Improving Your Brand Presence Using SEO and PPC Combined

SEO and PPC, when used together, are far more powerful than when you use either in isolation. Many digital marketing agencies sell them as different services when in reality they provide the best results when applied simultaneously. Today we will look at 7 ways in which you can improve your brand presence using SEO and PPC together.

How To Improve Your Brand Presence By Combining SEO and SEM

SEO and SEM both rely heavily on good keyword research based on your customer requirements. They are often complementary and are the sum of a whole – SEARCH. Here are a few strategies to use them together for a better brand visibility.

1. Sharing Keyword Research
As previously mentioned, the common denominator for SEO and SEM, search. Search relies heavily on your keyword research. To optimise your effort and reduce duplication your best bet would be to use the same keyword research in both SEO and PPC. In whatever campaigns you run find out what SEM keywords give you the highest clicks and optimise your content for the same keywords.

2. Using Site Search Data
Another fascinating source that most websites overlook is their own search bar. Many websites have enabled search on their website but rarely use the data. The search data your prospective customers are using on your website are the products and services their most interested in. Use those keywords in your SEM campaign and see a drastic boost to your clicks and leads generated.

3. Improved Visibility
The higher you are on the search rankings the more likely it is you will get a majority of the clicks. Imagine being so dominant in SEO and PPC that your website is top of both lists. Not only will you receive a majority of the clicks but the customers will also admire the tenacity with which you are dominating your field. They will definitely see you as a leader in your industry.

4. Shape Your Content Strategy
It’s no secret that search engine marketing can get expensive. When you have enough data from your pay-per-click campaigns you have a clear idea about what your most promising keywords are. The keywords that get the clicks. You should base your content strategy on the keywords that give you the most clicks in SEM. Use the keywords to create Page SEO Titles, SEO Descriptions, and Headlines. You can also use variations of their keywords in your long-form content for higher visibility in search.

5. Test Keywords Immediately
You can tweak the above concept to find out if a keyword will give you results or not. Instead of wasting your time forming a content strategy on a keyword you’re not sure will work, use it in a PPC ad first. See how the public responds to the keywords and its alternatives. You have almost immediate feedback on your choice of keywords and can decide whether to go ahead with it or not.

6. Use These Tools To Re-market
Sometimes it so happens that your page is ranking well for certain keywords and also getting clicks. But the leads do not convert to customers. Sometimes prospective buyers need a little push in the right direction which is why targeting them with an ad with a small discount on the particular product they were looking for can lead to better sales. Monitor their movement on your site and see what products they were interested in. Re-market and Voila, you have just converted better than you ever did using only one technique by itself.

7. Improve Your Brands Image
Chances are from time to time your brand might be embroiled in some negative news. You might rank for some negative keywords which will harm your business. Instead, run an ad that links to a blog post that shows people how you’re actively working towards making the situation better. Instead of receiving bad publicity you can use the keywords to put your brand in a positive light.

Conclusion
Next time you‘re meeting with a digital marketing agency ask them how they plan to combine PPC and SEO strategies to give your impressive and efficient results. While they sell SEM and SEO as separate services they are most effective when used together. If you‘re looking for a digital marketing company practiced in using these strategies and more to give you the best results, please get it touch today!

How to Build A Successful Brand With Your Web Design

It takes a lot of hard work and time to build a brand, something that’s recognized worldwide. However, there are always a few tips that you could use to speed up the process and start impressing your customers immediately. Now while there are many ways in which you can build your brand a simple process is to use your website. We’ll be looking at the best ways to build your brand using your website design.

7 Methods to Build Your Brand Using Web Design Quickly

1. Choosing The Right Theme
Your customers want to be able to associate your brand with some kind of personality. If your brand is focused on the youth you want to be able to inject some colorful personality theme to your website. Your website theme will decide the rest of the brand decisions on your website. I don’t mean a WordPress theme you choose, I mean the overall theme of how you want the website to look and the vibe you want the website to give off.

2. Choosing The Right Colours
Your web design theme should be centered on the right kind of colors. Each color should try and represent a unique brand identity if possible. Another thing of note here is that colors are very representative of emotions so pick colors based on the emotions you would like to evoke in your customer.

3. Be Consistent
No one likes inconsistencies be it in your product specifications or brand. Each aspect of your web design should be consistently designed. Use the same colors on each page of your website. Use the same fonts for the content. Your fonts for the headline and main body can be different but you still need it to be consistent.

4. Watch Your Tone
Your brand proposition will decide what kind of tone you should set for your content. If you’re appealing to businesses you need to be a little bit more formal but still friendly. For a younger audience try to be friendly and fun but informative. Whatever your tone may be you still need to be genuine in everything you say to your customers.

5. Show-Off Your Logo
Your brand logo is one aspect of your business that you can proudly display whenever possible (ideally place it on every page). Now logo placement is crucial. Such is the industry that unknowingly a trend has formed which usually brings out the best results. The best location to place your logo is actually on the top left of the screen because our eyes have naturally been trained to look there for company logo placements. Companies have tried for some unusual placements and it does occasionally work but when you’re just starting out with the brand building exercise we would recommend you stick with the top left corner of your website.

6. Evident Value Proposition
What many companies fail to understand is that their value proposition is an invaluable part of their company brand. There are some really important factors that go into building a value proposition for your business but that’s a whole other story. Make sure the value proposition is clear, concise, and something that’s truly going to provide value to the customer. High up on your website where the customers can see it immediately upon entering. Make it stand out from the rest of the content. Many websites use sliders to display their value propositions and you could try the same. Although, I always say different is better.

7. Be Unique
Speaking about ‘different is better’ make sure your web design is set apart from the competition. If you need inspiration you can always try and see some of your competitor websites. If you don’t find anything too fascinating that’s actually good news. Now you can try and combine different elements from various websites and make it your own (as long as it follows a single overall theme)

Conclusion
While all this may seem simple it really does take a professional eye to look at the details and make sense of all the pieces to help them fit together. If you need help building your brand, please do get in touch with us right away and we can get started on your web design and brand building strategy.

Facebook Is Reintroducing Facebook Search Ads.

Facebook has always been one of the most popular social media channels, however, in recent years its popularity has been on the wane especially with the younger audience. As a result, Facebook has been losing out on revenue. Although it has more than a billion dollar valuation Facebook still needs to try different methods to monetize the nearly 400 million daily visitors.

So what’s New for Facebook?
To be honest, Facebook is trying a new strategy that’s actually been tried by them once before. Facebook is reintroducing search ads to its platform. They first tried the concept of sponsored advertising in 2012. However, back then the experiment did not go down well with the users and was quickly called off.

Facebook Search Ad 2.0
In order to bump up its revenue, Facebook is reintroducing sponsored ads in its search. What this means is that every time you perform a search in Facebook you’ll see a list of paid ads before the organic search results. Similar to what you would see on Google.
For the time being the search ads concept is being run only in the US and Canada and is only visible for a certain set of advertisers and industries. Google wants to make sure that they implement the search ads correctly this time to avoid the mistakes they made during the last experiment.

IN the current state advertisers don’t have the ability to run ‘only’ search ads. The search ads have to run in conjunction with the regular news feed ads that are now the staple on Facebook. Although slightly limiting the aim is to be able to derive as much information for the benefit of advertisers and users as possible.
Also in its current form, these new search ads will only be visible on mobile and for select customers before hopefully being rolled out successfully.

Why Is Facebook Using Search Ads?
The main motive behind the search ads is undoubtedly to make another revenue stream for the company. While Instagram and other Facebook acquisitions have been showing tremendous growth in terms of revenue Facebook’s revenue itself is actually declining.
Another possible reason for re-introducing search ads is to provide advertisers with more options to reach out to the customers. Especially those further along in their customer journey. As per recent social media trends, consumers are no longer shying away from looking for products on social media as opposed to only using Google search.

Will Facebook Search Ads Compete With Google?
Everyone knows how Google is absolutely crushing the competition when it comes to Search Ads. In fact, Amazon is also making quite a few strides when it comes to search ad revenue. Facebook is not shying away from the competition and is actively looking towards gaining a foothold in the lucrative search ad industry.

Advertising revenue for the year 2018 was in excess of $33 billion. This is a large pie with several spaces for several companies to grab a share. Facebook believes that it is in a perfect position to take advantage of that fact. However, Facebook would want to do what’s best for both its advertisers as well as its consumers.

The Problems Facing Facebook Search Ads
Ever since the Cambridge Analytica scandal users have been very hesitant to share their information with Facebook. Facebook already uses a lot of the information we provide it to provide us with a better experience while using their app.
Some consumer’s worry that Facebook will use their information more prevalently to help make their search ads more targeted. While Google already does this to some extent they’ve managed to limit their intrusion, or make it seem that way. Facebook does have an image problem that they need to deal with so ensuring they launch their search ads globally properly is a priority.

Conclusion
It’s pretty much a given that Facebook Search Ads will soon be a reality for all advertisers globally. Keeping that in mind advertisers all over the world should be prepared to use them effectively. What are your opinions and thoughts on Facebook Search Ads? Would you be willing to use them as an advertiser and would you like to see them as a consumer?

Web Development Trends to Follow In 2019

We’ve already stressed enough how important a website can be for your business. Meeting your business goals, reaching out to potential new customers and all the other benefits that come with a well-developed website. Web development companies always have to stay updated with the latest web development trends that take precedent each year. Today we’ll be looking at the top web development trends for 2019.

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Benefits of IoT in Mobile Application Development 2019

IoT is the most trending topic which can be considered in today’s world. The main reason for this is the connectivity level of the system which is operable to a large number of devices. It has enlarged its boundaries and entered into the fields like HealthCare, Retail, Smart Homes, Agriculture etc. And when it comes to connectivity smart mobiles and its apps are the first thing that comes into the mind.
Integrating the IoT in the mobile app in the account to control the multiple devices specifically wireless ones is the most useful and trending around the globe. There is a huge list of the advantage of using the IoT into the smartphone app, let’s discuss this in detail.

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Top Ranking Signals to Pay Attention In 2019

With Google changing its search algorithm so regularly we seem to have new ranking signal champions to root for every year. In 2014, it was site security (https), 2015 had your websites mobile responsive status, and 2016 shifted to more content driven ranking signals with Rank Brain. But what about 2019? What ranking signals should you focus on if you want to win at SEO and get your website to the top of Google search?

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Top 7 Social Media Trends For 2019

From being a means of staying in touch for friends Social Media has turned into a communication powerhouse for brands. However, with a low attention span, a multitude of options to choose from and other online distractions there is plenty to keep your target audience hooked. So how do you make sure that your communication signals are getting through to them? We’ve scoured the internet for data, spoken to plenty of digital marketing industry experts and witnessed the blooming of some of these strategies by digital behemoths to bring to you a collection of the top social media trends of 2019. Here’s everything you need to know about the best social media trends of 2019.

Key Social Media Trends Of 2019

1. Trust Building
With the backlash that followed the scam after scam that affected Facebook, the U.S. elections, and Cambridge Analytica it seemed like Facebook was almost over. As it is Facebook has lost some of its early prominences with users now spending more time on Instagram. Even though Facebook has more than 2 billion- active users on a monthly basis the whole picture isn’t as perfect.

Due to the users feeling their privacy being violated by social media and the slew of inaccurate information available online consumers are in a pickle as to what they should and should not believe. Especially when companies try and use marketing strategies that seem disingenuous. This puts their reputation on even shakier ground as customers are no longer willing to put up with fakery from brands.

There have been several instances of brands and big companies being called out on social media due to their false promises and lies. One of the biggest social media trends to look out for in 2019 and put into practice immediately is to try and build trust with your customers. To make them believe not just in your products and services but in your organization as a whole.

2. Using User Stories
Word of mouth was a very important part of the marketing gamut of a company. The practice is still in place but the methodology is vastly different than it was decades ago. While it is still important for people to talk about your product in a positive light, where they do the talking is as relevant as what they say.

Unlike previous generations, it does not take several days or weeks for user stories to reach thousands of ears. With the evolution of social media, live videos, Instagram stories, hashtags, and the like consumers now have access to word of mouth publicity in a matter of seconds.

Therefore, it has become extremely important for businesses to put out their own stories with the help of some loyal fans of the products. There are several ways in which companies are trying to get users to share their product stories. Some examples of these are running contests, using special hashtags, “share your memories with us” kind of experiences. These are all methods by which companies are trying to get good word of mouth publicity going out to willing buyers.

3. Augmented Reality Will Play A Bigger Role
Many companies including Facebook and Google are trying ways to incorporate augmented reality into their applications. Facebook has already bought a company focused on augmented reality and Google is working on its own projects to include augmented reality in its apps. Take Google Maps, for instance, one of their senior product managers admitted that it was hard to really know the direction we were supposed to turn while walking. To fix this problem they have decided to use a guide who will help us make all the right turns.

Pokemon Go is another example of seeing augmented reality really take off in the gaming world. Not only is it vastly popular, it is also highly addictive and people tend to spend hours playing the game. Brands, businesses need to figure out ways to make an entry into the augmented reality space.

You can already see the subtle entry of augmented reality in the form of those cute filters used on Instagram. What can brands do to make raise their awareness levels on these popular social media apps? Gamifying seems like the obvious choice but it isn’t always the right solution for every brand? Have you considered how you could use augmented reality to your brand’s benefit?

4. Quality vs Quantity
The age-old debate over quality vs quantity will never end. Depending on the niche you are in you will have to figure out what it is your consumers crave for. For most businesses quality of the content rather than pushing out mindless media is paying a lot of dividends. Even though you may not always the largest share of voice with your consumers with quality content you can be assured that you will always be at the top of their minds when it comes to your products or services.

Showing a creative spark while giving your consumers a good cause to back is one of the best things you can do moving into 2019 on social media. It is sure to be one of the hottest social media trends of 2019.

5. Growing Power Of Influencers
Social Media Influencers have taken their game up a notch in 2018 and we can only see this trend growing in popularity in 2019. Influencers are becoming very aware of their popularity and will do almost anything to stay relevant on social media. But they have also understood the price they need to pay. No longer can social media influencers be frivolous with their endorsements. They cannot afford to alienate their fan base.

Brands using social media influencers have gone one step ahead of the rest by adding a human persona to their brand. Even if there are multiple personalities endorsing a brand the image maintained by all of them will be surprisingly similar and one that works in conjunction with the brands own image. This is closely related to the next point of making the brand more human.

6. Humanizing The Brand
Podcasts, Webinars, Reddit AMA’s are a very popular way of making sure your brand has a human touch associated with it. Think about Tesla and how much Elon Musk is always at the forefront of their branding effort. So much so, in fact, that you can’t think about one without mentioning the other.

Look how personally involved Elon Musk is in the building of his own brand. It makes the consumers believe that the owner or a high-level executive is highly invested in the product or service which is why they are more likely to buy them. Of course, you have to make sure your product is worth it to begin with but that’s a completely different story.

7. Video Streaming
Another excellent social media trend to keep an eye on in 2019 is the growth of live videos. Its another aspect of humanizing the brand. Live videos give instant access to millions of people to your content. Since it’s live there is no scope for hiding the truth and even lesser scope to mess up.

Also unlike photos videos make you feel more like you were part of the process or event. Since most of the human experience comes through sight, live video streaming is a great way to get your prospective customers to love your products. Get them to engage more with your brand and also helps build more trust both ways.

Conclusion
Riding the social media wave is going to be really important in 2019 if you and your brands want to stay relevant. Before you can do all that you’ll need to study your audience and get familiar with the nitty gritties of the various social media channels. Or you could get a professional digital marketing company in Pune, like CodePlateau Technology Solutions to assist you with your digital marketing needs. If you need someone to get bigger than ever on social media, get in touch with us today.

5 Top Brand Building Strategies On Instagram

Here’s an astounding statistic, more than 500 million people log onto Instagram DAILY! You have short video content, visual content, and Instagram stories that people just can’t seem to get enough of. If you’re looking for a social media platform to build your brand and truly engage with your prospective customers, Instagram is probably your best choice. But there is a lot of competition out there so how do you get yourself noticed and build a brand on Instagram? By using the scientifically derived tips mentioned in this blog. Here are 9 amazing tips to help you build a brand on Instagram.

5 Pro Tips To Build Brand Awareness On Instagram

1. Separate Your Personal And Business Account
Unless you are a celebrity or social influencer you have no business being on your brands Instagram page. You have to set up a separate business account for your brand. Your business Instagram account should focus on your audience which will be vastly different than the audience for your personal photos.

You are after all trying to sell your product, aren’t you? So the focus of your business account on Instagram should be solely on your products or services.

Here are some tips on How To Set Up The Best Instagram Business Account
 i. Goal Setting
What do you hope to achieve from your Instagram account will best decide how you should set it up. Your account should always contain a link to your website to help drive traffic to it. If you are looking for engagement from your audience find out what they’re looking for and post relevant pictures or videos.

  ii. Include A Bio
A bio is an important bit of information for your consumers. Within a few words, your prospective customers should get a snapshot of what your brand is about, what your page is about and who you are as a brand. Customers often follow brands simply based on their bio so make sure its epic.

iii. Target Audience
It’s also essential to know who you’re building your account for. Finding the right target audience can be tricky but if you’ve been in business long enough you do have a rough idea of who buys your products and what they’re looking for from a marketing standpoint. Always remember the content you are posting is for them.

 iv. Competitor Analysis
Very often it’s your very own competitors that will give you the best ideas. It’s not always that they’re doing something better than you, in fact, you could even profit from their mistakes. See what they’re doing right and improve on it. See what they’ve gotten terribly wrong and avoid those pitfalls.

 v. Plan
Don’t have a haphazard posting schedule. Be consistent. Not only with what you post, but when you post. The best way to keep your audience hooked to your content is to get them addicted to it. Having a regular posting schedule is the best way to make this happen. If for some reason you’re not going to be able to post as per your schedule let your audience know. They’ll feel as though they’re a part of the process.

vi. Be Consistent
Not only do you have to be consistent in your posting schedule, but you also have to stay consistent when it comes to your design, style, and theme elements. Your persona on all social media platforms should remain consistent so as to be more welcoming to the customer.

 

2. Post-Pretty Pictures
Duh! But to get into a little bit more detail about this point think about your product. Not all products have the photographic appeal. You have to be extremely creative when it comes to selling your products. Fashion products are easy, but what about something like a UPS or a power generator? By being innovative in your product visuals you may be able to attract the attention of those customers not even actively looking to buy your product.

One thing you should definitely not do on your branded Instagram account is to try and hard sell to your customers. Remember that 90% of information processed is visual. If your customers just see you peddling your products without really giving them anything extra they’re not going to be following your page for long.

Focus on first providing something interesting for your prospective customers to look at and then focus on your product sales. If you’re creative enough you’ll find exciting ways to merge the two together so it seems like a seamless process.

Also, note that Instagram uses square frames for its photos. They’re usually in the 612×612 pixel range. To make your photos look professional and to make it seem like a lot of effort has gone into every little detail of every picture you post on Instagram you have to pay attention to the small details.

 

3. Be Discovered More Often
The major problem with Instagram is the competition you have to face not just from local brands, but your competitors all over the world. Here are some strategies to get more people to notice your brand, posts, and pictures:

 i. #Hashtags
Instagram feeds are not chronological. They use their own algorithm to show users pictures they feel are most relevant. What helps keep you relevant is to use the right hashtags in your posts. At least use 1 hashtags in all your post but not more than 5. You wouldn’t want your post to feel too salesy.

Another strategy is to use branded hashtags. This isn’t as easy as you might think. Companies have been marketing for decades to build brands but lately new start-ups have found it easier to brand their products by just using the right hashtags.

Do proper keyword research, be bold and fun, and keep it short.

ii. Use Influencers
While this shifts into the territory of affiliate marketing using Instagram influencers or ambassadors does go a long way in making your product more visible to a larger audience. You have to pick influencers who are connected to your industry. Don’t pick random people just because they have a high follower count. There needs to be a symbiotic relationship between the two.

iii. Share Customer Photos
People love their 15 minutes of fame. When you share a photo from one of your prospective customer (assuming they’re talking about your brand and in a good light) they’ll be bound to talk about it more. This will convince other people to start sharing photos with your brands and using your hashtags. If it works well this causes an avalanche effect with your brand almost blowing overnight.

It’s the best form of word of mouth marketing you can get online.

 

4. Spice Up Your Engagement
Compared to other social media platforms Instagram users tend to be a lot more vocal. The engagement rate is higher than that of Twitter as well as Facebook. Use these tips to Improve engagement on Instagram.

i. Write Stellar Captions
Everyone loves to give their opinion. Inviting people to share theirs is a sure fire way of getting some engagement on your brand account. Witty captions with puns, questions, sarcasm, also seem to get a lot of traction online. If you can write a caption that makes the user double take on the image there is nothing like it. “Spot The Error” is a caption that usually gets people’s attention.

ii. Use Contests
Nothing gets crowds excited like the chance of winning a contest. If you’re not seeing the right kind of followers then maybe get started with a contest and make sure to keep them coming. It keeps users hooked on the page and actively participating. However, if you don’t have enough followers then maybe a contest isn’t such a good idea. However, if you do, this is how to set up a perfect contest to build your brand on Instagram.

Make sure to have the terms and conditions clear while setting up the contest so as to not anger your fans.

Have an attractive prize which you know people would have to win. Post pictures of the prizes with your products. Double win for you.

Before picking the winner to try and build anticipation in your customers. Announce the winners publicly and make it grand.

iii. Respond To Comments
There is nothing better than a good comeback. If you’re able to get the crowd on your side through humor and fun with your witty retorts they’re sure to go viral and add value to your brand visibility.

 

5. Measure Success, Improvise and Innovate
The Instagram brand account provides you with a lot of data to analyze. Use the data wisely to find the right fans for your products. You also have the best times to post which garners the maximum number of views and engagement. If you feel like posting is eating into too much of your time get smart about it and use third party tools to help you schedule your posts.

See if you’ve met the goals you had set for your Instagram account. If you have, then figure out ways on how to improve on the statistics. If you’ve been unable to meet your goals find methods of improving your posts, captions, or strategies.

How Can Augmented Reality Fit Into Mobile Apps?

Augmented reality (AR) is the projection or the integration of the real world into a virtual one. The integration takes place through various interfaces in real-time, which gives reality an improved makeover. The view that the user gets accordingly is a reality that has been augmented with the help of technology.

AR uses technology such as Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (S.L.A.M.) and depth-tracking. It is different from virtual reality (VR) in that VR excludes reality completely and projects a virtual one in its place, while AR uses reality and presents it in an enhanced way.

Augmented reality fits into mobile apps by making use of phones’ cameras and sensors so as to enable the users to view reality in a wholly composite manner. The phone as a medium improves upon the reality to suit and thereby fulfill the user’s needs.

The types of AR that exist today are marker-based, marker-less, projection-based, and superimposition-based. Marker-based AR apps like WhatsApp and Paytm are those which help us by using markers such as QR Codes. Marker-less or location-based AR apps (such as Google Maps) are those which utilize GPS, compass, accelerometer, and gyroscope to inform the users about events and places for hanging out near them, among others. Projection-based AR apps are basically manufacturing apps which allow artificial light to interact with real objects. Superimposition-based AR apps (like the IKEA Catalog app) allow us to view reality by superimposing virtual items onto it.

The fields that have made the most interesting use of AR apps are gaming, architecture, real estate, archaeology, tourism, etc.

1. Gaming:
The best example of an AR gaming mobile app is undoubtedly Pokémon Go. The game became quite popular and gained a huge number of users just a few years back. Pokémon Go uses reality which it then integrates with the game to give the player the digital gaming experience in the real world.

2. Architecture and Real Estate:
There are a number of AR-based mobile apps, like Realar, which allow users to view and navigate through, and thus choose, the house of their dreams by virtually viewing the rooms, and even allowing us to add furniture or remove them, just to get the complete feel of actually being there.

3. Archaeology and Tourism:
There are apps that let us view actual geographical places from historical points of view. Apps like CityView AR simulate actual places. Projects such as StreetSmart and Futuristic History have conducted research into letting tourists view information visually. History buffs and travelers could then compare, say, the city of Florence during the Renaissance and Florence as it exists now, in the 21st century, and the actual variation in architecture, roadways and marketplaces that existed between the two centuries.

Apart from AR and VR, Mixed Reality, or MR, which combines features of both AR and VR, is another phenomenon that is making its mark in the field of technology. The first MR-based app, HoloLens, was released by Microsoft in 2016.

We hope that this article has provided a perspective on AR fitting into mobile apps. Please do share your feedback as comments below.

7 Tips To Get Started With AMP Stories For Your Business

We’ve all witnessed the boom of Snapchat stories. So much so that other popular social media applications were soon seen mimicking the feature. Although Snapchat was the first to introduce the feature to people and popularize it, it is actually Instagram that brings in the most users to the stories features. Now we’ve seen a lot of other applications try and attempt the stories feature to varying amounts of success such as Facebook which has seen the most disappointing turnout. Now the latest company to jump on the bandwagon is Google introducing the AMP stories.

As per Google AMP stories are an immersive visual content format that is fast and open, built specially for the users.

What Are AMP Stories?

It’s a feature built by Google similar to Instagram stories that help content creators build short-term, visual content for their viewers. However, unlike stories features in other apps, Google AMP stories will be featured in Google’s search results.

If you take into consideration that more than 75% of all user time is spent on their mobile phone you can clearly see why Google is pushing for mobile first content.  Since the whole concept of AMP was to push mobile first AMP will display an array of search results in the form of swipeable feeds. You can swipe right or left depending on whether you liked the story and would like to see more sources for the same information.

AMP stories also make it easier to share the information you’ve just received at lightning speeds. Google is hoping to capitalize on the format and draw users who are more accustomed to using other apps.

What Are The Components That Make AMP Stories?

Unlike traditional AMP content, you don’t have to rely merely on text anymore. You can include graphics, animation, videos and more. This is highly beneficial for content creators. AMP stories are made of 3 main components that you need to absolutely master if you want to rule the search engine game.

–    The story itself

–    The story page

–    The story grid layer

The story is the main content itself while the story page is the location when your content is based on. The grid layer contains all the elements that make up the page and the story.

So you must now be wondering how to get started with AMP stories?

 

7 Steps To Use AMP Stories On Your Website

  1. Code The Page

Now I’d like to say it’s easy for all companies to get started with posting AMP stories on their web pages but it isn’t as simple as that. Before you begin you need to code the regular pages of your website to AMP pages.  Use the following canonical tag on the original story

<link rel=”amphtml” href=”http://www.example.com/blog-post/amp/”>

If you want the entire AMP code set you can download it from the following link: https://github.com/Automattic/amp-wp

https://www.ampproject.org/docs/getting_started/create/basic_markup

Add the code to your WordPress page like you would for any other plug-in and you’re done with the first difficult step. In our opinion having a professional web design and development company in Pune to help you setup AMP pages will save you from a lot of future problems. You wouldn’t want the data on your website to suddenly disappear, do you?

  1. Run A Sample

Before you get started with the main content you need to check if all your settings are in order. Running a test project goes a long way to check this. For this, you’ll need a test server.

To be on the safer side of things you should use a secure layer with the test server to protect yourself from any data breaches. Once your local server has been set up, try using the link https://localhost:8000/article.html

Check the layout the design and if everything looks spot on you can move on to step number 3

  1. Create Cover Photos

Your stories can have multiple components but one single cover page. This cover photo should ideally represent what lies within the stories. To create a cover page, assign a unique ID for your cover to the first page:

<amp-story standalone>

<amp-story-page id=”cover”>

</amp-story-page>

</amp-story>

If you’ve worked with Photoshop at any point in your career you’ll know that cover photos need to be built using layers with each one built on top of the other.

The first layer will have <amp-story-grid-layer> element in the <amp-story-page>

There will be other attributes that you need to use to ensure conformity such as “fill”, “responsive”. Here is an example of what an ideal code will look like as provided by the AMP tutorials

<amp-story-page id=”cover”>

<amp-story-grid-layer template=”fill”>

<amp-img src=”cover.jpg”>

Width=”xx”, height=”xx”

Layout=”responsive”

</amp-img>

</amp-story-grid-layer>

</amp-story-page>

You can use multiple layers by adding the “vertical template” rather than the “fill template” as mentioned above.

  1. Additional Pages

Once you cover page is set up you can start to add other pages to your AMP stories.  You can find the code you will need to enter (based on which template you choose to use) on the AMP site. There are several other resources available to help you better code for AMP stories.

Of course, if you think you need professional help you can always get in touch with the best web development company in Pune.

  1. Glitz it Up with Animation

There are multiple animation elements you can use on your AMP stories to get the Wow! Factor. However, unlike social media apps, you can’t just drag and drop the elements in your AMP stories. You will need to code them in. There are plenty of animation presets already available like “fade-in” “fly-in-right”, “pulse”

  1. Close Out Story

You’ll need to effectively close out your story and provide your consumers with additional links from your content or related content. This last screen is known as the “bookend”.

  1. Validate Your AMP File

Before you upload the pages you will need to validate them using the Chrome Devtools Console. Remember if AMP pages are not validated they are not considered as AMP and do not give you any advantages. There are 2 methods of validating AMP files the other being using the AMP validator browser extension.

 

Why Should Businesses Use AMP Stories?

The golden rule of any business is to stay ahead of the competition. AMP stories are the next big wave to give you an edge over the competition. Also, it is now known that users are more accustomed to seeing short-form visual content which can be seen by how much more popular online streaming platforms have become. Good storytelling leads to better attention-grabbing of the users.

Using Stories To Push Products:

Who says that traditional marketing metric cannot follow good storytelling guidelines? In fact, 92% of consumers surveyed by the SEO-Journal responded that they wanted their advertisement to tell a story rather than just hit them with facts.

Reducing Page Load Times

Speed is good. The faster you are able to deliver the right content to your consumers the better. They’ll be invested in the conversation and look forward to it more. This undoubtedly leads to a lower bounce rate, higher conversion rates and not to mention you’ll also receive a slight boost in rankings courtesy Google. But that’s only if you work with the right web development companies in Pune like CodePlateau who are accustomed to delivering AMP pages to their customer.

Getting More Creative

Because of the way AMP pages are built you have more opportunities to experiment with creative styles. The design is an important element when it comes to potential customers picking your product or service over the competition.

With AMP pages you can add a whole lot of features and that can add a certain oomph to your content. While you’re at it you should also push your viewers to your AMP content until they become more accustomed to it. Links, buttons to promote your AMP stories in your content won’t hurt.

Better Rankings

As I’ve mentioned before AMP pages help with search engine optimization. If your website ranks well on all parameters important to Google it’s obvious they’ll be willing to give you a push up the results.

 

Conclusion

In this fast-paced world, your competitive advantage lasts only for a few months, maybe even less depending on the rate of technological innovation. If you want to get ahead of the competition you need to try and grab every advantage you can. Getting the best web development company in Pune, CodePlateau, to help you build and design attention-grabbing AMP stories and pages for your website is the right move to make right now. If you need more information about AMP stories or need some assistance in your web development needs, get in touch with us today.