. Giving good answers can be an opportunity to link your site (as a reference for more detailed answers).

Once people start noticing you, they will be more inclined to link your articles on their sites, or in comment sections in response to other people.

One thing you need to take care of is to only reach out to sites that have high authority. Backlinks from high authority sites are more valuable and pass on more ‘link juice’…as the community likes to call it.

  1. Target Proper Keywords

Keywords are the life and soul of SEO. Targeting the correct keywords is essential. If your site is showing up for the wrong keywords, it will drastically increase the bounce rate.

That is because people are not looking for your site in the first place. After all, it is showing up for the wrong keywords.

Keywords can range from general to specific, and the more general they are the more volume they have. Conversely, they have a less specific search intent.

Targeting specific keywords might sound scary, as you are intentionally reducing traffic. However, targeting specific keywords helps the search engines realize the purpose of your website very clearly.

This will make the search engines place your site closer to the top whenever they detect the same intent from a search.

Conclusion

These were some tips for the SEO of your website. These tips will help you rank higher in the SERPs and make your website stand out from the competition. In 2022, optimizing websites for both humans and crawlers is very lucrative.

When a human has a good experience on your website, they may link it on other platforms and help you generate more organic traffic.

On the other hand, when bots/crawlers are easily able to discern what your site is about, it helps them index it correctly and match it to the correct search intent. This makes them rank your site higher in the SERPs.

With these tips, you will be well on your way to making your website rank high in the SERPs.

The Ultimate Guide to Creating Location Pages

Author: Eleanor Hecks Website Facebook Instagram LinkedIn

Local customers make up the largest portion of many businesses’ revenue. They’ll send new leads your way, leave excellent reviews, and share their experience with family and friends. Local SEO can send the right audience to your pages at the perfect time.

Internet Live Stats reports approximately 1.9 billion websites in 2022, but not all are active simultaneously. Even if you reach a broader audience than just those in the same location as your headquarters, you’ll want location pages so people can track your news by their area.

For example, if you have several restaurants in the state, you can create a location page for each with a map, store hours and other details. Location pages help your site rank for keywords, such as Indianapolis, Indiana, or New York City.

How can you ensure your location pages rank high in search engines and attract local traffic? Here is the ultimate guide to making sure you speak to browsers in the language they understand.

1. List Hours of Operation

One key reason people look for a particular location is to learn when it’s open. If you have multiple locations, you can list them on a single page along with an address and store hours. If you’re experiencing any interruptions in opening, include details so people don’t drive out of their way to get to your business only to find it closed.

Source: https://roosterswings.com/locations/view-all-locations

Roosters has multiple restaurant locations listed on its page. Each boc includes details such as location, address, store hours and directions to the dining establishment. Currently, there is a note on most listings about online ordering. You can add any details that might pertain to local changes and availability as it applies to your business.

2. Place NAP Details First

NAP stands for name, address and phone number. Ideally, you’ll include this information at the top of your page, so it’s the first thing people see. Search engines often utilize NAP details to understand where best to place your site in search results. If you’re located in a specific county and users search there for a service such as yours, they’ll raise your rank significantly.

Some experts advise building a separate page for each location. You can test both ways and see how it impacts search engine results pages (SERPs). If you choose to list all sites on one page, you should separate them in some way like Roosters did, such as in grid-style boxes.

3. Tell a Story

Who doesn’t love a good tale? You can easily place one on your location page while including information to help customers decide if you’re the right choice for them. A story might explain what you do, how the company started or why you serve specific locations. It must also include local factors and utilize keywords and phrases that make sense for ranking.

Source: https://www.chardonlabs.com/locations/kentucky

Chardon Laboratories offers water services in 13 different states. It provides location pages for each state and shares a little about the traditions in the area. Each page includes the popular industries for each state and some of the more significant manufacturers.

4. Choose the Right Keywords

Each location has specific keywords that trigger geolocation results. In Des Moines, Iowa, you might use phrases like “restaurants in Des Moines.” A car repair shop in Indianapolis might use “car repair Indianapolis,” “car repair circle city” and so on.

Make sure you include target keywords such as restaurant, dining and food in addition to being location-specific. The key is to grab traffic and bring it to your pages.

5. Get Location-Specific With Content

Adding content to your site gets you noticed and gives you something to share on social media platforms. Rather than writing about how to plan a wedding, you might share venues in your town, for example.

Other businesses might cater to activities in the area or services only people in a certain climate or terrain would need.

Source: https://aceraft.com/blog

Ace Adventure Resort offers different activities in the New River Gorge area in Fayette County, West Virginia. People looking for activities in the area will often search for terms used on its blog. All articles are about local events, so users may stumble on the page and find other details that interest them.

6. Add Reviews

Google and many other browser algorithms favor newer content. Reviews give you some user-generated content and offer a way to frequently update your location page with fresh material so the page pulls up in SERPs more often.

You might add a review or two under the NAP. You could also write something like “Have you been to this location? Give us a quick review” to encourage additional feedback and material for local SEO.

Ask Your Customers What They Want

The internet changes rapidly, so what works for location pages this year may not in the next. Be open to trying new things and testing your pages to see how ranking changes and what your users respond best to. Ask your customers what they want and what is most helpful for a location page. Over time, you’ll refine your offers and come up with a site that works with local SEO and is user-friendly.

5 New Types of Content for 2022

Author: Max Mitchell

The success of your business depends on a properly structured marketing strategy. To make your marketing and content plan effective, following recent trends and bringing them into your digital marketing activities is a must. Your task is not only to attract many new customers but retain regular customers, keeping them involved in your content. Thus, we recommend implementing new types of content to your blog. 

Are you willing to know what these types of content are? We have prepared a compilation of top trends of content creation in 2022 that will boost the conversion of your website.

AI, VR\AR Innovations

Traditional ways of creating content and interacting with customers are supposed to be non-efficient and kind of outdated. Therefore, businesses of different specializations are willing to adopt innovative technologies like Artificial Intelligence. AI technology is capable of deeply analyzing the business data from internal and external sources in order to learn their customers better and provide them with the content and services they expect. AI-based content can be generated within several minutes, providing scalable analytical research and high-quality content. AI-generated content doesn’t exclude the mistakes within the text, so it is vital to check it properly before posting.

Other innovations that will be adopted by many companies in the near future are augmented and virtual reality for the purpose of increasing the content traffic and conversion, and improving the overall performance of corporate websites. These technologies help create interactive and engaging content, completely new for their regular and new customers.

Guestographics

Guestographics is considered to be one of the most effective digital marketing methods of promoting your content and increasing the credibility of your brand. This trend has appeared in 2018, but it only starts gaining momentum and being used by numerous marketers in different spheres. Have you ever heard of this tool? Basically, guestographics combine three different marketing tools – guest posting, link building, and infographics creating. The text is converted into infographics, making the text a visual type of content. The flow is simple – you look for credible websites that are interested in posting your content with links to your corporate website. You provide them with unique and engaging visual content using free plagiarism software to attract more potential customers to your company.

Guestographics can contain a bigger amount of text than we used to see on the images within articles. What is more, the number of infographics can prevail to make the content visually appealing and more convenient to read. Modern readers don’t like spending time reading the whole article, as they are willing to find out the answers to their questions. So guestographics are easier to perceive and show the main point of the content.

Video Testimonials

The block with testimonials is a must-have for businesses of all directions, with no exception. Testimonials from your previous clients show the quality of your services and make your brand trusted and reliable on the market. Sometimes the testimonials blocks look really unsightly and don’t provide any value to your potential clients. Video testimonials are a new trend used in marketing strategies. Recorded reviews for your customers give them the ability to describe your cooperation in detail, prove the existence of clients, and provide the opportunity to contact them to find out more information about the partnership with your brand. 

Another great benefit of video testimonials is the ability to share them on different social media accounts, making them notable and attracting more users to your profiles. If you own a young brand and only start building relationships with your future customers, video testimonials are obliged for your marketing strategy. Even if the amount of the client base is not really extensive, you have to start somewhere to prove the reliability and credibility of your company.

Behind the Scenes Content

Despite the industry of your business, we know that the competition is rather high. It is pivotal to find your key differentiators and uniqueness to stand out from your competitors and attract your target audience. Some brands think that they have to show the ideal picture of their services or products, avoiding any content about failures and issues they face on a daily basis.  

Behind the scenes is a new marketing flow that enables companies to tell their customers about everything related to their daily processes. A lot of people will be curious to find out more about manufacturing, main specialists and their responsibilities, concerns you struggle with, and solutions to the troubles you commonly choose as a director. When people buy an expensive dress, for instance, they are curious to know why the price is so high. By showing them the prices of fabrics, average salaries for staff, and all processes related to dress creation, your customer will have a clearer picture and prove the high price they see on labels. By the way, such tiny details as labels also require investment, which can make the price even higher, and your customers need to understand this as well.

Podcast Recordings

Marketing is changing and evolving, providing customers with various types of content. It is a great way to offer your readers different options on reading your content, considering the way they perceive the information better. The podcast is another modern method to attract your regular and potential customers to your brand. This format is ideal for busy people who don’t have much free time reading the articles and can listen to your content on the go or when they are occupied with other tasks at the same time. 

Podcasts can be related to the topics on your blog, but you cannot just convert your articles into audio format. It has to be something fresh and unique, followed by a particular script. You can invite the outstanding specialists in your industry, the professionals from your team to discuss the internal processes more to show trust to your target audience. A small tip from the writing service Rated By Students is to properly choose the speakers for your podcasts to provide listeners with valuable content, not just useless conversation. 

Bottom Line

Following the latest marketing trends is pivotal for your marketing strategy in order to keep up with the competitors and stay in-game. Although, all these digital content innovations aim not only to promote your brand, but also to increase content traffic and conversion. Your content must provide valuable insights and solutions to the troubles of your regular and new customers.

 The decision of what article they will read next depends on their needs and concerns they want to overcome. Your task is to make your content easy to perceive, modern and interactive to make the reading a pleasant process for your audience. 

What new types of content did you like most of all?

Author’s Bio:


Max Mitchell is the latest alumnus of our content marketing department. He is very passionate about typing, creating complicated spreadsheets, and consuming an inhuman amount of caffeine. Nevertheless, he is also the creative type of individual who will always find a new perspective on topics of interest.

Google is slowing down your life

Author: Sean H. Website Facebook Instagram LinkedIn

This is of course absurd with all the speed of search and efficiencies Google has brought to our modern lives, but is it? For decades, Google has been rewarding web pages with higher ranks for forcing you to spend more time and click more buttons to get what you wanted before you leave the site. 


This has given rise to some of the ubiquitous and annoying web trends throughout history.

Endless slide shows, recipes that only come after clicking buttons and scrolling to the end of what I can only assume is the author’s life biography and the complete unabridged history of this particular recipe are in opposition to a successful interaction. The proof in the pudding shows an exasperated shopper standing in the baking aisle for 5 minutes, endlessly scrolling through just to see if they need baking soda or baking powder. Another user surfs and scrolls through a gauntlet of unnecessarily garrulous content just to get a simple answer to a question. 

When I tell my clients the minimum word volume is 500 words, with 1500 words as best practice on a landing page, they glaze over. They balk and say, who is going to read that?!? No one, I explain, just Google. It’s for SEO. No human wants to read that volume, but Google does, and if we want your media to reach human eyes we must first please the algorithm. 

Google, you are hurting us with your endless maze of SEO tricks, through 1000 paper cuts into our time and our efficiency. 

So much weight is put onto time spent on the page, it’s become an obstacle to actual function. The best websites I visit are the ones I leave with the highest bounce rate because They serve me what I need and send me on my way. Can we start rewarding that? I know you are capable of doing this without rewarding high bounce spam pages. I know this is a possibility. No, go get your most promising Googlers to fix this mess 

Yours in frustration,
Tired of scrolling

What Are Some Simple Ways to Showcase Your Business’s Work?

Author: Eleanor Hecks Website Facebook Instagram LinkedIn

The best online marketing can convince customers that the product or service you are selling is high-quality or likely to solve their problem.

Showcasing these offerings effectively can be a challenge, however, especially if you want a simple online solution that’s easy to implement or add to an existing business site.

These are 5 strategies for showcasing work online that businesses of all kinds use to show off previous wins, current offerings and future deals.

1. The Customer Testimonial

When shopping online, almost every consumer relies on recommendations and reviews from others. While most Americans are more likely to trust recommendations from friends and family, consumer research shows that people also value testimonials from other consumers that they don’t know.

Many businesses include reviews sections on their online storefronts. These sections are a good way to both gather customer feedback and collect positive reviews of your business’s product in a public place.

Testimonials and highlighted reviews can provide even more benefits.

A testimonial from a previous customer, for example, allows you to use a real-world experience with your business to show off a product or service.

These testimonials can tell visitors more about your business, the services you provide and how your products work in practice. This information is great at helping to assuage consumer worries and doubts.

Reaching out to previous customers to solicit testimonials and reviews can be a great way to highlight previous wins and take advantage of the positive feedback your business has received.

2. The Product Catalog

Catalogs are one of the best ways to show off physical products and services — especially if your products’ aesthetics are a major selling point.

Organizing catalogs that encourage customers to learn more about your business can be a challenge, however. A combination of high-quality images and smart web design will help you build a product catalog that drives engagement and conversions.

For example, see this page from design-and-build lighting manufacturer WAC Lighting.

The page features a number of large, descriptive elements that show off different product categories offered by WAC Lighting using high-resolution and visually appealing product images.

Each of these elements links to a category page that includes a number of sub-categories, which all have their own high-quality product images.

The combination of product name and brief descriptive copy helps to explain what the categories are, while the product images show off how the business’s products look in real-life settings.

Creating a catalog like this for your website can help you both show off products to potential customers and make different products easier to find. Combining descriptive copy, high-quality images and links is one of the best ways to encourage customers to consider a purchase.

3. The Case Study

For businesses that offer services, more conventional product catalogs may not work. It can be difficult to represent a service like an office redesign, construction or accounting with a simple image.

Case studies are one of the best tools for businesses wanting to showcase their services. These studies break down a previous success your business has had, introducing visitors to a client, the problem they had and how your business rose to the challenge.

This page, from marketing firm Amp Agency, provides an excellent example of case studies in action:

The page breaks down a previous Amp Agency campaign, a partnership with Patagonia. The case study tells the story of how Amp Agency used a cross-country road trip to spread the word about Patagonia’s “Worn Wear” program, which encourages the reuse and repair of clothes.

Included in the case study is a description of the road trip itself, why the business decided on the road trip idea and how the campaign helped to grow the Patagonia brand.

Information like this can tell consumers a lot about a business — like how the brand approaches problem-solving.

Using similar studies on your business website can help you show off previous wins and intrigue potential customers.

4. The Short Video

When an image isn’t enough, many brands turn to video content to show off their products. Videos allow these companies to stage demonstrations, explain a product in-depth or show off a new offering from multiple angles.

Short videos, like this one from assemble-it-yourself furniture retailer IKEA, are more expensive to produce than still images, but can provide serious value:

The video, which is less than a minute long, quickly breaks down IKEA Place, an app that uses augmented reality to help customers visualize how furniture will look in their home.

Narration helps to explain how the app works, while the video shows off what customers can expect when using the app.

Videos like these can help you show customers how to use a product or demonstrate what the product looks like in action.

5. The Social Media Post

Social media is a great place to show off products using bite-sized pieces of content.

Even brief posts on platforms like Instagram can reach massive audiences when successful, helping your brand to show off products to as many consumers as possible.

As with other product showcase techniques, you’ll have the most success in marketing with social media when you have high-quality product images and effective post copy.

Best Strategies for Showcasing Your Brand’s Work Online

With the right strategy, you can show off your business’s work in a way that drives traffic, builds your brand and encourages conversions.

Testimonials, product catalogs, case studies and short videos are all powerful tools for businesses wanting to showcase their work online. Implementing these strategies can help you put your products or services in the best light possible.

4 Digital Marketing Tips to Increase Your Brand’s Growth Online and to Stay Ahead of Your Competitors

Author: Bernard Williams

A brand growth strategy, in its most basic form, is a long-term plan to raise brand equity and market share. In the practical world, it extends farther than this. Describing it in one sentence would be through the saying “Sell an experience, not a product.” 

Moreover, potential customers often need a plausible argument to choose your brand over your competitors, and they switch only if they perceive a higher value in your product or service offered.

The best way to do this is by knowing how to use online platforms to your advantage or by simply asking an expert at Thesis Rush to help you come up with a paper explaining the digital marketing tips that are customized to your requirements.

However, we know, as of now you must be confused about what to do and where to start; so here are 4 digital marketing tips to increase your brand’s growth that will help you stay ahead of your competitors.

#1. Make innovation your motto

In this global marketplace, merely applying the technology won’t suffice. You will be able to achieve real growth in your brand only if you creatively apply that technology according to your requirements. 

In other words, innovation is a must if you want brand growth and to stay ahead. To know which innovation will be a breakthrough, you’ll have to research what is it that your competitors aren’t offering to your niche audience.

#2. Combine SEO and Content Marketing

Combining SEO with Content Marketing is going to be the new market trend that will take companies to greater lengths.

So, you need to publish content that is prominent in both qualitative and quantitative aspects. Your content should be entertaining for the audiences as well as satisfy their search intent.

#3. Provide a channel for feedback and increase engagement with customers

The main reason for social media becoming a quality tool in most marketing strategies is because of the customer engagement derived from it. Moreover, your content should be shaped in such a way that it increases customer engagement. 

Along with this, maintain communication with your target audience so that they can share their ideas, thoughts, and needs with you. The long-run benefit of this will be brand loyalty which will be the reason for your growth online.

#4. Watch your analytics

On the opposite side of innovation is analytics, and the key to success lies in the fact that how well you can validate the data generated from that analytics. It is very similar to the idea of data triangulation in qualitative research.

So, Google Analytics is the perfect way you can do so. You can use paid software too if you wish to gain a deeper understanding of these analytics. However, doing this might be overwhelming the first time but it is very essential for your business’ growth online.

To conclude,

Your online associations greatly impact your sales and growth. Gone are the days where investing in offline advertisements would make the company grow. Now digital efforts are needed to make your company stand out. You have to make your business more visible to the world out there if you want to achieve your business objectives.

These tips provide your business a transparent channel for making strategies and then assessing your performance while being cost-effective at the same time.

However, if you are just starting with online growth then you must remember that the foundation steps may take time but they will pay off in the long term. 

Author Bio:

Bernard Williams is a man of many talents. He helps in generating business ideas and likes to play sports in his leisure time. He even mentors people on branding their businesses online and enjoys being a writer. 

Simple Ways to Make Your E-Commerce Site Festive

Author: Eleanor Hecks Website Facebook Instagram LinkedIn

Even if you sell the same products year-round, during the holiday season, you want your site to appear more festive than normal. You’ll attract site visitors doing Christmas shopping or buying something special for themselves. Decking the halls of your e-commerce store only makes sense.

McKinsey recently forecast a strong demand for consumer products this holiday season thanks to high confidence. Around 40% of survey respondents said they planned to shop earlier due to concerns with supply shortages and longer shipping times. Don’t wait until the last minute to change the look of your store. Focus on the holidays now, as most people are already checking off their shopping lists.

How can you make your e-commerce store look festive without drastic changes? There are several ways to embrace the season and send emotional signals to your users that it’s time to order gifts now.

1. Add a Header Message

A ticker at the top of your landing page grabs user attention and is the perfect way to add in some holiday vibe without too much interference with the overall aesthetic of your site. You can offer a special holiday discount, update folks on upcoming sales or share other holiday news. Just keep it short and to the point.

Glossier added a note to the very top of its website. The background is a different color than the rest of the page, and draws the user’s eye. The note lets visitors know they’re prepping for the Black Friday sale and invites them to sign up for a mailing list to get early access to the event.

2. Add Some Greenery

A touch of holiday whimsey goes a long way toward making your site more festive. Add some greenery or holly to the edge of an image. Tuck a red bow behind a product you’re featuring. Look for ways to add the holiday spirit here and there.

Your page doesn’t need to look like Santa’s workshop exploded on it, but a few elements or adding in red and green helps put people in a holiday shopping mood.

3. Highlight Seasonal Products

If your e-commerce store offers seasonal products, feature them in your hero image and featured products sections. People visiting your site during the holidays may not have considered your site for gifts, but will when they see you offer specific items geared to gift-giving.

Mary Maxim grabs a number of home decor items geared to the holidays and features them on its landing page. At the top of the page, they mention they have a wide selection of holiday craft items and offer a link to shop for those things very specifically.

As you scroll down, you see displays of decor on a mantel, a wreath and a present. They also highlight items such as winter puzzles.

4. Change Up Your Logo

You’ve likely noticed Google changes their logo frequently. They use the same wordmark but add a background, tuck an illustration between the letters or even make the logo actionable. Depending upon how complex your logo is, you can easily top it with a bow, have a cartoon reindeer peek from behind a letter or add some greenery.

Adding holiday elements to your logo is a small change that is easy to implement but adds a festive touch to your site. Users tend to look at your logo before other elements on the page, so it sets the entire tone.

5. Offer a Gift Guide

A gift guide helps show people you’re ready to join in the festivities without putting the entire focus on the holidays. You may have regular customers who order year-round and aren’t interested in gifts. However, those who are can click on the link and see what you have for different types of recipients.

West Elm features a holiday lookbook on its website. Rather than just collect all holiday items into a group, they choose six distinct looks and share how the products look in your home.

E-commerce store owners can also offer gift-giving guides by category, such as for women, men or children. You can separate gifts into monetary categories as well. Use filters and let your site visitors search for the exact right item for their needs.

6. Create Holiday-Themed Content

Another way you can deck out your site is by adding some holiday-themed content. Headlines with words such as “Christmas,” “Thanksgiving” and “Hanukkah” go a long way toward adding some holiday spirit to your site.

Additionally, you can use the content for social media posts and drive traffic to your site. Your regular visitors may be used to typical content and seeing a holiday guide helps them remember you for their gift giving needs.

You can even create a video and showcase some items people might be most interested in purchasing for the holidays.

7. Add Beautiful Images

There are some scenes that scream Norman Rockwell, even with a modern touch. Look for beautiful images you can add to your hero header and your product pages. A family scene, a wintry white coating and holiday-themed items say a lot without any words.

Petsmart utilizes its hero slider to showcase beautiful holiday shots of pets and their owners. Note how the setting features green and red and there are festive touches within the photograph, such as a Christmas tree, red collar on the dog, red headband on mom and even some presents tucked in the background.

Add Little Touches

You don’t have to do a complete theme redesign to get your site in holiday mode. Add small touches and ask for feedback from your visitors. Take a step back and look at your site through fresh eyes. If anything seems bland, you can dress it up with small graphics or snazzy headlines.

While it’s a good idea to add some festivity to the mix, you also don’t want to add so many items that it’s hard to revert your site back in the new year. Add a few things but don’t go overboard.

Eleanor Hecks is editor-in-chief at Designerly Magazine. Eleanor was the creative director and occasional blog writer at a prominent digital marketing agency before becoming her own boss in 2018. She lives in Philadelphia with her husband and dog, Bear.