Whether your focus group is there to give feedback on a product or service or help you assess how your brand stands out in your competitive landscape, thought-provoking, open-ended questions are essential to a productive discussion. However, it’s easier said than done. What can you ask beyond “What do you think of our product?” that can provoke the most useful answers? Here, we’ve pulled together 53 questions you can ask in your next focus group to pull the most interesting and useful insights you can out of your participants. Simply copy-and-paste the questions you like below into the notetaking template for a ready-to-go, printable document you can bring to the session. Featured Resource: Market Research Focus Group Template For a free template for notetaking during focus groups, a guide on conducting market research, and several other templates, download our Market Research Kit. Questions for Building Trust Among Focus Group MembersBefore diving into deeper questions, it’s best to warm up the group with a couple of open-ended questions that allow participants to get to know each other a little bit. Participants should be able to decide how much they want to share with the group — don’t force anyone to share something they may not feel comfortable sharing. By including a question that allows people to talk about something tangential to the topic of the focus group, your participants will begin to build empathy for each other. That empathy can grow into trust, which is key for eliciting honest insights out of your group. Here are a few questions you might ask to build trust:
Questions to Encourage Follow-up and Continuation of IdeasThe most helpful insights that come out of focus groups are often the most specific points. Challenge your participants to reflect more on the points they’ve made if you hear something that you’re curious about. For instance:
Questions for Understanding Customer Perception of Your Product or ServiceThese questions will help you understand how people truly feel about your brand, product, or service. The focus here is on your company — not the larger industry landscape or your competitors. Avoid stopping conversation here unless the group gets completely sidetracked. Open-ended questions can be daunting at first. Participants may not know where to start. However, hearing from the other participants will spark reflection on various aspects of your product or service. Be sure to allow each group member who has something to say to speak up before moving on to the next question.
Questions to Learn What Your Leads and Customers Want to See From YouListening to your customers’ feedback and suggestions for improvement is crucial to retaining customers and turning them into promoters of your brand. It may be difficult to hear the answers to these questions, but turning customer pain points around will elevate your product or service to the next level. Avoid defending your product or service or setting any limitations on these questions. Instead, frame them in a way that allows anyone to voice anything at all that they’re feeling. Recognize that it can be daunting for anyone (especially people with whom you’ve built relationships) to share negative feedback, so thank them for their candor.
Questions for Understanding Your Buyer PersonasThe following eight questions will help you understand what motivates your target buyer persona, their habits, their responsibilities and decision-making power, and their preferences. These questions are written to spark discussion about topics other than your company, product or service, and the competitive landscape. Don’t worry if the conversation seems to stray far from your brand, as the insights that people end up sharing will likely reveal what’s significant to them in their life and work. However, it’s important you keep the group focused on the specific question you’ve asked.
Questions for Getting a Better Sense of the Competitive LandscapeThese questions are intended to spark discussion about the brands in your industry that are top-of-mind for consumers. These are helpful in removing any biases that you and your team might have as people who work in the industry and know various players very well. To encourage honesty, avoid agreeing with any disparaging comments that your participants make about your competitors. Instead, use the opportunity to ask follow-up questions about exactly what the participants don’t like about a specific product or brand. If you’re looking to do a complementary research-based analysis of your competitors, download our Market Research Kit to gain access to a S.W.O.T. analysis template. Questions for Generating Content on Your IndustryYou might be looking to develop a content strategy for your brand, branch out into a new content medium, or simply generate new content ideas. Any successful content strategy prioritizes what’s most engaging and interesting for your target buyer persona, so a focus group can be an effective way to be sure that you’re producing material on the right topics and in the medium that your audience wants to consume.
Questions for Understanding Product Demand for Something You Haven’t Yet Put Out in the MarketThese eleven questions are intended to help you understand the demand for a new product or service. These questions will uncover buying habits for a product like the one you’re envisioning and whether there’s true product-market fit.
Questions for Establishing (or Re-establishing) Your Name and BrandingThe following questions are helpful for running word association brainstorms and generating potential names or parts of names for a new product or company.
And there you have it! 53 questions you can ask in your next focus group. If you’re unsure how to conduct a successful focus group, take a look at How to Run a Focus Group for Your Business. Original Entry: 53 Focus Group Questions for Any Purpose is shared from https://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/22025/5-focus-group-questions-to-feed-your-content-marketing.aspx via https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing Check out the original post, 53 Focus Group Questions for Any Purpose that is shared from https://putyourfamilyfirst.wordpress.com/2020/11/13/53-focus-group-questions-for-any-purpose/ via https://putyourfamilyfirst.wordpress.com
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Alright, everyone: I’m about to let you in on a few of my best-kept interviewing secrets. In this post, I’ll uncover real questions I use when interviewing candidates for inbound marketing positions and the answers I’m looking for. These questions are meant to assess candidates not only for their marketing talent, but also for who they are as people. Keep in mind that the best candidates aren’t just qualified to do the job you’re trying to hire them for. You want to look for people who are also passionate about marketing, fit with your culture, and show potential for growth at your company. Here’s a quick look into my interview approach, followed by 14 excellent interview questions I recommend adapting for your industry and hiring needs. My Interview Approach During interviews, I put a lot of stake into each candidate as an individual. My goal is always to find someone amazing who also has great long-term potential, no matter where they are in their career. To uncover this, I like to ask questions that get at the core of who they are, how they think about things specifically, and how they’ve gotten things done in the real world. I then balance these questions with case-style questions, which usually involve a hypothetical business situation, because they give the candidate an opportunity to show how they think about and work on problems. Below is a list of 14 questions that make for an effective marketing job interview, the majority of which I’ve asked candidates with whom I’ve personally gotten to meet. Keep in mind that I don’t ask all of these questions during a single interview. In fact, one case-style question can evolve into a discussion lasting anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes, so I often only have time to cover two or three questions during one session. I also don’t limit these questions to the position levels you’ll see in each section below. This list is just one reasonable way to organize your job interviews based on the average experience of an intern, coordinator, manager, and director. Depending on the candidate and the needs of the role, a question to a marketing manager candidate might be a good question to ask a marketing coordinator candidate as well. Before the interview starts, carefully choose the questions you want to use based on the person’s role and background. For an inbound marketing generalist, you could ask any or all of these questions. For someone with a more specific role on a larger inbound marketing team, like a blogger, you could focus only on the questions about blogging and content creation. Learn more in the following video, and check out some of my favorite interview questions below. 14 Interview Questions to Ask Marketing Job CandidatesCase-Style Interview Questions1. “Draw a funnel on the whiteboard showing 10,000 visitors, 500 leads, 50 opportunities, and 10 new customers (or any other numbers you think are interesting). Now, pretend you’re the CMO for the company, and you have to decide what your marketing team should do to improve on these metrics. Which areas of the funnel would you focus on, and what would you do differently to change these results?”The Follow-Up: The follow-up here is simply pushing on the candidate’s answers. Typically, they’ll pick one part of the funnel to focus on. (And if they don’t, I like to push them to do just that.) Once they pick one area, I ask them follow-up questions like: “Which tactics would you think about changing?,” “What have you done in your past role that’s worked?,” “Do you think our company has any unique advantages to get some leverage out of that stage of the funnel?” I don’t just want them to tell me to “improve the visitor to lead conversion rate” — they need to tell me how. If I have time, I’ll tell them to pretend they’ve implemented their ideas, and I’ll ask them to go back through the whole funnel and explain how they think each of those initial metrics have changed. What to Look For: Everyone on the marketing team needs to be able to understand how to think about and optimize the funnel. Here’s where you assess their thought process, whether they have an intuitive sense of what good and bad conversion rates are, and whether they understand how the funnel steps are connected. You’ll also gain some insight into whether they understand which different tactics you can use at each step to improve that particular step. (For example, if they say the lead-to-opportunity conversion rate is bad, the right answer is not to write more blog articles.) 2. “We have two potential designs for the homepage of our website, but we don’t know which one to use. The CEO likes one, and the COO likes another. Half the company likes one, and the other half of the company likes the other. Which one should we use?”The Follow-Up: This type of question should elicit a ton of questions from the candidate, like who the target audience for the homepage is. If it doesn’t, then they’re either making up their answer or don’t have enough knowledge to address the situation. Follow up by answering their questions with hypotheticals and seeing how they work through the problem. If they do pick one side or the other and give you a reason, ask them what the goals are for the homepage. Then, ask them how they’d determine which homepage meets those goals best. From there, tell them that Homepage A performed well based on one of the criteria, and Homepage B performed well based on another one of the criteria. This way, you can assess how they make choices when it’s not possible to get data that’s 100% conclusive, and they have to choose between two, imperfect variations. What to Look For: While it might seem like this question is all about design, what you’re really doing is understanding how candidates approach a conflict of interest. Do they care what each of these people think, or do they go to the data for their answers, such as through A/B testing, user testing, and customer interviews. The best candidates introduce logic and marketing methodology into their answers, while removing opinions. I also like when candidates say you should be constantly tweaking and improving the homepage, rather than always doing a complete redesign every nine or 18 months. 3. “Let’s say you have an Excel spreadsheet with 10,000 leads from a few months back — long enough that those leads’ sales cycle has passed. The file contains information about each lead, like their industry, title, company size, and what they did to become a lead (like downloading an ebook). Also in the file is whether they closed as a customer and how much their order was for. Can you use this information to create a lead score? How would you do it?”Note: I often start this question by simply asking, “How should you create a lead score?” This is how I sort out the people who don’t take a data-driven approach. Folks who answer, “You create a lead score by talking to the sales team and then assigning five or ten points to each of the criteria they say they want” are actually wrong. That is not a data-driven approach to lead scoring, and it is way too simplistic to work effectively in most cases. The Follow-Up: Most people will answer by talking about “looking at the data” and “sorting the data.” Push them to tell you how they’d do that in Excel (or another program if they prefer something else). It’s not practical to just “look” at the data when you have 10,000 rows — you need to use statistical analysis. They also might zone in on one factor, perhaps industry, all alone. If they do that, you should ask them what they would say if the small companies in one industry are good leads, but the big companies in another industry are also good leads? Basically, just keep pushing them until they’re at a loss for what to do next. What to Look For: This case-style question is meant to test a candidate’s quantitative abilities, and I’d only ask it for people applying for certain marketing roles (like operations). Here, I’m trying to figure out how the candidate thinks about analyzing data and what their sophistication level is around data. Most people don’t get very far and are either unwilling or unable to look at more than one variable at a time, or understand how to analyze a lot of data in a simple way. At a minimum, you want to find candidates who:
If you find someone who starts making a coherent argument about why you might want to use logistic regression, factor or cluster analysis, actuarial science, or stochastic modeling to figure this out … refer them to me. Marketing Internship Interview Questions4. “What is one of your hobbies? How do you do it?”This question will help you assess a candidate’s ability to explain a concept they know intimately to someone who isn’t as familiar with it. If their hobby is training for a marathon, ask them what advice they’d give you if you woke up one day deciding you wanted to train for a marathon. Are they able to communicate it clearly? One candidate taught me how to make tagliatelle, which is hand-cut Italian pasta. She gave me the full run-down on how you make the noodles, how you form them and cut them, and which ingredients go into the sauce. She relayed the step-by-step process to me in a way that was very clear and understandable. I felt like I could’ve gone home and made tagliatelle myself. Not only did this tell me she knows how to convey information clearly, but it also gave me insight into her personality and interests. 5. “What brands do you like or follow on social media and why?”This is another casual but useful question, as it can tell you both about a candidate’s personal interests and how they perceive marketing content on social media. The best answers go further than which companies a candidate likes buying from — they indicate why he or she trusts certain companies, what about their content strategy appeals to the candidate, and what specifically about those companies the candidate looks up to (and maybe wants to emulate in their own work). If you need a candidate to elaborate, follow up by asking them to describe a post from a brand they like or follow, and what made that post so memorable to them. Marketing Coordinator Interview Questions6. “What do you read, and how do you consume information?”Marketing is changing constantly at a rapid pace — so anyone in a marketing role needs to know how to stay on top of and adapt to these changes. Do they know where to look for industry news? Are they familiar with and subscribed to top marketing blogs? What do they do when they see a change has taken place, like when Google updates their algorithm? 7. “What’s an example of a lead-generating campaign you’d be excited to work on here?”Not every marketing campaign you run generates the same type or quality of leads. This is what makes this question so interesting. It’s a chance for you to see how a marketing candidate thinks about the buyer’s journey and what that journey should look like in your company. If you do pose this question to a candidate, don’t expect him or her to know exactly how your business generates its leads. The ideal answer simply demonstrates an awareness of your customer and perhaps some on-the-spot brainstorming the candidate might be asked to participate in while on the job. Expect follow-up questions from the interviewee, too, especially if you pose this question to a more experienced candidate. For example, they might ask how qualified the leads should be, or how leads are scored as a result of this hypothetical campaign. The specific parameters matter less than the follow-up question itself — a positive sign of an analytical marketer. 8. “What are three components of a successful inbound or digital marketing strategy?”There’s no “right” answer to this question — a digital marketing strategy thrives on more than three things — but certain answers show the candidate is up to date on how businesses attract and delight their customers today. “A Facebook page,” for instance, isn’t a wrong answer, but it doesn’t give you context around how a business would use this page in their marketing strategy. Here are a few sample answers to this interview question that are on the right track:
You won’t learn everything about a candidate from just these terms and phrases. But you should listen for them as the candidate responds — and expect more sophisticated answers if you pose this question to managers or directors. Ultimately, the value you place on each of these inbound marketing components will depend on how important they are to your business and what the candidate would focus on as your employee. Before asking this question to anyone you interview, talk to your team and define your marketing strategy. Otherwise, you won’t have an accurate measure on which to evaluate a candidate’s answer. Interview Questions for Marketing Manager9. “Why do you love marketing?”Or, “Which aspects of our business are you passionate about?” You want to hire someone who’s both qualified and has the desire to do the work. Otherwise, why would they work for you instead of the company next door? Part of their answer will lie in their body language and enthusiasm. The other part will lie in how concrete their answer is. Get at the details by asking a follow-up question, like: “Let’s say you’re at home, kicking around, and doing something related to marketing. What is it that you’re doing?” Perhaps they’re reading their five favorite marketing sites, or analyzing traffic patterns of websites for fun, or writing in their personal blog, or optimizing their LinkedIn profile. Whatever it is, you want to be sure they’re deeply passionate about the subject matter you’d hire them for. 10. “Between videos, ebooks, blog articles, photos, podcasts, webinars, SlideShare, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Pinterest … there’s a lot of potential content our team should produce for inbound marketing. How do we do it all?”The wisest candidates know you should not do it all, but rather, you should start with the content that’s most important to your prospects and customers. They should also have a plan for talking to customers and prospects by way of interviews or surveys to figure out which social networks they use and which types of content they prefer. 11. “Let’s pretend we have very convincing data that shows none of our potential customers use social media. Should we still do it? Why?”Look for candidates who understand that being successful in social media is important even if your customers aren’t there today. Here are a few reasons qualified candidates might cite:
Marketing Director Interview Questions12. “We have a new product coming out in three months. What would you do to launch it?”This’ll show you how well a candidate understands all the different tactics of inbound marketing and how to tie them together into a holistic plan. It’ll also give you insight into how creative they are and whether they can come up with new and interesting ways to do marketing. 13. “Our CEO wants you to evaluate our blog. What would you say?”Before giving you an answer, the best candidates will come back and ask you about the blog’s metrics, how many leads and customers it generates, what the goals are for it, how much you’re investing in it, and so on. This is also a great way to test whether they actually prepared for the interview by reading your blog. 14. “What’s the main relationship between marketing and sales?”The relationship between Marketing and Sales is known for its unrest (Sales wants better leads from Marketing, and Marketing wants Sales to close more, faster). Similar to question #8, there’s no right answer here, but there are answers you should listen for. “Marketers are the lead generators and salespeople are the lead closers” isn’t necessarily wrong, but the candidate who ends his/her answer here might not be someone who can align both departments around a single, unified approach. The best answers describe the responsibilities that Sales and Marketing have to each other, and the duties each commits to as part of this partnership. They have a plan for forging consensus on what makes leads marketing-qualified versus sales-qualified, creating a shared Service Level Agreement with agreed-upon metrics, and using content at different points in the marketing and sales funnel to turn strangers into customers. The Candidate’s Follow-UpMost candidates know to follow up with each of their interviewers in the form of a thank-you note or email. But part of my assessment is the depth at which candidates follow up with me. The most impressive follow-ups are the thoughtful ones, where candidates call upon details of our discussion to show they’re really engaged in the interview process. Perhaps they did more concrete thinking about a specific question I asked, and they send a long email including research on a question they don’t think they nailed. Many times, they’ll send me a light strategy document with ideas and/or research on something we talked about. These candidates tend to stand out. Well, the cat’s out of the bag. You’ll have to use these marketing interview questions as a basis to create your own, similar questions that are relevant to your industry and hiring needs. Good luck, and happy hiring! Want more interview tips? Learn about some of the questions candidates should ask hiring managers. Original Entry: The Ultimate Guide to Marketing Interview Questions From HubSpot’s CMO is shared from https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/marketing-interview-questions via https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing Check out the original post, The Ultimate Guide to Marketing Interview Questions From HubSpot’s CMO that is shared from https://putyourfamilyfirst.wordpress.com/2020/11/13/the-ultimate-guide-to-marketing-interview-questions-from-hubspots-cmo/ via https://putyourfamilyfirst.wordpress.com An art. Not a process, method, or technique. Storytelling is described as an art … the “art” of storytelling. And — like art — it requires creativity, vision, skill, and practice. Storytelling isn’t something you can grasp in one sitting, after one course. It’s a trial-and-error process of mastery. Sounds like a lot of work, right? It is, and rightfully so because storytelling has become a crucial component of the most successful marketing campaigns. It sets apart vibrant brands from simple businesses and loyal consumers from one-time, stop-in shoppers. It’s also the heart of inbound marketing. Storytelling is an incredibly valuable tool for you to add to your proverbial marketing tool belt. That’s why we’ve compiled this guide, to help you discover and master storytelling and weave gorgeous, compelling tales for your audience. Pick up your pen, and let’s dive in. While this definition is pretty specific, stories actually resemble a variety of things. This graphic from ReferralCandy helps outline what stories are and are not. Storytelling is an art form as old as time and has a place in every culture and society. Why? Because stories are a universal language that everyone — regardless of dialect, hometown, or heritage — can understand. Stories stimulate imagination and passion and create a sense of community among listeners and tellers alike. Telling a story is like painting a picture with words. While everyone can tell a story, certain people fine-tune their storytelling skills and become a storyteller on behalf of their organization, brand, or business. You might’ve heard of these folks — we typically refer to them as marketers, content writers, or PR professionals. Every member of an organization can tell a story. But before we get into the how, let’s talk about why we tell stories — as a society, culture, and economy. Why Do We Tell Stories?There are a variety of reasons to tell stories — to sell, entertain, educate or brag. We’ll talk about that below. Right now, I want to discuss why we choose storytelling over, say, a data-driven powerpoint or bulleted list. Why are stories our go-to way of sharing, explaining, and selling information? Here’s why. Stories solidify abstract concepts and simplify complex messages.We’ve all experienced confusion when trying to understand a new idea. Stories provide a way around that. Think about times when stories have helped you better understand a concept … perhaps a teacher used a real-life example to explain a math problem, a preacher illustrated a situation during a sermon, or a speaker used a case study to convey complex data. Stories help solidify abstract concepts and simplify complex messages. Taking a lofty, non-tangible concept and relating it using concrete ideas is one of the biggest strengths of storytelling in business. Take Apple, for example. Computers and smartphones are a pretty complicated topic to describe to your typical consumer. Using real-life stories, they’ve been able to describe exactly how their products benefit users … instead of relying on technical jargon that very few customers would understand. Stories bring people together.Like I said above, stories are a universal language of sorts. We all understand the story of the hero, of the underdog, or of heartbreak. We all process emotions and can share feelings of elation, hope, despair, and anger. Sharing in a story gives even the most diverse people a sense of commonality and community. In a world divided by a multitude of things, stories bring people together and create a sense of community. Despite our language, religion, political preferences, or ethnicity, stories connect us through the way we feel and respond to them … Stories make us human. TOMS is a great example of this. By sharing stories of both customers and the people they serve through customer purchases, TOMS has effectively created a movement that has not only increased sales but also built a community. Stories inspire and motivate.Stories make us human, and the same goes for brands. When brands get transparent and authentic, it brings them down-to-earth and helps consumers connect with them and the people behind them. Tapping into people’s emotions and baring both the good and bad is how stories inspire and motivate … and eventually, drive action. Stories also foster brand loyalty. Creating a narrative around your brand or product not only humanizes it but also inherently markets your business. Few brands use inspiration as a selling tactic, but ModCloth does it well. By sharing the real story of their founder, ModCloth not only makes the brand relatable and worth purchasing, but it also inspires other founders and business owners. Source: ModCloth What makes a good story?Words like “good” and “bad” are relative to user opinion. But there are a few non-negotiable components that make for a great storytelling experience, for both the reader and teller. Good stories are …
According to HubSpot Academy’s free Power of Storytelling course, there are three components that make up a good story — regardless of the story you’re trying to tell.
Now that you know what your story should contain, let’s talk about how to craft your story. The Storytelling ProcessWe’ve confirmed storytelling is an art. Like art, storytelling requires creativity, vision, and skill. It also requires practice. Enter: The storytelling process. Painters, sculptors, sketch artists, and potters all follow their own creative process when producing their art. It helps them know where to start, how to develop their vision, and how to perfect their practice over time. The same goes for storytelling … especially for businesses writing stories. Why is this process important? Because, as an organization or brand, you likely have a ton of facts, figures, and messages to get across in one succinct story. How do you know where to begin? Well, start with the first step. You’ll know where to go (and how to get there) after that. 1. Know your audience.Who wants to hear your story? Who will benefit and respond the strongest? In order to create a compelling story, you need to understand your readers and who will respond and take action. Before you put a pen to paper (or cursor to word processor), do some research on your target market and define your buyer persona(s). This process will get you acquainted with who might be reading, viewing, or listening to your story. It will also provide crucial direction for the next few steps as you build out the foundation of your story. 2. Define your core message.Whether your story is one page or twenty, ten minutes or sixty, it should have a core message. Like the foundation of a home, it must be established before moving forward. Is your story selling a product or raising funds? Explaining a service or advocating for an issue? What is the point of your story? To help define this, try to summarize your story in six to ten words. If you can’t do that, you don’t have a core message. 3. Decide what kind of story you’re telling.Not all stories are created equal. To determine what kind of story you’re telling, figure out how you want your audience to feel or react as they read. This will help you determine how you’re going to weave your story and what objective you’re pursuing. If your objective is to …
4. Establish your call-to-action.Your objective and call-to-action (CTA) are similar, but your CTA will establish the action you’d like your audience to take after reading. What exactly do you want your readers to do after reading? Do you want them to donate money, subscribe to a newsletter, take a course, or buy a product? Outline this alongside your objective to make sure they line up. For example, if your objective is to foster community or collaboration, your CTA might be to “Tap the share button below.” 5. Choose your story medium.Stories can take many shapes and forms. Some stories are read, some are watched, and others are listened to. Your chosen story medium depends on your type of story as well as resources, like time and money. Here are the different ways you can tell your story.
6. Write!Now it’s time to put pen to paper and start crafting your story. With your core message, audience objective, and call-to-action already established, this step is simply about adding detail and creative flair to your story. Read more about our storytelling formula to help you with this step. 7. Share your story.Don’t forget to share and promote your story! Like with any piece of content, creating it is only half the battle — sharing it is the other. Depending on your chosen medium, you should definitely share your story on social media and email. In addition, written stories can be promoted on your blog, Medium, or through guest posting on other publications. Digital stories can be shared on YouTube and Vimeo. While spoken stories are best conveyed in person, consider recording a live performance to share later. The more places you share your story, the more engagement you can expect from your audience. Storytelling ResourcesStorytelling is a trial-and-error process, and no one tells a story perfectly on the first try. That’s why we’ve collected these resources to help you fine-tune your storytelling skills and learn more about the different ways a story can be told. For a Written StoryFor a Spoken StoryFor an Audio StoryFor the Digital StoryOver To YouStorytelling is an art. It’s also a process worth mastering for both your business and your customers. Stories bring people together and inspire action and response. Also, today’s consumer doesn’t decide to buy based on what you’re selling, but rather why you’re selling it. Storytelling helps you communicate that “why” in a creative, engaging way. Plus, isn’t storytelling more fun? Original Entry: The Ultimate Guide to Storytelling is shared from https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/storytelling via https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing Check out the original post, The Ultimate Guide to Storytelling that is shared from https://putyourfamilyfirst.wordpress.com/2020/11/13/the-ultimate-guide-to-storytelling/ via https://putyourfamilyfirst.wordpress.com According to a recent U.K. survey, bloggers have ranked as the third most trustworthy source of information, following only friends and family. That’s right — bloggers are trusted more than celebrities, journalists, brands, and politicians. But how do you get people to fall in love with your blog in the first place? (Aside from remarkable content, of course.) Well, just as your website homepage is like the front door to your business, your blog’s design — much like a welcome mat — is the front door to your business blog. If you’re not attracting people visually, how will you get them to take the next steps to actually read (and, hopefully, subscribe to) your content? Once you’re done creating the quality content, you still have the challenge of presenting it in a way that clearly dictates what your blog is about. Images, text, and links need to be shown off just right — otherwise, readers might abandon your content, if it’s not showcased in a way that’s appealing, easy to follow, and generates more interest. That’s why we’ve compiled some examples of blog homepages to get you on the right track to designing the perfect blog for your readers. Check ’em out, below. Beautiful Blog Examples to Inspire You17 Inspiring Examples of Beautiful Blog Homepage Design1. Help ScoutSometimes, the best blog designs are also the simplest. Help Scout, makers of customer service software, uses a unique but minimalist design on its blog that we love — it limits the use of copy and visuals and embraces negative space. What we particularly like about this blog is its use of featured images for all posts, including a banner one at the top that highlights a recent or particularly popular entry. These icons are set in front of bright, block colors that catch the readers’ eye and signal what the post is about. And it works — everything about this blog’s design says “clean” and “readable.”
2. Microsoft StoriesFull disclosure: We’ve totally gushed over Microsoft’s “Stories” microsite before. We can’t help it — what better way to revitalize an old-school brand than with a blog that boasts beautiful, interactive, and inspiring branded content? Plus, the square layout of these stories is reminiscent of the Microsoft logo, which achieves a valuable brand consistency. Microsoft Stories is also a prime example of how a business blog can be a major asset for an overall rebrand. In recent years, Microsoft has worked to humanize its brand, largely in response to a rivalry with Apple. The “Stories” microsite has a simple tagline — “Get an inside look at the people, places and ideas that move us.” It’s the softer side of Microsoft, so to speak. When you’re trying to convey a certain brand message, your blog can be used to communicate it — both aesthetically, and content-wise.
3. PandoAn important aspect of a well-designed blog is a consistent color scheme and style — after all, 80% of consumers say that color boosts their recognition of a brand. It’s interesting to see how color consistency can unify the more diversified elements of design. Pando, a blog that explores the startup cycle, incorporates blue tones in several sections of its site — the background, highlight bars, and certain areas of text. But it also uses several different fonts — all of which manage to look seamless together, when tied together by a cohesive color scheme.
4. Design MilkDesign Milk, an online contemporary design outlet, uses a very simple layout to highlight its posts. The sidebar to the right — which remains visible when a blog post is opened to read — is perfect for showcasing thumbnail images for new articles. That’s an internal link strategy, which helps to encourage readers to remain on the site longer. The social icons at the top are a pleasant addition to the overall look and feel of the site — they’re easy to spot, and make it easy to share Design Milk’s content. (And to learn more about adding social buttons to your blog, check out this post.) 5. FubizFubiz, an art and design blog, is an example of a really sleek design that also includes some cool personalization. Near the top of the blog’s homepage, readers can side-scroll through “highlighted” posts. Below that is the Creativity Finder, where visitors can select their chosen personas — from “Art Lover” to “Freelance” — location, and the type of content they’re looking for. From there, readers can browse content specifically catered to them. We can’t help but love the header image, too. It uses something called “blue mind” psychology, which has found that the sight of open water can naturally draw us in. By using it in a design scheme, Fubiz is able to visually attract visitors to its content.
6. Webdesigner DepotWith a name like “Webdesigner Depot,” it’s no wonder that this design news site is visually appealing. One thing that we particularly like is the way Webdesigner Depot has incorporated social sharing icons on each individual post. While we of course suggest actually reading each piece, having those links readily available helps visitors immediately share a headline they find interesting. And check out those navigation arrows on the right — never before has it been so easy to scroll to the top or bottom of a page. What’s more, the color scheme, background, and fonts are all consistent — which keeps this blog looking professional, but still distinct from the basic blog templates we might be used to seeing.
7. MashableI mean, just look at that header image. The bold colors, the wiring overlay, the gripping pupil and the contrasting text. It absolutely catches the reader’s eye — no pun intended. Mashable breaks its content into three noticeable sections on the homepage: New posts are listed on the left in the smallest sized thumbnails. “What’s Rising” posts are displayed in the center column as large thumbnails, and the “What’s Hot” posts are shown to the right, also as large thumbnails. This three-pronged approach to displaying content can help readers decide which kind of news matters to them the most — the attention-grabbing top story, or other posts that are currently trending. Plus, we like that the number of shares is displayed in each post preview — that’s a great form of social proof.
8. Brit + CoEverything about the Brit + Co homepage says “clean,” “warm,” and “welcoming.” It’s free of clutter, making the content more digestible, and the layout is extremely organized. We dig the seasonality of the site, too. I mean, avocado jack-o’-lanterns on the dawn of October? Adorable, and replete with a colorful, fun photo to illustrate the story’s content. The subtle “trending” header also serves as a nice way to promote popular content, without being too in-you-face about it. Plus, with such great visuals, we took note of the nod to Pinterest — that icon is important to include when your blog incorporates attractive imagery.
9. Tesco LivingWe love the colorful, consistent design of Tesco Living, the blog site of British grocery chain Tesco. Remember how we keep harping away at brand consistency? Check out the rhombus-like designs in the top banner — that reflects the same ones that appear in Tesco’s logo. What Tesco Living has achieved is a great balance of simplicity and boldness. The layout is extremely minimal, but it isn’t dull. Warm and welcoming shades underscore each content category, and the photos add dashes of colors throughout the site. It’s a great example of how the right imagery can achieve an appealing “less-is-more” appearance, especially if that fits in with your overall brand concept.
10. CrewCrew Backstage, the blog of the Crew platform for designers and developers, has a fabulously minimalist blog design, but quiet a unique one. Notice that, above the fold, it features one blog post with a large title, subtitle, and call-to-action to read more. To the left, there’s an equally minimalist call-to-action that makes it easy for readers to connect with Crew, or learn more. Plus, there’s that consistency again — everything above the fold is the same shade of blue, which has been shown to invoke brand trust.
11. Innocent DrinksNot only are the folks at Innocent Drinks great copywriters, but the design of its blog is also a great reminder that blog designs don’t have to get super fancy. Notice how the logo — displayed in the upper left — is simple, cartoonish, and almost delightfully child-like. It works for Innocent Drinks (hint: childhood innocence), and that brand presence is maintained throughout the company’s blog. The colorful fonts, for example, match the logo and stay in line with the brand’s casual, playful voice. We also like the easily-navigable archive links on the left, which are complemented by the geometric social sharing buttons on the right.
12. 500pxMuch like Crew, the photography blog, 500px, leads with one featured article and a big, bold, high-definition photo to draw the reader in. That makes is pretty clear what the blog is about — it boasts valuable content on photography with gripping photography. Plus, how cool is it that the social links are right there, obviously displayed above the fold? They keep readers engaged with the content, and make it easy to share the photography — and, content with images is up to three times as likely to be shared on social media.
13. Pixelgrade
Pixelgrade is a design studio that creates stunning WordPress themes for all sorts of creative people and small businesses.
Their blog page does a great job of highlighting one of their most recent or popular blog posts, alongside a clear call to action and a short excerpt. What I like best is that the design of the page is 100% in line with their brand and how they communicate on other channels as well, like
, , or .
You will have no problem in identifying their blog posts, among other content you might come across while scrolling on social media.
14. BarkPostIt’s no secret that we kind of like dogs here at HubSpot. So when a blog dedicated to life as a dog owner came across our radar, it got our attention. BarkPost, the blog of canine subscription box company BarkBox, is a great example of design for a number of reasons. First, look how easy it is to subscribe — the call to action is right there, above the featured content. The social share icons are easily noticeable, too — and, of course, all in the brand-matching, trustworthy blue. We also like that BarkPost draws attention to its sister companies, all of which are owned under the Bark & Co portfolio of brands. But at the same time, the blog doesn’t hock its own products — rather, it serves as an informational resource to dog parents and lovers alike.
15. Goodwill Industries InternationalWho says nonprofit organizations can’t blog? Nay, they should — and Goodwill’s clean, colorful navigation (again — the trustworthy blue) draw the reader to the important elements of this blog. The posts are also neatly positioned and easily accessible to readers. And, visitors can pick the type of information that matters to them the most by choosing a topic from the drop-down menu on the top right. Finally, we love that there’s a collaborative call to action in the introductory text that invites readers to contribute content to the Goodwill blog. After all, the organizations services have reached 37 million people — here’s a way for them to share their stories, or invite donors to write about why they chose to support Goodwill. 16. charity: waterKeeping the nonprofit blogging train going is charity: water, which makes excellent use of high-quality photography. Recently, the organization redesigned its blog with a lengthy post dedicated to its 10-year anniversary. Using that opportunity to share its impact over the past decade, charity: water maintained a simplistic design with concise text and bright images from the anniversary event. Plus, there’s a clear CTA to donate at the top of the page. Placing that above a story about charity: water’s impact is a double-edged sword, by both inspiring people to contribute to the cause while making it easy to do so.
17. Johnny CupcakesTo clear up any confusion, Johnny Cupcakes doesn’t actually make cupcakes. It makes clothing. But the company has done a great job of playing up its brand’s association with baked goods — its blog uses the subdomain “kitchen.” Plus, the folks at Johnny Cupcakes know a thing or two about brand consistency across channels. Its blog’s simple color scheme and matching fonts help to create a unified user experience from the shop to general content, all the while throwing in bold, colorful images to catch readers’ attention. Also, visit the website and have a scroll — we think it’s pretty cool how the background images vary, but stay positionally static for each entry.
Here are 15 more award-winning website design examples. Original Entry: 17 of the Best Examples of Beautiful Blog Design is shared from https://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/34143/12-inspiring-examples-of-beautiful-blog-homepage-designs.aspx via https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing Check out the original post, 17 of the Best Examples of Beautiful Blog Design that is shared from https://putyourfamilyfirst.wordpress.com/2020/11/13/17-of-the-best-examples-of-beautiful-blog-design/ via https://putyourfamilyfirst.wordpress.com Let’s say you’ve come to the difficult realization that quite frankly your brand — if you can even call it that — is all over the place. Or perhaps worse, you have a defined brand, but you’re noticing that it just doesn’t seem to mesh with who you really are and what you really do. Don’t panic. Before you get all hung up on what shade of green to use for your logo or what tone you’re going to use when engaging with people on Twitter, you need to step back and take a look at the big picture. What is Brand Strategy?Brand strategy is a plan that encompasses specific, long-term goals that can be achieved with the evolution of a successful brand — the combined components of your company’s character that make it identifiable. (We’ll get into that more in a bit.) A well-defined and executed brand strategy affects all aspects of a business and is directly connected to consumer needs, emotions, and competitive environments. First, let’s clear up the biggest misconception about brand strategy: Your brand is not your product, your logo, your website, or your name. In fact, your brand is much more than that — it’s the stuff that feels intangible. But it’s that hard-to-pin-down feeling that separates powerhouse and mediocre brands from each other. So to help you rein in what many marketers consider more of an art and less of a science, we’ve broken down seven essential components of a comprehensive brand strategy that will help keep your company around for ages. 7 Components for a Comprehensive Branding Strategy1) Purpose“Every brand makes a promise. But in a marketplace in which consumer confidence is low and budgetary vigilance is high, it’s not just making a promise that separates one brand from another, but having a defining purpose,” explains Allen Adamson, chairman of the North America region of brand consulting and design firm Landor Associates. While understanding what your business promises is necessary when defining your brand positioning, knowing why you wake up every day and go to work carries more weight. In other words, your purpose is more specific, in that it serves as a differentiator between you and your competitors. How can you define your business’ purpose? According to Business Strategy Insider, purpose can be viewed in two ways:
While making money is important to almost every business, we admire brands that emphasize their willingness to achieve more than just profitability, like IKEA: Source: IKEA IKEA’s vision isn’t just to sell furniture, but rather, to “create a better everyday life.” This approach is appealing to potential customers, as it demonstrates their commitment to providing value beyond the point of sale. When defining your business’ purpose, keep this example in mind. While making money is a priority, operating under that notion alone does little to set your brand apart from others in your industry. Our advice? Dig a little deeper. If you need inspiration, check out the brands you admire, and see how they frame their mission and vision statements. 2) ConsistencyThe key to consistency is to avoid talking about things that don’t relate to or enhance your brand. Added a new photo to your business’ Facebook Page? What does it mean for your company? Does it align with your message, or was it just something funny that would, quite frankly, confuse your audience? In an effort to give your brand a platform to stand on, you need to be sure that all of your messaging is cohesive. Ultimately, consistency contributes to brand recognition, which fuels customer loyalty. (No pressure, right?) To see a great example of consistency, let’s look at Coca-Cola. As a result of its commitment to consistency, every element of the brand’s marketing works harmoniously together. This has helped it become one of the most recognizable brands in the world. Even on the surface of its social media accounts, for example, the seamlessness of its brand is very apparent: To avoid leaving potential customers struggling to put the disconnected pieces of your business together, consider the benefits of creating a style guide. A style guide can encompass everything from the tone of voice you’ll use to the color scheme you’ll employ to the way you’ll position certain products or services. By taking the time to define and agree upon these considerations, your brand will benefit as a whole. 3) EmotionCustomers aren’t always rational. How else do you explain the person who paid thousands of dollars more for a Harley rather than buying another cheaper, equally well-made bike? There was an emotional voice in there somewhere, whispering: “Buy a Harley.” But why? Harley Davidson uses emotional branding by creating a community around its brand. It began HOG — Harley Owners Group — to connect their customers with their brand (and each other). Source: HOG By providing customers with an opportunity to feel like they’re part of a larger group that’s more tight-knit than just a bunch of motorcycle riders, Harley Davidson is able to position themselves as an obvious choice for someone looking to purchase a bike. Why? People have an innate desire to build relationships. Research from psychologists Roy Baumeister and Mark Leary best describes this need in their “belongingness hypothesis,” which states: “People have a basic psychological need to feel closely connected to others, and that caring, affectionate bonds from close relationships are a major part of human behavior.” Not to mention, belongingness — the need for love, affection, and being part of groups — falls directly in the middle of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, which aims to categorize different human needs. The lesson to be learned? Find a way to connect with your customers on a deeper, more emotional level. Do you give them peace of mind? Make them feel like part of the family? Do you make life easier? Use emotional triggers like these to strengthen your relationship and foster loyalty. 4) FlexibilityIn this fast-changing world, marketers must remain flexible to stay relevant. On the plus side, this frees you to be creative with your campaigns. You may be thinking, “Wait a minute, how am I supposed to remain consistent while also being flexible?” Good question. While consistency aims to set the standard for your brand, flexibility enables you to make adjustments that build interest and distinguish your approach from that of your competition. In other words, “effective identity programs require enough consistency to be identifiable, but enough variation to keep things fresh and human,” explains president of Peopledesign, Kevin Budelmann. A great example of this type of strategic balance comes from Old Spice. These days, Old Spice is one of the best examples of successful marketing across the board. However, up until recently, wearing Old Spice was pretty much an unspoken requirement for dads everywhere. Today, it’s one of the most popular brands for men of all ages. The secret? Flexibility. Aware that it needed to do something to secure its place in the market, Old Spice teamed up with Wieden+Kennedy to position their brand for a new customer base. Source: Works Design Group Between new commercials, a new website, new packaging, and new product names, Old Spice managed to attract the attention of a new, younger generation by making strategic enhancements to its already strong brand. So if your old tactics aren’t working anymore, don’t be afraid to change. Just because it worked in the past doesn’t mean it’s working now. Take the opportunity to engage your followers in fresh, new ways. Are there some out-of-the-box partnerships your brand can make? Are there attributes about your product you never highlighted? Use those to connect with new customers and remind your old ones why they love you. 5) Employee InvolvementAs we mentioned before, achieving a sense of consistency is important if you wish to build brand recognition. And while a style guide can help you achieve a cohesive digital experience, it’s equally important for your employees to be well versed in the how they should be communicating with customers and representing the brand. If your brand is playful and bubbly through Twitter engagements, then it wouldn’t make sense if a customer called in and was connected with a grumpy, monotone representative, right? To avoid this type of mismatched experience, take note of Zappos’ approach. If you’ve ever been on the line with a customer service representative from Zappos, you know what I’m talking about. If you haven’t, check out this SlideShare which details some of its most inspiring customer support stories. Zappos is so committed to ensuring that not only its brand, but all brands, remain consistent across digital and human interactions that they’ve dedicated an entire department to the cause called Zappos Insights.
By holding all Zappos employees to its core values 6) LoyaltyIf you already have people that love you, your company, and your brand, don’t just sit there. Reward them for that love. These customers have gone out their way to write about you, to tell their friends about you, and to act as your brand ambassadors. Cultivating loyalty from these people early on will yield more returning customers — and more profit for your business. Sometimes, just a thank you is all that’s needed. Other times, it’s better to go above and beyond. Write them a personalized letter. Sent them some special swag. Ask them to write a review, and feature them prominently on your website. (Or all of the above!) When we reached 15,000 customers here at HubSpot, we wanted to say thank you in a big way, while remaining true to our brand … so we dropped 15,000 orange ping pong balls from our fourth-floor balcony and spelled out thank you in big metallic balloons: And while it may have seemed a little out of the ordinary to some folks, for those who know our brand, the gesture made perfect sense. Loyalty is a critical part of every brand strategy, especially if you’re looking to support your sales organization. At the end of the day, highlighting a positive relationship between you and your existing customers sets the tone for what potential customers can expect if they choose to do business with you. 7) Competitive AwarenessTake the competition as a challenge to improve your own strategy and create greater value in your overall brand. You are in the same business and going after the same customers, right? So watch what they do. Do some of their tactics succeed? Do some fail? Tailor your brand positioning based on their experience to better your company. A great example of how to improve your brand by learning from your competitors comes from Pizza Hut:
When a pizza lover posed this question to his Twitter following, Pizza Hut didn’t miss a beat, and playfully responded in minutes, before Domino’s had a chance to speak up. If Domino’s is keeping an eye on the competitors, they’ll know to act fast the next time a situation like this arises. For HubSpot customers, keeping tabs on your competitor’s social mentions is easy using the Social Monitoring App. Check out this article to learn more about how to set up custom social streams. And while staying in tune with your competitor’s strategies is important if you want to enhance your brand, don’t let them dictate each and every move you make. Sure, you probably sell a similar product or service as many other companies, but you’re in business because your brand is unique. By harping on every move your competitor makes, you lose that differentiation. Original Entry: Brand Strategy 101: 7 Essentials for Strong Company Branding is shared from https://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/31739/7-components-that-comprise-a-comprehensive-brand-strategy.aspx via https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing Check out the original post, Brand Strategy 101: 7 Essentials for Strong Company Branding that is shared from https://putyourfamilyfirst.wordpress.com/2020/11/13/brand-strategy-101-7-essentials-for-strong-company-branding/ via https://putyourfamilyfirst.wordpress.com Editor’s Note: Spam filters have become much more sophisticated than the subject line triggers listed in this post. For a more up-to-date guide to email marketing, check out our free guide to creating email newsletters people actually read here. Writing the subject lines for your emails can be one of the most stressful steps of email marketing. Is it engaging? Too short? Too long? Too boring? Will people click ‘delete’ because of it? Or will they open it? Will it even get to them, or will it trigger SPAM filters? It’s the last of these concerns that we’re here to help with today. SPAM filters can be triggered for a variety of reasons, causing your email to skip recipients’ inboxes and land straight in their SPAM box. One of easiest ways to avoid SPAM filters is by carefully choosing the words you use in your email’s subject line. Trigger words are known to cause problems and increase the chances of your email getting caught in a SPAM trap. By avoiding these words in your email subject lines, you can dramatically increase your chances of getting beyond SPAM filters. Next time you sit down to write an email subject line, consult the exhaustive list below and make sure you aren’t using any words that will get you in trouble. In fact, you might want to bookmark this list so you can refer back to it every time you craft an email subject line. Back off, SPAM filters! Email Spam Words to AvoidCommerce
Personal
Employment
Financial – General
Financial – Business
Financial – Personal
General
Greetings
Marketing
Medical
Numbers
Offers
Calls-to-Action
Free
|
All natural | All new | Amazing |
Certified | Congratulations | Drastically reduced |
Fantastic deal | For free | Guaranteed |
It’s effective | Outstanding values | Promise you |
Real thing | Risk free | Satisfaction guaranteed |
Sense of Urgency
Access | Act Now! | Apply now |
Apply Online | Call free | Call now |
Can’t live without | Do it today | Don’t delete |
Don’t hesitate | For instant access | For Only |
For you | Get it now | Get started now |
Great offer | Info you requested | Information you requested |
Instant | limited time | New customers only |
Now | Now only | Offer expires |
Once in lifetime | One time | Only |
Order now | Order today | Please read |
Special promotion | Supplies are limited | Take action now |
Time limited | Urgent | While supplies last |
Nouns
Addresses on CD | Beverage | Bonus |
Brand new pager | Cable converter | Casino |
Celebrity | Copy DVDs | Laser printer |
Legal | Luxury car | New domain extensions |
Phone | Rolex | Stainless steel |
Original Entry: The Ultimate List of Email SPAM Trigger Words is shared from https://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/30684/the-ultimate-list-of-email-spam-trigger-words.aspx via https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing
Check out the original post, The Ultimate List of Email SPAM Trigger Words that is shared from https://putyourfamilyfirst.wordpress.com/2020/11/13/the-ultimate-list-of-email-spam-trigger-words/ via https://putyourfamilyfirst.wordpress.com
Types of Charts to Use for Your Data
- Column Chart
- Bar Graph
- Line Graph
- Dual Axis Chart
- Area Chart
- Stacked Bar Graph
- Mekko Chart
- Pie Chart
- Scatter Plot Chart
- Bubble Chart
- Waterfall Chart
- Funnel Chart
- Bullet Chart
- Heat Map
You and I sift through a lot of data for our jobs. Data about website performance, sales performance, product adoption, customer service, marketing campaign results … the list goes on.
When you manage multiple content assets, such as social media or a blog, with multiple sources of data, it can get overwhelming.What should you be tracking? What actually matters? How do you visualize and analyze the data so you can extract insights and actionable information?
More importantly, how can you make reporting more efficient when you’re busy working on multiple projects at once?
One of the struggles that slows down my own reporting and analysis is understanding what types of graphs to use — and why. That’s because choosing the wrong visual aid or simply defaulting to the most common type of data visualization could cause confusion with the viewer or lead to mistaken data interpretation.
To create charts that clarify and provide the right canvas for analysis, you should first understand the reasons why you might need a chart. In this post, I’ll cover five questions to ask yourself when choosing a chart for your data.
Then, I’ll give an overview of 14 different types of charts you have at your disposal.
5 Questions to Ask When Deciding Which Type of Chart to Use
1. Do you want to compare values?
Charts are perfect for comparing one or many value sets, and they can easily show the low and high values in the data sets. To create a comparison chart, use these types of graphs:
- Column
- Mekko
- Bar
- Pie
- Line
- Scatter Plot
- Bullet
2. Do you want to show the composition of something?
Use this type of chart to show how individual parts make up the whole of something, such as the device type used for mobile visitors to your website or total sales broken down by sales rep.
To show composition, use these charts:
- Pie
- Stacked Bar
- Mekko
- Stacked Column
- Area
- Waterfall
3. Do you want to understand the distribution of your data?
Distribution charts help you to understand outliers, the normal tendency, and the range of information in your values.
Use these charts to show distribution:
- Scatter Plot
- Mekko
- Line
- Column
- Bar
4. Are you interested in analyzing trends in your data set?
If you want to know more information about how a data set performed during a specific time period, there are specific chart types that do extremely well.
You should choose a:
- Line
- Dual-Axis Line
- Column
5. Do you want to better understand the relationship between value sets?
Relationship charts are suited to showing how one variable relates to one or numerous different variables. You could use this to show how something positively effects, has no effect, or negatively effects another variable.
When trying to establish the relationship between things, use these charts:
- Scatter Plot
- Bubble
- Line
14 Different Types of Graphs and Charts for Presenting Data
To better understand each chart and how they can be used, here’s an overview of each type of chart.
1. Column Chart
A column chart is used to show a comparison among different items, or it can show a comparison of items over time. You could use this format to see the revenue per landing page or customers by close date.
Design Best Practices for Column Charts:
- Use consistent colors throughout the chart, selecting accent colors to highlight meaningful data points or changes over time.
- Use horizontal labels to improve readability.
- Start the y-axis at 0 to appropriately reflect the values in your graph.
2. Bar Graph
A bar graph, basically a horizontal column chart, should be used to avoid clutter when one data label is long or if you have more than 10 items to compare. This type of visualization can also be used to display negative numbers.
Design Best Practices for Bar Graphs:
- Use consistent colors throughout the chart, selecting accent colors to highlight meaningful data points or changes over time.
- Use horizontal labels to improve readability.
- Start the y-axis at 0 to appropriately reflect the values in your graph.
3. Line Graph
A line graph reveals trends or progress over time and can be used to show many different categories of data. You should use it when you chart a continuous data set.
Design Best Practices for Line Graphs:
- Use solid lines only.
- Don’t plot more than four lines to avoid visual distractions.
- Use the right height so the lines take up roughly 2/3 of the y-axis’ height.
4. Dual Axis Chart
A dual axis chart allows you to plot data using two y-axes and a shared x-axis. It’s used with three data sets, one of which is based on a continuous set of data and another which is better suited to being grouped by category. This should be used to visualize a correlation or the lack thereof between these three data sets.
Design Best Practices for Dual Axis Charts:
- Use the y-axis on the left side for the primary variable because brains are naturally inclined to look left first.
- Use different graphing styles to illustrate the two data sets, as illustrated above.
- Choose contrasting colors for the two data sets.
5. Area Chart
An area chart is basically a line chart, but the space between the x-axis and the line is filled with a color or pattern. It is useful for showing part-to-whole relations, such as showing individual sales reps’ contribution to total sales for a year. It helps you analyze both overall and individual trend information.
Design Best Practices for Area Charts:
- Use transparent colors so information isn’t obscured in the background.
- Don’t display more than four categories to avoid clutter.
- Organize highly variable data at the top of the chart to make it easy to read.
6. Stacked Bar Chart
This should be used to compare many different items and show the composition of each item being compared.
Design Best Practices for Stacked Bar Graphs:
- Best used to illustrate part-to-whole relationships.
- Use contrasting colors for greater clarity.
- Make chart scale large enough to view group sizes in relation to one another.
7. Mekko Chart
Also known as a marimekko chart, this type of graph can compare values, measure each one’s composition, and show how your data is distributed across each one.
It’s similar to a stacked bar, except the mekko’s x-axis is used to capture another dimension of your values — rather than time progression, like column charts often do. In the graphic below, the x-axis compares each city to one another.
Image via Mekko Graphics
Design Best Practices for Mekko Charts:
- Vary you bar heights if the portion size is an important point of comparison.
- Don’t include too many composite values within each bar. you might want to reevaluate how to present your data if you have a lot.
- Order your bars from left to right in such a way that exposes a relevant trend or message.
8. Pie Chart
A pie chart shows a static number and how categories represent part of a whole — the composition of something. A pie chart represents numbers in percentages, and the total sum of all segments needs to equal 100%.
Design Best Practices for Pie Charts:
- Don’t illustrate too many categories to ensure differentiation between slices.
- Ensure that the slice values add up to 100%.
- Order slices according to their size.
9. Scatter Plot Chart
A scatter plot or scattergram chart will show the relationship between two different variables or it can reveal the distribution trends. It should be used when there are many different data points, and you want to highlight similarities in the data set. This is useful when looking for outliers or for understanding the distribution of your data.
Design Best Practices for Scatter Plots:
- Include more variables, such as different sizes, to incorporate more data.
- Start y-axis at 0 to represent data accurately.
- If you use trend lines, only use a maximum of two to make your plot easy to understand.
10. Bubble Chart
A bubble chart is similar to a scatter plot in that it can show distribution or relationship. There is a third data set, which is indicated by the size of the bubble or circle.
Design Best Practices for Bubble Charts:
- Scale bubbles according to area, not diameter.
- Make sure labels are clear and visible.
- Use circular shapes only.
11. Waterfall Chart
A waterfall chart should be used to show how an initial value is affected by intermediate values — either positive or negative — and resulted in a final value. This should be used to reveal the composition of a number. An example of this would be to showcase how overall company revenue is influenced by different departments and leads to a specific profit number.
Chart via Baans Consulting
Design Best Practices for Waterfall Charts:
- Use contrasting colors to highlight differences in data sets.
- Choose warm colors to indicate increases and cool colors to indicate decreases.
12. Funnel Chart
A funnel chart shows a series of steps and the completion rate for each step. This can be used to track the sales process or the conversion rate across a series of pages or steps.
Design Best Practices for Funnel Charts:
- Scale the size of each section to accurately reflect the size of the data set.
- Use contrasting colors or one color in gradating hues, from darkest to lightest as the size of the funnel decreases.
13. Bullet Graph
A bullet graph reveals progress toward a goal, compares this to another measure, and provides context in the form of a rating or performance.
Design Best Practices for Bullet Graphs:
- Use contrasting colors to highlight how the data is progressing.
- Use one color in different shades to gauge progress.
14. Heat Map
A heat map shows the relationship between two items and provides rating information, such as high to low or poor to excellent. The rating information is displayed using varying colors or saturation.
Design Best Practices for Heat Map:
- Use a basic and clear map outline to avoid distracting from the data.
- Use a single color in varying shades to show changes in data.
- Avoid using multiple patterns.
Original Entry: Data Visualization 101: How to Choose the Right Chart or Graph for Your Data is shared from https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/types-of-graphs-for-data-visualization via https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing
Check out the original post, Data Visualization 101: How to Choose the Right Chart or Graph for Your Data that is shared from https://putyourfamilyfirst.wordpress.com/2020/11/13/data-visualization-101-how-to-choose-the-right-chart-or-graph-for-your-data/ via https://putyourfamilyfirst.wordpress.com
Choosing the best organizational structure for your company, division, or team is a lot like picking out a new car.
At the most basic level, you’re always looking for something road-worthy — something that can take you (and your passengers) from point A to point B without a hitch.But beyond that, there are a lot of options to consider. Automatic or manual? Four-wheel drive or two? Built-in GPS? Leather interior? Flux capacitor? (Only if you’re going back in time, of course.)
In the world of organizational structures, the options you have to choose from include things like chain of command (long or short?), span of control (wide or narrow?), and centralization (centralized or decentralized decision-making?), just to name a few.
Organizational Structure
An organizational structure is a visual diagram of a company that describes what employees do, whom they report to, and how decisions are made across the business. Organizational structures can use functions, markets, products, geographies, or processes as their guide, and cater to businesses of specific sizes and industries.
What’s the point of an organizational structure? As a business leader, do you even need one? As I said, org structures help you define at least three key elements of how your business is going to run.
As your company gets bigger, an organizational structure can also be helpful for new employees as they learn who manages what processes at your company.
Then, if you need to pivot or shift your leadership, you can visualize how the work flows would work by adjusting your organizational structure diagrams.
To put it simply, this chart like a map that simply explains how your company works and how its roles are organized.
Here’s what each of those elements means to an organization:
Chain of Command
Your chain of command is how tasks are delegated and work is approved. An org structure allows you to define how many “rungs of the ladder” a particular department or business line should have. In other words, who tells whom to do what? And how are issues, requests, and proposals communicated up and down that ladder?
Span of Control
Your span of control can represent two things: who falls under a manager’s, well, management … and which tasks fall under a department’s responsibility.
Centralization
Centralization describes where decisions are ultimately made. Once you’ve established your chain of command, you’ll need to consider which people and departments have a say in each decision. A business can lean toward centralized, where final decisions are made by just one or two entities; or decentralized, where final decisions are made within the team or department in charge of carrying out that decision.
You might not need an org structure right away, but the more products you develop and people you hire, the harder it’ll be to lead your company without this crucial diagram.
(To dive deeper into what all of these different organizational structure components are, check out my earlier post, “The 6 Building Blocks of Organizational Structure.”)
In this post, we’ll explore how you can combine those components to form different types of organizational structures. We’ll also highlight the benefits and drawbacks of different structure types so you can evaluate which is the best option for your company, division, or team. Let’s dive in.
Mechanistic vs. Organic Organizational Structures
Organizational structures fall on a spectrum, with “mechanistic” at one end and
“organic” at the other.
Take a look at the diagram below. As you’ll probably be able to tell, the mechanistic structure represents the traditional, top-down approach to organizational structure, whereas the organic structure represents a more collaborative, flexible approach.
Here’s a breakdown of both ends of the structural spectrum, their advantages and disadvantages, and which types of businesses are suited for them.
Mechanistic Structure
Mechanistic structures, also called bureaucratic structures, are known for having narrow spans of control, as well as high centralization, specialization, and formalization. They’re also quite rigid in what specific departments are designed and permitted to do for the company.
This organizational structure is much more formal than organic structure, using specific standards and practices to govern every decision the business makes. And while this model does hold staff more accountable for their work, it can become a hindrance to the creativity and agility the organization needs to keep up with random changes in its market.
As daunting and inflexible as mechanistic structure sounds, the chain of command, whether long or short, is always clear under this model. As a company grows, it needs to make sure everyone (and every team) knows what’s expected of them. Teams collaborating with other teams as needed might help get a business off the ground in its early stages, but sustaining that growth — with more people and projects to keep track of — will eventually require some policymaking. In other words, keep mechanistic structure in your back pocket … you never know when you’ll need it.
Organic Structure
Organic structures (also known as “flat” structures) are known for their wide spans of control, decentralization, low specialization, and loose departmentalization. What’s that all mean? This model might have multiple teams answering to one person and taking on projects based on their importance and what the team is capable of — rather than what the team is designed to do.
As you can probably tell, this organizational structure is much less formal than mechanistic, and takes a bit of an ad-hoc approach to business needs. This can sometimes make the chain of command, whether long or short, difficult to decipher. And as a result, leaders might give certain projects the green light more quickly but cause confusion in a project’s division of labor.
Nonetheless, the flexibility that an organic structure allows for can be extremely helpful to a business that’s navigating a fast-moving industry, or simply trying to stabilize itself after a rough quarter. It also empowers employees to try new things and develop as professionals, making the organization’s workforce more powerful in the long run. Bottom line? Startups are often perfect for organic structure, since they’re simply trying to gain brand recognition and get their wheels off the ground.
Now, let’s uncover more specific types of organizational structures, most of which fall on the more traditional, mechanistic side of the spectrum.
Types of Organizational Structure
- Functional Organizational Structure
- Product-Based Divisional Structure
- Market-Based Divisional Structure
- Geographical Divisional Structure
- Process-Based Structure
- Matrix Structure
- Circular Structure
- Flat Structure
- Network Structure
1. Functional Organizational Structure
One of the most common types of organizational structures, the functional structure departmentalizes an organization based on common job functions.
An organization with a functional org structure, for instance, would group all of the marketers together in one department, group all of the salespeople together in a separate department, and group all of the customer service people together in a third department.
The functional structure allows for a high degree of specialization for employees, and is easily scalable should the organization grow. Also this structure is mechanistic in nature — which has the potential to inhibit an employee’s growth — putting staff in skill-based departments can still allow them to delve deep into their field and find out what they’re good at.
Disadvantages
Functional structure also has the potential to create barriers between different functions — and it can be inefficient if the organization has a variety of different products or target markets. The barriers created between departments can also limit peoples’ knowledge of and communication with other departments, especially those that depend on other departments to succeed.
2. Product-Based Divisional Structure
A divisional organizational structure is comprised of multiple, smaller functional structures (i.e. each division within a divisional structure can have its own marketing team, its own sales team, and so on). In this case — a product-based divisional structure — each division within the organization is dedicated to a particular product line.
This type of structure is ideal for organizations with multiple products and can help shorten product development cycles. This allows small businesses to go to market with new offerings fast.
Disadvantages
It can be difficult to scale under a product-based divisional structure, and the organization could end up with duplicate resources as different divisions strive to develop new offerings.
3. Market-Based Divisional Structure
Another variety of the divisional organizational structure is the market-based structure, wherein the divisions of an organization are based around markets, industries, or customer types.
The market-based structure is ideal for an organization that has products or services that are unique to specific market segments, and is particularly effective if that organization has advanced knowledge of those segments. This organizational structure also keeps the business constantly aware of demand changes among its different audience segments.
Disadvantages
Too much autonomy within each market-based team can lead to divisions developing systems that are incompatible with one another. Divisions might also end up inadvertently duplicating activities that other divisions are already handling.
4. Geographical Divisional Structure
The geographical organizational structure establishes its divisions based on — you guessed it — geography. More specifically, the divisions of a geographical structure can include territories, regions, or districts.
This type of structure is best-suited to organizations that need to be near sources of supply and/or customers (e.g. for deliveries or for on-site support). It also brings together many forms of business expertise, allowing each geographical division to make decisions from more diverse points of view.
Disadvantages
The main downside of a geographical org structure: It can be easy for decision- making to become decentralized, as geographic divisions (which can be hundreds, if not thousands of miles away from corporate headquarters) often have a great deal of autonomy. And when you have more than one marketing department — one for each region — you run the risk of creating campaigns that compete with (and weaken) other divisions across your digital channels.
5. Process-Based Structure
Process-based organizational structures are designed around the end-to-end flow of different processes, such as “Research & Development,” “Customer Acquisition,” and “Order Fulfillment.” Unlike a strictly functional structure, a process-based structure considers not only the activities employees perform, but also how those different activities interact with one another.
In order to fully understand the diagram below, you need to look at it from left to right: The customer acquisition process can’t start until you have a fully developed product to sell. By the same token, the order fulfillment process can’t start until customers have been acquired and there are product orders to fill.
Process-based organizational structure is ideal for improving the speed and efficiency of a business, and is best-suited for those in rapidly changing industries, as it is easily adaptable.
Disadvantages
Similar to a few other structures on this list, process-based structure can erect barriers between the different process groups. This leads to problems communicating and handing off work to other teams and employees.
6. Matrix Structure
Unlike the other structures we’ve looked at so far, a matrix organizational structure doesn’t follow the traditional, hierarchical model. Instead, all employees (represented by the green boxes) have dual reporting relationships. Typically, there is a functional reporting line (shown in blue) as well as a product- based reporting line (shown in yellow).
When looking at a matrix structure org chart, solid lines represent strong, direct-reporting relationships, whereas dotted lines indicate that the relationship is secondary, or not as strong. In our example below, it’s clear that functional reporting takes precedence over product-based reporting.
The main appeal of the matrix structure is that it can provide both flexibility and more balanced decision-making (as there are two chains of command instead of just one). Having a single project overseen by more than one business line also creates opportunities for these business lines to share resources and communicate more openly with each other — things they might not otherwise be able to do regularly.
Disadvantages
The primary pitfall of the matrix organizational structure? Complexity. The more layers of approval employees have to go through, the more confused they can be about who they’re supposed to answer to. This confusion can ultimately cause frustration over who has authority over which decisions and products — and who’s responsible for those decisions when things go wrong.
7. Circular Structure
While it might appear drastically different from the other organizational structures highlighted in this section, the circular structure still relies on hierarchy, with higher-level employees occupying the inner rings of the circle and lower-level employees occupying the outer rings.
That being said, the leaders or executives in a circular organization aren’t seen as sitting atop the organization, sending directives down the chain of command. Instead, they’re at the center of the organization, spreading their vision outward.
From an ideological perspective, a circular structure is meant to promote communication and the free flow of information between different parts of the organization. Whereas a traditional structure shows different departments or divisions as occupying individual, semi-autonomous branches, the circular structure depicts all divisions as being part of the same whole.
Disadvantages
From a practical perspective, the circular structure can be confusing, especially for new employees. Unlike with a more traditional, top-down structure, a circular structure can make it difficult for employees to figure out who they report to and how they’re meant to fit into the organization.
8. Flat Structure
While a more traditional organizational structure might look more like a pyramid — with multiple tiers of supervisors, managers and directors between staff and leadership, the flat structure limits the levels of management so all staff are only a few steps away from leadership. It also might not always take the form or a pyramid, or any shape for that matter. As we mentioned earlier, It’s also a form of the “Organic Structure” we noted above.
This structure is probably one of the most detailed, It’s also thought that employees can be more productive in an environment where there’s less hierarchy-related pressures. This structure might also make staff feel like the managers they do have are more like equals or team members rather than intimidating superiors.
Disadvantages
If there’s a time when teams in a flat organization disagree on something, such as a project, it can be hard to get aligned and back on track without executive decisions from a leader or manager. Because of how complicated the structure’s design is, it can be tricky to determine which manager an employee should go to if they need approval or an executive decision for something. So if you do choose to have a flat organization, you should have a clearly marked tier of management or path that employers can refer to when they run into these scenarios.
9. Network Structure
A network structure is often created when one company works with another to share resources — or if your company has multiple locations with different functions and leadership. You might also use this structure to explain your company workflows if much of your staffing or services is outsourced to freelancers or multiple other businesses.
The structure looks nearly the same as the Divisional Structure, shown above. However, instead of offices, it might list outsourced services or satellite locations outside of the office.
If your company doesn’t do everything under one roof, this is a great way to show employees or stakeholders how outsourcing of off-site processes work. For example, if an employee needs help from a web developer for a blogging project and the company’s web developers are outsourced, the could look at this type of chart and know which office or which person to contact outside of their own work location.
Disadvantages
The shape of the chart can vary based on how many companies or locations you’re working with. If it’s not kept simple and clear, there may be a lot of confusion if multiple offices or freelancers do similar things. If you do outsource or have multiple office locations, make sure your org chart clearly states where each specific role and job function lies so someone can easily understand your basic company processes.
Navigating Organizational Structures
That concludes our exploration of different types of organizational structures. Keep in mind that what we’ve just looked at are simply archetypes — in real-world applications, organizations often use hybrid structures, which can borrow elements from multiple structure types.
Want to see some real-world examples of marketing team org structures from companies like GitHub and Rue La La? Download the complete resource, An Illustrated Guide to Organizational Structures.
To learn more about working on a marketing team, check out the 6 Building Blocks of Organizational Structure [Diagrams].
Original Entry: 9 Types of Organizational Structure Every Company Should Consider is shared from https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/team-structure-diagrams via https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing
Check out the original post, 9 Types of Organizational Structure Every Company Should Consider that is shared from https://putyourfamilyfirst.wordpress.com/2020/11/13/9-types-of-organizational-structure-every-company-should-consider/ via https://putyourfamilyfirst.wordpress.com
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Buying a domain name is one of the first steps to launching a website.
But finding the perfect domain for your site and registering that domain can feel like a tall task if you’ve never been through this process. Fortunately, domain registration isn’t that difficult—you just need to follow a few simple steps.
Throughout my career, I’ve bought a lot of domains—too many to count. Some of those experiences were significantly better than others.
This guide will explain my two favorite ways to buy a domain; one of those methods will even get you a free domain. I’ll also cover the differences between these options in greater detail and explain how to buy a premium domain. Let’s dive in.
How to Buy a Domain Name With Bluehost
Bluehost is a web hosting provider. In fact, they are one of the most reputable and reliable web hosts on the market today. More than two million sites across the globe are hosted by Bluehost.
But Bluehost also provides domain registration services. If you use Bluehost for web hosting, you’ll get a free domain for one year.
Since you need a hosting plan anyways, you can use Bluehost as a one-stop-shop to bundle hosting and domain registration into a single package. This is a great option for beginners starting a new website from scratch.
Step #1 – Navigate to Bluehost.com
The first step is easy. Just make your way over to the Bluehost website.
From here, scan the menu and select “Hosting” at the top of the screen.
I’ll say it again; click HOSTING. Do not click on the “Domains” menu option.
If you click on the latter, you won’t be bundling your hosting plan with domain registration, which defeats the purpose of using Bluehost (and you won’t get the domain for free).
Step #2 – Choose a Hosting Plan
The hosting menu will expand and present you with three different options:
- Shared Hosting
- Dedicated Hosting
- VPS Hosting
Shared hosting will be the best option for 99% of people starting a new website. So go ahead and select that from the expanded drop-down menu.
You’ll still be able to bundle your hosting plan and domain registration (and get a free domain) if you select dedicated or VPS, but most of you won’t need to worry about that right now; stick with shared hosting.
Bluehost offers four different shared web hosting plans to choose from—Basic, Plus, Choice Plus, and Pro:
If you’re launching a small personal site, the Basic entry-level plan starting at $3.95 per month should be fine for you. For those of you launching a site for your business, I’d go with the Choice Plus plan, at a minimum.
The extra features that come with this plan are worth the few extra bucks per month.
To continue, just click the “Select” button under the plan that fits your needs.
Step #3 – Register Your Domain
Once you choose a web hosting plan, Bluehost will automatically prompt you to set up your domain. You’ll be presented with two different options here:
- Create a new domain
- Use a domain you own
You’ll want to use the “Create a new domain” option to search for available domains.
Simply enter the domain you want to buy into the search bar and choose your domain extension (.com, .net, .blog, .biz, .info, .store, .co, .us, etc.).
In the vast majority of cases, you’re going to want a .com extension. The only reason why I’d consider an alternative domain extension is if the .com domain is taken. For example, if you try to create a domain using nike.com or apple.com, those will obviously be unavailable. But a different extension might be available for purchase.
So if you’re set on a name, you could always get an alternative extension in the meantime while you figure out how to buy the .com extension. I’ll explain how to buy domains that have already been registered in greater detail later in this guide (although you probably won’t be able to buy Nike or Apple).
Another reason to consider an alternative domain extension is the price. Lots of these extensions will be cheaper than a .com domain.
For a small blog, side project, or personal site, that’s fine if you want to save a few dollars. But businesses should always register a .com domain.
Step #4 – Finalize Your Contract
Once you’ve chosen an available domain name, simply create your Bluehost account and select your plan terms.
Definitely make sure you get “Domain Privacy + Protection” located in the “Package Extras” section. Otherwise, your name, email, phone number, and address will all become available on a public database. It’s well worth the extra $0.99 per month.
The other options, like SiteLock Security and Codeguard Basic, are up to you. I’d get them, but there are alternative third-party services out there that you can use for site backups and security. I think it’s just easier to get them now.
That’s it!
Once you enter your payment details, your hosting plan and new domain purchase will be finalized. Your domain name is free for the first year of your contract.
How to Buy a Domain Name With Namecheap
The market is flooded with domain registrars. But Namecheap is definitely my favorite. It’s super easy for anyone to buy a domain using this registrar, even if it’s your first time.
This method is a bit more straightforward than using Bluehost, only because you’re not bundling any other services—Namecheap is strictly for buying a domain.
The entire process can be completed in just three quick steps.
Step #1 – Visit Namecheap.com
Obviously, the first thing you need to do is make your way over the Namecheap website.
From here, you can search for your domain directly from the homepage.
Enter your desired domain name into the search bar, which can be found in the center of the screen.
Make sure that “Register” is toggled above that search bar. The “Transfer” option is made for people who have an existing domain and want to switch registrars—that’s not for you.
Click the search icon to continue.
Step #2 – Choose Your Extension
As a domain registrar, Namecheap offers an extensive list of domain extensions.
You’ll have the option to choose from things like .fun, .vip, .studio, .health, .xyz, .lol, .design, and hundreds of other extensions. But in most cases, choosing a .com extension will be your best bet.
Just click the “Add to cart” button next to the extensions you want and then checkout.
Step #3 – Confirm Your Order
When you’re buying a domain directly from a domain registrar, you can skip all of the extras. You won’t need an SSL certificate, professional email, or anything else. You’ll be able to get that from your web hosting provider.
Definitely make sure you have WhoisGuard enabled. This protects your personal information from being available to the public. Some domain registrars make you pay extra for this, but Namecheap offers it free forever.
Turn on “auto-renew” for your domain registration as well. Otherwise, you’ll have to renew it manually every year, which puts you at risk for the registration lapsing.
It’s that easy!
Once you confirm the order, you’ll be asked to create a Namecheap account. After you enter your payment details and finalize the purchase, the domain is yours.
Ways to Buy a Domain Name
Generally speaking, there are two main ways to buy a domain name. Both of which have been covered above—domain registrars and hosting providers.
There are pros and cons to each method, and the process for each one is very different.
I’ll quickly explain the differences between these options so you can figure out which one is the best choice for your website.
Buying a Domain From a Standalone Domain Registrar
In most cases, going directly to a domain registrar like Namecheap will be your best option. As the name implies, these platforms specialize in domain registration.
Buying domains directly from a standalone registrar will be faster than alternative methods. That’s because you’re not bundling other services, so the process is more direct.
Domain registrars also make it easier to buy domains in bulk. So if you’re in the market for more than a single domain, definitely go with a registrar.
If you want alternative extensions, domain registrars will offer significantly more options. While I typically don’t recommend anything other than a .com domain, some of you might want to browse through hundreds of alternative extensions.
Transferring domain names with a registrar is also easier than using a service that doesn’t specialize in domain registration. So if you want to transfer your domain or think you might want to transfer it in the future, use a domain registrar.
It’s usually cheaper to buy domains directly from a registrar. For starters, the domain itself will likely be less expensive. But the best registrars, like Namecheap, include WhoisGuard protection for free with the purchase of a domain. You probably won’t get that from a hosting company.
The downside of getting your domain from a registrar is that there’s an extra step in the process. You’ll still have to get web hosting elsewhere.
Buying a Domain From a Web Hosting Company
For the most part, domain registration and web hosting should be kept separately. Bluehost is the exception to this rule. So if you want to bundle your domain name with a hosting plan, Bluehost is really the only option to consider.
There are a couple of main reasons why you’d go this route.
For beginners who are new to the world of web hosting and domain registration, getting everything under one roof is just easier. It’s less steps, and you can manage your hosting plan and domain name from a single account.
Furthermore, Bluehost gives you a free domain name for one year. You’ll never get a deal like that from a domain registrar.
But getting a domain from a hosting provider isn’t ideal if you want to buy domains in bulk. It’s fine for a single domain, but beyond that, it gets messy. You also won’t have as many options for alternative extensions (if you want something unique).
Most web hosting providers will also charge you extra for domain privacy + protection, whereas you can get this for free from a domain registrar.
How to Buy a Premium Domain
Premium domains are a great way to stand out online. They are great for branding and marketing purposes as well.
What is a premium domain?
A premium domain is typically short, memorable, and easy to spell. High-quality domains have a high search volume and are closely associated with an industry, service, or topic. They also have TLDs (top-level domains) like .com, .org, or .net.
Premium domains are in high demand. So they’ll typically cost a bit more to register. The process of buying a premium domain can be different as well since it’s not always clear if the domain is actually for sale. Here’s what I mean.
Let’s say you try to register a premium domain from a domain registrar or hosting company. Just because it says “unavailable,” that doesn’t necessarily mean that it can’t be acquired. These are the steps for buying a premium domain:
Step #1 – Determine if the Domain Seems Attainable
If a domain is unavailable from a registrar, try going directly to that website and see what you find. If there’s an active website or business using that domain, it might be tougher to acquire.
But if you don’t see an active site, there’s a good chance that domain will be for sale.
Here’s an example for management.com:
Clearly, not much is happening on this site. So if you wanted this premium domain, there is a pretty good indication here that it’s for sale.
In some cases, you’ll even see text like “buy this domain” or information that says “this domain might be for sale.” All of these are good signs that the domain is attainable.
Step #2 – Find Out Who Owns the Domain
There are two ways to complete this step:
- Figure it out on your own
- Hire a domain broker to do it for you
Doing it on your own can be tricky. You could run a quick WHOIS lookup, but most people won’t have their personal information listed. Using Google to your advantage can be helpful. Some domains might be linked to another website or social media profile. You could potentially find the owner that way.
Personally, I’d recommend using a broker. Sedo is one of my favorite domain marketplaces and brokerage sites.
Brokers can almost always find out who owns the domain because they have such a massive network. They’ll determine if the domain is actually for sale and how much the seller is asking for. Your broker can even handle the negotiations on your behalf.
The downside of using a broker is that you’ll have to pay a brokerage fee. But in most cases, you’ll only have to pay if the sale actually goes through.
Other great places to find a premium domain online include:
If a domain is for sale, you’ll be able to get the ball rolling with Sedo or one of the other options listed above.
Step #3 – Negotiate and Buy
Often times, the listing price of a premium domain can be negotiable. If you think it’s a fair price and fits well within your budget, you can speed up the buying process by offering the asking price in full.
If a domain is in high-demand, this also increases your chances of securing it before someone else makes a better offer.
But in some cases, domains can be outrageously priced. You need to ask yourself if it’s actually worth the cost. Sometimes you might be better off just looking for another domain. Unless a certain domain is crucial to the success of your business, it can be tough to justify a five or six-figure listing price.
Don’t be afraid to walk away during the negotiation process. If it’s not meant to be, you can move on or try again at a later time. This is also another reason why it’s helpful to have a broker.
Step #4 – Transfer the Domain
Once the domain has been purchased, the final step is transferring it to your domain registrar. Again, I recommend Namecheap.com for this because it’s so easy.
Make sure you turn on the auto-renewal after the transfer. Otherwise, you’ll have to worry about manually renewing your domain each year. If you forget and the name lapses, your premium domain could be up for grabs on the open market.
The process is officially complete when you see the domain sitting inside of your domain registrar account. Now you can finally rest easy knowing that you’ve secured your premium domain.
How to Buy a Domain Name That’s Not For Sale
Not every premium domain will be available on a brokerage site or domain marketplace. But if you really want to pursue a specific domain, you still might have a chance.
Similar to the steps we took in the last section, you’ll need to figure out who owns the domain. If a domain isn’t for sale, this step should be a bit easier, and you can probably do it on your own.
Most domains that aren’t for sale will be linked to an active website. That site should have some sort of contact information on it. You can reach out directly to get in contact with the business owner or decision-maker associated with the domain.
Start with a general inquiry saying that you’re interested in buying the domain; don’t throw an offer out there just yet (or you could end up overpaying).
See what type of response you get and if the site owner is willing to sell. Unlike a premium domain that’s listed on a domain marketplace, you might have to dig a bit deeper into your pockets to buy a domain that’s not currently for sale.
If it’s absolutely imperative that you secure this particular domain, consider making the owner an offer that they can’t refuse.
Just be aware that this won’t always work. It’s like trying to buy a house that’s not for sale. You can knock on the front door and make a cash offer, but the homeowner might decide to stay put.
If they’re willing to sell, use a broker to make sure the purchase goes smoothly. Then immediately transfer that domain to your registrar after you obtain ownership.
Summary
Buying a domain name doesn’t need to be that complicated.
Even beginners and first-time buyers can complete this process in just a few minutes by following the step-by-step instructions explained in this guide.
Buying a premium domain might take a bit longer. But again, you can still make it happen by following the process I’ve outlined above. Good luck and happy buying!
The post How to Buy a Domain Name appeared first on Neil Patel.
Original Entry: How to Buy a Domain Name is shared from https://neilpatel.com/blog/how-to-buy-a-domain-name/ via https://neilpatel.com
Check out the original post, How to Buy a Domain Name that is shared from https://putyourfamilyfirst.wordpress.com/2020/11/13/how-to-buy-a-domain-name/ via https://putyourfamilyfirst.wordpress.com
I remember when I found out the Tooth Fairy wasn’t real. My whole world was shattered. Granted, I was about eight, but I was furious to find out that my parents had been putting a quarter under my pillow every time I’d lost a tooth, not a sweet fairy named Daphne who lived in a castle made out of my pearly whites.
Luckily, believing in the Tooth Fairy is pretty harmless. Other myths, especially those that affect your business, are not.
In previous posts, we’ve debunked myths about marketing automation, social media, blogging, SEO, and A/B testing… but we’ve never touched on landing pages.
Keep reading so you don’t miss out on information that’ll help you convert visitors into leads and leads into customers. We’ll debunk the most common landing page myths and arm you with information to take your landing pages to the next level.
Myth #1: You only need a few of them.
Lots of people think that you don’t need many landing pages. Maybe you have a ‘Contact Us’ page and a demo page, and that’s pretty much it, right? Wrong. If you only have a few landing pages, you’re missing out on traffic, leads, and customers big time.
Every new landing page you create is another opportunity for you to appear in search engines and get your link shared on social media — and better search engine rankings and social media posts mean that you’ll have more opportunity to drive traffic and conversions for your website.
Additionally, besides landing pages on your website, you’re going to need landing pages to convert leads. These pages are probably not available on search engines, but will help you track how many leads have clicked into an offer and how many have downloaded your content offers.
Need more convincing about the importance of having more landing pages? Check out this post.
Myth #2:Short forms are better than long forms.
No form length is the “best” — it all depends on what you’re trying to accomplish with the form. Are you trying to get a ton of new leads? Keep the form short. Are you trying to get really qualified leads? Make the form longer. One is not better than the other — they just address different goals.
Your form length will most likely end up somewhere in the middle. To find your form length sweet spot, run A/B tests and adjust your form length according to their results.
Myth #3:If I copy someone else’s landing page, my conversion rates will go up.
Landing page examples and templates are great jumping off points for your own landing pages, but you shouldn’t expect to plug your content into someone else’s landing page and end up raking in the conversions. A landing page is successful because of interaction of many nuanced elements — the content on the page, the design of the page, and the audience viewing the page.
If you’re going to copy a landing page layout, use best practices to tweak it to help your audience convert on your offer, then test it and test it to make it better.
Ultimately, a landing page will only succeed if the content offer matches the intent of the customer.
Myth #4:You need to have all conversion elements above the fold.
Lots of people believe that all of the important content on your landing page should appear above the fold — supposedly, people won’t scroll to fill out the form or find out more crucial information about what lies behind the form.
But the fold doesn’t really affect conversion — KISSmetrics found that when people are motivated to convert on a page, they do, regardless of where the form submit button is. According to that article, the biggest factor in increasing motivation is compelling copy, regardless of length. So forget optimizing only for the fold — through A/B testing, figure out how much information people need to convert.
Myth #5: Trust seals always increase conversions.
Think about the situations in which you often see trust seals. You’re usually giving over your credit card number or some other sensitive contact information, right? It makes sense to get a little visual reminder that your information is safe, because you really are giving over sensitive information.
But what if you saw a trust seal on a page where you weren’t giving over sensitive information? It’d be out-of-place, making you wonder what the heck the company was really collecting from you, right? Trust elements can help tremendously on pages that need them — but they can also deter folks if they’re included on pages that don’t.
Myth #6: If you change your form button from green to red, you’ll increase conversions.
Full disclosure: we’ve run this test and found that a red call-to-action (CTA) outperformed a green CTA … but that doesn’t mean that red buttons are always better than green ones. That test worked for that page, with that page’s design, for that page’s audience. If you run the same test on your site, you might find that the opposite is true.
This myth goes for any color test really --there is no one right color that’ll convert tons and tons more people. Test out colors yourself to see what works best.
Myth #7: Landing page copy should always be short and sweet.
Like color, there’s no right length of landing page copy. We kind of touched on this in Myth #4, but the copy length myth is perpetuated enough it deserved a section of its own.
Landing page copy length is like what your teachers would say when you’d ask them how long an essay should be — however long it needs to be to cover the subject. In the case of landing pages, it should be however long you need it to be to have people convert on your landing page’s form. For complex offers that require people ponying up a lot of money or their sensitive information, more information could be better. For simple offers, like an ebook, you probably don’t need a ton of landing page copy.
Like almost all of these myths, this one’s nuanced. Run tests on your landing pages to find out what copy length your visitors need.
Myth #8: Conversion rate is the only metric to watch.
Landing pages are a stepping stone in your marketing funnel. You’re not just trying to get people to fill out a form. You’d hope that eventually they’ll become a customer from you.
So if you’re trying to get the most out of your landing pages, you shouldn’t just look at the percent of people who converted on that form — you want to look and see what happens after.
What percentage of them become customers? By looking at your closed-loop analytics, you may find that a landing page that has a low initial conversion rate actually brings in customers like crazy, or vice versa … which is something your boss would care to know and fix.
Myth #9: You should include as many things as possible on your landing page to get people to convert on something.
Your landing page isn’t a last-ditch effort to capture someone’s information. It’s there to get people to convert on your form and move down your marketing funnel. You don’t want to give people too many options because they’ll get distracted and your conversion rate goes down. This means you should try removing your navigation and any extraneous forms. More is not better when it comes to landing page elements.
Myth #10: You build ’em and leave ’em.
You could probably guess this last myth from one piece of advice I’ve repeated over and over throughout this post: Test your landing pages. There are almost always ways you can tweak and improve them. If you build them and leave them alone, you’re losing out on valuable conversions. Landing pages support the backbone of your marketing funnel — so make sure you’re getting the most you can out of them by running A/B tests often.
Building a landing page can feel like a daunting task with the contradictory advice out there. That’s why you should use a landing page builder to assist you.
Editor’s note: This post was originally published in March 2014 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.
Original Entry: 10 Common Landing Page Myths to Avoid is shared from https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/landing-page-myths-list via https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing
Check out the original post, 10 Common Landing Page Myths to Avoid that is shared from https://putyourfamilyfirst.wordpress.com/2020/11/13/10-common-landing-page-myths-to-avoid/ via https://putyourfamilyfirst.wordpress.com
Author
My first job was working in a hotel as an assistant manager. I was responsible for the marketing and advertising, which is why I trained as a business coach. I moved into online marketing about 5 years ago.