Online shopping is changing, and especially that which is carried out on mobile - mcommerce. We’ve seen a huge 59% growth on mcommerce year on year from 2015-2016 compared to just 17% on other forms of online shopping. Hardly surprising considering how much time we are glued to our smartphones as they are becoming more powerful devices. So what has contributed to such a leap in growth? And how can you get involved?

Storefront Apps

Most of your big name stores have their own app you can download and shop on away from the standard browser. They can include push notifications to alert users of sales or new lines added. You can also personalise the settings to each person, giving them a shopping experience that is unique to them. This will also allow you to pull in more accurate data on your customer base. Win win for everyone!

Single Clickers

I know a few people who feel they have been personally victimized by Amazon’s one-click payment option. It’s so easy to be impulsive online, especially with one click options. Whilst Amazon dominates this area of ecommerce, this multi billion dollar patent ends this month! Apple and Google are likely itching to offer up their version to shoppers. Asos is another key player who will be seen to adopt this in the near future.

AR

There’s a lot of work happening in the augmented reality industry. Just check out the video below of Apple’s ARKit:

Studies have shown that almost half of shoppers would be willing to spend more on a product if they could experience it with augmented reality before buying. As AR is exclusive to mobile and as we saw such a craze with Pokémon Go, we should expect to see a popularity with brands who are using the feature.

From making it easier and quicker for customers to get through the purchase journey to making the experience more interactive, mcommerce is expected to see a continual growth which shows no sign of stopping!

Get started with your own website! All our sites are fully responsive for mcommerce to flow for your customers.

Back in 2001, Daft Punk had it down. We want everything better than yesterday and faster than ever before. With the rise and repeated rise of the digital landscape we want answers immediately, we are constantly searching and asking questions.

Step in Live Chat.

Customers can chat to a representative of your company right there on your website to get instant answers before making a purchase. People are making less calls to each other and using messenger services more to the extent 34 BILLION WhatsApps are sent daily.

It is also more convenient to the user. We are also in the age of convenience where we hate being stuck on hold and would rather be alerted when our queries have been answered. And wince Wi-Fi is everywhere now, people can have better data than phone signal, making chat options easier than calls. This also works for the business owner. Your chat agents can help multiple people at the same time, increasing productivity and sales!

In our multicultural world, Live Chat also breaks down the language barrier should there be one where the customer and operator do not speak the same first language. You can also send helpful links to the customer, directing them exactly where to go when they’re stuck on your website.

But what happens when the office is closed?

It’s unrealistic, especially for the small business owner, to be on hand 24/7. Adding Live Chat to your website will give the impression you are always there to help. If there are no agents online to help, your customers can leave frustrated and disappointed. If you add a chat service to your website, make sure to add auto replies when offline. These can include a link to your help centre, advise of staffed hours or give them the chance to leave a question and email address for their question to be answered as soon as your team are back online. Always give your customers some options so they don’t feel ignored. We all hate being ignored!

There are so many options now to go ahead with your Live Chat services which range dramatically in cost and features. Some popular ones available are LiveChat, Zendesk and our favourite Intercom.

Not sure if it’s for your company’s website? Have a look at some businesses who use it and interact with them. Hey, while you’re here, say hi to us on our Live Chat!

To get started with your first website, get in touch! We're here to help you every step of the way. 

By January 2018, it will no longer be legal to charge customers for making credit or debit card payments. As part of a EU directive, the UK are also banning charges added to American Express, Apple Pay and Paypal transactions.

Whilst this is mainly an attack on large scale retailers who are profiting from these charges, this will have an effect on the small business owner who may rely on this small income to balance costs.

The surcharge is applied to reflect the cost of processing payments where large businesses are usually charged approximately 0.6% for credit card transactions and 10p – 20p per debit card. These charges will be higher for small shops to process purchases. Local authorities have also been brought to attention with the DVLA applying a flat fee of £2.50 for a card payment. This has led to a huge £42 million in fees since 2012.

The highest offenders have been seen to be take-away giants JustEat and Hungryhouse who both add 50p to the bill for paying by card. Whilst this may not seem a lot, it equates to 5% of a £10 bill. Airlines were next to come under fire, Flybe charging 3%, Ryanair and Norwegian asking for 2% each.

The abolishment of these charges is part of a broader campaign to increase the household income by reducing the cost of living. Stephen Barclay, economic secretary to the Treasury said “Rip-off charges have no place in a modern Britain and that’s why card charging in Britain is about to come to an end”.  In a society where we are going cash free and making an increasing volume of ecommerce transactions, the charges are outdated.

This change is likely to encourage businesses to increase their prices to combat the deficit. An easy solution which may not be possible for the small business owner.

Are you a small business owner? How will this affect you?

For any ecommerce advice, or to set up your own online store give us a shout!

Nadia and Lorraine started Love Restored as they both felt that modern furniture just didn't create the style and robustness that they needed in their homes. Having picked up some old vintage furniture they set about finding creative ways to make these pieces their own and to make them fit for contemporary living. This is where the passion for re-using old items started.  Having grown from painting in the garage, we proudly sit on our local High Street in Kirkcaldy, not only to share freely the secrets and benefits of the Annie Sloan Chalk Paint, but also to provide you with lots of ideas, inspiration and importantly confidence for you to create your own furniture magic.

The team are now the top stockists for Annie Sloan in Scotland and have built an active following on their social channels. A great tip to take away from their online presence is the warm and genuine tone that comes across from all their posts. They immediately feel approachable – and they are! The engagement on their posts is high, filled with questions from customers asking for advice on their painting techniques and products. The Love Restored ladies are more than happy to help, responding to comments and messages quickly with expert advice.

On top of the tone they have adopted, they’ve mastered the art of mobile photography. Just check out their gallery! Experimenting with different angles and distance creates depth and allure in their photos to showcase their products. Lighting has also been key for their images to really stand out

The consistent and engaging content works well for Love Restored, they mix posts on furniture projects of their own with sales messages. But showing customers what they can do rather than telling them what to buy works fantastically for subtly selling their pieces and paints.

Powered by Kommand, visit loverestored.co.uk to buy Annie Sloan Chalk Paint, sign up to Workshops and find inspiration for your next furniture project.

Turn your hobby into a career with a beautiful website just like Love Restored, contact our team at suppport@kommand.me

You’ve taken the plunge to build your own website (excellent decision, might I add) and the first step is to choose your theme. This is probably the hardest decision you’ll have to make outright with a lot of factors to consider when asking what do you want your website to look like?

Full width images or boxed width?

Multiple pages or anchored scrolling?

E-commerce facilities?

Does your site need to be responsive?

Where does the menu bar go?

Adverts? Yes? No? How many?

Should I have whitespace or blackspace?

How much text is too much for the homepage?

Pretty overwhelming but the biggest question is how much time and effort can you put in? Let’s have a look at the above in more detail.

Full width images or boxed width?

The boxed width is used by a lot of professions creating clean lines on the images. This also allows content to stay pretty much the same when flipping between mobile/desktop and other screen resolutions. Check out Great Ormond Street Hospital.

The full width images are becoming more popular, giving an impression that the site can has no boundaries, popular with creative designs and clothing stores (ASOS is a classic example). Just make sure the edges of the images aren’t the most important parts if they may be cut off.

Multiple pages or anchored scrolling?

This will depend a great deal on the nature of your site. Do you have a lot of content or is your website to have a few great images, contact details and a bit of blurb?

For SEO purposes and natural ranking, we would suggest multiple pages. Or an anchored home page with a link to your blog. The more content you produce, the more search terms are available on your site for you to organically climb up the ranks when users are searching for businesses like yours.

Check out our Tour page for an (awesome) example of an anchored scroll page.

Ecommerce Facilities

This will of course depend on whether you have something to sell. Clothes, crafts, merchandise, gig tickets, prints… pretty much anything that can be shipped you can put onto your online store. Ensuring the order process is as seamless as possible is key, with too many steps and fiddly options customers can get bored and drop off thinking “I’ll do it later” only never to return!

Does your site need to be responsive?

This is just a big fat yes. A responsive website will alter its appearance to suit the user’s device, orientation and behaviour. Content can be resized or moved to suit the viewing platform without compromising on the aesthetics. No one likes having to zoom in to the desktop version of a site on a mobile, so all Kommand sites are responsive. Yay!

Where does the menu bar go?

Top, bottom, left, right, you can choose where it goes. Is it however, almost always at the top as this helps direct users to the content they are looking for without scrolling. Though the other popular option is to have this below a featured image, especially as we take a more visual approach to web design. To further minimalise the menu bar, you can go for a drop-down option and further still a Hamburger drop-down.

Adverts? Yes? No? How many?

We’re not talking about selling off space on your site to get some cash in, but the rotating ads, banners, image slideshows to advertise yourself! These can be used to promote new products or push users to key parts of your site with a CTA button. Don’t overdo it with the rotating ads, these can either switch too quick for users to register the content or they will navigate elsewhere before seeing them all.

Should I have whitespace or blackspace?

This will depend on the nature of your site and industry. Whitespace tends to be the most popular and easier to read, just take a look at some of your favourite sites. If you want to escape from the norm and use a black or colour space instead, think about the text colour too. White text on a black background can be difficult to read in paragraphs as the light reflects and scatters into other words. Try a grey or tinted text.

However, when users are scanning text such as headings or logos, white text on a dark background can appear more vibrant and grab attention as scanning does not put stress on the user’s eyes.

How much text is too much for the homepage?

Let’s face it, in today’s age we’ve become a little lazy. Faced with reading a full article or a condensed overview, we’ll go for the condensed option. Then if it interested us enough, go on to read the full article. This works with your web pages. If a user can’t easily find what they’re looking for or it takes too long to load, chances are they’ll head back to the search engine. This way, on the homepage, you can have a few condensed sections of text which then lead to pages with more detailed content. Ideally you would be looking for 300 words minimum on your home page for SEO purposes.

The most important thing to consider is the organisation of your text into easy managed sections with the most important areas at the top without the need to scroll.

 Ever seen a menu or website that you felt was almost offensive? Whether it was too many flashing images, autoplay loud music or the use of Comic Sans?

Psychology can come in to play a lot more than you think when users are scrolling through your site. You can evoke feelings of excitement or relaxation depending on your demographic and industry you are marketing to. Using psychology is the easiest way to increase traffic on your site and get users to stay for longer to ultimately make a purchase.

Here we’re looking at the 3 main design strategies around colour, typeface and imagery.

Colour

Nothing new, but colour can have a huge effect on emotions. Green with envy? Red with anger? But too much of it and your customers will be confused. Remember to include whitespace to break it up your content, especially if you’re going for bold shades.

Here are some of the most common colours and how to use them to your advantage -

• Blue evokes a sense of trust, relaxed and professional. Used by social giant Facebook and Pay Pal, who we all give our bank details to willingly. All though this is quite a good place to start, studies have shown it’s not the best to advertise food. The colour has been associated with poison evolutionarily since there are so few blue foods.
• Red is indicative of vibrancy and energy. Popular with media outlets such as BBC, CNN and YouTube as it grabs attention and encourages actions. It is also the colour of love and romance so used by many dating websites (Tinder, anyone..?).
• Pink is associated with femininity and softness and unsurprisingly used by brands such as Agent Provocateur and Benefit Cosmetics.
• Green is often thought of as refreshing, being associated with the environment. Used heavily in the health and healing industry and also the charity sector used by Oxfam and MacMillan.

Typeface

Whilst the dreaded Comic Sans and even Times New Roman get a bad rep, the legibility of the font you use can have a huge effect on the user experience. 

• Serif fonts such as Times, Georgia and Baskerville are associated with reliability and respect, perfect for corporate sites.
• Arial, Calibria and Century Gothic are Sans Serif fonts and are quite universal in use as clean, modern typefaces.
• If you’re going for a more bold and funky font, Slab Serifs are the way to go like Rockwell, Museo or Courier.
• Script styles evoke a feminine, creative or elegant tone to your site. Great examples are Pacifico or Lobster.

Pay close attention to size and spacing too. A huge font size can be too much to take in and may look like it’s masking the lack of content. Also, too small a font and it may not be easy to read. Keep paragraphs short and snappy in easy to digest chunks. If you don’t leave enough space, the elements of your page can look a bit cramped and people won’t stick around to read it.

Images

The visuals on your website are probably the most important thing. “They” say a picture is worth a 1000 words. Well a video is worth 1.8 million words!

Be careful of the images you choose. As we don’t all have access to a photographer for everything we’re trying to convey, there are great stock photography websites to use (some free). The days of stiff stock images are dead, sites plastered with people grinning and a thumbs up are the last places users will trust. Depending on the message you are going for filtered photos or even cartoon imagery can work best. But please, please avoid images like this...

Have a look at some competitor sites, what images are they using and what can you do to make your site better? For any advice on how to choose your design or for advice on what could work for your industry, just get in touch - support@kommand.me or hit us up on Facebook!

Kommand websites are easy to build and set up in minutes. Utilising advanced SEO features, your site can rank high in searches gaining you more potential customers and revenue!

Started a business and wondering how your competitors manage to get their websites onto that coveted first page of Google? Ranking highly for search terms such as ‘personal trainer + [your location]’ can greatly benefit your business by increasing your monthly customers and improving your brand’s exposure. Combined, these changes will ultimately lead to an increase in your business’s revenue.

But how do you get your site to rank for these local search terms? Especially when your competition is equally cottoned on to the techniques and is already reaping the benefits.

Unfortunately search engine optimisation (SEO) for any industry website is not a quick, one-time process and you should be wary of any SEO company that offers this as a service. Ranking highly on Google and other search engines requires a combination of knowledge, understanding, best practice and persistence. In short, it’s a long-game, adjusted to suit ever-changing algorithms.

That doesn’t mean however that you should give up before even starting. If your business is just beginning to utilise SEO and you are looking for SEO tips to steer your site in the right direction, then the five steps described in the rest of this article can give you the necessary foundation to help Google start recognising and crawling your site.

Before You Begin...

Before you start working your way through our SEO steps it is important that you understand the basics of how Google results pages work and how they have changed in recent years. Ever since mobile technology, such as tablets and smartphones, became a common commodity increasing amounts of people are opting to conduct searches from these devices over desktop.

Google understands this and has changed the way it displays its results to provide the best system it can to fulfil the changing requirements of its users. Through developed technologies Google is also able to get a user’s approximate location based on the following:

• The user’s IP address.
• The Location History if it is turned on.
• Google Toolbar’s My Location feature if it is turned on.
• Recent locations that have been searched for.

If you have been using Google for a while you may have already be aware of the changes and if you are even more in the loop you may even have noticed the changes to Google + Local listings specifically. The new results pages for local searches (those with a place name) often include a map with pinpoints of relevant results and three businesses listed below.

You can see an example of what we mean in the screenshot below:

Where there would once be around four or five organic (non-paid) results, such as Ayrshire Spray Tan Salons in the example above, the Google + Listings box now commands that space. Studies have shown how many users are likely to explore the map function or click on the results shown in this box before exploring the results below so getting your own webpage on here is crucial to increasing visibility.

If your business has a physical address and provides products or services to a geographically targeted area, then tailoring your online goals to rank in these local searches can really become a valuable expedition.

Here are 5 steps to help you achieve that goal.

STEP 1: Claim your Google My Business listing

Last year Google made the move to create Google My Business, a unified interface aimed to help make life easier for local business and brands. Using Google My Business is crucial in helping get your business on the map, literally. Google+ pages are now managed through the Google My Business dashboard so if you already have a Google + page you will easily be able to set up a My Business page.

As a local business, a Google + Local listing is going to be one of your most important online marketing tools. The first step to getting your business showing on map results is to claim your location via Google My Business. You can do this by visiting this link and setting up an account, or logging in if you already have a Google Account.

Once you have done this you will need to choose between Storefront, Service Area and Brand as your business type. The former help you find an existing business, whilst the Brand option is reserved for those wishing to create a non-local Google+ page.

STEP 2: Verify your Business on Google

After creating your Google+ and My Business pages you will need to verify your business. Once you have set up your account you will be able to search for an existing listing using an address, or create a new one if no business exists. You will be sent a verification mail through the post (how old fashioned) although in some circumstances can be done via phone of instantly (visit this webpage for more information) which you can use to claim your listing.

Once you have claimed and verified your listing you should add images of your business and post relevant and engaging content using keywords and hashtags. You can even create a 360 degree tour, such as the example from The Berkeley Clinic below:

It is important that you keep the information up to date including your opening hours and post updates regularly. Regular posts allow Google to see you are active and this helps build authority for your business.

STEP 3: Optimise for mobile

Google have openly showed their preference for responsive websites (those which adjust to the size and resolution of different screens) and penalize websites which are non-responsive. You can check if your website it responsive here.

A responsive website has also proven a great way to decrease your website’s bounce rate as users are able to navigate more easily and don’t have to pinch the screen to access information. The need for a mobile site is imperative in today’s market and will only set to continue. Not having a responsive site will seriously limit your website’s ability to grow and rank.

STEP 4: Get to grips with the basics of SEO

As a starting point for checking your website’s SEO you can use free tools such as the Local SEO Checklist to see all the areas your website is missing. Checking all the boxes will help you to tell Google your website if a quality one and the right site for your given location. Another great way to boost your business’s SEO efforts is through producing great quality content. Adding a blog to your website offers a simple way to do this, for free.

STEP 5: Reviews = Gold Stars = Clicks & Rankings

Once your Google page is up and running you can start asking customers for reviews.

Reviews have proven time and time again to be a key influencer in click rates. Your business will need at least five reviews to get the stars showing on your results and since Google bought over YouTube many people already have a Google account setup, making the review process even more straightforward.

If you are looking for a simple way to ask your customers for reviews you could try using follow up emails after appointments or recent purchases to link clients to your page to review. If the experience is fresh in their minds, they will be more likely to fill out a review so make sure you don’t miss the opportunity and provide timely follow-up emails.

It is also a good idea to reply to reviews to help add personality and warmth to your business. If a potential customer is searching for your product or service in your area then they will often read what others have to say about their experience, good or bad. Reading a response from your business can help them get a feel for your professionalism and can also be a good way to encourage others to review. It is also important to respond to negative reviews so that potential customers can see your level of customer care.

Digital Marketing Help from The Experts

The above steps are just some ways that you can use to start improving your website’s online presence. Following them will help your business to show for local listings, a key part of search in today’s world. For more help or advice, just contact our team here at Kommand!

Make a Good First Impression.

Whether you have over 50 employees or operate just by yourself, a polished professional website can give the impression that you have a dedicated team behind you. This gives you a strong presence potential customers can immediately feel confident in. So if a small business doesn’t have a website, it will be missing out on all of the potential customers. Even if the customers aren’t turned into leads straight away, a small business still needs to have a site so that future customers can learn about it. 

Isn’t Facebook Enough?

As we (well, 1.86 BILLION of us) are Facebook savvy now, many people create a professional page to advertise to new customers. But for new small businesses, it can be difficult to cut through all the noise to reach people. Also, if your only online presence is a free social media account, potential customers can be wary of your trustworthiness as a business. While social media channels perfectly complement your website and keep your customers updated, a website establishes a professional approach.

Be Found!

Long ago are the days of flicking through the yellow pages to find a local service. When looking for recommendations, people generally turn to the internet or more specifically – Google (which has even turned the website into a verb – “just Google it”). Looking for nearby bars, paint shops or photographers, you want to be one of the top to pop up in searches. In such a competitive business age, word of mouth can be difficult to achieve in the early days of a new venture.

With over 70% of adults in the UK owning a smartphone (rising to 90% for 16-24 year olds), thinking digitally is essential for businesses. We use smartphones for shopping, banking and booking appointments so those who are easy to find will come out on top. Speed, efficiency, and ease of access are all top priorities for consumers looking for a local service. If a customer can quickly fill out an online form to book the service they need, they are far more likely to book than if they need to speak to someone directly.

Website’s Are Too Expensive!

 Hiring a professional web developer can be pretty expensive with some sites built from scratch costing up to £10,000 to include all the bells and all the whistles.

For small businesses, a website can naturally seem out of reach in terms of budget. That’s where we come in! Our websites are easy to build, including multiple pages and online stores. You don’t need any design or programming experience; our expert team have done all the hard work for you. We’ve also included a nifty advanced SEO feature to increase your visibility. This will help you rank high and fast in Google searches.

Build your own site with Kommand from as little as £9 per month and get your first month absolutely FREE.

Analyse your existing customers especially the loyal ones – break into categories after determining their common traits like age group, gender and occupation. Also, find out about your competitors and their respective customers. Perhaps, there might be a particular niche that was missed out by your competitors. Focus on this niche to market your products or services and gain a special group of customer base. If there is no such particular niche, then think about how to market your services or products better to the similar category of people as your competitors.

Think about what you can offer to whom

A problem-solving business has the potential to gain a great customer base. For example, you can set up a baby-sitter business, targeting full-time working moms with an age range of 25 to 35. As you know, there are many others who offer the same baby-sitter service. So think about how to make your business different from others – offering something that would appeal to your customers. For example, you can include an extra service like taking cute photos of the child in your advertisement. Put up the photos for your customers to see on their respective social sites - this would please working moms and assure them that their children are fine.

Marketing your products or services

Create personas or imaginary people to represent various groups of customers based on buying decisions, location and behaviours. Add as much information like income, age and gender about these personas as possible. Personas help you gain information about the type of customers who buy from you and aim for new customers based on various segments. Think about creating one persona for every segment to gain more information about your customers.

Social networking sites like Pinterest, Facebook and Instagram are great places to put up your photos, videos and advertise your value-added services. You can target specific groups based on location, age, “likes” and gender.

The Internet is filled with millions of blogs, several of which are discarded after only some few months. Regardless of this, thousands of new blogs are setup each and every day. While there are huge debates and arguments about what constitutes good blogs, and yet the phrase "good" is very one-sided, here are a few tips on how to make an excellent website.

1.) Try to be informal

A successful blog is about YOU and your company. Bear that in mind. Your visitors must be able to find a real sentiment of who you are after they read the website. This is the number one reason why people enjoy reading blogs.

2.) Keep posting regularly

Sometimes you might see blogs which run for months between posts. A good site must regularly be posted to keep readers coming back and sequentially for them to look upon it as a valuable information source. Your posts do not have to be so long, but they should be regular.

3.) Keep it visual

Pictures are a great way for spicing up your blog. Folks enjoy images, and it aids to make the blog look attention-grabbing. This means mean if you are going to speak about a certain topic, why not use pictures or images to make your blog post to be noticeable. Pictures will regularly do more for the website than you might imagine!

4.) A good site encourages conversation

The best of blogs get many comments - so enthusiastically encourage the audience posting comments in your site and when they do so ensure you reply. Create a dialogue!

5. Use bold texts to highlight ideas and thoughts.

For the lengthy posts, it is essential to emphasize key details. Bold texts generally make the words stick out and draw the interest of readers successfully. Post a query, if probable, as this is the most efficient method of getting feedback from your readers. This query will create a dialogue between your readers making it simpler for you to reach out and chat with them. Using some spaces is also an effective method because it gives the audience time to have a break and grasp what they have presently read. Hopefully, these tips might be a great help in making a good blog that will surely attract people to your website, if you aren't sure on where to begin - Use our platform Kommand to build yourself one. We have an easy set up and are always here to answer any questions you have! 

Good website content helps attract clientele and it also helps boost the authenticity of your business and brand. Here are some tips to ensure that your site has the best content.

Create an attention grabbing homepage-
Since this is often considered the most important page of your site, you would need to pay special attention to the content on this page. The page should ideally not be text heavy, and it should offer a basic introduction to your business. Also, it should tell visitors why they need to browse the rest of the site, and what unique product or service you offer.

About Us page-
Your site will also need to put in an about us page, detailing your business history, brand value, mission, and so on. People will want to know more about the business owners, the team behind the site, and so on. Like all good web pages, the content here should not be too lengthy. If you have a lot more you want to tell people, considering creating different sections for all topics.

Contact Us page-
Many people judge the authenticity of the website by the availability of contact information. Ideally, you should offer a physical address, such as office or mailing address. It is a good idea to include a phone number, but you can instead also include an online form that people can use to contact you easily.

Products and services-
This is where you have the chance to impress visitors with the speciality of your offerings. The product descriptions should have accurate titles and descriptions and as many photos as possible. A call to action at the end can nudge visitors into making a purchase, especially if you have included easy to find links to payment gateways and shopping carts.

Keyword and link-building -
Use only relevant keywords, naturally incorporated into the site. Also create links where needed, to boost your authenticity. Do not link with irrelevant sites or phrases.

In addition to expertise, you need time to update website content and to maintain a blog, very important factors if you want to maintain search engine rankings or stay relevant. That is why , Kommand helps businesses create websites and blogs easily, with plenty of customization options to make your site stand out, from only £9 per month with no contract!

With digital marketing being one of the fastest growing industries today among businesses, there is an urgent need for start-up businesses to get a marketing strategy in place that will ensure that they reach their goals.  For the companies out there that have yet to appreciate how important marketing is, here’s an article we published earlier this year that highlighted how it is an area of business that shouldn’t be overlooked.

For those of you out there that already appreciate this point, you might be wondering how you can see to it that your marketing budget is used in a way that will help your business now and in the foreseeable future. Below you will find four ways to make sure you’re getting the most out of your digital marketing budget.

1) Only Invest In Digital Marketing When You’re Ready To Scale Up

It’s no fact that digital marketing can have a very positive impact on business; otherwise, it wouldn’t be a billion dollar industry. In fact, many reports like this and others, are reporting that in 2017 digital advertising and marketing is expected to surpass that of marketing on TV.

With that being the case, before any money is spent on bringing in new business opportunities, it’s important to make sure that your business is ready to handle the growth the comes along with it. Far too often we hear of businesses and start-ups investing in digital marketing, sometimes millions of dollars, yet their products & services are not being offered or supported in a way that their target audience prefers or expects. That has been the root problem as to why that so many companies fail as a whole despite aggressive marketing campaigns.

2) Be Sure To Hire & Work With Experienced Digital Marketers With A Proven Track Record

Due to the fact that there is no industry accepted training or certification that is widely accepted and recognized as a standard for digital marketing professionals, literally anyone can claim to be a digital marketer. What that has resulted in is many companies hiring self-professed experts or outsourcing to digital marketing agencies that end up wasting valuable time and resources on digital marketing campaigns that do not positively impact the revenue that the said businesses are bringing in.

It is for that reason a company should ensure that their marketing budget is going to a digital marketing professional or vendor that has a proven track record. For example, think about a company that is looking to hire and build an in-house marketing team to help with a specific area of digital marketing; like Search Engine Optimization. Many of the most successful companies with that goal are investing in SEO consultation services, which is a rapidly growing business, to ensure their in-house team stays on the right marketing path. It greatly increases the chance that their investment in that form of marketing will succeed.

So whether you prefer to have an in-house marketing team, or you outsource to a digital marketing agency… it’s important that you protect and get the most out of your marketing dollars by ensuring you have the right experts to assist.

3) Ignore The Shiny Object Syndrome

With this being such a large industry with different marketing tactics available to put in place, to get the most out of digital marketing requires that a business understands which marketing channel is best suited for their industry and clientele.

Some business perform well with social media marketing, others see the most return on investment from content marketing, while others prefer and do well with the immediate returns that come from paid search engine marketing. Whatever you feel is best for your business, it’s best to research, strategize and implement a marketing strategy and stick with it.

With so many reports of companies rapidly switching one form of marketing to another hoping to see quick growth, it often results in a company not sticking with a certain type of marketing long enough to reap the benefits of doing so.

4) Develop A Marketing Strategy That Will Pay For Itself

Unfortunately, it’s a common practice for freelance digital marketers and some agencies to tell their clients that digital marketing has to take months or years before there can be any real ROI. Depending on how competitive a particular industry is within the realm of digital marketing, and how substantial the available budget is in comparison to some of the most successful companies… and experienced digital marketer can usually create and implement a strategy that will allow a business to reap financial benefits as a result of their investment within a matter of months.

If the priority is getting an ROI within a reasonable amount of time on the available marketing budget, be sure to hire and work with marketers that will keep that goal as an important aspect of the marketing campaign.

With That Said…

These are just four of the many ways you can get the most out of your digital marketing budget. If you’re at a place where you’re trying to make a decision on what aspect of digital marketing you should focus on or what your expected marketing budget should be, consider speaking with a digital marketing company like Adeogroup.co.uk. Their experienced web specialist can help with these and any other concerns you might have on succeeding with and properly using your digital marketing budget.

The internet is pretty much a free-for-all when it comes to photos and images. Content with an image is shared a lot more often than content without images, this means watermarking your images could lead to more viewers on your site or buying your product because your name/company is being shared more often. Anybody can copy your images and use them however they want. A good way to protect your online images is to watermark them. Use your name, website or brand, which doubles as a quick, visual marketing tool.

The marketing argument is a strong one. Adding something to your images to make them quickly identifiable could really help your brand. A great example is many fashion brands now create quotes or have their own images with a watermark, if something has humour to it they normally post it on Facebook, in recent weeks an image or video of a pet ( nothing related to what they are selling ) was posted on their page. This then was shared 1.2k times, we don't know how many sales that would of made the brand but this is a great way for their page to be noticed, by sharing content not relatable to your service of product. This may seem strange to some people, but sometimes not selling to people 4/5 times will really help with frequent engagement.

Use a watermark app

If you're adding photos via your phone, you can use one of several apps specifically designed to add a watermark to your work. Try Marksta, iWatermark or A+ Signature. They're easy to use and you can add text, graphics and borders. These apps are available in the iTunes app store.

Use photo editing software

If you already have photo editing software, such as Adobe Photoshop, you can watermark images for free. Use Actions or Layers to add your text or logo and then adjust the opacity until you're happy with the appearance.

Use an online editor

If you use Google Picasa, you will need to export existing photos and then choose Add a watermark from the Menu. Otherwise, you can add it while uploading photos, by selecting Tools from the Options menu, and then Add a watermark.  In PicMonkey's Design tab, un-tick Transparent canvas in Basic Edits. Next, create your watermark and tightly crop it. Tick Transparent canvas, save and add it using the Overlays option to your chosen photo.

If you require anymore information on this topic then why not send us a tweet? We are happy to help.

“I think one of the reasons why so many small businesses blog today is most certainly because of a real opportunity for growth, whether it be in search visibility, thought leadership, lead nurturing, or brand awareness,” – Romain Damery.

Blogging is very personal this means you can connect with your customers and potential customers on another level. It is a platform to be real, it provides a great sense of trust for viewers. This is the ideal platform to get across your point, whether it be a product or service, blogging means you can go into detail about new features or functions in a fun way.

People are put off with blogs if they don’t go viral straight away. It is easy to feel un-motivated if you are getting very little views but putting in a lot of work and effort into your content. There could be many reasons to why this is happening, but the main is it is simply not an easy read. This could be because you are wanting to get SO much information out there that it turns into a novel. Many people these days simply do not have the time to sit and read long blogs – Keep it very simple, straight to the point. Highlight important sections and use many visuals – from pictures to gifs to videos. This will keep them highly engaged. A blog is something people go to, to find answers to questions they simply do not know. So keep your posts as helpful as you can this will get you a lot of views.

WHY BLOG?

A blog is something that gives your company edge over competitors. If you are providing content and something for people to go to other than just offering a service then it will likely be a hit because sometimes people don’t want to go online to spend money, they simply just want to learn and read interesting things.

A blog attracts traffic instantly so if you are connecting it up with your site and re-directing people to your products or service then they are likely to look at them which could lead to a sale. A good way to get more traffic is to share your blog posts on all social – create a cover image with your blog title and include your business name or website on it. That means if it is shared on social people will know where it came from and where to go to find out even more on the topic.

A blog will really strengthen the image of your brand, this is great because small businesses aren’t well known – so connect with other bloggers and build yourself a community. Because a blog is personal and you can chit chat away on it and give it personality that perhaps you can’t do on your main website because you want to be highly professional – Giving your posts personality will make people interested to read more, thus giving you a foundation for a brand image.

MORE INFO.

The lists goes on – If you need any more help or information regarding blogging for small businesses whether it be: How to start, what content to post, which social platforms should I be on – Then send us a tweet @Kommandme we will be happy to help. And why not use our platform to create yourself a blog –  We offer a 30 day FREE trial.

Simply put, a landing page is where online visitors would ‘arrive’ once they’ve clicked on a specific link in your email, ad or any form of targeted campaign. You’ve got around eight seconds to impress the visitor before the person leaves the site. That’s why creating an effective landing page to earn more revenue or customers is truly important.

Writing an effective landing page

Before you start writing the page, remember this – you’ve got eight seconds to impress so use unique value proposition or UVP. Think about how to convince site visitors why your product or service is unique and worth the purchase. Rather than solutions, focus on highlighting benefits, features or pain points (something that helps your customers to prevent misery) – focus on two most important points to make the page simple. The key to writing a great landing page even if it is your company’s home page is to make it short, clear and easy to understand (you’re targeting people from all walks of life). Forget about cliché tag lines like “exceeding customer expectations” – they don’t work anymore.

To attract attention, use killer headlines, subheadings and tidy visuals like pictures and videos. Bold, big fonts and bullets are two ways to gain the immediate attention of site visitors. The key purpose of a landing page is to gain additional customers and increase more sales so don’t forget to include the CTA or call-to-action buttons.

Make sure that they’re clearly visible and easily clickable. Using colours like green and ensuring there is ample white space around the buttons are ways to make sure the buttons are clearly visible. Also, ensure the background colour of your site doesn’t blend with the button colours – go for contrasting background colours instead to gain visitors' attention. Also, think about using active phrases like "Purchase Now" or "Sign Up Now" to spur visitors to action.

Displaying social proof on your landing page

Social proof like customer testimonials is a great way to gain site visitor attention immediately. You can also put up trust badges or "likes" links from social media channels to convince site visitors about your product's popularity and trustability.

There's no point in having a great landing page if it's not mobile-friendly or with a great resolution layout. With over 30 percent of web activity reported to come from mobile gadgets, make sure the page is mobile-friendly for gaining more customers and increasing sales. At Kommand we offer a website building platform for creating websites that are mobile-friendly at an affordable price, why not check out our packages. Prices start from £9 per month with no contract. 

Purpose

Your first question should be; what is the purpose of the website? Are you trying to establish your credibility in a certain niche? If the answer is yes then you should carry out some keyword research to find out which phrases are popular and would therefore naturally attract traffic. A domain containing keywords is quite likely to rank well in the search engines for those keywords.
Are you trying to market a product? You should definitely consider creating domain name based on the product name. You should only do this if you own the rights to that product name.

Hyphens

If your chosen domain name has already been taken then you might want to consider using hyphens. The general rule of thumb is to not use more than two hyphens in a domain name and to avoid them altogether if you are going to use any form of offline promotion. You can also try adding a prefix or a suffix to the keyword you wanted to use, such as blog or store.

Potential

You should also consider whether you are planning on creating a small niche site or whether you wish to build an authority site in your niche. Your choice of domain name should also be determined by how much growth you are expecting for your site over time. For example plussizedbridesmaidsdresses.com might work well for a small niche site, but if you are planning to build a larger authority site then a domain like perfectwedding.com might have more leeway.

Top Level Domains

Not sure of the difference between a.com and a.net and a.co.uk? These top level domains (TLDs) allow users to distinguish between different types of websites. A.com is a commercial site and as the most popular and well recognized should be your first pick. Alternatively you might want to try a.info or a.net.

Price

It's possible to get virtually any domain name that you could possibly want as long as you are willing to pay for it. An unused domain name will generally cost between £5 and £10 depending on which company you are using to register it. If you have your heart set on a domain that someone else has already registered but isn't using then you can try contacting the current owner to see if they would be willing to sell it to you.

Finally, the secret ingredient to building a successful online business is traffic. It doesn't matter how great your website looks or how useful your product is, without traffic you can't make any sales.

We know most of these topics are all over the net, so here are OUR tips and tricks on things to do and things to avoid if you are starting up a new business -

From concept to the business launch, be aware of possible business start-up mistakes.

• A business idea needs to be crystal-clear and you need to totally understand it and your market.
• Do your research, target customers, utilise networking groups and get yourself out there.
• Gather all the information you need to avoid start up mistakes. Read articles, watch business videos, attend workshops and gather all the help you can to succeed.
• As an entrepreneur, all your energy, time and money will be poured into the new enterprise. Avoid start up mistakes and ensure that closing in five years is not an option.
• Create a business plan that will help you identify markers and warn about mistakes that can delay development.
• Avoid start up mistakes by having a financial plan to cover unexpected expenses, marketing, operational and payroll costs.

See your idea clearly, get on the right track and stay there!

Very few businesses make money in the first year, so a sound financial budget, as part of the business plan is vital. Cash is required not only to start the business but to support living costs until it is off the ground. Much of the money made in the first few years will need to be re-invested. Estimate the length of time it will take for the business to be profitable. Numbers need to be crunched to ensure success.

• A business plan, is necessary to clarify thoughts and monitor time frames.
  
• An imposed time frame can be challenging, but can make the start-up easier. Collect data that qualifies your business idea. Use it to indicate key milestones in your growing business. Keep expectations realistic.
  
  
• Market your business, create a stunning website that will put you in front of your target audience.
  
  
• A well planned marketing strategy and media campaign can be executed with little to no marketing budget.

Stay Focused.

Avoid distractions when starting a business. Be well capitalised so that focus is not shifted. Your new venture is a way to make money, stick with it. When your business grows, extra capital may be needed. An investor may be considered but clarify that an investors' needs match yours. Besides the money, an investor needs to add to your business. Business growth will generate a need for extra staff. If staff are hired too quickly and funds are limited, start up mistakes are created.

Have a marketing plan.

Customers need to find you easily. Besides a website, utilise brochures, signs and social media platforms like LinkedIn and Twitter.

Surrounded yourself with people who have the skills that you lack. Create a support team that could include an accountant, business advisor, and family and friends. Develop skills by attending courses and create a personal development plan so that you can always be up aware of what is happening in your market. Communicate with your customers, be aware of their needs and have some flexibility in your structure. Prioritise and never forget your core product and goal.

• If you need any help regarding things to avoid or things to do when starting up your business we are happy to help, contact support@kommand.me

Mastering what visual content can be hard enough never mind how to make it come across. Kommand have put together a little blog post in how to master visual content with some tips and tricks, which apps and software to use and of course all on a budget for your start up business.

We want you to gain as much a possible from this in order to focus on your small business, leave all the work to us. Check out our packages starting from only £9 a month – no contract, and kick start your career today.

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Here are 2 free software websites to create informative images / creative images / simplistic images.

CANVA:

We love Canva – a free website that allows you to create images with some great visuals around it, they have a large variety of fonts to cover anything you have to advertise. It allows you to upload images which can be tailored to a Facebook cover image, Instagram post etc. This is great as it provides the exact sizing that will fit as you could spend days trying to create an image but if it doesn’t fit – It’s no good. Everything is very well put together on the site meaning you can make your business look very professional and clean. This is one we would definitely recommend you start off using, it can seem a little complicated at first as there are so many options to play about with, but once you start you will be on it for days. It is also a great tool to use to create posters. Here at Kommand we like this as we can create quotes and include our website so if these images are ever re-posted people know where to come to.

Here are some examples of things we have created this week:

Fotor:

Another great software which is free and you can be as creative as you wish on. From editing, to creating a collage to designing. – We use this for designing, similar to Canva with many more options from Facebook covers, Youtube channel art, Google+ cover, Blog title images, etsy shop icon – The list goes on! Sometimes when doing blog posts we use the Youtube Channel Art as they have a great option on it, scroll all the way to the bottom to the Wanderlust image which is black – Upload your image and drag it to the wanderlust image, this then fades it out and you will see a white box with writing. This is the perfect blog cover image, as it allows your image to be there, but not fully giving some mystery to whatever it is you are selling or talking about and then the white border box is so in right now giving some simplistic vibes which you can then write the title of whatever it is you are talking about etc! – A lot of the options require you to upgrade but we haven’t had to do so yet so there are some great free options for you to use so take advantage and become a master at creativity. 

Tips:

If you are new to it all and a bit lost, keep in mind you want to come across clear. This is why the software’s mentioned above are great. Sometimes starting out you want to provide as much information as possible in a small space, avoid this. Leave mystery to what you are selling or talking about such as an open ended question – Make them hunt for the answer and lead them to your website. Staying simplistic is key to 2016. Avoid coming across as Robotic as this has been done and there are plenty websites etc just like that – So differentiate yourself by being highly creative with some great visuals that will stick in potential customers minds, this will keep you ahead of competitors.

Want to know anymore information then send us a tweet @Kommandme

If you have come to Kommand it is because you are looking for a high quality website creator with a limited budget, this may also apply to your social media budget, read further to find out how to get the most out of social media with that tight budget.

2016 - The year that social media is almost dominating the world, left right and centre you will look and there will be someone on their mobile or laptop connected to some sort of social media platform. This is great news for any business as this will be your main platform in order to rank in sales and gain attention. If you do have a small budget then you have to be highly committed to all social platforms, in terms of posting information on your product or service, connecting with new potential customers, answering any queries you may have. A small budget does sometimes mean you need to put that bit more effort and devotion in, in order to see results as this will build up a higher social presence which customers can then trust in.

FACEBOOK.

Facebook Ad’s is a great way for companies to gain attraction to their particular audience as they have detailed options that allow you to target a specific age, country, interests – all to suit what-ever it is you need to promote. This option also doesn’t mean breaking the bank, you can push an ad for as little and as much as you want, a good starter option for each post is around £7-£12, this is a great tool as when you type in your budget it gives you an estimate of how many people it will reach, it also allows the options to show you, depending on what your aim of boosting the post is, how many people will like your page, click your link in the ad etc.

Being on social media doesn’t always mean you have to post things relevant to your company if you have nothing else to say or post, be aware of social events occurring and any news headlines and post about them, using the free tool Google Alerts is a great way to stay tuned in to any news headlines as they will be directly sent to your email inbox; This will attract people to engage with you which could then lead to them viewing your website.

It is important that you are targeting the right type of audience that is best suited to your product or service. If you are clueless on what to include or how to come across then the best thing to do is to check your own news-feed and see what other campaigns show up, this allows you to see any visuals that perhaps caught your eye and will give you a better idea on what to include in your own or how to improve current ad’s. All the fine details could lead to conversations which could then generate sales, so do not rush this process and have a clear plan before creating an ad so it is done in the most effective way.

INSTAGRAM.

Many companies can be quite intimidated with Instagram, but the latest social trend is the best way to gain attraction for free, if you can provide creative content. Catching someone’s attention and staying in their mind is easiest done with creative content such as a photograph or video, so make a plan in order to do just that. It is all about having a keen eye for detail and being able to show off your product or service in the best way possible. The aim is to make that thumb of theirs that is frantically scrolling to stop on your feed. 

The filters allow you to play about to make the images look more professional and creative. When starting an account, it is a good idea to gain some inspiration from other pages and come up with a theme of the way you want your page to look, such as which backgrounds will your photographs have, square? Rectangle? – It is important to stick to one as it will keep it clear and easy for viewers to look at. You may think these small touches don't matter but because of social media people are now seeking order to look at things, so if it looks nice chances are you gain a better following and presence as people really do care.

As there is no cost for this app it is the ideal option for any start-up company, you just have to connect with the right people. This is easy done, by searching for hashtags of keywords – If you are selling electrical tools then hashtag #electricaltools, this will then search for any post with the same hashtag and you can follow them and interact. When posting an image, it is a great idea to hashtag up to 5-10 things that relate to your business and product in order for more people to easily access that image.

If you are new to our website Kommand then let us tell you a bit about how the platform works and what we can offer you for your start-up company.

Kommand is a budget website builder that is the perfect foundation for any small business that is starting out and wants to test the water with their products or services and have a website that provides information for potential customers to view. It is the ideal option if you don’t have months to wait for a specially made website, Kommand allows you to play about with certain design templates and features in a manner that suits your overall sector best. For any retailer this is a great option to start with, Kommand offer visually appealing and well laid out, easy to navigate websites that do the job. If technical things aren’t your thing and you want it to be easy for you to control and monitor, then Kommand is for you.

With a range of responsive themes, you are sure to find one to suit your business, a great example if you are struggling to choose is the first option our list – A clear white background is always the best option if you want your website to come across as almost effortless. A white background gives the sense of simplicity and it is almost calming to look at and won’t take away from what you are trying to sell, which is the main aim of the website.  

This theme allows you to upload your logo, the white background will allow this to stand out as it is featured in the centre of the page at the top, so it will be the first thing potential customers will notice. The menu bar is also a great way for people to go to exactly what they are looking for without being lost amongst clutter, simple options such as Home, About, Shop, Contact, perhaps if you are selling products a delivery and returns section would be helpful and an FAQ section.

With features that allow your contact details to be clear, social media an option to include a blog which is a great tool for any retail company – If you are in for example the beauty, fashion sector then including a blog to showcase how bloggers or customers style items to give potential customers inspiration will give them comfort in seeing items that aren’t on models as this can be quite intimidating and off putting for a number of customers. The subscribe button option is a great way to get potential or current customers to provide their details in order to send newsletters which allows you to send them information straight to their inbox regarding any sales, promotions, new stock, an overall great way to get more sales.

Nowadays there are many different platforms out there which make it simple to sell products online. Whether you choose to set up through a third party website such as Etsy or want to create your own branded online store, like those available with Kommand website builder, you don't need to fork out thousands to set up an online shop.

However while setting up an online might be straightforward, making it a success isn't. Here are five areas you should consider before launch to help you avoid online disaster.

1. Choose Your System Carefully

Take time when researching the options available for different online shop platforms. You will want to find one which suits your needs perfectly. Some areas to be aware of:

1. What is the support like? Can you get hold of someone if there is a problem?
2. Will the website work on all devices (i.e. is it mobile responsive?)
3. How flexible are the themes? Can you fully brand your website to reflect your business?
4. Is there room to grow?

2. Research Your Competition

This doesn't just apply to online shops, but any website.

Use keyword research to check out your competition. How do they differentiate themselves? Are their websites modern and easy-to-use or outdated and confusing? Use the downsides of these websites to create a list of positives for yours which can help you create a USP (see point 3 below). If your competition has high shipping costs could you consider making yours cheaper? Think long and hard about how you can compete with them, is there a genuine chance you can grab some of the market or is it completely dominated? Research is incredibly important so you can understand the market you are entering and the customer behaviours.

3. Find Your USP

Similar to the point above as a new shop you are going to want to find a way to differentiate yourself from your competitors. What is the unique point which makes your business better than others? Why should customers choose you over other businesses? When you decide what point or points makes you unique use them to advertise your business. Put them on your homepage and in any marketing, on and offline. Customers won't search for these things so make it clear, from the beginning.

4. Be Wary of Manufacturer Product Descriptions

Unless you are producing your own goods it is likely that you will be selling products from a manufacturer who will supply photographs and product descriptions. If you leave these unchanged then your content is going to be the same as other online shops which can have a negative effect on SEO. By re-writing product descriptions, and if possible taking additional, high quality product images, you will set your business apart.

5. Get Your Head Around SEO

Unfortunately optimising an online store is harder than optimising a blog. By having lots of individual pages for each product, numerous problems arise that make SEO difficult for Ecommerce websites. However there are some tips you can follow to help minimise your chance of being penalised:

• Add product reviews using a review widget. This will help keep the page 'living' as new posts will give search engines something new to crawl. Product reviews also help with social proof and persuade customers to buy.
• Avoid duplicating content on lots of different pages. Instead write unique product descriptions for each product.
• Use unique titles, descriptions and headings - These areas are the foundation of improving SEO so make sure to optimise unique versions for each page. Also optimise your URLs to include brand and product names.

You can read more about SEO in this post and also in our SEO Basics posts: title tags, meta descriptions and anchor text.

Interested in Setting Up an Online Shop?

If you want a simple way to sell products online Kommand website builder can help. Set-up is quick and easy and our monthly packages start from as little as £25.00 per month. For more information about setting up an online shop, you can contact us today. 

SEO is a complicated and ever-changing area. Some marketers try to cheat the search algorithms by using what is known as black-hat techniques. Over time the search engines penalize such attempts. There are however a number of ways you can legitimately improve your website's chance of ranking higher on search engines. One of these is through optimising your website's Meta Descriptions.

This post is part of a series SEO Basics, check out the previous posts on Title Tags and Anchor Text.

Meta Description refers to a short snippet which describes a webpage's contents. The Meta Description is an important tag within your website's HTML which when optimised correctly can become a very important aspect of SEO.

Where Can I See My Website's Meta Description?

You can find your current Meta Description by right clicking on your webpage and clicking view page source. The search (using CTRL+F) for name="description" content= The text following this is your current Meta Description. 

What Is the Purpose of a Meta Description?

The main purpose of a Meta Description is to improve the click through rate from search engines to your website. You can see where a Meta Description normally sits on Google below:

Many people have said that including keywords within a Meta Description however there is conflicting evidence whether this is indeed true. There is also an indirect benefit in that Google uses click through rate to determine whether your webpage is a good result. A well written meta description can help increase the number of clicks onto your website, which when coupled with a low bounce rate can have a positive impact on your search engine rankings.

6 Tips for Writing a Great Meta Description

1. LENGTH:

You should aim to keep your Meta Description between 135 and 150 characters. There is no exactly right number here and Google and other search engines may show less or more.

2. CALL TO ACTION:

A Meta Description should have a solid action and be written with an active voice. Use this space to sell your website. Invitations and hooks work well, Learn more, Try for free, Free shipping, Find out more, etc.

3. MATCH YOUR WEBPAGE CONTENT:

The Meta Description should be in-keeping with the webpage's content. If your Meta Description is misleading you will increase your website's bounce rate which will have a negative impact on SEO.

4. AVOID KEYWORD STUFFING:

Avoid repeating your keywords multiple times. Instead pick a focus keyword and use it smartly and semantically. 

5. READ IT ALONGSIDE YOUR TITLE TAG:

Write your Title Tags and Meta Descriptions as one as most people will read them as so. 

6. MAKE IT UNIQUE:

To avoid being penalised for duplicate content write unique Meta Descriptions for each of your webpages.

Update Your Meta Description on Kommand

If your website is with Kommand it is simple to update your Meta Description.

On the Page you wish to edit click SEO:

Then type your Meta Description into the box titled 'Metadata Description Tag':

Build Your SEO Friendly Site with Kommand

If you are looking to update your website and improve the chance your website has for ranking on the first page of Google switch to Kommand and enjoy a simple way to make an SEO friendly website. Prices start from as little as £400 for custom designed and built website. To find out more get in touch!

support@kommand.me

Glasgow - Tel: 0141 345 2130

Middlesbrough - Tel: 01642 989 069

London - Tel: 0203 026 0730 

Do you run a small business but still don’t have a website or have a website that is seriously outdated? Kommand website builder can help you upgrade your site without breaking the bank and without having to wait months on development.

Websites for Small Businesses

We offer an easy way to build, run and maintain a website all at simple monthly prices with extra bolt ons to help you pay only for what your site actually needs.

With built-in SEO features your site will have a great foundation to get ranking on search engines and our mobile responsive themes mean your website will look great regardless of which device it’s being accessed from, desktop, mobile or tablet.

What Do Websites Built on Kommand Look Like?

To get an idea of what your website could look like take a peek at some of the websites we’ve recently launched below!

You can also check out this post and this post to see some more examples from earlier on in the year.

New Website Launches

Love Restored - Ecommerce for gift & interior shop

Glasgow Independent BMW & Mini Specialists - CMS website

Influx Recruitment - Recruitment website

What Can We Do for Your Business? 

If you are interested in seeing what Kommand could do for your website please contact our team:

Glasgow - 0141 345 2130
Middlesbrough - 01642 989 069
London - 0203 026 0730

You can also send us your question by email: support@kommand.me

A great website is the core of your company’s online presence and offers the opportunity to drive business thanks to the information it offers your customers.

The staggering rise in technology and portable devices in recent years means your customers are constantly connected to the internet through their phones; making the need for a fully optimised, responsive site more important than ever before.

Today, two thirds of adults in the UK own a smartphone, with the average user picking up their device 85 times a day. Kommand helps business owners succeed online and offers customisable websites that are mobile-optimised as standard which drive great results at cost effective prices.

What Makes a Great Website?

There are over 1 billion websites in the world today, though not all are great quality, but thanks to Kommand, making a great website is now an easy and manageable task. Follow our top tips to create an engaging website:

First Impressions Count

As the phrase goes “you never get a second chance to make a first impression”. Luckily, we offer professional looking templates that are guaranteed to impress any visitor.

• Our website themes are fully optimised for mobile, tablet and desktop users.
• The colour scheme can be edited to suit your brand and style and images are easily added.
• Kommand websites are ready to launch in minutes

Your website is the chance to communicate with your customers and build a great first impression. Remember your company’s unique selling point should be visible in the content when users first visit your site.

Include Your Company Logo

Incorporating your company logo design into your website is a great way to visually represent your brand.

• Humans are very visual and respond well to images. 90% of information transmitted to the brain is visual
• A great logo makes your brand trustworthy and encourages customer engagement. Ask yourself, would you have confidence in a brand that doesn’t have a visual identity?

Kommand’s customisable templates make it easy to upload your logo to your site and instantly create a connection with your customer. We offer a simple re-sizer that helps you crop your image to ensure it looks great on your site.

Engaging Content

Content is king and one of the best ways to engage users is through tools such as sliding banners. When used well, content sliders provide an interactive element to your site that can increase visitor engagement. A positive user experience is vital for the success of your website.

• Content sliders save space by allowing you to fit multiple pieces of content on a single screen.
• Well-designed content sliders encourage users to stay on the page longer, driving engagement.

Kommand websites structure your information into an easy-to-view way. We offer homepage slider banners which sell the main services of your business in a consolidated way.

Blogging Your Way to Success

A website is a great hub to build your company’s community and blogging adds another dimension to this.

Each time you post a blog you create something that is sharable via social media which helps grow your audience. Write you own Kommand blog through your website and use categories and tags to inform the search engines what you’re discussing.

• Blogs establish authority by answering customer questions
• Blog generate leads through Call to Actions ( enter details to receive free offers/free web books etc.)

Companies without sleek websites have little chance of success in today’s market. Kommand offers you advanced features to build, manage and promote your website all at a low cost. Our fully optimised site give you the ultimate platform to launch your business thanks to our easy content editor and beautiful designs. 

For more information about building a website using Kommand or to find out if we are the right fit for your business please drop us your questions: support@kommand.me

Or drop us a call: Glasgow - 0141 345 2130 Middlesbrough - 1642 989 069 London - 0203 026 0730 

A Level Playing Field

The internet and social media have helped to level the playing field between big businesses and startups. However social media is still a minefield of different variables and unfortunately, there isn’t a set formula to follow to drive desired engagement. Instead, social media takes time, knowledge and effort to perfect.

Having said that, there are some standard areas you can check to aid in minimizing social media failure. Today’s post guides you on the areas you should review before launching a social media campaign.

Set Goals

Setting goals is important in every marketing effort your business undertakes, however it is often not given enough - or any - consideration. Think about what you want your social media campaign to achieve – is it a footfall? Website hits? Likes/followers on a social media page? Online sales? Or something completely different? Try and make whatever you chose time-specific (and realistic!) so you are able to distinguish between failure and success, and to help your business in the long-term.

Divide Up Responsibility

If you are a sole-trader, then of course this isn’t applicable. However if you have more than just yourself in the business, consider who should be doing what. Does one member of your team know a lot about your products or industry and could support content creation for a blog or social media post? Do you have an employee who has photography skills that could be used to improve your social media posts?

You should designate someone in charge of responding to social media comments and messages. These channels are, after all, social and lack of engagement is an easily avoidable occurrence.

Fill Out Your Profile(s)

Make sure you fill out your social media profile(s) with as much information as possible. The more information you provide the better you will help customers understand your business, particularly if you are new. Using the right keywords or appropriate hashtags in your posts and profile descriptions will help you show up for people looking for your services. Think about what information is useful. If you own a shop, update your map, opening and parking directions. Own a restaurant? Consider uploading your menu or any special offers.

Make sure your profile pictures and header banners are of a high quality and if possible consider having specific ones made for your business. You should also try to claim vanity URLs on Facebook and Google+.

Make Sure Your Website Tick the Boxes

For many social media campaigns run by small businesses the overall aim will be to drive online sales or visits to the website. If your website is confusing, slow to load or lacks conversion drivers you are missing out converting on potential customers. Review any landing pages and check you have a solid website design that works great on desktop, tablet and mobile to improve user experience for customers once they are on your website.

Looking for Help?

If you are looking for support in growing your small business or would like to move your website to a responsive, user-friendly design why not get in touch and find out how Kommand can help? Our websites are simple to set up and run, look professional and work on any device.

Speak to us today: support@kommand.me

Glasgow - Tel: 0141 345 2130

Middlesbrough - Tel: 01642 989 069

London - Tel: 0203 026 0730 

In today's post we have listed five motivations you can use to convince customers to buy products or services from your small business.

1. They Need Your Product

The first motivation is convincing your potential customers that they don't just want your product, but that they need it. If your customer is currently dissatisfied, they may be looking for a way to right a wrong. Your aim is to convince customers that your product or service will make that wrong a right.

One way you can do this is to distinguish between a feature and a benefit. This can be done through the language. Avoid using general statements. Say "our customers report an average 30% decrease in costs, about twice the industry average when using our products" rather than "our product makes you more productive."

You should also be aware that the greater the dissatisfaction, the higher the urgency a customer will feel.

2. You Product Will Make Their Life Easier

We live in a time where convenience is highly valued. Why do you think fast food and microwavable meals have become so popular? By using this motivation you can convince customers that your product will make their lives easier, will save them time or will save them money. Some companies market their products by indicating how quickly the customer recovers the spend purchase. Highlight how simple your returns policy is or how much time previous customers have saved using your product.

3. Fear & Safety

If your customer is scared of something, for example their safety, they may be more likely to purchase your products and services to prevent any bad eventualities. Fear is often used in advertising and works well at engagement.

By using shocking images or statistics you can stir a feeling of fear in your customers. The car industry does this particularly well, often highlighting safety features and how these can protect loved ones, however the technique used in a range of industries from security (alarms and locks) to beauty (SPF preventing sun cream, anti-wrinkle creams preventing ageing).

4. Convenience

To use this motivation you need to show how convenient your brand is. For example if you run a dental practice late night or weekend appointments provide this convenience. Your method of delivery, physical location, or simply the ease of use of your website can all contribute to this motivation. If the shopping experience is straightforward this will motivate customers to buy, and even to come back to purchase again.

5. Exclusiveness

Customers like to feel as though they are special and by offering exclusivity within your product offering you will help to ignite this feeling. You can do this in a number of ways - perhaps through offering an exclusive discount via email marketing to certain customers, or through selling an item made in limited numbers, or which is custom-made.  

Think About How YOU Buy

It is easy to forget about how you buy yourself when you run a business. Think about what has convinced you to buy in the past and how you can use implement this in your own business. For more tips about running a small business why not check out our Small Business Advice category?

We thought we would pass on this information for everyone else by putting together today's post explaining why a small business should consider email marketing, and the benefits it can provide.

Why Use Email Marketing?

When you read anything about online marketing you may notice the focus is often on social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter and using social media marketing for promoting a business online. 

Contrary to what some business owners may think, email marketing is not a thing of the past and if you are not yet using it, or not using it properly you could be missing a key way to generate more leads.

Email Marketing Provides Direct Contact with Prospective Customers

One of the downfalls with social media is the immediacy of it. Whilst this can be beneficial in some respects, it can also be a hindrance.

According to research by management consultancy firm, McKinsey & Company, an estimated 91% of US consumers checked their mail inbox at least once every day. This means that unlike social media - where information is essentially infinite and continually updating (meaning engagement can be lower) - when an email is sent to a person’s inbox, the person is less likely to ignore it.

Either the person will spam it, read it or send it to the trash folder depending on what he or she feels about it. Immaterial of whatever action the person may take, he or she has to open the email that was sent to the inbox and skim through it before deciding what to do with it. Engagement with email marketing can be far higher than that of social media because of this, something you should remember when investing time into tweeting vs. sending out an email campaign.

You Can Gain More Understanding About the Interests of Your Followers

Perhaps you’re wondering why a certain social media user decided to follow you on Facebook or Twitter. Of course, you can always look at your most popular posts on Facebook and Twitter or use Google Analytics to find out your most popular content but, this doesn’t give an insight into the interests of each follower.

With email marketing you can find out about which links your subscriber clicks, the method the person used to opt into your email list and which emails the person opens depending on the email provider you use. By spending time and energy to segment your email list, you will be able to send content to your subscribers depending on their particular interest, e.g. recent subscribers or first time buyers, or even by gender, age or interests.

Another benefit is that your social media posts may be seen by those who don't follow you and it can be difficult to work out how effective the campaign has been. With email marketing the user has actively signed up to join your mailing list therefore you may have a stronger customer base through this channel.

Email Marketing Stats

With email marketing, you have a better chance of engagement:

• Emails initiate purchases that are three times more than that of social media in addition to a 17 percent higher average order value compared to that of social media.
• Email marketing is 40 times more effective than the combination of both Twitter and Facebook for acquiring customers.
• Average investment return for each US$1 spent on electronic mail marketing is US$44.25.
• Online marketers ranked electronic mail marketing as the sole, most effective method for retention, awareness, conversion and acquisition.
• It is estimated that more than half of emails are now checked using mobile devices.

Remember to Optimise for Mobile!

There are still many marketers or business owners who don’t optimise their emails or their website landing page to adjust to smaller screen sizes – this is something that we at Kommand can help your business with. If you are looking for support in growing your small business or would like to move your website to a responsive design why not get in touch and find out how we can help?

You can reach us: support@kommand.me

Glasgow - Tel: 0141 345 2130

Middlesbrough - Tel: 01642 989 069

London - Tel: 0203 026 0730 

A website gives you a controlled way to portray an image of your business as you would like it, giving your customers an idea of the atmosphere and offering before even stepping a foot inside.

Why Should Your Restaurant Have a Website?

While there are general advantages for every business in creating a website, there are a number of specific advantages that can benefit a restaurant. Here are eight reasons your restaurant should have a website:

1. Low Advertising Costs

Print ads and commercials are expensive. With a website you can display an endless amount of print information at a fraction of the cost. Information is available 24/7 to anyone with internet access and you can easily update out-dated information on your website whereas the cost of re-printing flyers is far greater.

2. You Can Give Key Information On Your Location, Menu, Opening Times and Special Offers

A website gives you a platform to provide the basic information your customers may need to know about your restaurant including hours of operation, directions, payment methods and more. By answering these basic questions, you can decrease the amount of time your managers and staff need to spend answering phone calls. You can also keep customers aware of any promotions, such as pre-theatre menus, lunch deals or Christmas offers.

3. You Can Include Customer Testimonials

You can include customer testimonials on your website or if your restaurant has been lucky enough to be featured in a publication such as a review by a restaurant critic in a newspaper you can link to this from your site. This will help to build your restaurant’s credibility.

A website may also help your chances of being reviewed by bloggers as they have a resource to gain information about your history to add to their article.

4. Increases Awareness of Your Business

When people are looking for information the first place they will look is on the web. It is important that if someone is looking for your business they can find the information that they need quickly so they are less likely to become disgruntled and consider your competitor(s).

5. You Can Improve Search Rankings

By investing time into search engine optimisation (SEO) you can help your business show for related search terms. For example if your website shows for someone searching ‘late night café’, ‘Italian restaurant’ or ‘family friendly pub’ you will gain more exposure and hopefully more customers.

6. You Can Build a Solid Brand Image

A website will help your business to build a professional image. Particularly if you are just starting out, a website is a great method for helping customers become acquainted with your brand. With the correct marketing it may even convince customers to seek you out and try for themselves. High quality images will help entice customers to visit.

7. Differentiate Your Business from the Competition

If all of your competitors have an online presence it only makes sense that you should too. Many competing restaurants may already use a website to promote themselves; stealing your business. A well-presented easy to use website will help you highlight what you do well and may persuade customers to pick you over alternatives. Lack of a website may also suggest that you are no willing to invest into your business

8. Book Online Features

You can easily add an online booking link or app to your website giving your customers a quick way to make reservations on the go. 

9. A Way to Promote Other Services

A website gives you a channel to promote your other services. Offer catering or private events? Creating pages for these and using SEO (see point 5!) can generate more business.

10. Sell Gift Cards

With a website which enables online selling you could even sell gift vouchers online. This can help drive more business, particularly around Christmas or other events where people are looking for gifts.

Interested in Setting Up a Website for your Restaurant?

If you don't yet have a website for your restaurant you are missing out on potential customers. Kommand help small businesses build easy-to-use, reliable websites that perform well and have all the features needed to build an excellent online presence. Our websites are designed to rank - and with our bistro theme the building blocks are already in place to set up a user-friendly, beautiful website in just a matter of hours in four easy steps.

For more information about getting your restaurant online why not drop us a call? We specialize in helping small businesses make their stamp online and will be happy to talk you through the options and monthly price packages available.

You can reach us: support@kommand.me

Glasgow - Tel: 0141 345 2130

Middlesbrough - Tel: 01642 989 069

London - Tel: 0203 026 0730 

At Kommand we like to keep up to date with any developments in APIs we integrate into our system. We recently got news of a new Mail Chimp feature we think our clients could benefit from - Product Recommendations - and wanted to pass the information on to help you take advantage of the feature to better connect with your customers.

What is Mail Chimp’s Product Recommendations Feature?

Product Recommendations have been added by Mail Chimp to assists in analysing the purchase history of customers to detect patterns in their buying behaviour to predict which items they’ll buy next.

The days of personalised email marketing being reserved for big brands with equally big marketing budgets is coming to an end. This new feature allows businesses of any size to create personalised recommendations quickly and easily.

What Does It Do?

By using the personalisation tools in Mail Chimp you can find out more about your audience and in turn, increase the relevancy of the messages you send them. If you sell online, this new feature makes it incredibly easy to deliver the right content at the right time.

The enterprise-level technology detects patterns in your Ecommerce data and uses this to predict your customers’ buying behaviour to target the right customer with the right product. Mail Chimp builds a profile of each individual’s purchase history which can see by viewing their subscriber profile.

Why Use Email Marketing?

If you aren’t yet using email marketing as part of your online marketing strategy, then you are missing out on a vibrant and powerful way to connect with your customers.

Email marketing has managed to remain a key element in marketing strategies for businesses of all sizes. Think about it yourself: how many people do you know with an email address? Lots. And all of these people can be targeted through email marketing.

And for those that think email marketing is dying? Smartphones put a clear stop to that. In fact, reading email has been the number one activity on smartphones for a long time, and with better technologies and designs continuously being developed marketers are always able to find new innovative ways to push conversions through email marketing to catch users on the go with targeted, personalised messages.

Why Start an Online Store?

Ecommerce (online shopping) has grown rapidly in recent years. Popular product categories in the UK include fashion and sporting goods, followed by travel and household items. Other popular categories include movies/music and books/magazines.

There are a number of reasons why you should open an online store. You don’t have to pay rent and you can reach millions of customers from the comfort of your home. However to have any shot at success you need to have a user-friendly, secure, solid website. Kommand’s website builder offers just that, and more, with integrated SEO features making it straightforward to get your website ranking highly on search engines such as Google. If you already have a Kommand website and want to make the switch to an online shop, or are brand new to our brand why not get in touch for a friendly chat about how we can help you make the most of your business online?

Emails us: support@kommand.me or call:

Glasgow - Tel: 0141 345 2130

Middlesbrough - Tel: 01642 989 069

London - Tel: 0203 026 0730 

What is Kommand?

Kommand was created to give small businesses a simple way to set-up and maintain a safe website that looks and works great on all kinds of devices. Our beautiful templates make it easy to put together a website yourself, or if you are busy with the day-to-day running your business you can leave it to our designers to design a website suited to your branding and industry. 

Website Builder for Small Businesses

If you run a small business or are just starting up we understand it is unlikely you will have lots of money free to build a website. Kommand was born to help you overcome that very problem. We offer an easy way to design, run and maintain a website, at a reasonable monthly cost. Our simple package and bolt-on pricing structure means we can grow with your business; adding the pages you need to cater for your growing number of services. 

We can provide you with all the basics needed to get your website ranking on search engines, including SEO prompts and help.

If you already have your business's branding our team will be able to put together a website that fits in with your established business image. Alternatively if you are looking for a refresh or are just starting and need a logo designed our designers can create a website and logo that reflects your business perfectly. 

Websites Built Using Kommand

St Andrews Taxis

Retro Classic Cars

See more Kommand website examples in our April website launch post.

If you are interested in seeing what Kommand could do for your website please contact our team for a friendly chat:

Glasgow - Tel: 0141 345 2130
Middlesbrough - Tel: 01642 989 069
London - Tel: 0203 026 0730

You can also send us your question by email: support@kommand.me

A website can be crucial to the success of any modern business; it is an enterprise’s online brand, attracts interest, helps sell services and products, and can even be used to reach out to a worldwide market.

However, in order for the website to be effective and garner maximum benefit it needs to be attractive, easy for the visitor to use and free of technical problems.

Why Is Your Website Theme Important?

For any website to attract visitors and maintain interest – which is surely what any business wants – the look and style must be attractive. A website theme helps to determines its design. Typically a website theme will include:

• The type and size of the fonts on the webpage
• The colour schemes and the aesthetics of the site

Getting the theme right is important; the website may contain exceptional content, but unless it is attractive and holds your visitors' interests those efforts will come to nothing.

How Can You Find the Right Website Theme for Your Business?

Finding a website theme is not always easy, especially for those setting up their own site for the first time. However, assistance is available. There are companies that provide a range of website themes that business owners can choose from. Kommand's website builder has a number of themes, including styles suitable for cafes, more corporate or even sector specific such as our recruitment and estate agency packages.

It is important that any website theme chosen is professional looking and user-friendly as possible. Some themes will allow you to tweak some aspects such as modifying the colour scheme, images and layout. This will allow the website to match the style preferred by the company and in so doing have a site which will attract visitors and hopefully customers and clients. This is the route which Kommand follows. You will choose a template which you can then customize to suit your individual business. 

Why Website Maintenance Is Even More Important Today

Having a first class website that helps promote a business and brand and is instrumental in helping it sell services and goods is all-important. Yet, things can go wrong. The best website in the world is absolutely no good to anyone if it constantly crashes, is too slow or if it is offline for any length of time. Should that happen customers are very likely to visit a competitor’s website and in turn purchase what they have on offer.

The key to avoiding these problems is to for any business to ensure its website is kept well maintained. Website maintenance is important if not crucial so finding a company to maintain your website is key. If you decide to build your website on your own you may not have any support should the website crash. In such cases to it is important to know how to access the services of an IT specialist and an umbrella company can prove to be very useful when seeking to hire one. For Kommand websites we provide support and continually update our sites to ensure minimal downtime. Our sites are built to run fast and updates will rarely affect the day to day running of your website.

Any business that does not have a website is putting itself at a disadvantage. That website should be attractive and easy to surf and be available for visitors 24/7. That is why website theme and maintenance is so important if a business is to enjoy success. 

With Kommand we provide our themes and maintenance as standard. To find out if we are the right fit for building a website for your business get in touch today: support@kommand.me

The popularity of coffees is mimicked in recent news that 2016's drink of choice the turmeric latte, with its distinct golden glow, is pipped to be the new 'it' drink to hit our shores this year.

In a new report about food trends in the US, Google backed these predictions showing turmeric's growing popularity after searches for the spice increased by 56% from November 2015 to January 2016. Coupled with that, "golden milk" searches also experienced a surge, gaining fans from a widespread as Sydney and San Fran.

In the UK, the Modern Baker (cafe in Oxford) said sales of its turmeric lattes are now outnumbering the regular alternative. Notting Hill's Nama experienced a similar influx. And as with many food and drinks trends, what happens in London is often copied across the rest of the country.

Why Has the Golden Latte Become So Popular?

Like many of today's power-foods (coconut oil and ghee for example) turmeric's popularity is accredited to South Asia, where it is often mixed with milk as a restorative, anti-inflammatory and as an alternative to a caffeinated drink. It is a popular morning drink, and even works iced. 

The drink has being doing the rounds on some of the big "clean eating" influencers' blogs, Pinterest and Instagram account with users showcasing their recipes and love for the golden sip.

Get Your Cafe Ahead with This South Asia Trend

If you currently run a cafe getting on the turmeric bandwagon could be a great boost to your business. Online isn't just for Ecommerce and if you don't yet have a website for your cafe you are missing out on potential customers who will search for local cafes and information.

Kommand websites are designed to rank - and with our bistro theme the building blocks are already in place to set up a user-friendly, beautiful website in just a matter of hours in four easy steps. Better still they are built to boost your search engine ranking meaning you can show for relevant keywords to your industry. For more information about getting your cafe online why not drop us a call? We specialize in helping small businesses make their stamp online. 

Glasgow - Tel: 0141 345 2130

Middlesbrough - Tel: 01642 989 069

London - Tel: 0203 026 0730 

If you are wanting to sell products online the reason for having a website is obvious, but even for those not looking to sell over the internet a website shouldn't be overlooked. Done correctly, a website can act as an extension of your business, acting as your online business card which provides all the important information about your services. A slick, reliable website will build credibility with potential customers and may even sway their decision when comparing you to your competitors.

Creating a Business Website Doesn't Need to Be Difficult

A common reason business owners delay setting up a website is the incorrect assumption that it will be a costly and complicated process. However creating a website for your business may be easier and cheaper than you think. Here's four simple steps to get the ball rolling.

Step 1: Get Your Domain

Setting up a domain is simple. Once you have your desired URL (or a few in case your first choice is taken!) all you need to do is head to a domain registration company website such as GoDaddy.com, among many others, and enter your domain into the search box. You will see which Top Level Domains (TLDs) are available; .org, .com, etc. and how much they cost. Once you have selected your desired domain and paid the fee it can take a couple of days for the domain to become active. 

Confused about how to pick a domain? You can read more about choosing a domain name in this post.

Step 2: Decide the Menu and Content

A common reason that potential customers may leave your website is because they cannot find what they are looking for. A clear, user-friendly menu structure will help towards decreasing your bounce rate.

Another reason to decide on your menu structure is to see the size your website needs to be, which can be helpful when talking to your potential web designers. Start by taking a piece of paper and writing down all the pages you will need; Homepage, Contact Us, About Us, FAQ, etc. If you want to sell products online it can be an idea to write the number of products you have and the number of categories, e.g. if you sell phones your categories may be Apple, Nokia and Samsung and your products. If possible think about your menu structure and sub-pages. Consider the customer and what will make sense to them when navigating through your website.

Step 3: Decide the Logo and Design

If you already have your business it is likely that you will already have a logo in place. If not, you will need to sort this out before launching your website. Some web design companies will be able to offer graphic design services alongside their web design so it might be worthwhile to see if they will be able to do both. Regardless of who you choose to design your logo you will need to come up with some ideas of what you want your logo to look like. A good starting point is to look at your competitors to see if there are particular industry standards that could help, e.g. dental websites tend to go for a clinical blue and white.

Step 4: Get it Online

Once you have the first three steps in place you can give your ideas to your web designer. Many will be able to provide stock images, or even provide further assistance such as content or social media setup. Once the design is finalized it is just a matter of setting the site live.

What Can Kommand Offer?

If you are looking for a web designer to help build a custom website for your business then Kommand website builder can help.

 We offer all of the features above in our custom designs. 

For more information please get in touch: 

Email: support@kommand.me

Glasgow - Tel: 0141 345 2130
London - Tel: 0203 026 0730

- YOU CAN ALSO CHECK OUT THIS POST TO SEE SOME RECENT WEBSITES BUILT WITH KOMMAND.

Building a website can be a daunting prospect. Regardless of the industry you operate in a crucially important step to the success of your site is the usability. Keep this in mind and you will be on the right path to satisfying your customers' needs online, decreasing your bounce rate and improving your conversions.

Keep the Customer In Mind!

A problem that some web designers run into is that they forget who the website is being created for, yes design is important but practicality and usability for the customer is ultimately more important.

In this article we've outlined five web design mistakes to avoid on your website.

1. Poor Readability

Readability is a crucial part of your web design. Yes, design can help in grabbing attention but if the text is difficult to read users won't hand around. Improve your users' reading experience by assessing your colour scheme, font choice and font size. Colours can affect how easy text is to read and overly cursive or small fonts will be more challenging that simple, larger text. 

2. Image Size

Image size can have a massive impact on your website's performance and the user experience. If your images are too big your website might take a long time to load and you risk losing customers who aren't patient enough to wait. If your images are too small you can lose the quality which can damage the perception of your brand.

3. Unorganised Layout & content

The structure of your content will improve the customer journey throughout your site. Start by making sure you have a sensible menu with appropriate categories and all the necessary pages: Homepage, Contact, About, etc. Make sure all your links work and that there are links in appropriate places.

As for your content you should break up large chunks of text with headings as most people will skim a page rather than read it. You may also benefit from using bullet points where appropriate and considering the margins between images and text to improve readability.

Another tip is to set someone the task of being the 'website gardener'. Every month or so ask them to go through all pages of the website and remove or update any inaccurate or out-of-date content. Own a restaurant and still have your Christmas menu up? It's time to take it down. Does your business say you have 15 years' experience when you now have 20? Do you refer to last year as 2015? Keeping information like this up to date improves the experience of your user. 

4. Poor User Experience on Mobile

There is nothing more frustrating than trying to use a desktop version of a website on a mobile device. Buttons are small, text is small and it requires a lot of screen pinching, swiping and patience to find what you are looking for. Mobile usage is quickly overtaking desktop and not having a responsive website today simply isn't as accepted. Lower your bounce rate by using a website theme that looks and works great on any device.

5. Overly Complicated Forms

OK, there may be something more annoying than a website that doesn't work on a mobile or tablet: A form that is too complicated to fill out or doesn't work.  

Does Your Current Site Need an Upgrade?

If your current website falls into any of these traps then it might be time for an update. Kommand make it quick and straightforward to upgrade your website. For more information please get in touch: 

Email: support@kommand.me

Glasgow - Tel: 0141 345 2130
London - Tel: 0203 026 0730

- YOU CAN ALSO CHECK OUT THIS POST TO SEE SOME RECENT WEBSITES BUILT WITH KOMMAND.

When our team at Kommand work with startup businesses we are often asked for help in choosing a domain name for a website. Some are more savvy when it comes to SEO and suggest the idea that using relevant keywords in their domain to potentially help in improving the website's ranking. But is this SEO technique a smart idea in today's digital world? And what is the basic structure and rules you should follow when choosing a domain?

Should You Use Keywords In Your URL?

EMD, which is short for exact-match domain is the name given to the technique of including a keyword phrase in a domain. For example, if you sell wedding favours then the main keyword and the EMD could be www.weddingfavours.com.

Choosing an EMD as a domain name was a common SEO technique back in 2012 and earlier, resulting in a high page ranking and great SEO even without good quality content or website.

But, this is not the case any longer due to Google’s more recent updates, which don’t emphasise on keyword phrase when it comes to SEO.

Be Aware How People Search

An online user will typically choose one of the three kinds of search queries: navigational, informational and transactional. The former (navigational) refers to a query performed for finding your company’s website such as typing in your company's name. For example, to find Facebook a user may type Facebook into Google. For strong brand names your website may show for misspellings e.g. Face book, Facebok, etc.

The second type of query, which is the most common among the three types, refers to a more generic kind of search. For example, words like 'California' or 'cars' might be used. The transactional type refers to a query done with the purpose of finalising a transaction like purchase. For example, the user may use a phrase like Samsung Galaxy J1.

By not using your brand name in your URL e.g. your business is called MacDonald Gifts but your domain is www.weddingfavours.com you may confuse searchers who may think that address is not the correct site. It may mean your business fails to show for navigational searches.

Nowadays search engines have become smarter at recognising which keywords your business is related to. As your brand name grows, major search engines like Google link your brand name with relevant keywords, decreasing the need for including it in your URL. For example, "amazon" is a word in typical English vocabulary. But when you key in the word, “amazon” into Google, it shows the link to Amazon, the world famous online retailer for books and other items. If you wish to use the keyword as part of the domain name for your company’s web address, then consider opting for PMD or partial match domain. 

Tips for Picking a Domain Name

The key to choosing a good brand name is to bear these elements in mind - it should be: short, simple, memorable, descriptive, clear and unique.

Here are some tips to keep you right:

- Consider a Partial Match Domain

If you are just setting up your business from scratch and don't even have the company name you should consider PMD when naming your business, e.g. if you provide gifts, consider adding the words gifts into your business name.

- Avoid Numbers & Deliberate Misspellings

If it is possible, you should avoid using numbers in your domain name. In the event that someone hears the name, the person may not know whether to spell the numbers or use them as they are. You may also want to avoid deliberate misspellings (unless you already have a company wish a deliberately misspelled name) for the same reason. 

- Double Check Combining Words

Though combining two or more words for the name is fine, be careful when you do so. It may be the case that when your website URL is written without spaces it could read as something else. 

- Keep It Short

If possible try you should try to keep your domain less than 15 characters.

Which Extension? .com or .co.uk?

Though there are some sites which use ".biz" as their domain extenstion however there have been instances of such sites being classified as spam by Google. One of the best choices of generic top-level domains or for online businesses is “.com.” If your business operates in a particular country for example the UK, and is a local business (that would never offers services or sell abroad such as a dentist or hairdresser) you may be better using .co.uk over a .com to improve rankings in your local area.

Start Your Business Today!

If you have a great idea for a business and need some help turning that idea into an online reality why not give the team at Kommand a call? We have helped many small businesses create a website that reflects what they need (whether that is to sell products online, adding a recruitment portal, or simply creating a great-looking brochure site).

For more information you can reach us:

Email: support@kommand.me

Glasgow - Tel: 0141 345 2130
Middlesbrough - Tel: 01642 989 069
London - Tel: 0203 026 0730

- You can also check out our last post to see some recent websites built with Kommand.

As always, our team have been busy working away on some new websites so today's post is yet another round up of some websites recently launched on Kommand. 

What is Kommand?

Kommand was created to give small businesses a simple way to set-up and maintain a safe website that looks and works great on all different devices. Our templates make it easy to do it yourself, or if you are busy with your business you can leave it to our designers to put together a website suited to your business branding and style. 

Websites for Small Businesses

If you run a small business or are a start-up we understand that it is unlikely you will have thousands of pounds at your disposal to set up a website. Kommand was born to solve this problem; to provide an easy way to design, run and maintain a website, without breaking the bank.

If you already have your business's logo designed our team can use these to build you a website that fits in with your business image. Alternatively if you are starting from scratch and also require help with logo design our designers can create a website and logo that reflects your business. You can see some examples of our recent work below!

Recent Websites Built on Kommand

Ashley Bitters Hair & Beauty

DentZap

Adam Smith Global Foundation (Online Shop)

For more information about working with Kommand please contact us:

Email: support@kommand.me

Glasgow - Tel: 0141 345 2130
Middlesbrough - Tel: 01642 989 069
London - Tel: 0203 026 0730

Or to see some more website examples you can check out our last update post.

Whether you are just setting up your website, or have had your website running for some time, adjusting the text on your website is a quick, simple and, most importantly, free method that you can use to improve your website’s conversion rate. You might be surprised at what a difference a few simple changes can make. Here's our tips.

TIP #1: UNDERSTAND YOUR AUDIENCE WANTS

The first step in improving your website copy is to get to grips with your target audience. Your website can look great, work smoothly and tick all other usability boxes but if you fail to speak in the language of your customers, you’re likely to harm your chances of selling.

By building ‘customer copy' into your website's text you will be able to align yourself with your customers, build trust and most importantly, stop the dreaded bounce. There are a couple of ways you can employ this tactic; a quick starting option is to can examine customer reviews, emails, support tickets and conversations. By mirroring the positive experiences mentioned in your reviews you can tap into what your customers are thinking and by using support tickets and customer emails you can uncover any recurring problems or questions which might not be clear on your site and use this to improve your content.

If your business is new, why not look at your competitors’ reviews or conversations on their social media channels? Look for quick selling points you can integrate into your website; “fast delivery”, “great service”, “quick and easy to use”, etc.

By building a list of the main problems and positive feedback you will be able to re-write your own copy to reflect these. Consider the language you use and how this persuades customers your product or service solves their needs.

Some quick copywriting tips:

• Write in their language – consider your target market, do they understand and appreciate technical terms or would they engage more with simple language?
• Be specific – if your product is 4x faster or always offers free next delivery include those facts clearly on your website. Your selling points need to sing out to engage and ultimately convert customers.

TIP #2: USE EMOTIONAL TRIGGERS

Emotional triggers can be used to to improve engagement. Some of the emotions you can tap into include:

• Surprise
• Joy
• Awe
• Fear
• Anger
• Empathy
• Amusement
• Laughter

Think about the customer state of mind when looking for your product. Understanding this emotional state can help you to tweak content with compelling words: "did you know?", "Are you afraid of...?" If your product is aimed at mothers, fear can be effective, if your target audience is a young generation a funny, tongue-in-check style might be more effective.

TIP #3: DON’T FORGET THE CALL TO ACTION

Many businesses forget to include a call to action throughout their website. Don't be afraid to be direct and don't make the mistake of cluttering your content with too many different calls to action on the same page; join our newsletter, download our eBook, call us, etc. Stick with one call to action per page as confusing your customers can hurt conversions.

TIP #4: OVERCOME DOUBT

Similar to tip one, you should aim to overcome any doubt your customer has without them needing to ask. Whilst some customers may take the time to email their query, many won’t, meaning you have lost them as potential customers. Whether you need to add an FAQ page, or a video demonstration, fulfilling these doubts will help you improve customer engagement.

TIP #5: USE HEADLINES PROPERLY

People are 5 times more likely to read your headline than your body copy. The headline should describe your most highly desired and unique feature or benefit and should be short, customer focused and to the point. Questions can work well as they will naturally lead the visitor on to the copy to find the answer.

Video has become an incredibly powerful form of content which is being used increasingly more by marketers to sell brands online. Recent studies found that websites with videos can keep site visitors engaged for 80% longer than those without. Furthermore, many customers rely on product videos to assist in purchasing decisions so it is no surprise more businesses are using video within their websites and social media marketing as a way to engage potential customers.

Which Businesses Should Use Video Marketing?

For many industries there is now an expectation that brands will provide video content. Particularly for those who sell goods or services online via an Ecommerce store, video content can aid the purchase decision process. However, every industry from SAAS to fashion brands are able to use videos within their sites to add credibility to their product offering.

Why Has Video Become So Popular?

With the rapid acceleration of YouTube, Vimeo and other video sharing websites, uploading and sharing videos to the web has never been easier.

And with this ease also comes an increased interest. Some recent studies suggest young people now spend more time online than watching TV. Particularly interesting is the rise in popularity of YouTube as an online destination. The video-sharing site is used every day by almost half of five-16 year olds in the UK. However, it is not just the younger generations - or the Brits - who enjoy watching videos online. YouTube is estimated to be increasing around 60% each year, and reaches more 18-49 year olds than any cable network in the US.

How Can You Use Video in Your Content Marketing?

Now you’re clued up on why video shouldn’t be overlooked we can move onto discussing ways in which your business can use it within a content marketing strategy.
If you run a small business it is understandable that the prospect of making videos can seem daunting. Big businesses surely have much bigger budgets and more available man-power to outsource or allocate to video creation… Your business can’t afford to allocate resources as effectively, surely?

WRONG!

Yes, big businesses will have bigger budgets but creating video content really isn’t as complicated as you might think. Follow these tips and you can too can take advantage of one of the most effective and growing ways to sell your brand online.

TIP #1: DO YOUR RESEARCH

As is the same with any marketing idea, the initial step you should always take is research. There is no point in investing time and money into creating video content if your customers won’t then engage with it. For small businesses this is even more important as your expenditure will have a bigger impact on your business.
To ensure you are making the right choice you should research the following areas:

What kind of content do your customers respond to?

Where are the weaknesses in your conversion journey and how can video assist in filling in the gaps?

What kinds of videos will work for your product or fit in with your brand? For example, ASOS included videos of models walking a short runway to show their products ‘in real life.’

TIP #2: BE CLEVER

You should be realistic about your expectations and capabilities. Start with creating one video, not ten and get various people to proof watch it to make sure everything is perfect. You should always end your video with a call to action, whether that’s a plug for your website or a contact number to gently encourage your customer to take action.

TIP #3: CHOOSE YOUR DIRECTION

Once you have decided the aims of the video e.g. to show off your product benefits you will need to decide the style you want to follow. Video marketing comes in a variety of different styles from whiteboard illustrations, product demos, ‘slice of life’ and everything in between.

If your aim is to build brand affinity, interviews with your employees and shots inside your workplace can help to humanize your business. If you are looking to share specific information a product demo or how-to might be more beneficial.

TIP #4: ALLOCATE TIME

Our next tip is to make sure you get the video finished. When running a small business, it is easy to put things off but the more time between shooting, editing and publishing the more potential leads you could be missing. By properly planning and allocating time to your video you can organise everything (and everyone!) needed, making the video creation process run a lot smoother.

TIP #5: SHARE SHARE SHARE!

Many businesses forget the importance of sharing their content marketing after creating it. Making the video is just the first step, getting it in front of your customers is the second. You may decide to add a video to a particular landing page on your website and run online ads that link to that page. If you are uploading your video to YouTube or Vimeo make sure to brand your channel page properly and use keywords throughout your video description, video title and channel content to increase visibility of your brand.

TIP #6: MAKE SURE IT WORKS

If you are uploading your video to YouTube and adding it to your website you will want to make sure it is properly embedded and works well, regardless of the device a user accesses your site from.

All of the themes in Kommand are fully mobile responsive, with fast loading speeds. This means our customers can add videos to their website webpages without making their website slow to load, or difficult to use on mobile. For more information about Kommand please get in touch today. Our team will be happy to help!

Email: support@kommand.me

Glasgow - Tel: 0141 345 2130
Middlesbrough - Tel: 01642 989 069
London - Tel: 0203 026 0730

One of the main challenges Ecommerce businesses face is the ability to be found and seen online. Most people will use search engines to look for products online and if your webpage sits on page 20 of search results it will statistically be clicked on far less times than the businesses on page. Online businesses arguably face much stronger competition because of this race to the top. Finding a way to get in among the big players is key.

Why Is SEO Important to Ecommerce Businesses?

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is the name given to the technique of maximising a webpage's chances of ranking highly in search engine results pages. The technique is a major driver of customer acquisition and success. One study suggests that SEO accounts for as much as 30% of ecommerce site traffic. Understanding how you can improve your business’s chances of ranking highly for relevant keywords is an important skill to master to improve your conversion rate.

Unfortunately people often misunderstand SEO, believing it to be a quick one-off task. SEO should be viewed more as an on-going and important part of maintaining a website. It is not just restricted to keywords and keyword placement but instead touches on many parts of a website.

If you are looking to improve your online store's SEO here are some of the most effective and popular techniques you can try to give your website that sought after boost.

Link Building

Links are an important element of any website. Not only do they help a user to your website navigate from page to page but they help search engines crawl and browse the pathways of your website. 

Link building can be broken into two categories: internal and external. Internal links are those which connect your webpages together. Internal links help to establish your website's architecture. Important pages in your website need to be linked together so that the search engine 'spiders' have a way to reach them. Without direct, crawlable links these pages essentially do not exist in the eyes of Google and other search engines. The optimal structure for a website is to structure your links in a pyramid format, with your homepage at the top, category pages below, and product pages below this. In an online store you may have many products so it is important that you correctly link these to the right category.

Add A Blog to Your Website

Adding a blog to your website will help you maintain communication with potential and existing customers. It provides a way to keep your website up to date with new information, deals, new product launches and company updates. Besides this a blog can also help your website to rank higher on search engine results pages as it provides a way to add fresh content as frequently as needed. This fresh content is important for SEO for two reasons: firstly it shows that your website is active, something that can improve your website's SEO chances. Secondly, adding new content gives search engines more to crawl, particularly if you are able to create lengthy, keyword focused posts.

Pictures and Descriptions

A good quality photograph, or multiple photos, is important in an Ecommerce website. Customers cannot see the product personally when shopping online so high resolution photographs are needed to give a sufficient alternative. When uploading photos to your website you should always give them a descriptive alt-tag, preferably with relevant keywords. This is important as search engines cannot see images, so need the alt tags to understand what the images are of. As an additional step here, it can be good practice to get into the habit of renaming the files on your computer to keyword focused titles, as opposed to irrelevant names such as 'SCD0001'. 

Avoid Duplication

Search engines heavily penalise pages deemed to be offering duplicate content. When setting up an online store it can be tempting to use the same description for several products which are similar. However this could result in a penalty for duplicate content. The best method to avoid a duplication penalty is to write multiple descriptions for similar products before uploading them to your product pages. You should look to use synonyms and variations and re order the content to decrease the chance of a penalty.

Use Your Social Media Accounts

When you set up an Ecommerce website it is likely that you will have set up social media accounts at the same time. If these have become under used or unloved in recent months it is time to make a change get on the social media bandwagon. By updating often on your channels you will be able to build a loyal following for products on social media, which will help improve your business's authenticity to other customers and to search engines that go through user comments and links.

Whilst some search engines have said that individual posts are not crawled, social media channels themselves can rank, and social media channels can increase the traffic to your website.

Make Your Site Mobile Friendly

Many people are using mobile phones to shop online. A recent study found that in the UK, 65% of Ecommerce sales in January were conducted on mobile, showing the switch in preferred platform. If you are not ready to cater to this segment, you are losing out on a potentially large part of the market. 

Creating attractive and functional sites is not difficult. You can rely on platforms such as Kommand for creating sites even if you have minimal technical knowledge. Kommand allows users to build responsive Ecommerce websites easily. You can work with one of our designers to build a website bespoke to your business, at an affordable monthly price, that is safe and secure for online payments - and which works great on mobile.

For more information, you can contact Kommand:

Glasgow - Tel: 0141 345 2130
Middlesbrough - Tel: 01642 989 069
London - Tel: 0203 026 0730

Email: support@kommand.me

Starting your own business can feel like a bit of a whirlwind. With so many new challenges and decisions it is easy to get caught up with all the little things and spend time concentrating on areas which in reality don't require as much attention.

Making mistakes is an important part of learning with a new business but unfortunately it is too often the case that business owners overlook the key aspects when it comes to building a successful business. Because we see this time and time again we've decided to use today's post to outline four business rules to live by. Think of them as the foundation of your business, the important aspects that will support any other plans.

Rule #1: Where Possible Show, Don't Tell

There have been numerous studies carried out which indicate the effectiveness of images and videos over text. Yet, for many businesses their websites and social media posts are still too text heavy. 

Don't just tell customers your product is great as an attempt to impress them, show them how it is great and let them decide whether they are impressed. There are a number of ways you can make your website more persuasive. Instead of dry, generic messages, try included statistics, images, videos and personal stores as a way to build credibility in your business.

If you run an ecommerce business it is far more effective to demonstrate your products in use and the benefits they will bring your customers. You can do this by including photos of your products, or better still, videos. Think of the variety of ways to indicate your product's effectiveness: a before and after photo alongside a testimonial is a great way to build trust in the review. Statistics and infographics can bring out an emotional response; fear, anger, etc.

Another way to implement this rule is to include badges from organisations you are a member of, or qualifications you have on your website. Most industries will have certain practices or bodies that qualified workers should be a registered with. Including these will develop trust in your business, particularly if it is a startup.

Rule #2: Be Original

Ultimately your business is trying to find a way to differentiate itself from its competitors. If you simply copy another business in their design, product offering, logo, language, etc. you will never be able to build your own strong brand identity. You should find your business's USP whether that is your product or service, a particular niche, the ability to solve a problem or your customer service. If all of your competitors use the same marketing strategy or language try offering something different to stand out to your customers. Are you cheaper? More reliable? Wittier? 

Rule #3: Stick to Your Business Goals

All too often small businesses lose track of their business goals. When starting any marketing campaign, particularly those which require investment consider how it is benefiting your own individual business goals. Just because your competitors, or a business you admire is advertising on Facebook or sharing a lot on LinkedIn for example, this doesn't always mean you should do the same. Figure out what is the best for your business without getting too caught up in your competition.

This rule can also be applied to your business image. For every marketing campaign, letter, email, social media post, etc think about how it represents your brand. Creating a style guide with standard business fonts and colours will help you keep on track.

Rule #4: Don't Forget About Your Customers

"Remember your customers or they will forget about you"

For B2B or B2C businesses your overall aim is to sell and to sell you need customers. This rule can be applied to your business in a number of ways.

Firstly you should be aware of retaining current customers. Don't make too many marketing campaigns targeted to new sign-ups or first-time shoppers or you could alienate a group that could have become loyal customers. A second side to the coin is to be aware of your customers' changing attitudes. Building a sound understanding of their habits, likes and dislikes and how these change is important. If your business has been around for a number of years is your audience still the same? What has changed in their individual preferences and external factors? Do more shop on mobile now? Has your business responded appropriately? Is there a new social media channel you don't have that could work effectively to target your customers.

Reviewing these areas on a quarterly, or yearly, basis is key to strengthening your business offering!

Start Your Business Today!

If you are thinking of starting an online business but don't know where to start, Kommand can help. We have helped hundreds of startups and small businesses create a professional online image, catapulting their business into the competitive arena. For more information or an informal chat about how we can help your business drop us a line: 0845 241 8228.

Or to continue the conversation why not tweet us: @kommandme the business rules you live by!

Your website homepage is one of the most important pages on your site. Not only does it act as the front cover to your business but it also often gains the most rankings from search engines. Getting it right is vitally important to make sure that customers do not bounce from your site and instead become customers or leads.

Various studies show users will spend 8 seconds or less when they land on your website before they make the decision to stay, or leave. Making sure they stay is the aim of the game. The difficulty that comes with a homepage is what to include. Your homepage needs to act like the chameleon of your website. Unlike your sub or product pages which are typically about a specific topic, your homepage needs to be all encompassing, appealing to all kinds of users.

But how can you ensure that happens without complicating your message and confusing your audience? 

What Should You Include on Your Homepage?

We've put together a short infographic of five (perhaps obvious - but often overlooked!) areas to check on your website.

Click to enlarge:

How to Create High Quality ‘About Us’ Page?

When developing the content of an online business's ‘About Us’ web page, there are a few useful tips and pointers from content marketing experts which everyone should bear in mind.

Every online business is unique in its own way: the first job of the person or team crafting this crucial landing page on a company's website, therefore, is to ensure that the uniqueness of the business shines through and makes your landing page truly representative of your brand, mission and corporate values. More often than not we tend to trust a formula we are accustomed to, so we recommend not going crazy with over the top claims and exclamation marks. In terms of brand trust, another good idea is to integrate your own promotional blurb with a few selected customer feedback comments or reviews; that way potential new customers will be able to see the extent of satisfaction you can deliver and judge your business positively.

When developing the ‘About Us’ page for your business website, bear in mind that this page is often the most visited. This is because people, and we mean potential customers, seek out information about a product or service provider before parting with their hard-earned cash. Therefore the content and structure must come across as convincing, inviting, and trustworthy. Dodgy html and beige page backgrounds do not convey the idea of a dynamic business, despite of what the blurb (content text) actually claims about the business itself. So practice what you preach and deliver an eye-catching page that says "this business matters".

Is Your Content Marketing Strategy in Place?

The content marketing strategy you choose is up to you, but there are ways to make sure that your ‘About Us’ page stands out and ranks high in search results. SEO basics should become the ABC of every online business owner, whether an old hand or a budding e-entrepreneur; however, as the rules of the game keep changing, it is recommended that business website owners and managers keep up with SEO trends. The key to the efficient SEO strategy is to create a high quality and engaging content with keywords, links, meta-descriptions and title tags.

Last but not least, ensure that your About Us page includes full and up-to-date contact details: nothing is more disappointing than to find an out of date landline number and an old postal address, or a generic 'info' email address.

Tailor your About Us web page content - make it personal, proactive. Make it reach out to your existing and potential customers. Finally, these days e-commerce is all about networking: make sure your About Us page features your business's social handles and Skype details if applicable.

If you would like to find out more about content marketing strategy for your online business contact Kommand.me team.

Why should your online business be different? Just because you can't see your customers 'enter' your shop doesn't mean you monitor their experiences and improve them for the future.

If your business has a great user experience, is clear on its value proposition, is designed well and ranks highly there is little reason why it cannot generate sales or leads for your business, especially if you market it correctly. Conversely, an old, slow, non user friendly website will lead to loss of conversion opportunities lost out to your better performing competitors.

If you already have a website up and running, or are looking to build a website from scratch here are five areas to bear in mind to improve your competitiveness and chance of conversion.

1. Is Your Website Mobile Friendly?

Nowadays this should really be a given. But unfortunately many businesses still overlook the importance of a mobile friendly website. Think about your own online browsing, how often do you view websites from your smartphone or tablet? Your customers are typically the same. 

You should speak to your web designer about making your website mobile friendly, or if your website is particularly old, you may benefit from a complete face-lift, mobile responsive theme and all!

2. Do You Update Content Regularly?

Fresh content is key to driving your website. Google have cited countless times that fresh content is important to their rankings. This is for multiple reasons:

- It gives them more to crawl and therefore a better chance you can rank for related terms.

- It shows your website is active.

- It can help indicate that your website has authority in its field.

Fresh content will also increase your chances of people sharing links to your website from social media, or even their own websites. 

If you don't already you should consider adding a blog to your website. This will give you a great platform to add content routinely to your website. You should also review website content regularly. If you run a restaurant do you have outdated menus? (e.g. Christmas 2015). Take each page in turn and check for anything outdated, do you state you have 13 years' experience when you now have 15? Do you mention last year and refer to 2014? All of these changes help improve your freshness and also improve user experience.

3. Do You Have Defined Landing Pages?

A landing page is a webpage that is specifically designed to follow on form an external link. If you run PPC or other paid ad campaigns for your business you will want to consider the route the customer follows. If they ad is for a particular product or service but it links simply to the homepage you may lose that customer, as they have not been directed to what they are looking for. By creating specific landing pages you will keep the customer journey fluid from ad right through to purchase or lead. You can read more about designing landing pages in this post.

4. Is Your Value Proposition Clear?

When a potential lead or customer lands on your website can they see quickly and clearly why they should pick you? It can sometimes be difficult to see this yourself as you will undoubtedly know your business inside out, so you may want to ask friends, family or strangers to check your website and see if they can explain what your business does and why it is different. If they fail, this could be an indication that your website isn't clearly promoting it's USP.

Alongside this you should check that your website promotes quick calls to action and snippets that catch attention. For example if you run an online shop that offers free shipping or have a coupon code, make this clear from the get-go. Customers shouldn't have to hunt for important information.

5. Is It Easy to Get in Touch?

Following on from the point before, make it easy to get in touch. Include an FAQ page if possible as well as a way to contact if their query cannot be answered by your site's content. You should ensure that your contact form works properly and is quick and easy to fill out. Add your phone number and social media links clearly, and if necessary consider adding a live chat widget.

Speaking of Getting in Touch...

If you need help with your business's website, whether you are just starting up or looking for a redesign, the Kommand team can help. Email us today with your query: support@kommand.me 

Alternatively you can call us:

Glasgow - Tel: 0141 345 2130
Middlesbrough - Tel: 01642 989 069
London - Tel: 0203 026 0730

Today's post runs you through five tips to drive traffic to your website.

1) Create A Buzz Online

Make use of social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to get word out about your venture. Before it's up and running, put up 'coming soon' notices that will create interest and pique curiosity. You could offer opening discounts codes to those who sign up to your mailing list. This way you will also build a list of potential customers to target with email marketing. You may want to limit these discount codes to the first 100 customers to sign up.

If your ecommerce business has already been running and your recently switched to a new website you could run an 'anniversary' or 're-launch' discount code instead. 

2) Link Your Website to Your Social Media

On your website, put social media buttons that link to your pages. Ensure that you have accounts on the most popular platforms such as Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and Facebook. It is well worth it to hire a professional photographer to take photos that will cast your products in the best light. Visuals can be a huge deciding factor for those looking to buy, so high quality photos are a must. 

With a Pinterest 'Pin it' button on your website, you will encourage browsers to 'pin' products on their Pinterest boards. You can track what people are pinning using Pinterest analytic tools. It is indicated on the Pinterest business blog that over 90% of those who use this platform use it to gather information about products and plan their purchases.

On Twitter, you can promote your e-store and let people know when you have new products, content on your website or special offers. An engaging tweet on Twitter can go a long way. On Facebook, you can show and tell browsers what your store has, answer queries and get feedback. You can also run competitions.

3) Keep Your Blog Up to Date

A lot of well-known eCommerce sites have blogs on their website. Not only do blogs help to keep existing and potential customers updated on new launches and company news but it can also improve your SEO efforts.

Your blog can offer advice, tips, recipes or company news. You may want to post testimonials or you could feature content from other's (with their permission of course). For example if your website sells clothes you could post blogs of how people style their purchases.

Whenever you post new content on your website, post links to it on your social media platforms. This will encourage people to share your content and to visit your website.

Shoot videos and podcasts to demonstrate how to use the products you are selling or their benefits. People really related to actual people and being shown more than only being told. You can also get word out about your expertise by writing articles for professional networks like LinkedIn.

4) Promote Your Online Store to Bloggers and Publications

Whatever line of products you are selling in your store, there are people out there who like and use them and would buy from you if they knew how to find you. Blogger outreach programs are a relatively new phenomenon but have proven to be highly lucrative. If you are able to reach out to bloggers with a wide audience and ask them to do a shout out about your store or particular product you can see an increase in sales.

Send them some photos, a link to your website and a brief cover letter talking about your store and that you'd like them to cover it in their blog. If they take you up on it, it can make a big difference in bringing traffic to your website. Some bloggers may request payment for an advertising post, or a cut of any sale made. 

5) Put Your Name On It

You should always put your logo onto any images of your business or products. That way if someone stumbles across your image they will be able to trace it back to your website. You may also want to write guest blogs for popular websites. Some will allow you to put a link to your website on theirs, which will help boost your SEO and traffic to your website.

Sell Online Like A Pro!

If you are interested in starting an Ecommerce business as your main job, or a side project then you will need to invest some time and effort into properly promoting your products. For more information about setting up an online shop, you can contact Kommand. Our monthly packages start from as little as £25.00 per month.

Our system gives small businesses a way to build a website that looks and works great on all different devices and has built-in features to help your site rank highly for the search terms you are targeting. Innovation is a key focus for our development team and we are always adding new features, such as our online shop template to improve our service.

Want to Build a Website for Your Small Business?

If you are just starting your business we understand that you won't have thousands of pounds at your disposal to build a website. It is for this reason Kommand was born; to provide an easy way to design, run and maintain a website, without breaking the bank.

If you already have your business's branding and logo designed our team can use these to build you a website that fits in with your brand image. Alternatively if you are starting from scratch and also require a logo design our designers can help develop a website and logo that looks as professional as your business.

Recent Websites Made With Kommand

Dental Nursing Academy

AML Contracts Ltd

Wedding DJ Fife

NeverMind the Buzzwords

Confidentially Yours 

Like What You See?

If you think Kommand might be the right way to set up a website for your small business please contact us: support@kommand.me

"An image speaks a thousand words."

So the saying goes, and quite rightly so. Images online have proven time and time again to be effective at engaging potential customers with a recent statistic stating "coloured visuals increase people's willingness to read a piece of content by 80%." In all areas from social media and email marketing to blog posts and website design, the images you choose can reduce your bounce rate and prompt people to browse your website.

Which Images Should You Use On Your Website?

If possible it is always best to use your own high quality photographs. Many people can detect stock photography and it is to difficult to build a trust and warmth towards your brand (especially if you are a start-up!) if you are using other people's photos.

Putting this aside it is understandable that when you are setting up a website for the first time you may use stock images as a quick and effective option that will keep you on the right side of copyright laws. Over time you may invest in hiring a photographer to take photos of your office or services. You may also use stock images to bring a level of professionalism to your business.

There are websites which charge premium prices for their images however there are also hundreds of other websites which have free (or cheap) images you can use. It is just a matter of knowing where to look.

You can learn about copyright on images in this post we wrote back in July which explains the different types of photo licenses and how you can use them.

If you are looking for free images to use on your website whether for banner images or to spruce up your blog posts, here are ten websites you can try.

1. FindA.Photo

FindA.Photo has a range of different images split into categories. You can also search by colour which is useful if your branding has a particular palette it uses. Using similar colours across your website will help to portray a cohesive feel regardless of the page the user is on. 

2. Allthefreestock

All the free stock acts like a directory of different websites which have free pictures. It also includes free videos, mock-ups, sound effects and colour inspiration; perfect for those starting their website from scratch and are unsure of their branding.

3. Stock Up

Stock Up has a great range of all genres and types of images including still life, people, places, textures, etc.

4. PicJumbo

PicJumbo has images in a variety of different categories such as fashion and architecture. Their search feature allows you to search for quote specific images such as "iphone 6" or "man pouring champange"

5.  Unsplash

Unsplash has a particular style of photography with a dreamy, filtered look which could be perfect for banner images on a website.

6. Pexels

Pexels update their website with 20 new images every day which is perfect if you have already exhausted the offers from other websites.

7. ISO Republic

ISO Republic have a wide choice of photographs, including many flat-lay photos of food and tech.

8. Gratisography

Gratisography have a unique style to their photography. All images are very eye-grabbing which could be ideal to use for social media posts.

9. Moveast

Moveast have a lot of food and culture photos. They also have photo sets of particular events, for example marathons or festivals.

10. Start Up Stock Photos

Start Up Stock Photos focus on small business and office. The website isn't updated as often but could be great for a small business or agency looking for photos of macs or meeting rooms.

Need A Website Designed for Your Business?

If you are starting a business and looking to set up a website Kommand website builder can help. We offer a range of packages to suit all budgets, from pre-made templates to website and logo design specific to your business. For more information please contact us: support@kommand.me. 

Have you always wanted to sell your own products online but think it is too difficult to set up an online store?

Granted, you are correct in thinking Ecommerce websites are much more complicated than starting your own brochure website. However advances in web design and development have introduced platforms you can use to build an online store without needing any coding and programming knowledge. 

If you are thinking about giving up your day job, or running a business on the side, an online store is a perfect way to sell products without needing to pay for premises. But what should you consider before you become an Ecommerce entrepreneur? Here's our tips.

Get in the Know 

The first step in your quest to set up an online shop is to learn as much as you can about your industry. You can do this simply by looking at your potential competitors' websites and understand what they sell and do. You could even buy from the website to find out how easy the process is and make a note of any problems you come across or additions that would benefit your customer experience. It may also be beneficial to attend trade shows in your industry and gather business cards of potential suppliers and other businesses selling similar products to yours.

Get Your Offer and Product Right

You should also consider your business's USP. What is it that sets you apart from your competitors? Why should they shop with you? Perhaps your products are bespoke, you offer free shipping or extended returns. Whatever it is you need to promote this message to help engage and convert potential customers.

Marketplaces Versus Online Store

Marketplaces such as those on eBay and Amazon are an easy and cost effective way to sell online. The disadvantage of this method is the lack of control; your store could be closed down if you are not following the strict policies. Another disadvantage you will face selling this way is the high number of competitors your business will face. The large number of competing shops results in a price competition, pushing margins for everyone.

An online store will give you much more freedom to create a brand, style your website to your requirements and a way to be less focused on price.

Keep on Top of Costs

If you are starting out, chances are your business will need to be tight on costs. You will want to find a balance between your technology and marketing spend. A low cost solution might be the best route to follow; you can always upgrade in the future.

Don't Forget About Marketing

You are highly unlikely to make any sales if people don't know about your business. Set up social media channels, promote your products to relevant publications and bloggers and learn some basic SEO to get your site in the know. If you have allocated some of your budget to online marketing you may also benefit from starting display or remarketing ads.

Kommand Online Shop Builder

Kommand offer online shop packages at the following prices:

Our Mini packages allows you to add up to 100 products, Plus up to 500 and Pro up to 1000 products.

To join the Kommand family and see how easy it can be to set up your website, visit our Tour page.

Alternatively if you want to speak to someone about your business you can reach us: support@kommand.me or call us: 

Glasgow: 0141 345 2130 

Middlesbrough: 01642 989 069  

London: 0203 026 0730.

When social media burst onto the scene many people, perhaps naively, thought it signaled the death of email marketing. However, as popular as social media became - and remains - email is still the preferred way people like to receive marketing offers.

Email marketing has managed to remain a key element in marketing strategies for businesses of all sizes, as suggested in a study by the Direct Marketing Association who found "75% and upwards [of people] in different age groups prefer being marketed by email."

Mobile Devices Changed Email

In 2016, mobile devices have become a key way interact with content and digital marketing, and the way we access emails. In fact, reading email has been the number one activity on smartphones for a long time, and with better technologies and designs continuously being developed marketers are always able to find new innovative ways to push conversions through email marketing.

Does Your Business Use Email Marketing?

Whether you are just starting your business, or an experienced player in your field, if you don't use email marketing yet, you are seriously missing a trick. Not just from a digital marketing point of view, but from an analytical side too. The data generated from email marketing can provide your business with actionable insights that can help you build a profile of your audience or customers.

Now that we have you convinced, here are five tips to follow to get the most out of email marketing in 2016:

1. Make It Look the Part

The days of plain text emails are long-gone. Nowadays there are a number of different templates you can use to build great looking emails. If your business has a colour palette (which it should) then this should be used in your email. By keeping your branding the same across all online and offline channels you will build a stronger brand identity.

If possible you should also use photos, videos, graphics and other media to enrich your emails.  

2. Make It Mobile Friendly

As we spoke about before, mobile devices have changed the way we access emails. This is an important thing to bear in mind when designing emails. Whilst you are most likely going to design on a desktop people will be opening on tablets and smartphones. Take time to preview your emails to make sure they displays properly, regardless of the device.

3. Get Personal

Nowadays, customers expect personal interactions from the brands they engage with. Thankfully, email automation gives you ability to make personal, automated emails you can send to your customers based on their behaviour. 

4. Re-Use Ideas That Work

Like any form of marketing you will need to monitor the results. If you notice that more emails are opened when you send in the evening, use this to develop your strategy in future. If you notice that videos, pictures or a particular subject line has a positive influence then you should replicate this in future campaigns. Conversely, if you have a particular email that results in a lot of unsubscribers you should attempt to understand why. Have you been bombarding your email list? Was your email too specific?

5. Build Your Contact List

Email marketing can be a great asset to your business, but only if you have a sizable contact list to market to. Where possible you should make efforts to add contacts to your list. The greater the number, the greater the reach. 

It is understandable that your business may be one of those adopting a relaxed outlook, however in adopting this approach you need to understand certain potential consequences that could potentially damage your business's reputation. 

Freedom and Responsibility

Allowing employees to be themselves at the workplace is great, but there still need to be boundaries. For those who run a small business you may pass on the responsibility of social media postings to one of your employees. Most (especially young) people spend a good amount of time on social media in their own time so it is understandable they may find it difficult to make a distinction between what they would post on their private accounts and on business accounts. 

Social media also needs to be taken into consideration for every employee, even if they are not running the business's accounts. What an employee posts about your business on their personal profile is also important to your business's reputation.

Is It Really Necessary to Have a Social Media Policy?

In short, yes. Without meaning to do so, employees can compromise the reputation of a brand or business by not understanding what they should or should not post. They may also change the voice and image of your business involuntarily.

If you are thinking of handing over the responsibility of social media posting to an employee, introducing a social media policy does three things;

1. It takes the guesswork out of what employees can post about the company they work for.
2. It also makes it clear to employees the possible consequences of what they say through these platforms, especially legal consequences.
3. It puts everyone on the same page so they are saying the same thing about the company or brand they work for. Social media platforms can be used to promote a brand and build brand loyalty.

Structuring a Social Media Policy

A social media policy is basically a set of rules and guidelines about how employees can use the different platforms and how they can't. A good policy will cover two main areas;

- How employees can use their personal social accounts.
- How employees can use business accounts.

Broadly speaking, a policy will state that an employee will not use their personal or business accounts on these platforms to damage the reputation of the company they work for or are associated with. This means they will desist from posting insults, criticism, confidential details or other negative content to an individual or person working for another company or associated with it.

Making It Official

It is important to formalize all company policies. They should be included in the contract or terms of service agreement given to an employee. This serves two purposes. First, putting it in writing gives an employee the chance to read the policy and understand it. They know what they are agreeing to when they sign it. Secondly, it absolves a company from liability if an employee goes against the policy; an employee is held accountable rather than the company they work for.

Still Free

It is important that employees are made to understand the purpose of the policy they sign. They should understand that it is not to curtail their freedom but to ensure they understand that with freedom comes responsibility. With that settled, a company can rest easy about what their employees say on social media and even more importantly, what they won't say.

Manage Your Small Business's Online Reputation

If you have not yet considered the potential consequences social media could have for your business, now is the time. Firstly you should make employees aware through formal company policies that posting about the company on private social media accounts is not permitted. Secondly, you should consider creating guidelines for your chosen social media manager. Some businesses create lists of words to avoid, or the general tone or image they want to portray. Giving your employee this will help them better understand what to post on the business's social channels.

Even if you are not planning to sell online, it is pretty much essential nowadays that your business has a website. A website will help customers find out information about your business, whether that be opening hours, menus, your service offerings, testimonials or contact details. Think of your website as another way to sell your business that could result in sales and conversions offline.

What to Consider When Designing Your Website

Just like your offline marketing materials and office appearance, your website must reflect your professionalism. Credibility is often linked to professionalism, something that is particularly important for start-ups who haven’t established their brand yet. If your website is able to convey the correct image for your brand, your visitors are less likely to pick your competitors.

If you are wanting to set up a website there are a number of different ways in which you can do so however two of the most common are: have a custom web design made or use a pre-prepared website template/theme. Both of these options have different considerations and benefits, and which you decide to choose will be dependent on your individual business’s requirements and costs.

The pros and cons of a website theme verses a custom website design are explained below.

Website Theme

If you decide to build your website on a website creation tool such as WordPress your template will initially be bland, white and unbranded. Themes dictate the way your website looks. If you are using a website builder you can install free or paid themes into your website to automatically change the look of your website.

Pros:

The benefit of this method is typically the cost (it tends to be cheaper to buy a pre-made theme than to get a web designer to build one). It can also be quicker as themes can be bought and installed instantly. It can also be easier as you can try out themes online and find one you like before purchasing.

Cons:

You will typically be limited in how you can adjust or change the theme. There is also potential that someone could have the same theme.  The theme may lack certain features you need, and you may lack the ability to add these as your business grows.

Custom Web Design

A custom web design is a unique, one-off web design built by a web designer. 

Pros:

The key benefit of this method is the flexibility for the website to be exactly how you need, with all of your business requirements. You will be able to create a website specific to your budget, without wasting money on features you don't need. You can prioritise features or even ask your web designer to build custom ones.

Cons:

This method will typically cost more and will take more time as the designer must make the design from scratch. You may also need to pay for image rights.

A Hybrid?

It might be the case that your business sits somewhere in the middle, lacking the budget for a full website design from scratch but wanting a design which is reflective and unique to your brand. In these circumstance it can be possible for a web designer to build a custom theme for your website.

Build Your Website Any Way You Want with Kommand

It is important that you consider the key requirements of your website. For some businesses a website theme will be fine, such as those with a store front and strong offline marketing. For those who have strong competition online, or a strong brand identity a custom web design may be the best option. For those in the middle, restrained by budget but looking for a unique look, or set of features a custom theme may be what is best. 

At Kommand, we have a range of pre-made themes you can use to build a website with prices starting from as little as £9 per month. Alterntively, we have web designers available to build you a custom design through our web packs. For more information or to speak to someone about the requirements of your business please contact us today:

Glasgow: 0141 345 2130
Middlesbrough: 01642 989 069
London: 0203 026 0730

Email: support@kommand.me

So last year you created a fabulous website or online store (perhaps with the help of Kommand) and whilst jumping that first hurdle and setting up a mobile and user friendly website is great, is it enough to keep your site visitors happy?

The purpose of creating a wonderful website shouldn’t merely be to draw viewers, but also to entice them to spend much time exploring it. But how do you know if your online audience are keen on your site or interact with it actively?

To find out more about your site visitors for the purpose of growing the audience, you can use Google Analytics the free web analytics service offered by Google that tracks website traffic. Google Analytics has a whole host of tools and it can feel overwhelming logging in and trying to figure out what the charts and numbers mean.

Today's post covers three of the major Google Analytics metrics to get help you start understanding the numbers and make changes to improve them.

1. Bounce Rate

Found under Audience -> Overview

Bounce rate refers to the percentage of site visitors who merely visit a blog post or web page without clicking any internal link. In other words, the visitor “bounces” away from the site or has no real interaction with it. So a high bounce rate might not seem something positive. But, there could be various reasons why a site visitor doesn’t interact with the specific page.

One good reason could be because the visitor doesn’t find it relevant to what he or she is looking for. A low bounce rate doesn’t necessarily mean that site visitors aren't happy with the specific page. For example, a combination of a high number of page views, a low bounce rate and low conversions might mean site visitors didn’t find what they were looking for and left the site unhappy.

If you wish to improve the bounce rate, analyse the pages with a high bounce rate, figure out what’s wrong with them and take steps to improve them. For example, adding pertinent links to other pages that have much-liked content may help. Remembering that your homepage may not be the first page that your visitors land on can help change the attitude towards your website. If you have webpages which are unhelpful or unnecessary consider adding more content to make them more engaging. Each page should be treated as a landing page so make each one count.

2. Exit Rate

Found under Behaviour -> Overview

Simply put, the exit rate refers to the number of times that site visitors leave a specific page, but after a minimum of one interaction. In other words, let’s say that a site visitor loads a specific page, this data will be reflected in both the exit rate and bounce rate. But, if the page viewer took a look at another page prior to leaving via the aforementioned page, then it will be reflected only in the data of exit rate.

Analyse the high exit rates for pages (with the exception of your site’s last page) and consider ways to provide value to site visitors so that they would explore the website longer. For example, you can include anchor links on the page for connecting it to great content.

3. Average Time on Page

Found under Behaviour -> Overview

Average time on page refers to the average time that a site visitor spends on a specific page. A higher average time may indicate more participation by the visitor. If it is the product page of an online store, it might mean the visitor spent more time on viewing various products.

Analyse the pages that have above average time and figure out what makes them attractive. The analysis of such pages may provide you with insight into what kind of page layout or content makes your online audience happy. You may find that blog posts have garnered a high average time on page; this may suggest the content is useful and could be posts that you re-circulate on social media.

How to Track Your Kommand Website on Google Analytics

Tracking your Kommand website on Google Analytics couldn't be easy. Here's how:

1. Sign up for Google Analytics (it's free).

2. Add your website name and URL.

3. You will be given a tracking code. You can find this by clicking the Admin tab at the top and then in the middle (property) section click Tracking Info and Tracking Code.

4. On the Kommand admin page click Site Settings on the right hand menu and then Site Config and enter the code.

We are taking a break over Christmas and New Year and will be back in 2016 for some exciting developments. 

It has been a fantastic year for Kommand and December has seen the launch of even more websites using our website building software.

If you are new to our service, Kommand is a website building platform gives you a simple way to build and maintain a mobile responsive website. We have a range of themes to choose from which can be adapted to suit businesses from all kinds of industries from landscaping to events and our development team continuously work to improve our service by adding new features on a regular basis. 

If you have existing branding and a logo you can simply drop these into the website builder without needing to know any technical programming knowledge. Alternatively if you are building your business from scratch or looking for an image re-design, our designers can work with you develop a professional, eye-catching website and logo.

If you would like to speak to someone about your business's needs please contact us today. 

Recent Websites Made With Kommand

eQuidity

ABCB Landscapes

Choice Parties

Multay Events

CuteeCool

Beckton School of Motoring

Turkish Meze Lounge

HeavenScent Gardens

Some business owners may think that having a wonderful company website with great online visibility, attractive web design, easy navigation features and superb content is more than sufficient.

That might have been the case a couple of years ago, but not any longer. In today’s world, competition among various businesses is intense. Not only are great websites necessary, but killer landing pages (also called as landers or lead capture pages) are also vital for generating sales, referrals and leads.

But how do you create a landing page that works? Here's our tips.

5 Tips for Creating the Perfect Landing Page for Your Website

A landing page is where a site visitor arrives after clicking on an ad or some other icon or link. For many businesses it is their homepage however there are also instances when clicking on ads or search engine results can lead to other pages of a website. If your business sells products or services you may want to treat each page as a landing page specific to that product or service.

1. Clean, Visually Appealing Design

The design for a landing page should preferably be simple, clean and visually appealing to site visitors. The use of subheaders, buttons, images, headers and other items for creating a professional lander is vital.

2. Use Contextual Images

A great tip to creating a successful page is using contextual images, something that is a key web design trend these days. Contextual images refer to images of your company’s products within the context of your site visitors’ lives. In today’s rushing world, visual images that convey specific messages are becoming more and more appealing to online users.

3. Include Videos

It can also be a good idea to include a video that shows your business's USP or product or service in use. The overall aim of a landing page is to reduce bounce rate by quickly engaging your site visitors. Often the user will have landed on your website looking for information or a solution to a problem. If your landing page can quickly show that it will deliver these requests then it is more likely to be a success.

4. Make the Site Mobile Responsive

Another great tip is to make sure that the page is mobile responsive so that the page fits nicely into a tablet or smartphone screen during viewing. When deciding on a web designer or website builder you should check if the final website will be mobile responsive.

5. Include Testimonials

Including testimonials, star ratings and recommendations is also a great way to make your landing page engaging. These also give your business credibility and are a proven way to improve conversion rates.

Driving Traffic to Your Landing Page

Once you are happy with your landing page you then need to work towards driving online traffic to it. One way is to send the said page to subscribers as part of your company’s email campaign. Another great way is to post the page link on various social networking sites like Pinterest, Twitter, Snapchat, Periscope and Facebook. Ask a good writer to create a blog post that provides valuable information, which connects to your company’s product and then, link the post to the page.

For ensuring that your page can be found by online or mobile users using organic search, adjust relevant SEO settings. Another great way to drive online traffic to your lander is to create PPC ad campaigns on major search engines and link them to your page. Though this is actually an old idea, but it still works very well especially when it comes to new products or product promotion campaigns.

Start with a Great Website

Remember that the key purpose of the page is to get visitors to click a hyperlink for a certain action like subscribing to your company’s newsletter or buying something from your online shop. If you don’t have prior experience creating web pages or landing pages, you can use a website building platform like Kommand. We have ready to use professional templates or alternatively we can build a powerful and suitable website from scratch aimed at generating leads, sales and referrals.

If you run an estate agency, adding a professional looking, easy to use website is a great way to grab the attention of potential buyers. However with so many freelance web designers, web design agencies and website builders available it can feel overwhelming finding the right one for you and your business.

There will be a number of areas you will want to take into consideration whilst deciding on the perfect method to build your estate agency website including: the size of your business; your budget; your design requirements and; goals for ranking on search engines.

Why Choose a Website Builder over a Web Designer?

A great alternative to working with a web designer or web design agency is to use a website builder. This type of online software allows you to easily manage and edit your website keeping content fresh and up to date without having to keep contacting a web designer. Website builders are a much more affordable way to run a website and with the developments in software in recent years they are now able to provide many of the requirements expected in a website such as responsive themes which make websites perform well on mobile devices.

If you decide to go down the website builder route the question you must then ask yourself is which is the right one for you? Here's the key points we think you should take into consideration when deciding on a website builder to create your estate agency website.

On-going Support

A key point that should not be overlooked is the support provided by the website builder company. Many will not be able to provide an account manager to deal with your business but will instead have a support team in place to troubleshoot any issues. In particular it can be a good idea to find a website builder which specialises has experience in creating estate agent websites as they are more likely to be up to date with new legislation and rules required on estate agents' websites.

Keep It Together

If somewhere down the line you decide that your branding is not reflecting your business you may decide to redesign your logo. It can be a positive if the website builder you choose has additional graphic design services which will make re-branding straightforward, or the ability to build your website from scratch which you can then take over and manage.

Take Potential Growth into Consideration

Your property portal might be relatively small to begin with. However this does not mean that it will stay this way forever. If you want your business to be successful then you should take into consideration the potential growth and work with a company which provides the required bolt-ons or fluidity required to expand your website as your business grows. A website builder company which can provide an adjustable solution to expand with your business is the best option to ensure your business can grow.

Reliable Lead Collection

You will want a website builder which has reliable and simple forms so that you can easily collect contact details from clients.

Mobile Responsive Themes

Nowadays it is crucial that your website works perfectly on mobile so that you do not lose any potential clients. Many people browse the internet using their tablet or smartphone so having a website that will display properties well on these devices is a must.

Easy to Manage Back End

As the products on your property website will be continually changing it is important that the back end of the website is easy to use and easy to update product information, photos and descriptions. 

Choose Kommand to Build Your Property Website

If you are looking for a website builder which covers all the areas mentioned above Kommand offers the perfect solution. We have recently launched our sector specific package for estate agency websites and prices start from just £35 per month. For more information or to speak with one of our designers today you can reach us: support@kommand.me.

Alongside the development of mobile browsing also came the development of mobile apps and many businesses opted to create their own business apps instead of choosing to build a mobile responsive site.

But is this the best idea? In an ideal world consumers should be able to move seamlessly between desktop and mobile, which is where mobile responsive sites, such as those made with Kommand website builder, have an advantage over applications.

Why Is It a Risk to Focus Solely on Mobile Apps?

Many designers predicted the demise of big screen computing, leading to a focus on producing apps only for communication, gaming and retail. Studies show that 93% of us who research products and services on our mobile apps go on to make purchases.

Our actual purchase method, however, will be spread across the full range of possibilities, with many of us still feeling more confident shopping on desktops and laptops, than mobile devices. In fact, research shows that less than 50% have more than one or two commercial apps on mobile devices, with only 10% of us saying that we use them more than once a day. For retail and service providers who rely solely on apps this is not good news.

The Advantages of Mobile Responsive Design

We've all been frustrated when webpages and games, or other content we want to access doesn't respond the way we want on the devices we're using. This is where mobile responsive sites come into their own. When a website has a responsive design its layout and content adapts itself to the screen size, from a desktop monitor to a smartphone - no need to alter device settings, the response is automatic. Mobile responsive sites fit seamlessly onto desktop monitors, laptops, tablets and mobile phones.

Before companies launch new apps they need to bear the statistics and reality in mind. Mobile devices only have limited memories and retail applications are the first to go in favour of our games, entertainment and social apps. If your customers are doing serious and in-depth research of potential, high-cost purchases they are still more likely to do so when sitting comfortably, rather than on the move.

Pros and Cons of App Only Design

Retail applications work best when linked to loyalty and reward shopping schemes, with over 20% of customers at the moment saying they use apps for these features. Retailers are looking for more and more novel ways of pushing customers to their apps by providing unique selling points, such as Magic Mirrors. These showcase products and allow us to play around with clothes and accessories, creating outfit styles, which customers then go on to purchase.

This form of e-Commerce, or e-Tailing is big in India where smartphone numbers are rising rapidly, with 3 out of 5 smartphone owners subscribe to mobile broadband - giving a staggering 220 million plus mobile internet users, a huge potential market. A downside is that retailers are losing brand identity as Google and Facebook capitalise on Mobile Commerce, promoting multiple brands together. Other cons to app-only retailing, is that mobile data plans are expensive, and data coverage still problematic in some areas. Multiple, and perceived intrusive, communications with customers can also be counter-effective, annoying rather than attracting. In the face of these downsides, most e-Tailers will remain wedded to mobile responsive sites, allowing them to target the largest possible audience.

Create a Responsive Ecommerce Website on Kommand

If you're interested in selling products online but don't want the hassle or expense of working with a web design agency or freelance designer, Kommand's online shop packages may be the solution you are looking for. Available at three different monthly prices our themes are mobile responsive, easy to manage and SEO friendly. Find out more about our packages on our Pricing page. 

Since launching, our team have made it a priority to continually improve our service - an example of this being Kommand's ability to now support 13 languages including Arabic, which no other SAAS web building program currently supports. 

Today, we are happy to share yet another development to the Kommand offerings; the launch of our online shop packages.

Create Your Online Store Today!

We listened to the needs of our users and could see that selling online was, and is, an important aspect in many business's strategy and something that we needed to start catering for.

Our online shop packages are available at three different monthly price points to meet the requirements of different businesses. The packages have been developed in a similar style to our original themes and as such, means you can still enjoy all of the same features found in a typical Kommand site including:

• Mobile Responsive Design that makes your website look and work great on desktop, mobile and tablet.
• Advanced CMS & SEO Features so you can easily adjust content, drag and drop widgets and help your site rank higher on search engines.
• A Blog to keep your customers up to date with the latest releases and company news.
• Rotating Homepage Banners and Adverts to promote certain products or special offers.
• Galleries to showcase your work.
• Forms to make contacting your business easy.
• Newsletter Signups so you can build you mailing list.
• Facebook Shop - to showcase and sell your products on Facebook.

Simple & Transparent Pricing

Not every business has the same stock levels, targets or needs. Our online shop packages are available at three different price points, to cater for those making their first foray into online selling to those with an established catalogue of products.  

Our Mini packages allows you to add up to 100 products, Plus up to 500 and Pro up to 1000 products.

New Estate Agency Package Also Available

As well as our online shop we have also recently launched our sector specific package for estate agencies. Following on from the success of our recruitment package the estate agency package is designed specifically for those wanting to run and update an estate agents online.

With So Many Developments You're Bound to Have Some Questions...

Kommand has gone from strength to strength in the past year, and with new ideas and changes being worked on every month our system has improved dramatically. To join the Kommand family and see how easy it can be to set up your website, visit our Tour page today.

Alternatively if you want to speak to someone about designing or re-designing your website or logo, or any other queries you may have you can reach us: support@kommand.me or call us: Glasgow: 0141 345 2130 Middlesbrough: 01642 989 069  London: 0203 026 0730. Our team are here to help and happy to find the perfect solution for your business.

Email newsletters are one of the oldest, most tried and tested ways of promoting a website - but it's a technique that still works extremely well. By building a solid list of subscribers, and regularly emailing them with news or special offers, it's possible to generate steady and targeted traffic that doesn't rely on the vagaries of search engines, and costs very little in comparison to paid advertising.

Given that this is such a powerful traffic generation technique, it makes sense to pay every bit as much attention to it as you do to your other marketing efforts, so here are seven tips on how to make your email marketing efforts a greater success.

1. Treat Your Subscribers Well

Before we look at ways of attracting new signups to your email list, it makes sense to do everything you can to retain existing subscribers. Make sure that the emails you send are genuinely valuable, whether it be by using useful and interesting content, or by handing out promotional codes that represent a great offer to the user. Don't be tempted to overuse your email list - creating a constant stream of largely pointless emails will soon become an annoyance to your subscribers, and many will unsubscribe as a result.

2. Create an Online Archive

If you're creating newsletters of value, then it makes sense to leverage this work in any way you can. Putting older newsletters online will not only provide extra content for your site, hopefully generating additional traffic, but if potential list subscribers can see that previous newsletters have been interesting and useful, they're more likely to give you their email address for future editions. Furthermore if you run a brochure website, like that made on Kommand, adding newsletters is a great way to keep your website current.

3. Make It Easy to Subscribe

Subscribing to your site's newsletter should be as painless as possible. You may wish to put a clear way of signing up on every page of your site (especially on your archive of previous editions), and give visitors a reason to sign up without nagging them - for example, offer a one-time discount code or free e-book to every new subscriber. Although attention needs to be paid to the legalities of email lists - double opt-in and so on - do everything you can to smooth the process of signing up.

4. Make Subscribers Feel Special

Each newsletter you send should make the recipient feel valued. A simple, anonymous advertising pitch will not be anywhere near as effective as an email that makes a subscriber feel like part of an elite club. As well as offering discounts and special promotions to your subscribers, consider creating a special area of your site only open to members of your email list, where they can access valuable and exclusive content - and be sure to mention this benefit at every opportunity when asking people to sign up.

5. Get Personal

If possible, split your email list into segments depending on previous interactions, so that you can target each user more precisely - for example by rewarding previous purchases with discounts for related products. This may or may not be easy to do depending on your site and back-end systems, but if you can personalise your emails even a little they will be much more successful, and subscribers will be more likely to stay on the list.

6. Promote Your List Wherever Possible

Consider including a brief advertising message and link to your list's sign up form on every email you send out to a customer or in response to an enquiry. Don't be pushy, but make sure the benefits of signing up are clear and that it's easy to do so with as few clicks as possible - remember, your email list can become a very valuable asset if maintained and utilised properly, so try and give it as much promotional attention as you do any other part of your business.

Create a Website that Looks as Good as Your Emails

It might be the case that someone is subscribed to your mailing list but doesn't often visit your site, or has forgotten about your business. It is crucial that for these circumstances, and in general, that your website reflects the quality of your emails. After all, the goal for your mailing list is to direct people onto your website so if the website is difficult to use or not living up to expectations your efforts will be in vain.

A website builder is a manageable and affordable way to have a great looking website. With Kommand you can have a mobile responsive website up and running in a matter of hours for as little as £9 per month. To find out more about our features visit our Tour page or contact us if you have any questions about getting started.

With so many social media platforms to choose from it's understandable that you may be confused by which one is right for your small business.

If this is your first foray into the online world then you may be tempted to sign up for any and every social media platform going. However you should tread carefully if you are thinking about using this tactic.

Social media profiles take time to maintain so the more you add the more work you are giving yourself. If you are just starting your business then it is unlikely you will have the time required to maintain multiple channels. This lack of attention creates a dormant and unloved account, unresponsive to customers which can end up being more of a hindrance than a help. It is for these reasons that it is important you think carefully about what will be best for you and your customers in the long term.

Small Business and Social Media

Recent research shows that only 36% of small firms have a social media platform, with Facebook being the most common choice. As it has over one billion users, it’s easy to understand why many businesses start a Facebook page as their ‘default’ social media. But is Facebook really the best platform for your business? Let's compare some of the big players and find out.

Why Use Facebook for Your Business?

Who uses it?

Around 71% of adult Internet users are on Facebook and it is currently the most popular social media. The demographics using Facebook varies from teens to over the 65s so it really is possible to reach anyone and everyone. 

What to post?

Facebook is great for starting conversations and sharing content. In recent years, videos have seen an increase in popularity on the channel so if you have the means to create videos sharing them on Facebook can be a great way to raise awareness of your brand. Competitions, special deals and events are also great ways to drive engagement and there are also a number of apps you can install into your page to customise it for your brand's needs.

Which business type is it for?

For businesses which are operate in slightly more taboo or serious matters, such as divorce lawyers, Facebook may not be the right platform. This is due to the fact that customers will generally be connected to their friends and family so will therefore be less likely to publicly 'like' your page and make those close to them aware they use or are interested in your service. 

Facebook is a casual social media that works well for leisure brands such as restaurants and Ecommerce websites. The messaging system provides customers another way to contact you and the reviews system has proven to be beneficial for many small businesses looking to build their credibility.

Why Use Twitter for Your Business?

Who uses it?

Around 23% of adult internet users use Twitter. The social network is particularly popular among those who are college-educated and for those under 50.

What to post?

Twitter is great for quick company updates, crisis management and agile marketing. In essence the social media platform works best for timely updates relevant to things happening in that moment. Unlike Facebook, all of your Twitter followers will see your updates (if they are watching their feed at the time you post). If your website is experiencing problems or you are running a special promotion or event for one day only then Twitter can be a great place to post that information. 

Which business type is it for?

Any business can take advantage of Twitter. The key to a good feed is finding the balance between promoting your products and services and engaging through re-posting or interacting with customers. Many people will turn to Twitter when there is a particular topic trending so finding a way to use this to your business's advantage can be an effective way to increase awareness.

Why Use LinkedIn for Your Business?

Who uses it?

Around 28% of adult Internet users use LinkedIn. Originally acting as an online CV, LinkedIn is mostly used by career focused individuals.

What to post?

LinkedIn is a great platform to convince potential customers of your expertise by sharing your unique blog content. You can also answers queries or add to discussion in groups relevant to your industry. Both of these tools give you another way to pitch your business and show your expertise to prospective clients.

Which business type is it for?

LinkedIn is primarily best for B2B businesses looking to make connections. There are some small B2C businesses which have used LinkedIn to raise their brand's profile by posting business insights on Pulse, the network's article sharing platform. You can also join groups which are relevant to your industry and share your content there. As a side note, LinkedIn can be a great way to advertise current vacancies so if your business is expanding this may be a good way to reach potential candidates.

Why Use Instagram for Your Business?

Who uses it?

Around 26% of adult internet users use Instagram and it is predominantly used by the younger generations (18-35).

What to post?

Instagram is a photo sharing social network however recently introduced video capabilities. The platform is a great tool for showcasing products as well as your business's brand personality and workplace culture. Postings can be as varied as you wish. For some popular accounts a variety of photos will create an interesting feed, e.g. competitions, products, staff achievements or re-posting others' photos. Alternatively you can keep your feed extremely niche such as a barber or hairdresser which only shows recent hair cuts and stylings. Imagery is incredibly powerful so it is important that your brand is reflected in your Instagram feed

Which business type is it for?

Visuals can be represented in many different ways so it is important you convey the correct representation of your business through your imagery. Instagram has managed to be a great social media tool for a variety of businesses from fashion to restaurants. Whilst you may think that Instagram is best for product oriented businesses, this is not the case. GE have amassed a huge following on Facebook by posting striking photos and videos of their product development and business behind the scenes. 

Why Use Pinterest for Your Business?

Who uses it?

With 100 million monthly posts, Pinterest is a social media platform that should not be overlooked. In 2014, it was the fastest growing social network, growing 97%. Over 80% of Pinterest users are female however the are range varies from teens to baby boomers.

What to post?

Like Instagram, Pinterest is a visual oriented social network. The aim is to engage users to Pin your image onto their feed or visit the link connected with the picture. As the display for Pinterest is a grid format longer pictures tend to work best so aim for this style where possible.

Which business type is it for?

If you write blog posts then it can be a good idea to quickly create graphics which accompany the posts and pin them to your Pinterest page. The network works particularly well for food, fashion, pet products and home decor. Make sure to add your company logo to any pictures uploaded so if they do go viral then people will still be able to track it back to your business.

Integrate Social Media With Your Kommand Website

Deciding which social media platforms are right for your business can be confusing. By starting with one or two profiles and adding more as your customers' needs become apparent, you will be able to serve your customers better and make maintaining your social strategy easier. It is important that your website is connected to your social media accounts so that customers can easily find and follow you. If you choose Kommand website builder to create your website it is easy to integrate social media buttons into your pages. For more information about Kommand contact us: support@kommand.me

As part of our SEO Basics series we have previously covered the topic of optimizing Title Tags for SEO purposes. Today’s post focuses on how the optimisation of Anchor Texts can help improve your website's SEO.

What is Anchor Text?

Anchor text is the name given to the clickable text (also know as link text) displayed on a webpage. For instance in the sentence “Kommand offer a range of website themes all of which are mobile responsive” the words website themes is the anchor text which links to our Themes webpage. The html syntax for anchor text is:

There are two types of links you may find on a webpage; external and internal. The link at the beginning of this article to a previous blog post is an example of an internal link. If your webpage links to webpages outside of your website then it is an external link.

Many SEO beginners do not realise the potential for optimizing anchor text. It may seem simple but knowing how to correctly optimise your anchor text can make a real difference to your search rankings.

How Do Search Engines Process Anchor Text?

Search engines use anchor texts to help decide the relevancy and nature of the page that the link is pointing to. For example if the anchor text for a link is web design agency then the search engine will be able to connect that text with the webpage it is linked to.

It used to be the case that webmasters would use the words 'click here' to signify a link to a new page. Nowadays, linking is common knowledge and users can distinguish whether something is a link just by looking at it (typically it is underlined and blue, although could be bold or a different colours). SEO best practice suggests that anchor text should be relevant to your page as opposed to generic text, such as click here or find out more here. 

Unfortunately, as with the case with many SEO techniques, some black-hat SEO marketers began abusing anchor texts to boost websites in search rankings. Such bad practices included stuffing a page with links, or colouring the link text the same as the background so that it is 'hidden' to the average user.  

Google, and other search engines update their systems to try and counter such techniques. In a Google update in April 2012 (known as the Penguin update) Google wanted to negate the manipulative SEO practices employed by these SEO marketers. The update penalizes sites that abuse links and remove their rankings in search engines. Such bad practices are against Google's Webmaster Guidelines and it is highly suggested that you avoid such tactics.

So, How Do You Optimize Anchor Text Within Webmaster Guidelines?

At one time, hundreds of optimised anchor texts could help you rank well. However research by two leading SEO marketing businesses (Moz and Quicksprout) have shown that between five and 10 links with a broad range of mixed anchor texts relating to your keywords can be more effective in today's world. You need to be careful not to overuse links otherwise your site can be penalized. Here's our tips for getting the balance just right:

Firstly, you will want to figure out what terms you wish your webpage to rank for. This is the first step in any optimisation for search engines. You should have an idea about the types of words and phrases your customers will be searching for however you can use software such as Google’s Keyword Planner to help you figure out which are searched for the most. Remember to consider synonyms and variations.

Once you have a list of keywords you can begin optimising your links. Your anchor text should contain the keywords that you have found in the process above. This will help your chances of ranking for these times. Avoid using the same anchor text too many times. Search engines will perceive this as a signal of manipulation, particularly if your keywords are incredibly specific such as teeth whitening manchester. Instead you should use the more general phrase and the search engines will be able to 'understand' that you mean teeth whitening in that specific area. Google encourage you to use a diverse and varied list of texts to describe the same thing. For the above example you can use a range of keywords in your anchor text such as:

• whiten teeth
• brighten smile
• Manchester teeth whitening
• teeth whitening dentist

Where possible always avoid 'zero' anchor texts, e.g. click here or 'naked' anchor text, where the anchor text is the URL.

Creating Anchor Text and Links in Kommand Website Builder

It is simple to create a link in a Kommand webpage. Within your page simply highlight the text you wish to link and click the insert/edit link button from the tool bar.

Then add in the URL you wish to link to. It's as simple as that!

Every now and again we like to showcase some of the great websites that have been created on Kommand website builder. 

From recruitment to construction, Kommand themes can be adapted to suit businesses from all kinds of industries. Our system gives business owners an easy way to build and maintain a website and as all of our themes are fully mobile responsive your website will look great regardless of which device your potential customers access it from. Innovation is key to Kommand's progress and our development team continuously work to improve our service by adding new features on a regular basis. 

Are You Looking for a Website Builder?

If you run a small business and are looking to set up a website then Kommand can help. Our aim is to make running and maintaining a website easy for small business owners, like you, who don't have the time, money or need for an overly elaborate web design.

If you have existing branding and logo designs it is simple to add and edit content, images, blog-posts and more on Kommand, all without needing to know any technical programming knowledge. Alternatively if you also require a logo design or some design guidance our designers can help develop a website and logo that looks as professional as your business.

A Free Trial to Test the Waters

Kommand offer a free 30 day trial to make sure we are can be the right fit for you and your business. Alterntively if you would like to speak to someone about your business's needs please contact us today. 

Recent Websites Made With Kommand

MMR Construction

International Resource Consulting

Freight-Link Heathrow

Bracknell Cars

Theo Hair and Beauty Group

With online marketing the norm for most small businesses looking to expand their horizons, it's crucial that your company and website find a way to stand out from the crowd online in an increasingly competitive marketplace.

Frequently Asked Question pages, or ‘FAQs’, are a common way of underlining key points and summaries, and should serve as a great cornerstone for any website design project, whether you're starting from scratch, or giving existing company websites an informational overhaul.

An essential resource for you and your customers if you have just created a website, an effectively written question and answer page is not just a great marketing strategy, but a terrific way of focusing your customer support efforts. 

To provide visitors with the best possible experience when they arrive at your site, make sure you've done your homework, with relevant and researched pages that will answer all their questions.

Need some inspiration to get started on creating your own quality FAQ pages? The website building team at Kommand have put together a few essential tips to help set you on your way.

1. User-Friendly Design Wins Every Time

Nothing puts a customer off more quickly than a poorly designed website. As online users become increasingly impatient, you have just seconds to capture and maintain a visitor's interest, so good web design and user-friendly navigation is key to ensure all important click-through rates. You should take this into consideration when designing an FAQ page. If your business has a lot of potential queries it may be beneficial to break the topics into categories in separate drop downs from your menu.

If you are however adding many pages and extended information to your website, ensure your content is correctly categorized so users can find solutions to their queries promptly. Ensure ongoing maintenance of your site, keeping an eye out for broken links and missing pages. Customers are likely to leave your site altogether if they hit upon a broken page, so ensure basic hitches like this are not an issue.

2. Keep It Simple

Get customers to the information they're after more quickly than ever, with clear and concise language, and pared-back page design for easy reading. Don't alienate your readers with overly long questions, or answers, and always write with the terms and phrases they are most likely to be using. 

3. Accessible for Everyone

It's important to strike the right note with visitors, so feel free to carry your tone of voice through to your FAQs and information pages, but always ensure your text is accessible enough to cater to as wide an audience as possible. Don’t use jargon, and steer away from terminology that is too specialised. Colloquialisms and slang terms are a definite no-no unless absolutely relevant to your brand or service. 

4. Stimulate With Visuals

Engaging visuals can help make a page. Depending on your exact industry, they might even be an absolute must for the bare minimum of information your customer base expects. Great for capturing attention on a busy page, imagery and videos can help navigate visitors through complicated explanations and advanced concepts with ease. For even more refined customer support, businesses can upload thorough responses and extended answers as videos, delivering key information in completely accessible formats for everyone. In some instances a video can explain an answer more effectively than a large chunk of text.

5. Focus on Commonly Asked Questions

Every opinion matters, but not every question needs a home on your answer pages. If you've done your homework, you'll have a good idea of expectations of customers arriving to your site, and know the most commonly asked questions potential customers are likely to ask. These are the queries that can swamp customer support inboxes, so shave hours of your administration hours by providing insightful responses to the questions most customers will ask first. If you are just starting out then it can be beneficial to ask customers the kinds of questions they have.

6. Contact Details and Correspondence

Sometimes, however thorough and informative your FAQs, some visitors to your site will still have further questions. The last thing you want from an FAQ page is one which does not answer the question and the visitor has no obvious way to contact you. To maintain engagement and ensure conversions, give contact details prominence on your page(s), and ensure all correspondence is monitored and replied to. If you've already established a Q&A taxonomy, refer visitors to specific email addresses and departments for answers to their questions. If you notice that you are receiving a certain question often then you can add it to your list of FAQs. 

FAQs: Yes or No? 

A well designed FAQ page can benefit your website's SEO and can help improve your customer service. However it is not appropriate for every business. If you are struggling to find questions to put on an FAQ page or don't have important information to relay to your customer then you should reconsider whether your business really requires one. If you can successfully answer common questions on your homepage then an FAQ page may not be for your business. 

However for many businesses, not just Ecommerce websites, an FAQ page can be a great way to organise important information about your business or service.

If you run a website for your small business then congratulations you are already ahead of a third of UK business owners who still don't have a website. 

If you have used a website builder to create your site then we can be pretty certain that one of your main aims is for your small business to be found by potential customers interested in your products or services. This is where Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) comes into play.

How to Get Your Website Ranking in Google

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is the process of ensuring your site is as prepared as it can be to rise up the rankings in the major search engines, appearing in front of competitors and leading to more traffic and business.

Although improving your search ranking can be a very complicated effort in competitive sectors, there are several simple things you can do to give your site a head start. This mini series on the Kommand blog aims to help you get to grips with the basics and help you optimise your site.

Today's post focuses on Title Tags, a priority in any SEO effort.

What is a Title Tag?

Your site's title tag is one of the single most important attributes when it comes to search ranking. Used properly, it not only succinctly describes what your webpage is about, but also draw in new visitors by giving search engines a good reason to rank your site high in the results for a given query. However, ranking high for irrelevant keywords is of no consequence if your aim is, like most sites, to attract targeted visitors who will turn into customers. This is why getting your title tag right is so important.

To begin you must be able to identify a Title Tag. A Title Tag is the short series of words seen either on search engine results or by hovering over the tab at the top of your browser.

As a general rule of thumb a Title Tag should be around 55-70 characters long to show succinctly on results pages and excludes punctuation such as $%&{@.

Now you understand what a Title tag is, it's time to start optimising yours...

1. What Kind of Visitor Do You Want?

Your title tag is your chance to target the specific kind of site visitor you want. Searchers generally fall into three categories:

• Those looking for information on a topic.
• Those looking for information on products or services in a particular area.
• Those looking to actually make a transaction of some sort - to buy a product, make an enquiry, and so on.

A successful title tag will target all three types of site visitors to give your site the widest possible exposure. To begin you should examine your webpage and decide what the critical aspects are and key selling points.

2. Optimising Your Title Tag for the Three Visitor Types

To properly optimise your title tag, you need to get inside the mind of your visitor. A keyword research tool like the free Google Keyword Planner is invaluable here - you can quickly see what people are searching for in your niche, and use these words in your title tag to attract people who are searching for information on your product or service.

Next, if your website caters to a specific geographical area, then it's a good idea to include the name of your city or area in your title tag so as to further narrow down your potential visitors to your target market, cosmetic dentist in London W2.

Finally, if you want your visitors to make a transaction on your site, include a 'call to action' phrase in the title: 'buy now' is perhaps the most obvious, although more subtle versions such as 'discounts available online' or 'free consultation' or 'emergency appointments' can often fulfil the same function of prompting a sale or conversion while being a little less confrontational.

3. Putting It All Together

If your only goal was to please search engines, then the perfect title tag might be a list of keywords which do not link together in a sentence. Following this method means to ignore the other main role of the title tag: it's often the first description of your site your potential customers will see when using a search engine, and as such it's a good idea to make it both readable and compelling while still including all the basic information.

Your Title Tag might be the only piece of information a potential visitor to your website sees so you need to make it reads like a sentence and encourages people to click onto your website. It is through trial and error you will learn what works and what doesn't. As a side note, it is important that you don't change your Title Tag too often or you can damage the rankings you may have gained.

Unfortunately there is no winning formula for writing a Title Tag. A good place to start can be to examine your competitors and see if you can find inspiration. You should never copy another website's Title Tag word for word but if there is a particular term that is commonplace then it may be beneficial to include it.

4. Search Engines See Webpages, Not Websites

When optimising Title Tags, or any other area for SEO for that matter, you need to understand the basics of how a search engine works. A search engine doesn't know what a website is. Instead it sees individual webpages and finds the one which it believes best answers a searcher's query. It is for this reason that your Title Tag should be unique and specific to each page. Search engines will penalize duplicate Title Tags so don't copy yours across all of your pages, or from another site.

To help, you can think of a situation whereby all of the other content on your webpage is convered and you can only read the Title Tag, like the cover of a book. Does it correctly explain what that page is about? If your webpage is about Teeth Whitening for example, your title tag should not be focused on Dental Implants. 

Changing Your Title Tag on Kommand 

If you run a website on Kommand it is simple to change your webpages' Title Tags. Just login to your Admin page and then click Edit/Add Pages from the left hand menu, select your page, click Metadata on the top menu and input the Metadata Title Tag. The counter will show how many characters you have used.

A Final Note

The title tag is only a small part of the whole SEO process for your site, but it's one of the most immediately effective and easily optimised, and giving it the attention it warrants is the first step to rising above your competitors in the search results.

People often make the assumption that design is simply how something looks. In reality, design is a significantly more complicated process, involving integration of aesthetics and usability.

Design (in the aesthetic sense) is also highly subjective. What one person thinks look great, another will hate. This problem can make it difficult to assess whether the aesthetic parts of your design; font, colours, branding, etc. are affecting your website's performance.

Arguably it can be much easier to check if your website's performance by using non-subjective, measurable elements. Right this second it is likely that there are parts of your website which are frustrating the visitors to your site, elements which are broken or parts which are simply old fashioned. One or more of these could be preventing the generation of new leads and ultimately affecting your website's conversion rate.

If you have had your website for a number of years and haven’t checked it on simple usability components, now is the time. Here’s a five point checklist for you to quickly assess the health of your website.

5 Point Website Health Checklist

1. Is your website showing up on page one of your targeted search terms?

Check: Think about the term(s) that you would like your website to show for, e.g. dentist in edinburgh or telephone solutions for small business. Does your business rank on the listings for these terms? If not then you may benefit from assessing your website's SEO. 

Solution: There are many areas you can use to work on to improve your website's chance of ranking for relevant search terms.

To begin you should come up with a list of the key terms you wish to rank for. Run a local business like a hairdresser? Then local listings will be important to you so concentrate on search terms with a location, e.g. gift shop manchester. Once you have the terms you are targeting you should check all Title Tags and Meta descriptions. These are the titles and descriptions that show on search engine results pages. On Google it is the blue link and the text underneath the URL. You should aim to place keywords at the beginning of these where possible. After this you can begin optimising your website's content including copy and blog posts. By placing keywords in titles and using them cleverly throughout your text you can increase your chances of ranking for these terms.

You should be aware that Google and other search engines penalize keyword 'stuffing' so instead of having the term dentist in edinburgh repeated multiple times throughout the page, hidden behind images, in white font or other black-hat SEO tricks, you should instead use semantic variations. Google has indicated that when a website is crawled it will be able to understand variations for a term and determine the page's quality and authenticity. For example it can be more beneficial to use dental practice, dentistry, dental term, and other variations.

You should also include alternate headings for any image on your webpage. Not only will this help if for some reason the image doesn't load, but will also be crawled by search engines.

2. Do you get enquiries from your website?

Check: How many enquiries or mail list signups does your website receive? Less than you are aiming for?  

Solution: If you are attempting to direct users to contact you either through a contact form or by phone or email then you should assess how often and where you have this information. Often websites will include this on every page, not just a contact page so that regardless of which page your visitors land on they have a better chance of converting. You should make sure your form is clear and easy to use and that your email address works(!). Ask friends and family to visit your website and send you a question and find out the difficulties they run into.

3. Does your website have the essential pages and content?

Check: Think about what you would look for when visiting a website with your products or services, does your website have the relevant pages and content to catch these queries and expectations?

Solution: Think about what a visitor to your site would need. If you run a service business, like a restaurant or beauty salon, then a menu or service list might be a key component. You may also benefit from a thorough About page if your business needs to build trust, such as a dentist or investment company. You may also want to include a blog or gallery to give your business a clear voice. 

4. Is it selling your business’s USP?

Check: When you land on your website’s homepage is it clear what your business does?

Solution: It can be easy to forget that not everyone knows your business as well as you do. You can never make anything too simple online, especially now that website visitors are becoming increasingly impatient. It is suggested that we decide in as little as 1/20th of a second whether or not a site is appealing. You need to do something that will capture your audience in this minute time frame.

It can be a good idea to include a clear description of what your business offers and why your business is different from competitors as a heading on your homepage. Use a clear call to action and differentiating point: cheaper; faster; sale; free delivery, etc. can all engage people to stay on your website. Some businesses choose to use a hero image (a large, prominent banner) to engage customers.

5. Is your website mobile optimised?

Check: Mobile has now taken over desktop in number of users. If your website doesn’t work well on a mobile then you could be unintentionally damaging your website’s chances of converting. If you think desktop is bad, people are even more impatient on mobile. The instant gratification has meant few people will wait more than a couple of seconds for a webpage to load and will simply click the back button on their browser if they believe your website to be too slow or non-user friendly.

Solution: If your website hasn’t had an update in five or ten years then now is the time. Having a website that works on mobile doesn't have to cost the earth. Website builders, like Kommand, make running a website simple. All of the Kommand themes are mobile optimised meaning your website will look great on any device with no need for complicated programming. Better still it can cost as little as £9 month. For more information on Kommand you can visit our tour.

You may not have fully pursued LinkedIn, dismissing it as a fancier, less-fun version of Facebook.

However LinkedIn is much more than an online CV and provides a great tool for your small business to add yet another axle in strengthening your business's social media strategy; improving lead generation and impacting conversion.

LinkedIn Isn't Just for Business Professionals

With over 360 million members LinkedIn has enjoyed exponential growth since its launch in 2003. Available in 24 languages the network has become the world’s number one business networking platform and has since developed its services including acquisition of Pulse, the popular web and mobile newsreader in 2013 helping LinkedIn evolve into a professional content platform.

Why Should You Use LinkedIn for Your Business?

LinkedIn can help your business in a number of ways including:

• Developing your status as an industry expert.
• Providing a professional platform to share company updates.
• Providing a way to network with B2B businesses and suppliers.
• Providing a way to improve employer branding and your company's recruitment strategy.
• Another way to advertise your business online.
• Another way to solidify your business's credibility.
• Another way to showcase your company's products or services.

In 2012, LinkedIn members conducted over 5.7 billion professionally-oriented searches on the platform. Showing up for these searches can help your business greatly. LinkedIn also has its own ad campaign tool which is debated to be a more effective online ad campaign tool for B2B (business to business) advertising than Facebook ads or Google ads. We'll cover more on LinkedIn ads at the end of this post.

But first, let's get your company profile up and running.

How to Set Up A LinkedIn Company Page

Step 1: Set up your profile(s)

The first step for using LinkedIn for your business is to set up an individual profile. Similar to Facebook you must have an individual account before you are able to create a company page. For some businesses an individual profile may suffice, for instance if you are self-employed. The decision of whether you have a separate page for your business is ultimately yours, however it is recommended you separate your own page from a company page to avoid confusion and ensure your business is in the correct section of the LinkedIn website; 'companies' as opposed to 'people'. This can also help if your business is wishing to recruit through the network in the future.

You should aim to completely fill out your profile, or as best you can.  People often make the mistake of thinking that their professional headline has to be their job title. This is not the case, your headline can be anything you like and it is often a good idea to use it to use it as piece of online real estate. Your professional headline will be the clickbait that people see when they conduct searches. It can also be helpful to use keywords to ensure you show up for relative searches and you should always use a professional profile picture. The process for setting up a LinkedIn profile is straightforward and the website will guide you through the areas you will need to fill out to complete your profile however here are some of the maximum character counts for important areas on LinkedIn:

Once you have set up your individual profile you can then set up your company page. To do this you will need to click on Companies from the Interests drop down, and then Create on the right hand panel.

You will then be presented with a page to add the company name and email address.

Step 2: Fill out company information and add images

After you click continue you can begin adding company information including products and services and a summary. You should aim to make your description eye-catching, keyword clever and unique to capture your audience.

Once this is complete you can add your company's logo and banner image. These two areas are very important. Think of your LinkedIn page as another way to sell your business so take time to pick images which are in tune with your business's branding and will make you stand out. Some business's use a shot of inside their office, others use it to promote services. This infographic from Going Social gives you the dimensions you will need for your images. If you are having difficulties you can read this post.

Step 3: Start posting

Once you have filled out your company's profile it is time to start posting. To take full advantage of your company's LinkedIn page you should avoid simply posting vacancies. Instead, you should use the platform to promote blog content, rich media, company updates and news relative to your sector. LinkedIn has moved on from simply being an online CV. Today, LinkedIn members use the platform to stay in touch with businesses and industries and see developments of new product launches.

When writing your company updates, you should aim to always include a clear call to action and where possible include a link or image. Posts with links can drive twice as much engagement, and posts with images or some other form of rich media generally result in a higher engagement rate. Videos can also be a great way of increasing share rate, and videos will play directly in the LinkedIn feed. 

As with all forms of social media you should set out your aims for the channel and set up an editorial calendar to schedule what updates you will post and when. You can also experiment with different balances of entertaining and insightful updates to see which drives shares, likes and discussions. However it is important to remember that LinkedIn is after all a professional network and this should be reflected in your chosen tone. Where possible avoid using the same message on Facebook, Google+ and LinkedIn. Each is unique, you should tailor your message correctly.

Step 4: LinkedIn Ads

Once you are comfortable with LinkedIn and have found the optimal type of updates that appeal to your target market then you may consider using LinkedIn ads. Linkedin ads are described as a "self-service advertising product" similar to Facebook and Google ads. It is an often overlooked form of paid online advertising, however can be a highly target communication method. This is due to the extra information people provide compared with other social media networks giving you the ability to target your market more precisely. 

How to Start a LinkedIn Ads Campaign

CREATE

To create a LinkedIn ad campaign you will need to log into the LinkedIn ads login page and click the "Get Started" button.

From here you will be give the choice of which type of campaign you would like to create:

1. Create an ad or,

2. Sponsor content.

Click on 'create an ad' and then you will need to fill in the following page:

Name this campaign: This is the title of your campaign and should be an eye-catching piece of copy. It can often be effective to use a question in this section.

Language: The preferred language.

Ad destination: Where you want the ad to link to and can be an external page. You should think carefully about where you want the audience to go. It can be effective to link your ad to a relative landing page.

Headline and description: This is the main body of your ad. Be sure to include a clear call to action here.

You can also add an image and if necessary variations to create multiple versions of the ad.

TARGET

The next page you will be presented with is for targeting your ad. The options are similar to Twitter and Facebook (friends, company, age, etc.) however LinkedIn also lets you target people through their job title, industry, skills and interests. The targeting page has a lot of variables that you can adjust to correctly target your chosen market. 

BUDGET

There are two basic pricing models on LinkedIn ads: Cost per click (CPC) and cost per 1,000 impressions (cpm).

LinkedIn: the Alternate Social Media Channel

LinkedIn is a great and often under-utilised social media platform. When used correctly it can offer your business a unique way to target your audience and can help your business build connections and networks which could improve your business processes. 

Whilst LinkedIn ads cost more than Google and Facebook, due to their targeting it could be argued that they provide a better ROI. It has been argued that LinkedIn ads work best for highly targeted campaigns, so you should be aware of this when considering different online advertising methods.

With Kommand website builder you can integrate social media into your website with ease. Our blog function makes sharing blog posts easy as social media channels including LinkedIn easily pull images and content to create rich snippets. For more information on Kommand website builder please visit our website.

The proliferation of online media in today's world could perhaps make you naïvely assume that every business is adjusting their strategy to adapt the web.

However a recent report published by the UK government examining the current digital capabilities of small and medium enterprises gives evidence to indicate otherwise, with a staggering 36% of small businesses interviewed stating they still have no online presence at all, either through a website, or being listed on online directories.

The research, carried out by BMG Research and Durham University, surveyed over 800 British businesses to understand their digital presence and the supposed barriers to entry and found that for medium sized businesses the proportion jumps to 94% who do have a website. So what’s the problem for small businesses? Perhaps there aren’t as many? Well… no. Currently there are an estimated 5.2 million businesses in the UK, with small firms accounting for 99.3 percent of all private sector businesses. If anything there’s more small businesses, so why the lack of presence online?

Why Small Business Owners Don’t Have a Website

If you own a small business and fall into the category of not using the internet to improve your conversion or sales then keep reading as we examine some of the key findings from the report, de-bunk some of the myths surrounding websites and hopefully convince you why your business can benefit from the web. If you do have a website, then stay tuned until the end as you may fall into your own category without even realising.

The Most Common Complaints Small Businesses Give for Not Having a Website

Let's take some of these issues and discuss them further...

- You don't have the time, money or knowledge to set up a website.

Perhaps you think making a website for your business is too difficult, time consuming or costly. Well, you are right, and wrong. Working with a web design agency to build an all-singing, all-dancing website can be expensive. However you would only really have to work with a web design agency if you are planning on starting an Ecommerce business that needs to incorporate lots of different development elements.

Alternatively, if your business is simply looking to run a CMS website (not sell online) the possibilities with website builders are endless. For example, with Kommand website builder you can have a website up and running in a matter or hours. The packages start from just £9 per month and are easily edited using the drag and drop facilities.

- You lack digital skills or don't know the opportunities and benefits.

Although it's easy to fall into the camp of thinking your business simply doesn't need a website, there really is no reason for you not to be online. The benefits of having a website include:

• Providing a 24/7 way for people to find out more information about your business.
• Generating more leads.
• Building your business's credibility and exposure.
• Competitive necessity.

It might also be the case that you are already aware of website builders but still think that it will be too difficult to run a site as you don't have a logo or branding. Kommand web designers can design you a logo, and your website if you don't think you have the creative eye, in a matter of weeks.

- You have an attitudinal barrier towards being online or don't understand potential online security threats.

It is a good idea to think about the changing habits and attitudes of customers. Whilst at one time having a website would have been a luxury for small businesses, today it is almost an expectation that a customer will be able to find you online, if even just to get your number to call you. By considering the needs and thoughts of your customers you will be in a better position to understand the importance of how a website can help customers find your services, build trust and potentially do business with you.

You may also be wary of having a website in case of a possible hack. If a hacker gains access to a website then they can alter content and damage your reputation. Any good website builder will be able to override any potential issues if necessary take your site down until the issue is fixed. 

Are You In the 64% of Small Business Owners With a Website?

If you have made it through the points above and are thinking, 'I do have a website for my small business so my business must be performing better than those without' then that's great, but have you considered whether your website is actually any good? 

Of those who did have a website the recent report also showed that undergoing re-design isn't as common as might be expected, with 22% of those interviewed stating they had never had a website re-design. From this percentage, 12% have a website 5-10 years old and 8% have a website over 10 years old(!)

The web has changed a lot since 2005, your website should move along with the trends. In 2005, YouTube and Reddit had just been launched. Today 300 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute and Reddit has around 5,000,000 page views per day. Since 2005 mobile has also become an intrinsic part of everyday life. Having a website will help your business capture the attention of the growing number of mobile searchers. 

If you're still unconvinced or want to learn more about website builders then you can read this post. Alternatively, you can contact one of our team.

Are you a freelance worker looking for a way to get your business noticed? A social resume could be the unique method you are looking for to market yourself online.

Setting up a website might seem like an addition that you can't afford as a sole-trader, however it might be just what you need to let the world to know about you and your business. From photographers to builders a website can be the perfect way to showcase your skills, past work and expertise to future clients, employers or partners. According to a recent study, more than 80 percent of the entrepreneurs asked said that their online portfolios was what helped them achieve success. But what should you include?

Your Looks Always Make the First Impression

As with your suit during a job interview or a meeting with the ideal sponsor, the way your website looks influences how visitors to your site will react and if they will come back to visit you again. However, getting a full-scale web design is a privilege not many entrepreneurs have the time nor the budget to achieve. In fact, why waste time on studying CSS and Java when you can have your website up and running in a matter of minutes with a website builder?

From the colour scheme to the patterns, advertisement spaces to video embedding and gallery – a website can help get your business out there, improve lead generation and see your business start generating some real income. Many small businesses rely on word of mouth to get their business moving. Having a website that people can then check after hearing about your services, or simply to look up contact details, is a necessity in today's online driven world. Better still, having a mobile responsive website means you can capture those looking for your business on mobile or tablet.

So, What Should You Include on Your Website?

Depending on what kind of business you own and in which field you would like to promote your business, there are some steps you must consider before starting to create your web page.

• Is the site for me as a professional or for the products/services I offer?
• What is my target group?
• Do I want a blog/what will I blog about?
• Do I have current branding/logo in place that the website will need to work alongside?
• Do I have social media pages I want to link to?

Once you have answers to these questions you will understand the requirements needed for your website, how to design it to capture the attention of potential customers and give you the right foundation for how to rank highly on search engines.

Don't Oversell or Overdo

Now that we have discussed what you could do to help your website's success, we will now share some common mistakes which you should avoid when setting up a website.

1. Don't Assume People Will Understand Your Business

One of the easiest mistakes that a business can make when setting up a website is to assume that the person visiting the site will already know the business. Putting clear keywords in place will not only help visitors understand what your business is all about, but can also help improve search rankings.

Two of the key pages you shouldn’t overlook are your Homepage and About sections. Usually websites will include a brief short sentence summing up the business as a larger heading on their homepage. Doing so can help reduce your bounce rate as visitors do not have to hunt for what your business provides. A good idea is to have an outside perspective, friend, family member, or customer (preferably someone who doesn’t know your business well) read your over your homepage and explain to you what the business offers. This can help you identify any pitfalls. Including a video on your homepage can also be a great way of conveying this information and maintaining visitors.

2. Mutual Trust through Honesty

Do not be afraid to write about yourself and your own achievements. People believe in honest testimonials and in blog posts from personal experience. Real photos, although they may not be flawless, are preferred to stock images. People already know how to use the big photo banks, but would love to see what you have done yourself or achieved with your company. Similarly adding a blog to your website is a great way to help add some credibility and trust to your website as well as helping boost your website's SEO. If possible, adding some video or written testimonials from past, or current, clients is also a great way to build social proof into your website and convince customers you are a reliable choice.

A Website Builder like No Other

At Kommand.me our team provide you with all these services you need to get a great looking website for your business in one place. Our fully customisable layout templates can help you create your unique platform and present your content in the most suitable way for just £9 a month. We believe that every entrepreneur and service provider can succeed. Being fully devoted to your work and projects should not be a problem. So, we decided to create and gift you an easy-to-use website builder. Now you won’t have to waste time on waiting on web developers responding to emails or attempting to set up a website yourself and ending up with a heavy, slow site. 

Start your success story today.

Kommand can also be found on Facebook and Twitter.

If you run any kind of website then it will come as no surprise that you must make your web presence accessible from mobile devices. Mobile preference for online search and shopping has already overtaken desktop in many countries and is set to sustain growth as devices become better connected and software continues to develop.

Offering your customers a smooth online experience regardless of the device they are using is an important step that must be taken to increase leads and sales, remain competitive, boost your business’s reach and build brand affinity. However taking your customer’s experience onto mobile from desktop can be a confusing process.

The question that many face when optimising for online users is whether a business should opt for a mobile app as an alternative, or alongside, a mobile-friendly (responsive) or non-mobile friendly website. The decision will depend upon the varying amounts of resources from your chosen development team so it is important that you make the right decision.

For many businesses that choose to have a mobile app, one of the main ways that they can advertise it is via a pop-up (interstitial) on their website. Of course, it is possible to advertise apps through other means however if you offer visitors an app as an alternative to a mobile site then a full page interstitial is a way to direct them to use an app instead. The interstitial usually includes a link to download the business's app from an App store. The user can then access the business’s information from the app instead of a web browser. The user can of course choose to close the pop-up and continue on the webpage if they prefer.

Mobile Apps Can Hurt SEO

There are many articles detailing the positives and negatives of mobile apps vs mobile websites with contrasting answers of what is best. However the debate has taken a new turn as Google announced last week that it would begin penalizing the search rankings of websites which choose to use pop-up mobile ads to ask users to install their app.

The search giant posted an article on its Webmaster Central Blog explaining how app download pop-ups do not provide a "good search experience and can be frustrating for users because they are expecting to see the content of the web page." The article is followed by advice indicating that websites which do not cohere to these new standards will no longer be considered 'mobile-friendly' suggesting a possible drop from top spots in search engine results pages.

Why are Google Making These Changes in Mobile Requirements?

Google's primary aim has always been to provide the best user experience it can for its visitors. Internal research carried out by the organisation was used to highlight how frustrating users find pop-up app ads, especially on mobile, with 69% of their study abandoning the webpage altogether. If you consider this research in relation to your website, this could account for as many as seven out of every 10 potential customers that you could be losing before they even make it to your website.

Google’s Way or the Highway?

Whilst it is not suggested that mobile apps in themselves will affect your ranking it is suggested that the advertising of apps in full page pop-ups will. The alternative to this, suggested by Google, is non-obtrusive banner ads at the top of a webpage which allow the user to still access the information on the page:

The news from Google does not mean that having a mobile app in itself is a negative. However the release of their study findings does back continuous advice suggesting that responsive websites are the preferred design as they provide a more user- and SEO-friendly experience than non-mobile friendly websites or a mobile, m. website which requires separate URLs.

Responsive Design Websites Improve Your SEO

The question that you now face is what the best tactic to employ for your customers. A small business is likely to have limited resources and budget to spend online. App design can be great especially for large Ecommerce stores such as ASOS or Amazon. However for small businesses or CMS websites an app may be an unnecessary, expensive addition. Responsive web design can offer the balance you are looking for to remain competitive and SEO friendly on both desktop and mobile devices.

With Kommand website builder you can have a fully mobile responsive website that can rank highly on search engines for as little as £9 a month. Our easy to use software means you can bring your site to life on your own and we offer flexible bolt-ons allowing you to add the items you need to make your perfect website. Alterntively you can work with one of the Kommand web designers to design your site and logo. Whatever your requirements are we can find a solution that's right for your business. For more information on our packages, prices and design please contact us today. One of our team will be happy to discuss your website.

As the platform is image based you may have originally discounted it as a method in your business's digital marketing strategy. Perhaps you believed it is best used by businesses which sell products, and whilst this is true, many non-product based brands have also managed to use it effectively to share their brand stories and increase their engagement (see @charitywater and @natgeo as examples). What’s interesting about Instagram is the engagement that it offers. Forrester Research shown below illustrates how Instagram pushes ahead of both Facebook and Twitter in terms of user interaction with brands’ posts.

However with 2.5 Billion likes and has 70 Million photos uploaded daily, getting your business's profile and photos seen – especially as a small business - requires familiarity and expertise in navigating the platform, in addition to a well thought out plan and a solid marketing strategy.

Setting Up Your Profile

Although you can access Instagram through desktop you will need to set up your account via the mobile Instagram app. Once you have downloaded it you choose a username and password for your account. Make sure that you pick a username that is in-keeping with your business's other online profiles and recognisable. After you have created your account you will need to choose a profile picture, write a brief biography, and decide if you wish to link a website to your profile. These can all directly influence how effective your profile is in advertising your business.

• Profile picture: Although your profile picture appears as a small thumbnail on your page, an interesting profile picture, such as a strong company logo, can help entice users to your page.
• Bio: You only have 150 characters to play with, so make sure your bio is concise and informative as well as being slightly playful and creative.
• Link: On most personal accounts, the link feature tends to be used to advertise another social media profile. However, for a business, it is a great way to advertise the business's website and promote traffic to it. Instagram does not allow links in many places so this is a prime spot to add your business's website.

Hashtags

Hashtags are a simple way of categorising your posts. They allow people who are interested in the topic an easy way to find your post. A hashtag is a clickable link which allows you to browse all other posts that have used the same hashtag in a similar way to Twitter. Many businesses create their own hashtags relevant to their business.

Other Ways of Drawing Attention to Your Profile

Although hashtags are great for encouraging traffic to your profile, there are plenty of other ways that you can use to achieve this as well.

• Following: When you follow an account, they owner will be notified and, almost invariably, will look at your profile. This is why it is so important to make your profile eye-catching, as an intriguing profile will lead to a greater percentage of follow backs.
• Liking and Commenting: An account user will also be notified of your profile if you like or comment on one of their pictures. However in this instance, it is slightly less likely that they will go directly to your profile because of your engagement with theirs.
• Tagging: Another way to notify an account user of your presence is to tag them in one of your posts. You can utilise this feature either when a post directly refers to another account or when you think a specific account may be particularly interested in the content of your post.

Time to Get Started

Now it's time to get involved. However before you start posting you should consider the feel you want your Instagram profile to portray. Be smart and see what your competitors are doing. Identify the strengths and weaknesses of their accounts and use your research to create the most effective online social platform for your business that you can. Then it's time to create your profile and start posting, following, and #hashtagging. Good luck!

If you run a small business you will understand how important it is to manage your cash flow, especially if you are just at the beginning of your entrepreneurial journey. Every penny will count as you try to make it through the often difficult first year of trading and where necessary, additional spending will be cut to avoid the business failing.

If your business is not trading online, as an Ecommerce store, then you may think running a website is an expensive, time-consuming and unnecessary addition - and something you can think about once you are established.

However with the expectations of today's customers, not having an online presence can stunt the growth of your business. A recent study found that over a quarter of small businesses still don't have a website and for those that do have a website 31% are not responsive, meaning they are not user friendly for tablets and smartphones.

Kommand: The Solution You've Been Searching For

With Kommand you can build a website for your business for as little as £9 per month. For this price you can choose from a range of professional themes, all of which are mobile responsive. Kommand sites are also search engine friendly allowing them to rank highly on search engine results.

For a bit of fun, and to put that price in perspective, for £9 you can buy,

• 4 small Starbucks Lattes (£2.25 each)
• 3 Tesco Finest Smoked Salmon Sandwiches (£3 each)
• 1 Cineworld Adult cinema ticket (£8.80)
• A taxi ride home when it's raining (~£9)

Cutting out just one of these from your budget a month will free up enough cash to run a Kommand website. Better still with our user friendly design, Kommand is simple to run, edit and manage, allowing you to get on with the day-to-day running of your business.

Why Choose Kommand as Your Website Builder?

Kommand’s USP is the quality of our coding, compared to every other platform out at the moment. From site creation all the foundations are right for you, our user to build your online presence. We also offer a 30 day free trial so you can see what you think. Plus we have a team of developers here to help who are constantly working on upgrades and improvements to our service. 

Recent Websites Launched with Kommand Website Creator

We recently launched a new website for Home Improvement company, At Last Your Home. Check out their website below to see just one of the many ways Kommand can be used to build a website that fits your brand aims and identity.

For more information about Kommand you can visit our main webpage or follow us on Twitter for updates @kommandme

Two of the key focuses for Kommand are innovation and user-friendliness. Our team believe in continually improving our service and issue updates to ensure we offer the necessary and best possible features required to convert customers and improve search rankings. All Kommand themes are mobile responsive as standard, search engine friendly and multi-lingual, allowing users from all over the world to build Kommand sites that look great on any device and adopt best practice SEO.

The New 'Need Help?' Tab

If you have basic or no technical, programming or graphic design knowledge then Kommand is the right website builder for you. We don't believe in confusing our customers with jargon and over-charging them for a poorly coded, complicated website. Not only does this build a bad reputation for a company but it doesn't inspire the team who work behind the scenes. 

Instead, Kommand empower anyone to have a great website which they can access, edit and maintain themselves and pay a fair price for it, all whilst keeping our own team interested and inspired to work for something they believe in.

As part of our innovation our team recently launched our new feature, the 'Need Help?' tab. The feature introduced a seven step wizard that takes you, the business owner through the process of creating a beautiful website for your business.

How does it work?

Once you have signed up to a Kommand website you can log in to your account and begin customising your theme. On the Dashboard you will see a green Need Help? tab located on the right hand side of the screen. Clicking this bring out the wizard detailing the seven steps to getting your website live. The wizard goes through everything from adding your logo to launching your website, even if your domain has been registered elsewhere. Each section has a video to help and includes a direct link the section of Kommand you will need to make the changes in that step.

One of our aims at Kommand is to make the system as easy for you to use in the back-end as it is for your customers to use from the front. We know that running a website can feel like an additional, time consuming afterthought that takes time away from the daily running of your business so we try to make this as easy for you as possible.

Kommand Makes Running a Website Easy

As with any update we make we would love to hear feedback about what's good and what could be better. You can email our team at: support@kommand.me to let us know what you think.

Alternatively, if you are not already a Kommand customer but are interested in finding out more you can see our tour here. Our goal is to inspire and enable small and medium business owners to have a technologically advanced and affordable website that enhances their online presence, so if that sounds like what you are looking for then why not start your free 30 day trial today?

Still not convinced? Here's three statements to help change your mind:

1. The conversion rate for content marketing adopters is nearly six times higher than for non-adopters. (Kapost)

2. 78% of small businesses attract new customers through social media. (Relevanza)

3. Customers who receive email newsletters spend 82% more when they buy from the company. (iContact)

These statistics make it no surprise then that by 2019, many businesses will be increasing the time and money they exert on content marketing creation, with some predicting their digital investment to take-over up to 50% of their marketing budget. 

What is Content Marketing?

Before explaining the ways content marketing can bring your business leads and improve conversion we will first define the concept. The Content Marketing Institute define content marketing as; 

"A marketing technique of creating and distributing valuable, relevant and consistent content to attract and acquire a clearly defined audience – with the objective of driving profitable customer action."

The important part of this definition is the description valuable, relevant and consistent. Content marketing involves the making of media and publishing including blog posts, podcasts, videos, infographics, white papers, how-to guides, etc. to acquire and retain customers.

Content Marketing has become a key inbound marketing technique which businesses have used to engage their target audience. It changed the marketing landscape as small businesses are now able to compete with big brands to gain exposure, increase sales and improve brand awareness. Not only that, but content marketing is now one of the key methods for improving SEO by fulfilling the search queries the SEO is targeting.

In order to take advantage of this marketing tactic your business must first assess its market and develop a content marketing strategy. 

Creating a Content Marketing Strategy

Creating a content marketing strategy is a key part to your over-arching marketing strategy. Whilst uploading content as and when you can is good, setting up a calendar planning out your posts and promotion will be a much more effective strategy long-term. To begin, you should first assess your customer base and target market. From this you should be able to distinguish the content they are most engaged with. Create a list of potential areas of interest, for example for a dental practice website you may wish to create blog posts explaining cosmetic dental procedures, after-care and dental health tips. You may also be interested in profiling the dental team to help show your expertise and gain the trust of visitors to your site. Look at competitors in your industry to see the kind of content they create and seek ways to replicate this for your business.

A content marketing strategy should use your brand story as a basis for the message in your content. Keeping your aims consistent will help improve your brand. You will also need to decide on the channels that you are going to share your content on: website; blog; social media; etc. For each you should have clear objectives and monitor when you receive the best engagement. Tailoring your content and upload schedule to this will improve your content marketing strategy.

How to Improve Potential Customer Leads Through Content Marketing

For many businesses lead generation through content marketing is indirect. When a potential buyer conducts a search for a product or service in your business category, they are actively looking to solve a problem they have or find out more information about a topic they are interested in. By creating content that is targeted towards particular search queries you can attract the attention of these customers. 

Another way to increase your leads is to create an information book or guide that requires an email sign-up to access. Once you have gathered a list of email addresses (who have agreed to receive news and updates) you can begin an email marketing campaign. 

Lastly, you should always remember to share your content on Social Media, and not just when you first upload it. People who then share, like or comment on your posts can become potential leads as they have actively engaged with your business and have shown an interest in your industry.

How to Improve Website Conversion Through Content Marketing

One way to improve conversion through content marketing is simply be maintaining a consistent presence. For many businesses, content marketing a long-term strategy with the aim of enhancing awareness and establishing yourself as a credible and trust-worthy business. The more a potential customers sees your brand and presence the more they will become aware of you. Over time this can increase the chances that when they come to require your product or service they will come to you to purchase. Setting up a regular schedule for your posts will help you to remain on customers' radars. You can also use social media management software such as Buffer or Hootsuite to pre-schedule social media posts and depending on your website you may also be able to pre-schedule blog posts.

It is important that your content provides real value to your customers. When customers feel they have benefited they will be more likely to choose you when it comes to purchasing. There is a balance in content marketing between content which educates or engages with your target market and that which sells. Remember to include a link to your website or business logo on any content that you create so if your posts becomes viral your business will benefit.

Would You Like a Professional Looking Website You Can Edit and Manage Yourself?

Running a website for your business may seem like an expensive and perhaps unnecessary addition if you are not looking to sell online. However you should not underestimate the importance of having an online presence. For those who haven't heard of your business, search queries on search engines can help to generate leads you may not have had initially.

Content marketing can help solidify a current or potential customer's perception of your brand and you don't need to have an elaborate content marketing strategy to reap the benefits content creation can bring.

Kommand website builder offers business owners a simple and cost-effective to run a CMS website for your business. Our packages start from as little as £9 a month and all of our themes are mobile responsive. To find out more and boost your business's online profile you can view our tour here. Or to discuss your business and its needs you can contact the Kommand team.

Responsive Web Design is the name given to a website who's layout and content respond to fit the varying resolutions and sizes of different screens. Understandably, there are varying degrees of mobile responsiveness and some businesses who claim to have a mobile responsive site don't, whether that be because they simply don't understand the technology or because their web design team somehow convinced them it was. There are various tools available to help you check the mobile responsiveness of your website, including Google's Mobile-Friendly Tool and mobiletest.me. Alternatively you can use Google's Full Value of Mobile Calculator to understand the value that mobile drives for your business through calls, apps, in-store, mobile site and cross-device. 

Where Did Responsive Design Come From?

The development of the mobile web was a key trigger to the rise of responsive web design. People today are able to access the internet on the go from mobile devices such as tablets and smartphones. And displaying desktop-oriented web pages on these gadgets led to a lot of zooming in, pinching of screens, incorrectly thumbed buttons and inevitably a lot of frustration. The need for responsive design was obvious, and web developers began the process of developing websites that could be easily accessed on these smaller-screen devices, satisfying the impatient needs of today's consumers.

Evidence of mobile usage varies, however it generally accepted that mobile accounts for around 50% of all web traffic and is expected to overtake desktop in the coming years. It is obvious then that responsive web design is the correct path to choose in order to capture the changing habits of your customers, and should almost be a given when you create a website for your business.

What’s the Difference Between Mobile and Responsive Design?

Traditionally, there were two main ways to create websites that worked on mobiles: Responsive Design and Mobile Templates. A mobile template involves creating a completely different website that requires a second, or sub-domain. They are developed for each specific, not by screen size. Conversely, responsive design requires only one website and is coded to fit screen sizes, regardless of device.

Responsive Design has generally won the mobile battle, proving to be a better way to display web pages across a variety of devices and is better for SEO. As such it is generally the preferred method adopted when designing websites.

Isn't RWD Expensive and Confusing?

Yes, and no. Responsive Web Design can become a complicated process and if you are unsure what your business needs, rogue web developers can easily confuse and over-charge you. There are however more affordable ways to get a responsive website, such as using a website builder with responsiveness built into their themes. Website builders allow you to manage and edit the content you want on your website in an easy way whilst still providing for the mobile market. 

What About The Web You Can Wear?

Technology took another leap this year with the launch of Apple's Apple Watch. Wearable technology become a hot topic (although has actually been around longer then the Apple Watch) and it has opened the doors to a completely new way to use tech. Those who own, or have tried an Apple Watch, however have probably noticed the lack of web browser present. Whilst it could be argued Apple and other wearable tech developers such as Android deliberately omitted it, it is a much more likely case that even the best design and development team were unable to create a browser that could work on the 272px by 340px screen. Designers and developers are still grappling with this problem and are already finding ways to deliver the full web experience.

What is the Future of RWD?

To truly evolve the web, designers need to develop new ideas and systems. Simply painting over the cracks won't suffice. New technologies need to adjust to the technological advancements and changing user behaviours in our economy and society. There are murmurs that audio responsive web pages (where users will be able to navigate themselves around the web simply by using their voice) could be the next chapter. This is an understandable development if you consider Siri, Cortana and OK Google are already available and used today. Other sources have indicated the tightening of tendons in the wrist could overcome the problems of 'fat thumbs' or the clenching of the fist could replace swiping or clicking. The future really is open to solutions we can't even comprehend just now.

For the time being, responsive web design is critical to web design. One of the great qualities of responsive design is that the template responds based on the dimensions of the screen, not the device that is being used. This means that regardless of the device the webpage is being shown on it should display in a user-friendly way even if a new mobile device is created with a new screen size and resolution.

Aspire Magazine has a circulation of around 15,000 copies in the East Midlands and includes articles on a variety of leisure interests including food, events, health and sports. Apple & Hog featured on the front cover and in a full page article, including an interview with their founder Darren Williamson.

Read the feature and full issue here.

So what can you do to make your website stand out from the rest? Research has shown that a well designed webpage with an appropriate selection of high-quality website images can be a good place to start and will help you capture attention, establish credibility and lower bounce rates.

How Do Images Help Your Website?

Image selection is very important to your website design. However in a lot of cases using clearly obvious stock images can actually be a deterrent for a visitor and when possible it is best to hire a professional photographer photograph your product or service being used. Using your own images will help build a better trust with your customer base as they are able to get a real feel of your brand personality. Obviously this option can be very expensive and is not always available due to cost restraints so many businesses turn to stock photos to add imagery to their site.

Stock Images: Types, Licenses and How to Use

The first thing to remember with regards to stock images is that not all of them are free to use. You need to be particularly careful when you scour the web for pictures for your website, as selecting images protected by copyright laws has the potential to land you in serious legal trouble.

There are three main types of images on the web: Right Protected Images, Royalty Free Images, and Public Domain Images.

As you might have already guessed, Right Protected Images are indeed protected by law, and you'll have to negotiate a fee with the owner beforehand, as well as the amount of time you can use the images for. This can often prove to be an extremely pricey method of obtaining images, and may not necessarily be the best move for anyone who is just starting up a business site. When webpages are established and money is flowing, purchasing full rights for Right Protected Images becomes a much easier task.

Royalty Free Images work in a similar way to Right Protected Images, but can be used by the purchaser as frequently as they like after agreeing an initial price. One of the biggest websites for obtaining Royalty Free Images is Shutterstock, which offers different price variations dependent on the amount of images your require. Whilst this option allows you to splash high-quality images across your webpage at will, keep in mind that the photographer will also be selling to other businesses. These very same images may be being used by a competitor so it would be a good idea to check before committing to purchase.

Public Domain Images are the simplest way to start up a website. These are free to use for anyone at any time. Some of the best places to locate excellent free images include Flickr, Openphoto and Bigfoto. Whilst these are free to use, it is expected that material which is public domain, copyright-free, is considered plagiarized if you don't attribute the source.

Picking Images for Your Website

Using a Royalty Free Images is the most common way for adding images to a homepage, subpage or landing page. You should take time to carefully select the best images you can and consider the following:

• Is the image in-keeping with your business brand and website design?
• Is this image being used by your competitors?
• Is the image obviously a stock image?

It can also be useful to find an image you like and visit the user's page who uploaded it to see if there are other photos shot in a similar style you can use. This is an easy way to keep a coherent look to your design.

Still Feeling Confused?

If you are still finding the task of designing a website overwhelming then you may benefit from speaking to a web design team who can work with you to get your website up and running. Kommand website builder, allows business owners to have a clean and professional looking website without having to worry about the technical aspects of maintenance and hosting. Talk to us today to find out how we can help.

Many millions are spent on designing business websites every year, and the reason is very simple: the visual impact of your website is often the first thing your potential customer takes in, and you need to make the right first impression if you hope to convert visitors. Taking time to get this right is very important to your business's success and it can seem like an overwhelming and daunting process. However by following a few steps you can help narrow down your choice and find the design specifications right for you and your business.

Keep It Simple

In the age of powerful and cheap computer graphics software, it's easy to go overboard with the millions of colours available to the designer. Good graphic design relies on creating a pleasing contrast between colours and shapes, and too many colours can distract from the central message you want to convey. A standard rule of thumb is to choose a complementary palette of only three or four colours, ensuring that nothing gets too lurid and unpleasant to look at. Designers will often choose colours that compliment each other; those which are opposite each other on the colour wheel, or colours that are analogue to each other; sit side by side on the colour wheel.

Choosing Your Palette

Branding is an essential part of web design, and the colour scheme you choose has more effect on this than you may realise. You should ask yourself what your website is trying to achieve, who it is aiming to appeal to, and what range of colours are likely to help most in conveying the correct impression. There are numerous studies which have been conducted about consumers' response to and thoughts on colours, so it is crucial you do some research before designing, or asking someone else to design. You may also want to consider cultural differences and the market you are selling to as colours can represent different things to different cultures.

It is also often the case that different industries will have a certain look or colour palette they will stick to. For example, an insurance company will want to instil confidence, and so a sober and reliable scheme of cooler colours like greens and blues will be appropriate. Sites that are about fun or fashion will probably benefit from a louder, more aggressive colour scheme of reds, oranges or purples. Sites dealing with home and family issues often benefit from calming pastel shades - the list goes on, and it's worth trying out several colour schemes with test visitors to see which is the most effective and pleasing. 

How to Avoid Colour Clashes

As well as choosing a limited range of colours, you need to make sure they all work together without causing potential migraines in your site visitors. Fortunately, this is a very well researched subject, and there are plenty of pre-developed colour palettes available online, ready to plug into your graphic design software (or alternatively, to pass on to your web development company). Some standard ranges of colours have been proven over time to work well together, so keep your eyes open for a scheme you see that seems like it would be effective for your business, and try visiting one of the many colour palette collection sites and looking for existing palettes that could be put to a similar use. There is even software available that can take a pleasing photograph and analyse the colours used to provide a palette that can be adapted to your web design efforts which can be a useful way to create a potential colour scheme.

Steal Ideas From Competitors and Pinterest

Another way to get inspiration for your colour-scheme is to analyse and steal good ideas from your competitors. We have already mentioned how different industries will largely have a 'norm' and it may work to your advantage to create similar palette to instil a sense of familiarity and trust with potential customers. If you are thinking of doing this however, you must make sure to not directly copy as you will want to create your own brand identity.

Pinterest can also offer another great source for finding colour schemes, logo ideas and website designs - a simple search brings up numerous results. If you are going to employ a graphic designer to create a logo then bringing some visual representations of your ideas can be very helpful and using Pinterest provides a free and easy way to do this.

Still Feeling Overwhelmed? Kommand Website Builder Can Help

However you go about choosing a suitable colour palette for your business, always bear in mind the importance of the first impression, and take notice of the designs we see all around us which have had vast amounts of testing done on them - there's plenty to learn that you can apply to your own business web site, however big or small.

If you are still finding the process overwhleming, or lack the time or resources to research colour schemes, then an alternative option may be to use a website builder which includes pre-made themes to pick from.

With Kommand website builder, business owners can easily create their own websites without having any programming knowledge or graphic design experience. Better still all of our themes are optimised for mobile an important factor in today's online market and prices start from as little as £9 per month. To find out more visit our tour page.

Bearing this in mind, is there any point in paying hundreds or thousands to get a website for your small business's website? Only you can answer this, but before you decide it's worth considering using a website builder.

Why Use a Website Builder?

Putting together a website in the traditional way means either learning to code yourself, or paying a web design company to build the site for you. Both can be expensive, the first one in terms of time and paying for tools, and the second one in terms of paying fees that can quickly escalate beyond your planned budget. A website builder aims to overcome these difficulties, providing simple-to-use tools to create a website for your company yourself. But what should you be looking at when deciding whether to use one?

Cost

Many builders advertise themselves as free, only to provide extremely limited functionality without paying to upgrade to a premium addition. In short, few free tools will provide high quality results, so you're looking at paying one way or another. Some builders charge a monthly fee, so make sure to consider this when working out your budget, as if you're planning your site to be around for a while these fees can mount up, and it might be better to find a builder that charges a one-off fee.

Ease of Use

The whole point of using a builder is that it's quick and easy with no expert knowledge required. If you find that using the demo of a builder is confusing or overly complicated, then look elsewhere - if you're going to have to learn a lot to get your site up and running, you may be better investing your time in learning a more flexible stand-alone web design package.

Customisation Options

The free templates offered by most builders can look extremely formulaic and even unprofessional. Your company website is your representation online, and you want to make a good impression. If the builder forces you to use unprofessional or inappropriate designs then move on and try a different one. Also consider whether one of the built-in templates is designed specifically for your line of business - some templates are geared towards photography services, for example.

Hosting

Once you've built your site, you're going to need to put it somewhere on the web if your customers are going to find it. Most builders include some sort of hosting deal, but if possible look for one which also allows you to choose your own host and domain name. This will give you the flexibility you need if the supplied hosting isn't up to scratch, and also gives your site more room to grow and mature in the future.

Advanced Features

On today's web, there are two vital considerations if you want your website to be found and used by customers: SEO and mobile responsiveness. The first of these involves making sure your website is properly readable by search engines so that you can be found, and a good builder will provide the basic tools you need such as the ability to set keywords and custom page titles.

Mobile responsiveness means making sure that your site looks equally good on a smartphone or tablet as it does on a desktop computer, and while the technical details of this can be very complicated, a good builder should includes this feature by default so it's not something you have to worry about.

Kommand.me Website Builder

If you're looking to conduct business online, then there's no substitute for a professionally designed website, but if you want to test the waters with a simple site then a website builder could be the easy solution you're looking for. 

Kommand has over 350 websites across the UK, Europe and the Middle East with new websites being created every week. We offer website packages from as little as £9 per month and all of our themes are fully responsive, allowing you to grab mobile users' attention. We offer a free 30 day trial so why not try today and find out how easy it can be creating a website for your business? Or, if you would prefer to speak to someone about how Kommand could help you then you can contact us to discuss your business's needs. 

Are You Looking for an Easy to Use Website Builder?

If you are looking to create a website for your small business then Kommand might be able to help. We offer a free 30 day trial so why not try today and find out how easy it can be having a website for your business? Or, if you would prefer to speak to someone then you can contact us to discuss your business's needs. All Kommand websites are fully responsive and can be edited to suit your business's branding and operational requirements.

View Recent Website Made With Kommand

Beaumont Beverage: 

Beauty Rokz:

Cardhu Gifts and Interiors:

Diverse Works:

Kalimba Caribbean Tours:

Caribbean Sailing Holidays

Kaydanmy:

Lindfield:

Sureguard Security:

Find out more about these websites.

Shopping cart abandonment is a one of the big challenges faced by eCommerce businesses and one you should strive to understand in order to improve sales and ROI. There are many reasons why consumers might abandon their shopping cart which in turn have a number of associated areas for improvements. Your eCommerce website may have great design, great functionality and competitive prices but if you still lose a large majority of potential customers at check-out, then your website has ultimately failed to convert.

Why Do Consumers Abandon Their Online Shopping Carts?

You may think that your customers are not following through on their purchases because they are not ready to spend their money. However, studies have found that the number one reason for abandoning online purchases is in fact unexpected costs. Many customers become annoyed by undisclosed shipping and handling costs which they can only see before they finalise their purchase.

Customers may also abandon their cart due to more practical usability problems, including your website crashing, running slowly, overly complicated check-out processes or restricted payment options.

It may also be the case that your customers abandon their cart as they want to compare their options. Some may look for coupons and discounts with competitors and will shop around to compare initial cost, delivery options and associated costs before making an informed purchasing decision. This process is known as digital window shopping and has as experienced an increase due to the number of  comparison websites and the lack of pressure that comes with online shopping. This means there is an increased chance that your customers will compare and look elsewhere – especially with high involvement purchases such as electronics.

5 Tips to Help Your Business Lower Cart Abandonment

1. Be Transparent: 

Show your delivery options and shipping costs at the beginning or offer free or reduced shipping for purchases over a certain value.

2. Re-think Registration:

86% of consumers do not like having to sign up and sign in to make a purchase with registration pages stopping 58.1% moving forward with their purchase. This is either because customers do not want to waste time signing in or they cannot remember their e-mail and password. In order to combat this it might be beneficial to include the traditional sign-up/sign-in options but also offer an option to checkout as a guest as well. Alternatively, you can offer your customers the option of a social log-in, that is logging in through a social media platform. This helps reduce the time between wanting and buying since the customer generally only has to click one button to register.

Of course with these options you will need to make some sacrifices. Social log-ins will put some customers off as they do not like to share their personal information, and guest check-in will lead to a increase in sales but a decrease in future leads. You should experiment with the options to see what works best for your business, or if possible offer a variety of log-in options to ensure you capture all of your potential customers.

3. Safe and Secure Check-Out: 

If a customer is unfamiliar with your brand they may be more wary when carrying out a purchase. By including secure payment options and integrating 3rd party software you can help reassure your customers that your business is legitimate.

4. Show Customer Support/Contact Information: 

It may the case that your customer is having difficult with a part of their check-out process or that they want to ask a question. By including contact details and FAQ alongside your shopping basket and check-out you can help ensure your customers' queries are answered.

5. Email Recovery Campaigns: 

Dependent on your business you may also want to follow up purchases with email marketing. If you have gathered a customer's email address before they abandoned their shopping cart and they have allowed you to contact them then your business may benefit from abandoned cart emails that remind them of their purchase. Studies have shown these to be highly effective forms of communications with nearly half of all emails sent open and a third of clicks leading to sales. If you are thinking of carrying out email recovery campaigns then you will need to construct an effective email which will convince the customer to purchase. Such reassurance might be through including reviews or testimonials, refund policies, discount code or indicating limited stock.

Cart abandonment can cost you lots in lost revenue. It is important that you find ways to overcome the problems customers face and make the check-out process as simple as possible. Doing so will help you recover sales, improve your conversion rates and build a database of customers.

What is Mobilegeddon?

Mobilegeddon is the nickname given to Google’s Algorithm Update which was launched on April 21st. The update was created to improve the browsing experience of mobile device users by boosting websites that are optimised for mobile and penalising those which are not. The update is a result of the shift to mobile device search, which has now overtaken desktop in over 10 countries. At the time, The US and Japan were the only countries of the 10 that were confirmed as having a higher mobile search volume than desktop. However, during her talk yesterday (June 15, 2015) Eileen Naughton, Managing Director and VP of sales and operations for Google UK-Ireland, confirmed the UK to be another country in this list of 10, indicating the importance of going mobile for the UK market.

Impact of the Google Update on Your SME

The Google mobile update did not have as an explosive effect as some marketers and businesses feared. Some businesses saw no change in their rankings and some even saw an improvement in their rankings without making any changes, purely due to competitors with poorly responsive sites dropping down in search results pages.

Research shows an overall decrease of 21 percent in the number of websites which are not mobile friendly on the first three pages of search engine results pages with a 17.3 percent decrease on page one alone.

If you are unsure of the impact of the Google Update on your website here is two ways that you can check:

1. Perform the Google Mobile Friendly Test – Google have created a free tool that you can use to check how mobile friendly your website is.
2. Analyse your traffic – You can use your Analytics to look over your traffic in the period before April 21st and after to understand if there was any change, positive or negative.

What is the Long Term Plan?

If your website has not been affected by the update or has seen an improvement in rankings then you should not view this as your website having weathered the update storm. The update is said to be rolled out over a number of months, with it being less than a month since it launched. It is important to make your website responsive, not only to satisfy Google algorithms, but to improve your user experience, although the two do go hand-in-hand.

Since their beginning Google have aimed to provide the best user experience possible. They have made it clear that a website providing this for their users will see a natural improvement in their rankings. If you are looking to improve your organic placement in search engine results pages then following the indications and trends that Google are adapting their algorithms for is a good idea. 

Looking for a Mobile Responsive Website?

If you are interested in creating a mobile responsive website then Kommand website builder may be able to help. All of the website development packages we offer provide a mobile optimised version, allowing you to build a stunning website and have a mobile version ready straight away. Visit our packages page and avoid getting caught in Google’s Update storm.

What Are The New Features on Kommand?

We are happy to announce a range of new features which have recently been added to Kommand. These include the following:

1. New admin language Internationalisation.
2. Multi-language contents and interface localisation.
3. Updated fonts for themes.
4. New mobile responsive menu.
5. Mobile Preview.
6. 'Last change' widgets.
7. Upgrade to latest bootstrap to provide improved responsive websites.

Kommand's easy-to-use system means you edit, add or delete content with ease without having to worry about the technical issues of building, managing and running a modern day website. However if you are experiencing difficulties with any of our services, or the above updates, please contact our support who will be happy to help you. 

Invested in Improving our Service

We always like to hear your feedback about our updates and find out how you think we could improve our service. To speak to us please contact the Kommand team.

Or, if you haven't yet tried a Kommand site yet then you can see our tour here. 

Technology can help your SME from its inception, through the difficult establishment years to a position of stability five to ten years down the line. Harnessing technology is important and learning the right ways to utilise it in your SME business can save you money and time.

Why Is Technology Important for Your SME?

Last year there were 5.2M businesses in the UK, of which 99% were SMEs (businesses which employ 1 - 250 people). Micro-businesses are businesses which employ less than 9 people and these alone generated 33% of UK employment and 19% of turnover.

The increase in the number of start-ups has been accredited to developments in technology, one of which being the simplification of processes required to get a business started. And, with computer processing speeds doubling every 18 months, the trend is only set to continue making starting a business seem very attractive on one hand but increasingly competitive and difficult on the other.

Technology as an SME Enabler

Technology has allowed certain businesses to operate from anywhere, controlling their business over the internet without any need for office rental. The Internet has also become a useful tool for providing free marketing and advertising solutions and advice to SMEs about everything from finance to SEO. Technology has developed from being a tool that businesses simply use to perform admin functions to fully expansive business enablers. Technology is at the core of many business’s strategies; both SMEs and larger organisations.

The Introduction of the Cloud

Cloud-based technologies and services have also helped the growth of start-ups and SMEs. Cloud technologies allow SMEs to utilise similar, sometimes even the same, services as their larger competitors. This has helped to level out the playing field and in some instances has even seen SMEs gain an edge over larger, more established organisations. These technologically savvy businesses are dubbed the world’s digital natives.

Cloud technologies can help you outsource some of your business functions which will reduce your costs. Examples include online storage systems, back office solutions and social media.

Maintaining Your Competitive Edge

SMEs have the ability to adapt faster to technology advances and changes in market conditions than their larger competitors. They are not shackled with outdated practices meaning it is much easier from them to adopt the latest technologies. Furthermore, as SMEs have a smaller workforce, it is much easier to ensure all staff are understanding and coping with the new technologies quickly and efficiently.

Social Media and Your SME’s Website

Often SMEs have a lack of resources so being able to capitalise on free networks, such as social media, can help improve your small businesses’ ability to compete in your market. Social media tools can be beneficial to your business as they do not require large capital expenditure from your marketing budget. Operating social media channels for your SME can help you to build awareness, customer and client relations and can even aid your market research. Some studies have even shown that small businesses are more likely to succeed with social media channels than their ‘more powerful’ larger competitors.

Lastly, technology has opened the doors for potential brand awareness due to the ability to have a business website. These can benefit you in a number of ways, from allowing you to produce content that increases your businesses credibility to even changing the way you sell and trade via an online eCommerce website.

How Can Kommand.me Help Your Small Business?

If you have your own business and are looking for a website then the Kommand.me team can help. We have a range of mobile responsive, SEO friendly web design packages with prices starting from as little as £9 a month. See our tour for more information.

What Should Your Small Business Website Include?

Depending on the type of business you run your website may have a variety of different functions from user guides to an online shop. Your website should however have a number of fundamental elements that will help customers to understand who you are, what you offer and the message your business conveys.

Clearly Describe Your Business

When someone visits your webpage they should immediately understand what your business does. Use your homepage to clearly define the business name and sum up the products or services on offer. You should try and attract the visitor's attention immediately by showing how your business solves the problem they have been searching for. It is important to remember that whilst you know what your business does inside out, your potential customer probably will not. 

Pick a Simple Web Address

A short, simple web address will be much easier for visitors to remember and will result in less typos. Make sure to secure your domain name before you begin making your website as a change in URL can result in a loss of customers and can damage your brand image. When buying your domain name you should also look to purchase it for the long term e.g. 10 years. This can further help your SEO efforts as spam websites tend to only be registered for a year or two.

Make Your Website Responsive 

It was recently reported that more searches were carried out on mobile devices than on desktop computers. The data provided by Google shows this to be true for 10 countries including the US and Japan. This evidence proves the importance of making your website mobile responsive (easily viewed on a mobile device) to ensure you do not lose these customers.

Don't Forget Contact Information

You should ensure that your website clearly shows ways in which customers can contact you. This could be through forms on each webpage or a seperate webpage or a combination of both. Remember that each time a customer contacts you this could be a potential lead so it is important you make the process of contacting you a simple one.

Include Testimonials and Content

It is important that you build credibility into your business. One way of doing this is to include customer testimonials. Customer testimonials use one of the most influencial marketing tools - word of mouth - to promote your business. You may also look to include a review page so customers can how others experienced your product or service. Alternatively you can build credibility into your website by convincing the visitor you are an expert in your field. This could be through including accreditations or by creating content such as a blog or user-guides. Regularly updating your content will also help to improve your website's SEO (the ability to rank highly on search engines).

How Can Kommand.me Help?

Kommand offer an easy way to build, manage and promote your website. Our professional themes can be adapted to suit your business and our advanced features allow you to get on with running your business without having to worry about the technical issues of building or running a website.

We offer a FREE 30 day trial so why not try today and find out how easy it can be having a website for your business?

What Should You Include on Your Homepage?

Your homepage, like all pages on your website, should follow a number of design rules. Your logo should be clearly seen and coherent across all pages and the design, colour scheme and background should be in-keeping with the company image. You should also be aware of the size and amount of images you include. If your homepage has a lot of data to download then the page load speed will decrease and consumers may click away instead of waiting for it to load.

Other design elements that will help you to build an effective homepage include the inclusion of a search bar. If you are an eCommerce business you may also include a shopping cart symbol to show that you sell online. Your navigation bar should be clear, consistent and link to important pages such as Contact, Products or Blog.

All of these elements should be tested when building your site. To capture an audience in 2015, it is also becoming expected that your website will be mobile responsive that is, viewable on mobile devices without pinching. All of these design elements combined will help improve your user’s experience.

What Content Should You Include on Your Homepage?

As well as design details it is also important to think about your Homepage’s functionality and content. Your homepage should always include your most important content. As this is the first point of call for many users it is important that you offer the visitor something worthwhile and provide a solution to the query they had in mind when clicking on your page.

When writing the content for your homepage you should try and keep it brief and to the point. If your visitor leaves wondering why they visited your site then your website has not accomplished its purpose. You should always keep the business’s and user’s objectives in mind when putting together your Homepage. Many users will want to find out what you offer quickly. Adding links can help navigate a visitor quickly to the section they require.

It is also a good idea to update you Homepage with current content as and when it is required. Updated websites will be indexed more frequently, which will improve your SEO and will help to build consumer confidence in your brand and products.

For more information on how to create an effective About Me page click here, or if you would like to find out more about Kommand built websites then please contact us.

Creating a sound navigation and linking structure will also have a positive effect on your site’s user experience as they will easily be able to find the information they require.

How Can You Improve Your Website’s Navigation and Links?

You may find it difficult to understand how to structure your internal link flow and miss out on the improvement that this relatively minor effort will result in. However by following a few steps you can improve your site’s navigation, SEO and user experience at the same time.

Design a User-Friendly Navigation Menu

One of the most common complaints people have when visiting a website is that they cannot find what they are looking for. If your website is inefficient, badly sign-posted or complicated customers will become frustrated and will tend to click away.

To combat this, your website should include a main menu with sub-headings if they are required. Within your menu you should link to your most important pages such as Home, About and Contact to make sure users can find what they are looking for.

Create Accurate Navigation Titles and Link Titles

Visitors to your website will typically have an idea of what a page will include before they click on it. You should ensure your navigation and link titles are descriptive and not cryptic or misleading. If your website has clickable images you should change the ALT text to a description so that you users know where the image links to even if the image does not load.

Keep Your Navigation and Link Titles Consistent

Your navigation should always be consistent in both where and how it appears on your site. Doing so will help promote ease of use. If you change your navigation from page to page you visitor may lose their bearings, leading to customer frustration.

Strength in Branding

Regardless of how a visitor ends up on your website they need to know which site they are on. Using consistent branding across all your site’s pages can significantly help people do this. Consistent branding refers to more than just a logo, it means using the same fonts, colours and web design. When your site’s pages are widely different users will be confused when they navigate to a different page as to whether they are still on your website or not.

How Can Kommand Help You?

Kommand.me offers an easy, cost-effective and fast way to build your mobile-responsive website. Our user-friendly design templates can be customised to suit your business’s branding and style. We also offer a range of packages with add-ons allowing you to pay for what you need. For more information, get in touch today.

How Is Google Optimising For Mobile And Smartphone Use?

The dramatic change in online behaviour over the past 10 years from PC to mobile device is thought to have evolved from the introduction of Apple’s iPhone in 2007. Since then many technology companies such as Microsoft have faced a hit as people move away from desktop and laptop computers.

Google have since responded to the change by updating their search algorithms earlier this year. The update (known colloquially as Mobilegeddon) was introduced to boost mobile-friendly websites in search ranking result pages (SERPs) and it has spurred many businesses to update their websites and make them mobile responsive.

How Does An Increase In Mobile Searches Affect Your Ecommerce Business?

Although Google – the world’s largest search engine – has not revealed how many searches come from mobile devices it is known that they process more than 100 billion search requests each month - indicating the huge market and consumer base they cover.

If your business conducts business online or offers services specific to a location then you may benefit from adapting for mobile device use. The primary benefit of smartphones is the ability for the user to search for information on the go. And the ability for businesses to connect with prospective customers at the precise moment they are looking for a specific query is not only valuable but potentially lucrative as well.

A potential visitor to your site can search for businesses nearby, view business information, read reviews, see opening times and much more all from their handheld device. By creating a website optimised for mobile use your business can tap into this market by offering concise and useful information users require on the go.

How Can Kommand Help You?

If you are interested in enhancing your ecommerce business or wish to find out more about mobile responsive websites then Kommand can help you – to find out more contact us today.

UK small and medium businesses can unlock £18.8bn in revenues in the digital economy. Yet, UK businesses have been slow to act - only 13% of businesses with websites transact online. In the 2014 alone, the average online weekly spend was £718.7m, an increase of 12% compared with 2013. UK small businesses must fully capitalise on consumer demand as it continues exponentially. A digital skills report released by Lloyds Banking Group in partnership with digital skills charity Go ON UK has revealed about 1.2m small and medium sized businesses lack basic digital skills. About 23% of UK businesses function without a website. Their existing customers and suppliers cannot transact online. More importantly, such businesses don't have access to thousands of new customers.

UK Digital Skills Development

A quarter of all organisations believe digital technology is irrelevant to their core business, with three-quarters not investing time and money in developing digital skills such as setting up a website or switching to online banking. The UK digital charity Go ON UK runs programs to improve digital skills. The region of greatest digital development has been the north-west, up nine points against two points nationally. At the lower end of the digital adoption, is the north-east, which has in the last 12 months increased its digital maturity by eight points. The digital economy accounts for over 8% of UK GDP, yet organisations have failed to take advantage, by improving their digital skills.

Digital Adoption UK businesses and Charities

UK charities have fared even worse than businesses - 53% of UK charities operate without digital skills, with a negative impact on funding. Charities with the least developed digital skills were uncertain if websites or social media could assist in raising funds. The number of charities with basic digital skills fell by 6,000 from 45% to 42%, which showed a continuing apathy towards acquiring and improving digital skills. Within a year, 100,000 small businesses out of 5.2m have acquired basic digital skills, increasing from 75% to 77%. Although many UK businesses have established a digital presence, many are still resistant to the advantages that a website can offer.

How can Kommand.me platform help your business?

Kommand.me has been developed by the web developers and designers from the UK. The platform offers mobile responsive and SEO friendly templates that rank on the search engine giants such as Google, Bing and Yahoo. You can easily build your own website using drop and drag menu or our team can build it for you. We have a range of packages for various business needs and requirements. The prices start from as little as £9 a month to £25 a month. You are not tided into any contract and can cancel any time. The platform provides you with a a range of features and is available in 9 different languages including Chinese, Russian, Spanish and Polish.

Kommand.me offers a brilliant start-up platform for SME’s of various industries. If you are looking for a website contact our team and see how we can help you grow.

Is your website ready for Google’s algorithm updates in April?

Google has made significant new changes to their search engine algorithms last year, so adapting your SEO strategy for this year is of vital importance. Despite the advent of social media like Facebook and Google Plus, search engine optimization is still important to improve your website’s ranking. Incorporate these four SEO tips for your 2015 strategy.

1. Use Optimized Keywords.

Write content for people and not for search engines. A winning SEO strategy will incorporate keywords naturally throughout your content, title, subheadings and image alt text. Use the correct heading tags H1, H2 and H3 tags. Keywords in image alt texts and file names can lead to more linking opportunities to your website, for quicker organic growth of unbound links.

2. Improve your Website’s Loading Speed.

Improve your website’s loading speed for a higher site rankings and a better user experience. Test your site speed with Hubspot CMS Tool, Google or contact Kommand.me team for help. Your site is slowed down by client and server errors, plugins, bad coding, different size images, images with incorrect pixels, and embedded videos.

3. Shorten URLs and Keep Characters the Right Length.

Short URLs are easier to crawl - keep URLs. Keywords in your URLs help search engines to categorize your site pages. Title tags are used by search engines to display a page in search results. Include keywords in the title tags and keep them under 60 characters. Keywords should be near to the beginning of the title. A meta-description of under 156 characters or less is easier for user to read.

4. Make your Site Mobile Friendly and Switch to HTTPS.

Google has begun to move from Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP) to Hyper Text Transfer Protocol Secure HTTPS, in an effort to make websites more secure. The new protocol will also be used as a factor in searching rankings. Nearly half of the web activity is mobile based, so mobile friendly websites are likely to feature high in search engine rankings. A winning SEO strategy will ensure there are no faulty canonical links, element canonical HTTP headers, redirects, mobile-only 404s, blocked media, and slow mobile load times.

If you would like to find out more about digital marketing, website development or redesign contact Kommand.me team and see how we can help you.

If you have owned a website for quite some time you may decide to give it an overhaul and redesign it so it is more up to date, have a more modern look and is ranking higher on Google. If your website is not mobile responsive or SEO friendly you might need to rethink your digital brand strategy.

These days having an online presence provides a hub for most of your lead generation and marketing efforts. Therefore, lead generation should be at the forefront of any redesign ideas. Think about your redesign along with your goals and ask how your online presence will support these goals.

Is your website SEO friendly?

During the course of your website's lifetime you will have built up valuable assets for SEO, such as content, blogs, keywords and inbound links. It is vital to protect these during the redesign process.

It is a good practice to keep a keyword and content inventory, record your average monthly bounce rate, record the number of inbound linking domains, record the total number of pages indexed and the amount of visits/traffic/leads generated. Google Analytics will help you gather all of this information together and give you better insight into your site's performance.

What is the next stage for your website’s re-development?

Once you have done all your research and gathered together all the information you should create a website redesign plan, which will become the blueprint for your website redesign project.

This blueprint should include website navigation. Each webpage should focus on one core topic or keyword. If you map your ideas out you can generate solid site navigation that will improve your visitor user experience and reduce website's bounce rate.

After you have created a site navigation map it is well worth mocking-up each page. These wireframes are essentially the blueprints for your new site. Each page should show where the navigation, header images, content and calls-to-action will appear on the page.

Kommand.me platform offers stunning user friendly website design templates. All you need to do is choose a specific web frame for your brand and add content, logos, photos and videos. It is important to start creating content during the planning phase of the new site design. You can plug this new content directly into your wireframes. By doing this you can test the new content within the design and ensure that it fits into the user experience so visitors can flow through your new site easily.

Kommand.me is easy, cost effective and fast way to build your website and make it mobile responsive immediately. What are you waiting for? Contact us and start building your website today!

We've all seen them, websites which are so confusing we can't figure out how to navigate around them. Our eyes are scanning an overcrowded page looking for that piece of information which was promised. How long do you give yourself before you close the page? A minute? Seconds?

Well, you're not alone. Nowadays, not many people will tolerate a poorly designed, or slow, website. Instead, your potential customers want answers to their problems fast and if they can't find what they're looking for, they won't hang about. 

Stop Putting Off Potential Customers

A confusing or poorly designed website could result in you throwing potential conversions and money away. It doesn't matter how great your information or offering is, without a logical and well-presented site, your potential customers will be more likely to leave your website and, more likely to end up choosing one of your competitors.

To avoid that inevitability, let's look at the key mistakes websites make and how you can avoid them. Remember, the longer people are on your site, the more chance you have to convert them into a paying customer, either online (if you are Ecommerce) or offline.

Mistake 1: Hard to Read Font

You may have exactly the information the visitor is looking for but if they can't read it, they'll leave. Avoid this happening by selecting an easy to read font. Bear in mind that some fonts may show differently on different computer if the system hasn’t got the font installed. You should consider the importance of text colour to background. If using a light background use a dark text. If you have a dark background use a light coloured text. The size of the font needs to be easy to read.

Mistake 2: Too Many Distractions

Take an honest appraisal of your site. Is it clean cut, and streamline or is it full of blocks of ads, random photos or text? Don't allow your site to become too artsy with out of place graphics. This is your businesses presence on the web, it's a virtual business card or brochure, nothing more.
Consider the less is more approach to make it user friendly. Yes you want to show ads or items your customer would benefit from but don't bombard them with too much at one time. Giving people too much choice has proven to make it more difficult to make a decision. Keep them on your page with an easy to use design and layout. Let them get comfortable and then sell to them.

Mistake 3: Your Website Isn’t Mobile Friendly

If you analyse the data about visitors to your site, you'll know the amount of people using mobile devices, such as smartphones or tablets, is increasing rapidly. It is naïve to think that they will always revert back to a fixed location so you need to ensure your site is mobile friendly. View your site on a portable device to ensure it is as sharp and easy to use as it is on a laptop or P.C. If not it is time to make some changes.

Mistake 4: The Images on Your Website Are Poor Quality or Generic

We live in a visual society and people love websites which have high quality, preferably original images. These images need to reach out and grab your viewer and encourage them to read more and stay on your page longer.

Consider imagery in all aspects of your website. If you are going to include banners on your pages make sure they reflect your brand image, or your services.

Need Some Help Upgrading Your Website?

If you are looking to get your website up to scratch in 2016 then Kommand might be the product to help. We offer a range of packages and themes if you want to design and build your website yourself, or can build you a custom design that fits your company image for a reasonable price. For more information please contact us:

Email: support@kommand.me

Glasgow: 0141 345 2130

Middlesbrough: 01642 989 069

London: 0203 026 0730

Google often changes its algorithms and updates to ensure user friendly service for its web surfers. Now Google is releasing mobile friendly labels which will determine if the website is mobile friendly before even visiting it.

Statistics show that 72% of users say a mobile-friendly site is important to them, because it improves search results and experience. So what are the main advantages of responsive web design to your customers?

• Text is easily read.
  Content adjusts to mobile screen size.
  No horizontal scrolling or zooming.
  Links spaced for east tapping.

Improve your business and marketing techniques by handling mobile traffic in a new way. A huge proportion of traffic is coming from mobile devices so choose to improve your SEO strategy the Google way. The new update will come out on the 21st of April, so make sure your website is mobile ready before the date.

Did you know that all Kommand.me website templates are already mobile friendly? All you need to do is add your content, pictures and videos to make your website live! If you already have a website, but it is not performing well contact our team and we will help you to rebrand your business. Be Google ready and make sure your website is ranking higher than your competition.

The Way Ahead

Consistent responsive website design gives website owners and content publishers a way forward, a chance to consolidate pages and offer digital content in a new way.

Create and improve your complete mobile site. Let mobile analytics and mobile marketing be a part of your mix. Utilise responsive web design and ensure new markets are open and all opportunities for online business taken.

Mobile Marketing Is Growing

Responsive web design encourages the growth of mobile marketing. A mobile-friendly website is essential if SEO is a part of your marketing strategy.

The importance of mobile-friendly websites increases with the growth in smartphone use. Make a change, utilise specific web design expertise and adopt a mobile friendly website.

What does Google Recommend?

Google recommends adding responsive web design to your search engine optimization strategy 2015. A responsive website will provide better user experience across various screen sizes and device types.

Responsive web design allows one website to provide a great user-experience across many devices and screen sizes, and it also makes managing SEO strategy easier.

We are excited to let you all know of our recent feature updates.

These include the following

• New mobile menus that works on multi-level and look a lot slicker on phones
• Various bug fixes
• Multi Lingual admin section

We have now added one language to the admin section for Arabic and more to come, what languages should we add next?

The language should automatically change based on what your default language is for your browser to the native language of the country, but you also have a language drop down option at the top right to choose which language you want.

Give us your feedback.

What is Google+ Local?

Previously known as Google Places, Google+ Local makes it possible for offline businesses to be more prominent in local search results. Putting up a Google+ page in local search results will give a browser the information they need such as the location of a business, operating hours and contact details. Google is always about giving browsers useful information and business listings that have it go up in search rankings. If a browser is searching for a company that offers a particular kind of product or service, those that have a Google+ Local page will be in the local search listings. They will also have greater prominence in the maps shown on the right side of the page.

This is because Google knows that 40% of mobile searchers are looking for local results. Also, three out of four mobile searchers trigger follow-up actions which may be a visit to a store, more research, a phone call, an actual purchase or sharing with friends and family. Also, 55% of conversions from mobile searches happen within the hour compared to 81% of those that happen within five hours.

What are the advantages of Google+ Local?

In addition to more exposure in local listings, there are other benefits of not just having SEO content but having it on Google+ business pages. A closer look at local search results will reveal that a good number of businesses have star ratings that are given based on customer reviews. Several studies have established the positive impact that customer reviews have on conversions. One report indicated that 77% of shoppers in UK look at customer reviews before buying online. This is another great benefit of turning up on local business listings.

Another advantage of Google+ business listings is that contact details are included. When there is an address or telephone contact, browsers are more likely to visit a store, shop or make a phone call to a business, perhaps to make an inquiry. This is particularly important for mobile searchers.

Apart from SEO, including a click-to-call button and also a link to directions that goes to Google Maps on a Google+ business listing is also very effective. Research done by Google found that 42% of smartphone owners have used click-to-call to carry out research and an overwhelming 94% have needed to make a call to a business directly when searching for information, regardless of click-to-call is available or not.

Desktop users should also be taken care of by ensuring they can access more information by hovering the local listings. This includes information like opening hours, photos of the business and more customer reviews. Images are also important for persuasion so putting up a number of photos is always a good idea. Businesses selling holiday destinations and spas for instance can do a lot of selling through photos.

What is the local Google Carousel?

Google's carousel displays listings in the form of a rotating interactive tool filled with images at the top of the screen. It appears in searches for entertainment such as for bands but no business listings are being displayed in this format yet. This may possibly mean that it is currently only available for US consumers but it is expected that will be availed in other markets in the near future.

How to set up a Google+ Local listing?

Step one is creating a personal Google+ account. From the profile page, select Pages from the drop down list on the left of the screen at the top. Then, click on the button with the instruction to create a page that will be on the next screen, top right.

The following should be kept in mind when creating a Google+ listing;

• Give as much information as possible or you will not see results.
  Pay attention to keywords when creating your SEO content.
  The 200 word description should be relevant.
  Include images to support your text; they will make a big difference.
  If you have more than one business location, include all of them. Set up a different Google+ Local Page for each one so that people in different locations doing local searches can find them. 

Good luck and enjoy!

Are you satisfied with your website's performance? 

The internet is everywhere, from your laptop, to your smartphone, and even your television, internet access is becoming bigger than ever before. National statistics demonstrate that 38 million adults in the UK had internet access in 2014 which is a significant growth from 2006 when 14.26 million used the internet.

In today's world, more people than ever have their own website, whether they have a personal blog, a website for their business, or even something to talk about their hobbies. We will examine a few ways how to help attract more visitors to your website, how to encourage to view more than just the home page, and how to encourage visitors to return to your website.

Why does content on your website matter?

Web developers work hard to maximise the load times of your website and improve SEO, and that is because visitors are generally impatient. If the purpose of your website is not readily obvious within a few seconds, or if the page takes more than a few seconds to load, then chances are that the visitor will 'bounce', which is the technical term meaning the visitors leaves your site without looking at any other page.

Which techniques can help to increase conversion rates?

Think of when you visit a website, only a small portion of it is visible until you scroll down. This visible portion is a prime real estate space, and a few simple modifications can help draw in your visitors and encourage them to stick around.

Kommand.me offers brilliant website templates that are SEO and user friendly. If you are looking to improve your website’s conversion rates and general performance try out Kommand.me platform and watch your website’s traffic grow.

Good use of SEO, or search engine optimisation, is the driving force behind any good websites, and there are even companies springing up everywhere to offer that service. The truth is, SEO is fairly simple, but it is time consuming and can only get you so far. Proper use of HTML tags in a hierarchical manner, as well as using meta-tags, meta-descriptions and sitemaps can help Google boost your website. But bear in mind, good SEO alone won't get you to Google's number one spot.

The name of your business or the purpose of your website should be visible within the 'real estate' space. Try not to make it too abstract, keep it simple. If your visitors have to spend ages looking through your website to see what you have to offer, then you have to re-evaluate your message.

Good copywriting will help you get your point across more succinctly, not only that, but good copywriting on your website will be full of keywords to help you out with your SEO.

What about link building and social media?

Network and get your website out there and become visible. If you can get people talking about your website, great. The more relevant backlinks you get (having your website linked on other websites) the better, as you have more of a web presence, which will again help you with your search engine rankings.

Social media is getting bigger. If you offer a service or a product, getting the word out on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+ or Pinterest will help you become more visible to potential customers and partners.

How to Find the Most Popular Keywords?

Determine the top five keywords your potential customers are likely to use when searching for your product or service. Find at least five words that best describe the domain and then create combinations. Place descriptive words in pairs or add suffixes and prefixes to create a descriptive domain name that best suits your business. You can use Google AdWords Planner to determine the most popular and powerful keywords for your business industry.

Is Your Domain Name Original and Unique?

Do several searches to ensure that your chosen domain name is innovative and unique but still describes your product or service. You don't want your site to be confused with a competitor's website. Avoid replicating domain names with alternate spellings, plurals or hyphenated versions of existing domain names of companies selling the same products. Your customers could be led to their website instead of yours.

Why Choose Dot-Com?

Opt for a .com domain name rather than a .net or .org website name. This is important over the long term if you want to drive traffic, build your brand or ensure name recognition.

Keep it Short and Easy to Remember

Opt for a domain name that is easy to recall, even when it's not at hand, easy to search for and easy to type. Avoid alternative spellings of common words.

What does it Say?

When reading or hearing your domain name it should be possible to guess what your business sells or the service it provides. It's important to ensure that your domain name is as descriptive as possible. Names like Autotrader, Hotmail and WebMD are perfect examples of this. Ensure that you're not violating another company's copyright with your domain name.

Kommand.me team can help you to select a powerful domain name and assist you in obtaining it.

Contact us today and find out more.

When an online business or website is just starting out it can be all too easy to forget about the most important features. Sure design and usability are important, but they don't count for much if no one is visiting your website. So how can you change this? The simple answer lies within the details of search engine optimization techniques (SEO).

Why SEO is so important for your website’s rankings?

SEO, or search engine optimisation, is an absolute essential for all online businesses and websites. It is the vital factor in attempting to make a site stand out from similarly configured or rival operations. Local businesses could start off with a look at the services of Yellow Pages or Yelp which can place greater prominence to local maps and services items on Google. This can often work in a business's favour as the local map listings can often appear above searches for websites.

What are the essentials of search engine optimization?

Most people access their websites through one of the major search engines such as Google, Yahoo or Bing. For a company to edge into a greater market share it should always be looking to improve its placing in a search engine's results. The logical configuration of key words in copy and content is a great way to do this.

Why should you be generating the most effective content?

To put it simply, content is all important. Producing items that appear above or at the top of traditional listings should be the goal of all marketing strategists on your watch. Along with a careful look at maps and directories, local businesses should set about placing these keywords into the essential elements of all copy and business descriptions that appear online. In addition, the content of your website should be written in the Hummingbird style.

What is the role of social media and online reviews?

SEO strategy and keyword organisation can also apply beyond your main website and map resources to include social media applications. Social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus and LinkedIn have tremendous value in connecting businesses and their clients.

A careful strategy of including keyword elements into social media applications and all posts from company accounts can help to boost search engine rankings. Not only that, but it will help to keep the company image and message consistent. With the development of all of these resources your company's reach will continue to grow.

Why does your business need a website?

Despite these figures many small businesses in the UK are yet to adjust their strategies in order to retain and improve these impressive growth rates. According to research findings published in the Guardian, 60% of small business in the UK do not have any online presence. The main reason for this is that a lot of small business owners see their businesses at an offline entity and thus stick to conventional marketing and promotion methods. This is a very risky strategy to take as more and more people are doing their shopping for all kinds of items online. No matter how well established a business is in terms of a customer base, online presence is becoming increasingly important.

What are the advantages of having a website?

There are several advantages of online presence. One is that a business remains accessible to existing and potential clients 24/7. Business that offer online shopping never close down. Customers are online way before stores open and after they close and aligning marketing and sales strategies with this reality makes a big difference to the bottom line. When customer's mind is not yet made up about a purchase, the information they find online may sway them towards putting an item in the cart.

Online presence also makes it possible for a business to create strong local presence. This is especially true for small businesses that rely on locals who buy from their shops. Such businesses mostly rely on word-of-mouth marketing for new or repeat customers. However, businesses that wish to launch out beyond local borders can use online presence to do so. Consumers tend to search for various products and services on search engines rather than walking around the town, so getting a brochure website might be a great strategic move if you would like to target wider customer base.

In addition to having a website, a small business can also make sure they are seen on local directories and other platforms that locals would go to search for particular businesses, products and shop locations. Businesses can also network with others for the mutual benefit of both.

How social media can help to promote your business?

Online presence also offers the advantage of sharing tools to promote themselves extensively. All social media tools have share buttons that make it possible to share information and products at the click of a button.

When you create a website with Kommand.me you can easily share the content from your website on social media such as Facebook, Twitter and Google+. This can do a lot for a local business as people generally tend to trust information from a friend or relative. A business can also use social media to get feedback about their products and services. This helps to improve the quality of their products or services and grow the business. It’s also easy to handle complains immediately and demonstrate that they care about the welfare of their customers.

How can we help you?

In conclusion, big impact cannot be achieved only through big budget marketing. Online presence is very affordable and easy to maintain. For example, Kommand.me offers SEO and user friendly websites from as little as £9 a month. We have designed a number of professional websites for a variety of businesses in UK including hotels, restaurants, health services, dental companies, hairdressers and cake bakers.

We really enjoy working with entrepreneurs from around the country and being able to help them achieve their business goals.

If you have a business or just a business idea contact our team and see how we can help you grow your business online.