Category: Uncategorized

Shoppable Posts in 2021

We’re all glued to our phones, scrolling through social media, checking out the latest Instagram posts. It’s no secret capitalizing on social media has an enormous impact on businesses, and with Instagram’s new shoppable post feature, this is all the more true. They have made it easy for customers to shop for their favorite brands, all from one app. Shoppable posts have endless benefits for brands, influencers, and consumers as well, and here’s how your business can capitalize on this feature.

For Brands

If you’re a brand in 2021, you better have a killer social media presence. Not only for brand awareness but for sales! Your followers can now buy your products directly on Instagram. Your brand can list their products in the “IG Shop,” and users can then check it out in the shop or navigate your brand’s website to finish their transaction. For brands, this means each post has a much higher chance of leading to a sale.

Once an item has been added to a user’s cart, Instagram will even send them reminders to finish their purchase. This helps with conversion rates and creates a seamless shopping experience. Users can also save items to their wishlist for purchases at a later date. As a brand, you can also tag products in your in-feed posts. They’re marked with a shopping bag logo in the top right-hand corner of the post. When the tag is clicked on, it takes the user directly to the product featured in the post.

The Downside

There are some downsides for brands. Instagram charges a transaction fee of 5% per shipment or $0.40 per order. All customer communications and data are kept by Instagram. Brands do not have access to it. Instagram is a business, after all. The app has created a way for brands, influencers, and Instagram to make a buck off your scrolling habits. 

Influencers

We’ve preached before about the value of influencers in a previous blog post, and we all know social media influencers can be very powerful. Influencers can now create shoppable posts themselves. When an influencer makes an in-feed post, they can tag the brand featured. When users click on the “paid partnership” disclaimer, they will be taken to said brand’s Instagram page. The brand will even be able to see the metrics and insights from the influencer’s post.

Collaborating with influencers produces content for the brand and increases the likelihood of a post showing up on the discovery page. Influencers can now even tag brands in stories, posts, and reels. Making this user-generated content valuable to businesses and sometimes reposted to their social media accounts. 

Need some help?

When curating your social media strategy, make sure your brand uses social media to the fullest extent. Features like shoppable posts are a great way to engage your customers in a familiar space on a platform they already use.

Read more about shoppable posts via this step-by-step guide to shoppable posts, or contact us here at James Ross if you’re looking for a social media marketing agency to help elevate your online presence and incorporate this absolutely required tool into your business’s social media strategy.

Voice Commerce: A New Frontier

“Hey, Google!” “Hey, Alexa!” Whether you have one or not, you’ve probably heard someone using one of these virtual assistants. From asking Alexa for the weather forecast to adding things to a virtual grocery list to buying more coffee pods as soon as you see that your stock is low, this new frontier of buying products has been coined Voice Commerce. It is the hands-free way for customers to order from your business with simple sentences starting along the lines of “Hey Alexa….”

The question now is how to optimize your business for voice commerce. Keep reading and we’ve got you covered. 

If you want to check out current trends in Ecommerce in general, check out a blog we previously wrote here.

Where to start

This may be common sense in 2021, but you must have a fully functioning eCommerce website. Without a website that Google’s AI can crawl, read and analyze, it will not be able to gather data about your business and suggest it to voice commerce users.

Understanding where to look

According to Shopify, currently, Amazon Alexa users can only shop from Amazon, while Google Home users have some more options like Ulta, Walmart, Target, and Walgreens. So you might be thinking: What does this have to do with me and my business? Voice technology is proving itself to be a growing technology, not just a fad. Thus, it’s likely these virtual assistants will be opening their doors to smaller eCommerce businesses as well.

Another thing to look out for is the demographics of voice commerce users. In a 2019 article, it’s been cited that more men use smart speaker shopping. This is an important indicator as to which part of your audience you will be catering to when optimizing your business for voice commerce.

SEO

While SEO is well known in digital marketing, voice commerce works a bit differently. In a Google search, you might type something like “work boots,” and you get a result page with recommendations of stores offering said item. With voice searches, someone will say something more like, “Hey Alexa…where can I buy work boots near me?” Very different.

While AI is always evolving to better understand how we speak, we as business owners need to do our part with keywords and phrases. 

Optimizing your SEO for voice commands is one of the most important things you can do. Sellbrite.com suggests that for voice commerce optimization, use long-tail keywords. If you don’t know what those are, they’re keywords that are a bit longer, more specific, and mostly focus on niches. An example of this is something like “how to advertise your website.” Using these longer keywords can hit more phrases in the way people speak to their voice assistant.

The future of shopping

While voice commerce might not be something your business can get its hands on just yet, staying ahead of the competition is something a good entrepreneur always considers. Optimizing your business for voice commerce will help you stay on top of the game, and optimize your business for SEO in general- you’ve got nothing to lose, and everything to gain!

Contact us here at James Ross Advertising so we can help you stay ahead of the game!

Why a Good Website Matters

There are more than 1.83 billion websites on the internet, and in a world of 5G and fiber optics, consumers feel they shouldn’t have to wait for websites to load. If it happens, they could take their clicks, shares, and money elsewhere. Here, we’ll talk about some numbers, and a few important things to help you retain your visitors.

Importance of a good website

There’s nothing more important in the age of the world wide web than a company website. With 4.7+ billion internet users, eCommerce sales are expected to be about $5 trillion in 2021. According to Sweor, you have about .05 seconds for users to form an opinion about your website. That’s 50 milliseconds for users to determine if they like it and stay, or bounce back to the search page. So, suffice to say it, but a visually functioning and attractive website design matters.

The facts

Hubspot reports that 38% of people will stop engaging with a website if the layout/content is unattractive, or if images won’t/take too long to load. Sweor also reports that 47% of users expect a maximum 2 second loading time for the average website. 

With the mass amount of information floating out in the world, and the acceleration of technology, users have high expectations about company websites and if you fail to meet those expectations, they’ll head back to the search results to find one that works for them.

Some must have Back End Features

CMS Tool

Short for a Content Management System, this helps with organization of all the content on your website. Things such as seasonal posts can be taken down, stored, and modified to reuse the next year. A good example of this would be WordPress.

Content Descriptions

Don’t overlook things like meta descriptions and titles! These helps improve your SEO, with the adding of certain words helps your website appear more frequently in certain searches. Particularly the meta titles. As these define what the page is that the user is about to click on, they’re a slight bit more important when it comes to rankings.

HTML 5

Hypertext Markup Language is the code that describes webpages. HTML5, released in 2014, gives you the ability to do most everything without those pesky plugins. According to techradar.com, you’re able to have animation to videos and everything in between, on your website. All the big browsers such as Chrome and Safari all support this code. For a good comparison of HTML and HTML 5, check out here.

Mobile optimization

Sweor reports that 85% of adults think the mobile version of a company website should be as good if not better than desktop, and socPub reports 57% of users won’t recommend a business with a poorly designed mobile website. It’s not enough nowadays to just focus on desktop design. Be sure to test your website on mobile and tablet platforms to make sure the layout and load speed are optimized.
For more information on mobile optimization, check out our previous blog here

Create one now

eCommerce websites are quickly outnumbering brick and mortar stores. Companies can access consumers from all over the world, and henceforth have to compete for attention spans from all over the world. Consider it a pivotal part of your digital marketing plan. Without a good website design, people won’t remember or connect with your company. They’ll click right out of there, and that’s not what you want. Make sure to make your website intriguing, creative, and in tune with your brand identity.

Reach out to us today for all of your digital marketing and website needs!

10 E-Commerce Trends for 2021

2020 threw us a curveball. To stay relevant in this ever-changing marketplace, retailers need to adapt to the latest eCommerce trends. Just as COVID-19 changed the way many people shop, it has also driven innovation in the eCommerce industry.

According to Shopify, eCommerce sales are at an all-time high after the pandemic accelerated years of growth in just weeks. Also, it’s estimated that the eCommerce industry saw ten years of growth in the span of 3 months due to pandemic-related changes in customer lifestyle and needs.

The pandemic exposed the extensive capabilities of online retailers, and as a result, customer expectations are higher. Now that consumers have experienced the ease and immediacy of eCommerce, they will expect nothing less. While we can’t predict precisely what the post-pandemic world will look like, there are some emerging trends in eCommerce to look out for. 

Here are 10 e-commerce trends to keep an eye on in 2021:

1. AR & AI

Augmented Reality

AR gives customers a chance to interact with a product from the comfort of their homes. With the power of Augmented reality, brands like Ikea allows customers to see what furniture will look like in their homes before purchasing. By 2020, 100 million consumers will shop in AR online and in-store, according to Gartner, Inc.

Artificial Intelligence

AI tunes into customer preferences to offer a customized shopping experience. Using an influx of data, shops can cater the shopping experience to each customer’s preferences and tastes. Personalized experiences add a “human” touch to an otherwise completely digital experience.

2. Shoppable Posts

Many online retailers have opted to create shoppable posts for social media. Apps like Instagram make it easy for customers to shop a store’s products by simply scrolling through their Instagram feed. Brands can tag products in posts for a smooth shopping experience.

In addition, Instagram has even added an Instagram shop, where users can shop a curated selection of products from the brand’s profile. Users can also add items to their cart and checkout all within the Instagram app. Furthermore, when brands hire influencers, they too can tag a brand’s products in their posts. This allows the influencer’s followers to shop directly from their post rather than the brand itself.

3. Sustainability

In addition to improving the virtual experience, sustainability and environmentally conscious business practices are essential to many consumers. More people are beginning to care about the environmental impact of the products they consume. Whether it’s recyclable packaging or production that uses less water, customers want to know that companies care about their footprint. According to Nostos.com, “32% of consumers would pay more for a product from a brand that they believe is committed to sustainability,” and “75% of environmentally-conscious consumers want brands to reduce the amount of packaging they use”. Consumers want to buy from brands with transparency and sustainability in mind.

4. Payment Options

Flexible payment options have become a norm in eCommerce website design.  Services like Afterpay, Later, Klarna, and Affrim allow customers to get the item now and pay in installments. In a culture that thrives on experience, these services enable customers to enjoy products now and pay later.  Other payment options include Apple Pay & Google Pay which allow customers to save a virtual version of their payment card to their phones and use it during the checkout process. This additional feature allows for a seamless checkout process for on-the-go shoppers. Applications like Venmo and CashApp give consumers easy ways to send and receive money from their friends and family. These apps have become increasingly popular, and some have integrated them as payment options in their eCommerce website designs. 

5. Subscription Services

The subscription and auto-ship services bring products to consumers’ front doors regularly without the hassle of constant ordering.  Some subscription boxes and services offer a culmination of curated products, such as themed boxes from Bespoke or a unique collection of products from Ipsy.

Autoship features allow customers to check out once and receive a constant stream of products. Items are then shipped monthly, quarterly, or bi-annually depending on the product or customer preference. Intuitive features for subscription services like community chat rooms or even text reminders on your order are becoming increasingly popular in eCommerce website design. Probiotic brand, Olipop, sends subscribers a text at the beginning of the month where customers can pause, modify, or cancel their monthly subscription via text. In a world of uncertainty, many customers flock to the ease and convenience of subscription-based products.

6. Chatbots

People want answers now. Many brands have integrated a pop up-chatbot feature in their eCommerce website designs. After giving the bot a clever name, this bot can answer customer questions in real-time.

7. New E-commerce Products

COVID-19 opened up an entirely new market for eCommerce within grocery stores. Grocery providers have found innovative ways to reach their customers, as people began to buy things online that they’ve never bought before.

Major grocery chains have created contactless delivery, curbside pickup, and new apps to create a seamless shopping experience. Consumer packaged goods brands now have to create an easy shopping experience both in-store and online. Some consumers use third-party services like Instacart and Shipt to deliver packages to their doorsteps. Others can buy their groceries via the grocery store’s website or app and pick up their items later in the store.

8. Automated Shipping

With an influx of online orders, many retailers turned to automated shipping to keep up with high demand. Third-party logistics companies like Shipmonk work with eCommerce brands to simplify and quicken the logistics process. Some brands use software that syncs inventory with warehouse computers, while others use robotics that can pick, pack, and ship products as soon as the customer clicks “Place My Order.”

9. Fast and Easy Mobile Sites

In an age of immediacy,  people want things fast and easy. To keep up with the ever-changing market, company websites need to be easy to navigate with a clear menu, legible font, and quick load time. Google released a report that over 53% of mobile users will leave a site if it takes longer than 3 seconds to load.  Check out our previous blog post to learn more about how to optimize your mobile site.

10. Innovative Packaging

When the cardboard boxes start piling up at your doorstep, it’s nice to receive something different. Many brands have begun using innovative packaging to enhance user experience. From shipping boxes personalized with your name to signature color poly-mailers, companies have innovative ways to brand every aspect of the user experience.

Challenges faced in 2020 means innovation in 2021. We were forced to adapt, and most companies changed for the better. It will be challenging to know what will happen to eCommerce after the next major world event, but we do know that eCommerce can adapt and meet the needs of customers, no matter the circumstances.

Contact us here at James Ross Advertising to help ensure your business is staying up-to-date on the latest eCommerce innovations.

The Power of the Influencer

If you’re on any social media platform, you’ve more than likely heard the term “influencer”
mentioned, but you may not be sure what it means. And what does an influencer have to do
with social media marketing? Quite a bit as it turns out.

So, what is “Influencer Advertising”?

Basically, it’s a person that has accumulated a large social media following by posting content
that appeals to a specific audience, area of interest, or topic. Some have a great deal of
knowledge in their field, and some are just purely entertainers; nonetheless, they have a
powerful influence on their followers. Forming strong bonds with their followers, social
influencers typically have thousands (even millions) of followers who listen to their
recommendations on anything from what shave cream to use to the fashion designers and lipstick they
wear. The emotional bond between influencer and follower is more that of friend or peer; therefore, their opinion is highly regarded.

In short, influencers have the power to influence the buying habits of their followers and are
seen as mitigating the growing tendency of customers to ignore more traditional forms of marketing.

Keep in mind, influencers are not limited to the B2C arena; there are countless B2B influencers
as well.

What does it mean to marketers and brands?

Influencer Advertising is simply another form of social media marketing. Brands enroll the help
of influencers that have a strong following, large audience, and credibility to discuss, feature or
endorse products in their social media posts. As a peer-to-peer form of communication, it can
be pretty persuasive.

Frequently influencers can be seen as trendsetters or early adopters, significantly enhancing
their ability to influence followers

Brands reach a large audience base by using the influencer’s reputation and followers to
increase sales and brand awareness. Working with an influencer can have a significant effect
on a brand’s public perception. What’s impressive is that this type of advertising can wear
multiple hats.

It can take the form of an endorsement or sponsored post, a review by the influencer, or a
collaboration with the influencer. You could partner with an influencer to offer a discount or
affiliate code (use “Codexxx” for 10% off) or like competitions/giveaways where brands team up
with influencers to give away their products to the influencer’s followers. This is done via the
influencer creating a post about the giveaway, mentioning the brand sponsoring it, and providing
guidelines such as: “Like this post, follow me and @saidbrand, tag three of your friends in the
comments, share/ share to story.” The key here is engagement, as all of the participants in this
giveaway drive awareness to the brand and influencer—a win-win situation.

Nothing is free- the cost

Most influencers are paid before the campaign starts. Some smaller, less known, micro-
influencers may accept free products or services from you. There is no established fee
structure, and costs will vary based on your budget and the perceived value of the influencer.
Influencers with large followings can fetch as much as six-figure fees.

Due diligence before choosing an Influencer

The key is to find an influencer with followers that most aligns with your brand’s core customers.
If your customer is young women age 25-35, you’ll look for an influencer that holds sway over
that demographic.

Secondly, be sure the influencer is compatible with your brand’s beliefs and values.
Matching your influencer with your brand’s purpose and goals is critical. Poor compatibility can
send the wrong message to consumers.

Look for one that personifies your brand, feels authentic and has a good rapport with followers.
Choose an influencer that is established and has been around for a while. Check their
reputation in depth by going back and researching their past posts. Google them to get more
backstory. The last thing you want is to find out is that they’ve said something controversial in
the past that could damage your brand’s reputation.

So, what’s the verdict?

According to MediaKix, influencer marketing on Instagram is a billion dollar market in the US alone and poised to become a $5-10 billion market globally in a few years. So, it’s here to stay for the foreseeable future

In summary, influencer marketing could be a home run for your brand, or just a small complement to your marketing efforts. It’s a personal choice as to how it fits into your brand’s strategy and budget. But consider – if you’re not doing it, is your competitor?

Is this the strategy for you?

At James Ross Advertising Agency, we can help you create, tailor, and optimize an influencer campaign to meet your brand’s goals. Reach us here to help you with all of your social media marketing needs!

Unboxing an Experience

For most of us, unboxing is opening a package and just that. We don’t think about the subconscious effects the product packaging has on us. 

As an entrepreneur, and especially one in e-commerce, packaging design is a crucial part of the buyer’s experience. It’s not just opening a package. It is an experience. They’re unboxing your brand’s identity and why they’re going to want to shop with you again. Here we’ll touch on a few unboxing secrets, how to give the best user experience once the package reaches the customer’s hands, and give a few examples of companies that are doing it right.

1. Tell a story

Think of your packaging as the home run, the last hoorah, and your final attempt to make a good impression. You want to leverage this phase of the buying process with your packaging design to ensure your customers know who you are and why they should shop with you again. A simple poly mailer or cardboard box isn’t going to cut it anymore. Here’s an example of a brand that tells a great brand story with each package:

Wild

Wild is a deodorant brand that prides itself in being sustainable, aluminum, and cruelty-free. Their message is clear from their packaging design: good for your skin and good for the environment. How is Wild doing this? 

• Simple statement of brand mission: “single-use plastic, aluminum, and cruelty-free” 
• Brief and clear directions
• Includes social media handle and hashtag to encourage sharing
• Functional yet sustainable product packaging that uses brand colors

2. Be responsible

It’s not enough to just put it in a pretty box; your product packaging must be sustainable. There’s no question; your consumer values sustainibilty and people will criticize brands that fail to be responsible for their environmental impacts. Here’s an example of a brand that gets its message across and uses sustainable packaging:

Pods and Parcel

This e-commerce company based in Australia sells high-quality Nespresso compatible coffee pods that pride themselves on being sustainable. Their brand story is as simple and effective as their packaging. Most importantly, it is sustainable, as noted on their box and inner packaging for each pod container; it is biodegradable and compostable.

3. The Importance of Integrity

It should go without saying that your product should show up to the customer’s house in one piece. No flaws, incorrect products in order, damaged packaging, etc. This is because 83% of people simply won’t go through the trouble of returning a product, especially if your returns process is complex. You’re then left with an unhappy customer who won’t repurchase and might even share their experience with friends and or social media. So how can you avoid this? Investing in a good customer and fulfillment service can be a game-changer in improving the quality of your shopping experience in terms of ensuring the careful and correct packaging of orders. In addition, investing in packaging for not only the shipping process but the product itself is important. An example of a company that does a great job of this is:

Seed

Seed is a premium probiotic company that sells its pills in a glass jar container and, not to mention, the shipping packaging is completely biodegradable. The icing on the cake? Their refills come in biodegradable packaging that the customer then uses to restock their glass jars. Clearly, we give an A+ to Seed. Their product packaging has integrity, provides an exciting unboxing experience, and aligns with their branding message.

Are you ready to take your product packaging to the next level? Contact us here at James Ross Advertising, and we’ll make sure your packaging design and messaging keep your customers coming back for more.

Read more about sustainable packaging alternatives here.

What Does 5G Mean for Website Design?

Soon after the release of the new iPhones with 5G, the talk of the tech town is all about the fifth-generation technology. The excitement surrounds the high-speed and high-capacity connectivity network that delivers reduced latency, and improved connections.

 So, in other words, it’s crazy fast. 

However, 5G is still in its infancy and is only accessible at high-density event centers. The good news is specialists predict that by 2025 5G will be available in 1.4 billion devices worldwide. Not only is 5G set to have an impact on mobile web browsing, but these changes in mobile connectivity will also have a deep and lasting impact on the way we design and develop our websites. It’s in the web design realm that we explore the capabilities of this new network. But before diving into the changes that 5G will bring to the table, let’s understand a little more about the technology. 

Why is 5G a step forward?

As online entertainment streaming services increase, existing spectrum bands (4G LTE, 4G, etc.) are getting more and more jammed. People are struggling to get the connectivity that they need. 

5G was created to handle the expanding volume of data in this modern environment. It promises a quicker transfer of information, faster download speeds, more steady connections, and wider coverage. Compared to 4G, 5G can deliver speeds 10 to 20 times faster. This allows users to load big pages, files, images, videos, etc. in a fraction of a second.

But it isn’t all just about speed. 

One of the most significant benefits of this new technology is that it can offer substantially reduced latency. That means the total time it takes for your device to communicate with the internet will be a lot less. This is especially important for content-rich websites that would otherwise require either an extremely fast connection or lots of time to load.

So, as you can see, 5G is a big step forward. But what does this mean for you and your business?

How can your business benefit from 5G?

The key lies in the lower latency we talked about earlier. 

Loading speeds have been a big part of the user experience and SEO of a website. We are restricted to designing and developing sites with pages that load quickly, given an average network speed. A network like 5G allows us to significantly increase the amount of content on a website without any effect on its load performance. And we are not talking about just heavy images either. UX and web designers can now experiment with 4K videos, virtual and augmented reality, and hyper-realistic 3D content. 

This can be a game-changer for your business.

Beautiful, content-rich websites can, and most likely will, attract more consumers and build a better, more attractive brand experience. 

We are very excited about this new technology and are already finding ways to apply this to our partners in the future so they can level-up their brand and business. 

Things to consider…

Sadly, 5G won’t be available for a big part of the world population for years to come. Currently, many countries are only now starting to experience 3G.  Still, in terms of innovation, the network arrival is something to celebrate. 

Progressive Web Apps: Why You Should Invest

Nowadays, everything can get done through a phone. People invest less money on laptops and desktops and instead funneling that money into the devices they can carry in their pockets. During the second half of 2020, mobile users accounted for more than half of the web traffic worldwide. This number only tends to rise. In fact, it is projected that by the year 2025, 72% of people will use only mobile devices for accessing the internet. 

For you, if you own a business, this means that your website must be easily accessible to these mobile users, which means a decreased loading time, seamless user experience.

That’s when Progressive Web Apps come into play. 

What is a PWA?

A PWA (Progressive Web App) is a substitute for a regular native app (the ones that you can find in the AppStore or Google Play) and a fraction of the price. The main goal of Progressive Web Applications is to offer a user mobile experience similar to the native app, with key native features like:

• Push notifications

• Accessing the app offline

• Installing the app on the mobile home screen

How PWAs affect your business?

In order to compete in the market, businesses have now, more than ever, the need to stay up-to-date with the latest technologies. That is because, in order to generate profit, you need to be in the same spaces as your customers. On top of that, you must provide a seamless user experience in those spaces in order to engage your customers through your sales funnel.

“68% of businesses that build mobile-first websites reported increased sales.”

Econsultancy

Because more than 50% of web traffic comes from mobile devices, a company that deploys the use of a PWA will always be able to reach more customers. Here’s how:

• They work seamlessly on any mobile device. Independent of operating system or version since they do not rely on an app store. 

• Content is more easily manageable. Sending out updates to users is a lot easier through a PWA than through a native app – it can be done with the click of a button. 

• App is searchable. Contrary to native apps, Google can index PWAs’ content, and therefore, contribute to Search Engine Optimization. This is a big plus since SEO has become more and more crucial for businesses and more competitive subsequently. 

• It is cost-effective. PWAs cost a fraction of the price compared to native apps. That is because they take less time to develop and they only need to be built once – compared to native apps that require development for every platform they will be run on.

Fortune 500 companies such as Facebook, Google, Uber, Twitter, and many others have seen this trend coming long ago and started implementing PWAs since then. Twitter is one of the biggest PWA success stories. They needed an app that worked on every device, loaded quickly, and gave their users the experience they were used to. Here are the results Twitter had with the release of Twitter Lite (their PWA):

Things to consider

If you want to increase your sales, generate more web traffic, reach more customers, and create brand advocates, PWAs are a great way to do so. They are the future of web development and can bring big results to your business for a lot less money than a native app. 

Is it time to invest in a website redesign?

Website technology is constantly evolving, and it will keep evolving for the foreseeable future. However, keeping up with these latest trends is just not realistic, and sometimes, it could result in a massive loss of cash. But figuring out what’s amiss with your site can be a difficult task, especially when you don’t even know where to start. 

The good news is, you’re not alone. 

This is a modern-day problem that every company eventually encounters. A study published by a multimillion-dollar tech-firm, Bazaarvoice, showed that 82% of users consult the internet on purchases they are about to make both online and in-store. Even if your company sells services or products strictly in a brick and mortar store, you need to have a good website, or else you risk losing potential customers.

So how do you know it’s time for an upgrade? Well, when your 5-year-old desktop takes 10 minutes to start-up, while the fan is going haywire, obviously, it’s time to upgrade it. But how do you address a problem that’s not so obvious, like your website’s performance?

It is difficult to tell when your website needs a new face because it’s not always down to the technology, but how it all aligns with where your brand is today. In this post, we’ll be talking about the former and what you can do to figure out if the technology driving your website needs a little improvement. 

Responsiveness 

A website’s responsiveness is its ability to scale and “respond” to different screen sizes and devices. Pixel screen size, resolution, web-browser compatibility, operating systems, and the user’s device are all factors that affect your website’s responsiveness. 

70% of the total digital media time in the US is spent on smartphones (Comscore, 2019), and more than 80% of shoppers used a mobile phone inside of a physical store to either look up product reviews, compare prices, or find alternative store locations (AdWeek). That’s a big part of your clientele that will look you up on a mobile device and, ideally, you want every experience your customers have with your company to be a good one. 

Next time you’re on your computer, check the responsiveness of your website by resizing the window of your browser and ask yourself: 

There are many more things to check when testing for this. But if there are any obvious issues, maybe it’s time for an upgrade. 

Optimization

No one likes a slow website. But don’t take our word for it. Take Google’s. 

According to them, any given page on your site should load in less than 2 seconds. Any longer, and the risk of losing your customer increases by 50% every second after that. 

The tricky thing about site speed is that Google doesn’t have a straightforward definition for it. But to sum it up, your website should not only be fast, but it should also feel fast. 

Did the navigation start properly?

How long until the user sees something? How long until they can interact?

Can the user interact if the page is not finished loading?

Do the interactions feel smooth and natural? Or do they feel buggy and clunky?

Google takes all of this and much more into account to determine how well your website performs, and luckily, they have free tools to test your site. 

Click here to run a Google Audit on your website.

User Experience

So you’ve checked your site’s responsiveness and page speed, and they’re both pretty good. The next thing to check, and arguably most important, is the User Experience of your website. 

We understand that User Experience, or UX, can be a bit complicated to articulate. To put it simply, it’s how a user feels when they navigate through your site. The result of every single element and aspect of your site. Anything from performance and security, to flow and accessibility, to branding and design.

So why should you invest money in a good UX for your site? Because bad UX may be costing you more. 

Research shows that companies lose $62 billion every year due to poor UX, and 91% of frustrated users just leave, and 13% of them tell 15 more people about their bad experience. 

Not only are you losing the customer that’s already on your site, but also the ones that haven’t even visited yet. 

Did you know?

Jeff Bezos invested 100X more into customer experience than advertising during the first year of Amazon. 

Finding the root cause of a faulty UX can sometimes mean extensive market research, A/B testing, user testing, etc. But a very easy and free way to test your site’s UX is to go through and navigate your site and ask yourself:

How easily can users access my products or services? Can it be even easier?

How many steps do they have to go through to get where I want them to? What may stop them?

Is the call-to-action clear and visible? Does it make sense?

Is the purpose of my product or service clear? Can it be even more clear?

Ask your friends, family members, employees, or even your own customers, if possible, to take a look. They can provide insight that may be crucial in leveling up your company. 

Things to consider…

There are plenty of other factors that come into this equation, like the website’s visual appeal, security, accessibility. Well-maintained websites tend to have a longer life-span than a site that goes through a long time without maintenance. Nonetheless, sometimes, you just need an upgrade. 

5 Eco-Friendly Packaging Alternatives

It’s no secret that the world is changing faster than it ever has. The acceleration in production and light-speed dissemination of information has raised a need for sustainable options in a world that doesn’t have the structure to sustain our fast-paced life. 

Whether you like it or not, your business is part of society and may need to adjust to societal needs. During the Great Pandemic, online shopping has nearly doubled and raised a demand for packaging needs. So, is it worth it to your business to streamline its packaging needs and strategy with eco-friendly and sustainable practices?

Our answer is yes. 

A Harvard Business Review shows that “In more than 90% of the CPG categories, sustainability-marketed products grew faster than their conventional counterparts.” This preference comes from the consumer preference of choosing brands that align with their support to the environment. Therefore, when using eco-friendly packaging, your business might favor itself by positioning it as a sustainable company. 

Nonetheless, there is a perception that this type of packaging will be more costly than conventional packaging. But that is not always the case. Recycled packaging tends to be lighter and might outweigh on savings during shipping. Also, eco-friendly packaging has become more and more popular over the years, which has made it more affordable. Moreover, the more businesses that demand recyclable supplies will encourage the manufacturer to produce more and subsequently bring down the costs of those products.

So, let’s get down to the nitty-gritty. How can you make the transition?

Reusable bags to go to market.

These bags can save more than 60% of water, energy, and diesel compared to traditional bag manufacturing processes. Plus, they can be reusable (as on its name) and can be used by consumers as tote bags.

Go a step further: You can find many of these reusable bags on the market selling for bulk. However, not all options come from sustainable manufactures before choosing your bags, opt for 100% cotton, recyclable cotton, or hemp fiber.

Paper bottles to fill ’em up.

Refillable, these bottles help not only the world but also your business. Increase consumer loyalty by transitioning to refillable bottles. They are made of a sturdy, waterproof card box paper on the outside, and the inside is where the refillable part resides; a thin plastic film involves your liquid product. They also can be shipped nested, taking less space, and less expensive to ship.

Go a step further: Paper bottles usually include a plastic pump that might make your package not-so-eco-friendly. A smart solution for this is making the dispenser a simple twist-off cap – also paper-made.

Plantable packaging. Yes, plantable.

If plant-based wasn’t enough, now we have plantable material. Exactly what it sounds like, they can be soaked, buried, and grow into a beautiful tree.

Go a step further: This plantable packaging comes in different seeds. Make them available in a variety of plants for a highly immersive experience.

Behold, the simple potato.

PaperFoam company invented their namesake material — it’s an original, natural, lightweight foam obtained from potato starch. It delivers an industrial look with the benefits of organic packaging. It looks like a matte plastic, but it breaks down, and it is easily compostable. The potato starch is mixed with cellulose fiber, water, and a proprietary premix. It can be injection molded, giving designers the freedom to make any number of custom product forms and inserts.

Go a step further: This packaging has limited availability in the U.S. other alternatives for this custom product might be Bagasse, PLA Bioplastic, or Mycelium Foam.

Vegetable ink for your inking needs.

Most customers who already opt for eco-friendly packages are unaware of traditional ink’s toxicity. This is an excellent chance for your brand to make them aware of this issue.

Go a step further: There is still some debate on the circular economy world about how sustainable this ink can be. One that has been an A+ is the algae ink.

In the end, these are just a few of the possibilities to convert your packaging needs into sustainable custom products. Let your customers know that you are pushing the boundaries and always being one step ahead of the game in terms of technology and sustainability.