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How to Produce Scalable, Affordable Video at Your Reno Business

Picture of Adrienne Wilkerson

Adrienne Wilkerson

Video is quickly becoming the media format with the highest marketing ROI for businesses of all sizes and industries nationwide. YouTube recently hit the 2 billion monthly active users mark, a statistic that, alongside many others, indicates internet user preference for the video medium over other digital and traditional content types.

So how do small to mid-sized Reno businesses keep up with an ever-increasing demand for video content (not to mention high video production rates)? We’re glad you asked! Or at least, we’re glad you’re willing to entertain the question.

Today we’re talking about best practices for making video production scalable and affordable, including a trick called content repurposing, the value of making video a part of your company culture, and a few examples of scalable and affordable video formats you can use immediately! We’ll also look at some folks who have mastered video in their content domains. Let’s dive right in and get started!

1. Learn About a Little Thing Called Video Repurposing

What is content repurposing and how does it apply to video?

Content repurposing is the act of taking one piece of content and reworking it into various formats to be used across your marketing channels.

Content repurposing is the act of taking one piece of content and reworking it into various formats to be used across your marketing channels.

A video, if it’s long enough, can be that initial piece of content that is re-iterated into various forms.

Let’s say that you filmed a 15, 30, or 60-second commercial for your Reno business.

You may upload that video to YouTube, place it on the home page of your website, announce it on Facebook, and think you’re done, you’ve exhausted all channels on which to publish your video, and it will soon be forgotten in the hubbub of the internet. But you would be wrong! There is a lot of life to squeeze out of one video production.

The individual elements of your commercial, the audio, video, and B-roll, can each be taken apart and re-edited to make several shorter video snippets. You can focus on key phrases or key moments in the footage.

These snippets can then be shared to your social media over the following weeks, months, or for however long you can make the lifetime of your video production last!

In this way, you are spending less money on less video production for more video content. How cool is that?!

Perhaps the best way to understand content repurposing is to see it in action.

Example: Gary Vee, Video Extraordinaire

People have mixed feelings about Gary Vee. Some love him. Some think he’s a little too crude for professional media.

One thing we all know for certain, he’s the king of video and content repurposing.

Gary Vee seemingly records every waking moment of his life. In reality, he just flips his video camera on whenever he has an important thought or anecdote. But it looks like he is doing 100x more than he actually is because he’s a content repurposing genius.

Gary uses what he calls his “content pyramid” model, which takes one long-form piece of “pillar” content and repurposes it into 30 different content pieces including videos, gifs, podcasts, blogs, social media posts, stories, and more on 20 different platforms. You can learn about the model on his SlideShare, here.

In his SlideShare, Gary Vee provides an example of a keynote he repurposed that generated over 35 million views.

How much money do you think it cost Gary to give that one keynote? We may not know, but we can guess that the two hours he spent talking was more than covered by the marketing value of the views he received.

Video Strategy Saves Your Reno Business Money

Learning how to content repurpose and following content models is about more than just the coolness factor, it saves your Reno business money.

Start with a plan, and you’ll end up spending less money for more video content.

One of the best ways to ensure excellent content repurposing is to make your video commercial as “repurposable” as possible.

In the storyboarding process, plan to film B-roll and record audio that is modular and can be rebuilt into several different formats of video.

This will give you a library of video content to work from for, again, more content for fewer dollar bills.

2. Make Video Production Part of Your Reno Company Culture

Another great way to make video production scalable and affordable at your Reno business is to get your staff involved!

It’s a common misconception that video production is the exclusive task of a professional videographer.

Although it is important for your Reno business to be publishing high-quality video content for your reputation, the technology of the iPhone camera has greatly improved over the last couple of years and your staff probably have some customer communication skills and experience with what a video for social media should be like.

They may not be the best quality, but iPhone videos are passable, and the fact that they are filmed casually will make your Reno customers feel like they are getting an exclusive, transparent look into your everyday operations.

Make picking up the iPhone and recording a quick video a simple, fun thing that everybody in your office is encouraged (*cough*required*cough*) to do!

You will save a lot of money by supplementing more costly video production with these shorter forays into video media.

Example: Allen Gannet, LinkedIn Video Guy

Allen Gannet is an excellent example of someone who is not afraid to just pick up his iPhone and record. His platform of choice is LinkedIn.

As spontaneous as his videos may be, Allen exemplifies the idea of creating a plan before filming. Every one of his videos in his series #AllenAsks follows the same format.

Allen is known for asking questions of moderately famous business people when he runs into them at networking events or over the course of his business day. He starts by introducing his special guest and himself, he asks a simple question, gets their answer, summarizes that answer into something “bitable,” and then literally “peaces out.” The videos typically last no more than a minute.

You can watch Allen’s videos on LinkedIn, here.

Allen is a LinkedIn influencer and his videos frequently get thousands to tens of thousands of views. Given that LinkedIn is a lately reemerging platform, this is significant. And it only cost him 60 seconds on a Tuesday afternoon.

Get Video in Your Blood

A fantastic way to get “video in the blood” of you and your Reno staff is to make it as easy for all of you as possible.

Write scripts for you and your team and provide them with mini “production kits” with everything they will need to say in their video and to publish it, including any calls-to-action, how-to instructions, and any graphical elements you want them to use.

Empower your Reno staff with the resources they need to be the heroes in front of the iPhone camera and to learn to enjoy the video production process!

Lead the Video Charge by Example

An important thing to note is that, if you are going to be requiring your Reno staff to get in front of the camera, you can’t balk away from it yourself.

We all know that people are led by example. Not only will seeing you do it first make the new thing palatable for your team, but it will show them exactly what you are expecting from them and it will set the tone for the rest of the videos they produce.

Just like video helps your customers visualize what you are doing for them, an example video will help your Reno staff visualize what you want them to do.

3. Try-On Some of These Video Formats for Size

After all of this discussion about “just get in front of the camera,” you’re probably wondering, “but what do I say??”

Hopefully, some of these video format ideas will help you out.

Get inspired by the ideas that create a vision in your mind as something that might actually work for you and your Reno team.

Example: Beacon, Video Playground

Beacon Media + Marketing (that’s us!) is at a place where we’re taking the video trends seriously, exercising our content repurposing muscles, and getting everyone on our team in front of the camera.

We’re creating videos for YouTube, on Facebook Live, for our blogs and web pages, and more, each with particular content repurposing…purposes.

Our team has been making plans, experimenting with new formats, and writing scripts. In summary, we’re walking what we’re talking! Here’s our latest staff-recorded video, Social Media Specialist Luke Pahlau filming an intro for one of our social media blogs.

 

This video was recorded using a simple iPhone tripod and a mic attachment. Again, you don’t need any fancy equipment to get these done, just some thoughtful planning, a willing subject, and a pre-written script!

The blog this video was recorded for currently ranks #1 on Google for the search “social media for med spas.” It is a part of one of our marketing funnels that regularly generates (pre-sold!) leads for us. And it only took about fifteen minutes to film.

Doing Short Interviews Like Allen

Possibly the easiest format of new video content to produce at your Reno business is the short interview

All you need is a simple format, such as an introduction, a question, and a summary, like Allen Gannet uses.

Consider pulling people aside over the course of your business day–staff, clients, partners, people in your community–and asking them to record a quick 30-second video with you!

Creating Long, “Pillar” Videos

Longer video productions may seem daunting, but they can be curated fairly easily as well.

The first place you should be looking for long video content is among the other formats of long content you are already producing at your Reno business. For instance, if you are already speaking at events (like Gary Vee), guest lecturing, offering trainings, or recording podcasts, you should be filming this content as well.

Publish these “content pillars” to YouTube and break them down into smaller bite-sized pieces using the Gary Vee content pyramid model. You can also film yourself reading any blogs you are publishing or giving blog summaries to your audience.

One of our favorite formats of “pillar content” at Beacon is our Facebook Lives. We regularly bring in clients, other business owners, and change-makers in our community to our office to interview them in a shorter podcast-style format to publish live to Facebook. Once the live video is complete, we download it and publish it to YouTube. We have also repurposed our Facebook lives for landing pages.

https://youtu.be/YI7BnYYWrjg

 

Another idea for pillar video productions is the product demo. Some of the best YouTubers get views by casually unboxing products in front of the camera and filming their reactions and commentary. Consider filming yourself walking someone through your product or service.

Just Picking Up the Camera

Sometimes video production is less about having a plan and more about knowing when is the right time to turn on the video camera.

Gary Vee is great about filming whenever he has an important thought or insight to share, no matter who he is talking to.

Whether you are in a meeting with a client or talking something over with a team member, if you are sharing something that you think other people could benefit from, “lights, camera, action!”

Consider using this for your starting line, “Hey guys, I was just talking with so-and-so, and I feel like this is something you could benefit from too.”

You may be amazed by just how valuable these spontaneous videos are to your audience!

Do you feel inspired? We hope so. Our goal has been to show you just how approachable, scalable, and affordable video production can be. Ideally, you can start using some of these video format ideas as early as today if you’d like! If you are looking for a video production company in Reno who can help you develop the video portion of your marketing plan, we would love to talk. You can schedule a free consultation with our President Adrienne Wilkerson using our live scheduler here. Happy filming!

(VIDEO) It’s Time to Launch Your National Brand. Here’s What You Need to Do.

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Adrienne Wilkerson

 

Ready to go national?

We’ve been waiting for you to say that.

Not because we’re psychics or anything, although that would be pretty helpful for our line of work.

No, we’ve been waiting because we’re so incredibly excited about how straightforward national launches are in the age of digital marketing that we’re about to burst.

Literally, we almost told the guy in the elevator this morning (okay, not literally, but there would be much enthusiasm if asked).

Digital marketing was made for national brands.

These are the kinds of campaigns we live for.

Alright, enough elation, let’s talk about about how to launch a national brand with digital marketing.

It's Time to Launch Your National Brand. Here's What You Need to Do.

Launching a National Brand Tip #1: Use Digital Marketing

Okay, okay, we gave this one away already but it’s so so important that it deserves repeating.

Digital marketing was made for national brands.

The era of the internet opened up a literal window (we’re serious this time) for businesses to make a grand entrance into the rest of the nation and the world.

Digital Marketing Is Made for National Brands

When someone says, “digital marketing,” what comes to mind?

You probably think about social media first. Facebook. Instagram. Snapchat.

And you would be right: social media is a significantly large apparatus in the digital marketing toolbox.

But it’s only half the picture.

The primary goal of digital marketing is to put your brand in front of people in the places and spaces they spend their time online.

“The primary goal of digital marketing is to put your brand in front of people in the places and spaces they spend their time online.”

Social media is one of those places, yes.

How do we capture the rest of this internet time?

By tapping into the king of the internet: Google.

Google has a market share of 88.47%…

…making it the #1 search engine in the world.

Adding Google to our marketing mix, we can create touchpoints with our brand across internet users’ entire online experience.

Anywhere in the world.

Because it’s the internet, we are not limited to our physical location.

Did we mention that?

So not only are we able to access everyone’s internet time with digital marketing, but we are able to access everyone’s internet time, as in, everyone throughout the nation.

  • In order for a national brand to take root, it’s going to need a lot of reach.
  • Digital marketing is the only kind of marketing that can guarantee that.

Let us explain.

Digital Marketing Is Highly Targeted

Maybe we should talk about the difference between digital marketing and its counterpart (*cough*traditional marketing*cough*) to clarify what we’re saying here.

And when we say “traditional marketing,” what we mean is print, radio, and TV.

We’re talking about the difference between using digital media such as social media and websites to promote your national brand, and using traditional media such as newspapers and TV commercials, kapich?

Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way…

Digital marketing is highly targeted.

It allows you to show your ads *just* to the people you want to, using information like:

  • Demographics such as age, job title, and income
  • Interests such as hobbies, groups, and the things they follow
  • Location (better known as geotargeting)

Traditional media firms can do a lot of expensive market research and they can tell you who they think is seeing/hearing your national brand, estimating things like impressions and reach, but they really don’t know who is engaged.

Let that sink in for a minute.

With digital marketing, we can not only target exactly the kind of customer you want across the nation, but we can also measure exactly who is interacting with your national brand.

Digital Marketing Is Measurable

When you start marketing your national brand with a digital agency–if they’re doing things right–one of the first things they’ll do is place what’s called a “tracking pixel” on your website.

This is nothing more than a little HTML code that allows them to see where people are coming from and where they are going, so don’t worry about getting bugged here.

Here’s what’s so amazing about that.

Digital agencies can track clicks, messages, phone calls–real actions taken by internet users from their ads–and more.

So the next time you bring in a $10,000 client (if you’re one of those businesses with a high profit margin that we’re all jealous of), your agency will be able to show you exactly which ad they came from, where they visited on your website, and when they finally made the decision to begin working with you.

Wow.

Talk about measurable ROI.

  • When you launch a national brand, you face a lot of uncertainty, because you’re going into markets that you’ve never been in before.
  • The kind of user behavior data that digital marketing provides will be invaluable for you in the early stages of your national business.

So, in summary, USE DIGITAL MARKETING TO LAUNCH YOUR NATIONAL BRAND PLZ!

Phew, got a little intense there.

It’s Time to Launch Your National Brand. Here’s What You Need to Do.

Tip #2: Harness the Secret (Not So Secret) Power of SEO for Your National Brand

We talked about social media. We talked about Google.

These tools are hugely important to launching your national brand, as we said.

If you aren’t running nationally targeted Facebook, Instagram, and Google ads, your national brand is going to flop. Period.

But a lot of businesses already know this.

Today, we want to dive a little deeper into the secret (not so secret) digital marketing tools that can make all the difference when combined with national social media strategies.

A big one is SEO.

Search engine optimization (SEO) is the practice of making your web presence so search engine friendly that when Google crawls your online information, they know to rank you super high for the searches you want to rank for (as in, the #1 or #2 spots).

You typically want to rank for searches regarding the kinds of products or services you offer, of course.

How do you do that on a national level?

Bonus tip! (cue Beacon theme song?) You still need to niche.

Bonus Tip: You Still Need to Niche.

Just because you’re trying to reach everybody now doesn’t mean that you should try to reach literally everybody.

Obviously, you have a particular target audience in mind.

But even still, it can be immensely hard to compete with the other businesses across the nation who are also targeting the same audience in the search results.

Narrowing your target audience even further can narrow the base of businesses you have to compete with.

This time, we’ll explain using some real examples.

Get excited! (*woohoooooooo*)

National Web Content

There are two clients that we have recently gone national with that make for excellent examples of this kind of SEO.

The first one is Beacon (suprise!).

The second must remain undisclosed (boohoo), but they still provide an excellent example.

It is this client for which we implemented a national web content strategy, as in, we rewrote their web content so that when Google crawls it, they’ll pick up a national audience.

This client’s industry is highly competitive, probably one of the most competitive industries in the nation.

But even in this case, narrowing their target audience enough to create a reasonable amount of competition was not a difficult task.

We decided to write pages on their services (let’s pretend they’re business consulting company) aimed toward different sectors of their target audience.

So it went something like this, we wrote pages on:

  • (business consulting services) for restaurant
  • (business consulting services) for retail, and,
  • (business consulting services) for medical

It would be incredibly hard to compete for the search “business consulting services” on a national level, however, competing for “business consulting services” for a particular industry is a completely different game.

By modifying the search term with an industry, we were able to significantly downsize their competition.

Digital Marketing’s Hidden Gem: Blogging

We did a similar thing with Beacon.

At Beacon, we recently decided that we want to work with businesses across the country, but we knew that ranking for searches like “digital marketing” and “social media marketing” nationwide would be next to impossible.

So we started writing blogs on searches like “digital marketing for orthodontics” (an industry we like to work with) and “digital marketing for Reno” (a market we want to focus on).

Hey, that’s another bonus tip! (Beacon jingle) Focus on a few markets you have traction in first.

Bonus Tip #2: Focus on a few markets you have traction in first.

We already had some word-of-mouth in the dentistry industry, and our lovely President had recently set up a coworking space in Reno, Nevada.

So it only made sense to focus on these markets first in the grand scheme of our national strategy.

We wrote these blogs using every SEO best practice in the book, which is a little too much to get into today, but here are a couple of the boxes we checked:

  • 1,600-2,000 word blogs
  • Keyword in the title, headers, URL, meta description, and alt tags

These blogs result in direct leads from the industries and locations we target, coming in from the blog through our chatbot.

In summary, don’t forget about SEO.

It’s a crucial part of spreading your national brand.

Launching a National Brand Tip #3: Invest in High-Quality Digital Media

Alright folks, here’s the kicker.

If you’re going national, you’re going to have to up your media game.

Gone are the days where a logo design from the 90’s “cuts it,” especially online.

Please do not have your 16-year-old niece or nephew do your social media graphics, no matter how talented he or she may be.

The national market is savvy and won’t suffer a low-res image like your local customers did (did they ever, really?).

It’s time to invest in high-quality digital media.

Let’s Talk About the Elephant in the Room: Your National Brand

Is your brand ready to enter the national stage?

The answer to this question is not: “Yeah, the logo looks okay.”

To launch a national brand, you need:

  • An impactful name and tagline
  • A sleek, modern logo
  • A comprehensive brand guide including icons, fonts, colors, and imagery
  • A website and social presence that reflects this brand guide
  • An impactful brand message that breathes through it all

If any of these pieces are not in place, your national brand is going to suffer.

Before you go national, have a seasoned agency take a look at the consistency of the image you are presenting to your customers.

Going From Good to Great with Graphic Design

A national brand’s graphic design should hit the right mix of familiar and novel.

It should stand out in a way that makes a statement about your “new,” national business without forgetting to relate to your new, national target audience.

This balance can be difficult to strike.

As hard as it may be to hear this, the ability to recognize and create great graphic design work can really only come through experience.

It takes years of studying popular styles and trends to get a feel for what works.

For this reason, we recommend that you hire an agency that is comfortable with launching national brands.

You’ll want your brand visuals to resonate with the largest number of people possible within your target audience.

Because visual work can be highly subjective, an experienced agency will have practices in place for multiple creative team members from a variety of diverse backgrounds to review material before it’s approved.

They will also have a strong graphic designer who understands the nuances of the visual world.

Digital Marketing and Video

Last but not least (drumroll, please!), a national brand needs video.

Not only is video the best format of media for achieving engagement online.

Marketers who use video grow revenue 49% faster than non-video users!

But video is the medium of modern marketing.

When in Rome, do as the Romans do.

If you want to look like/be a national brand, you’ve got to act like one!

Get together with a videographer and schedule some high-quality video productions.

You won’t regret it once you see the national leads rolling in.

~

That’s all the advice we’ve got for today!

We could go on and on about launching a national brand, but we can only cover so much in one article.

If you’re ready to go national and you’d like to talk more about digital marketing, we’d love to chat.

Book a free consultation with one of our founders using our live scheduler.

Best of luck to you as you enter this new and exciting season of your business!

(WATCH) Here’s Why Video Marketing Is So Important

Picture of Adrienne Wilkerson

Adrienne Wilkerson

 

“Wow. Just…wow.”

That’s how we’re feeling about the video explosion that has occurred over the last 5-10 years.

Maybe you’ve seen some of the numbers:

“More than 500 million hours of video are watched on YouTube each day.”

– WordStream

Pretty crazy, right?

We’re guessing that if you’re reading this article, you already have some idea of just how valuable video marketing can be.

Our goal is not to convince you of what you already know, but to help you find that final piece of evidence that will push you over the edge and get you started on a video marketing campaign for your business.

So let’s talk about why video marketing is so important!

Why Is Video Marketing So Important?

Why is video marketing so important?

Short answer: Everybody’s doing it.

No, seriously–video is huge and you are simply going to miss out on a massive portion of your target audience if you do not begin marketing your business this way.

The numbers back it up.

In a minute, we’re going to show you what we mean.

Long answer: Video is the closest thing to real, human interaction that we can get with technology.

In reality, with the exception of touch, taste, and smell, video is the closest we can get to human conversation in the digital space.

People desire human relationships just as much as ever.

Today, we’re also going to talk about why the numbers are so high.

Video Marketing Is Important Because the Numbers Say So

Online advertising expert WordStream published an article full of gold on video marketing statistics that they update on an annual basis.

The numbers show us just how big this video trend has blown up, where it is occurring, and just how much ROI video marketing can make.

Just how big is video? Consider this statistic from WordStream:

“One-third of online activity is spent watching video.”

Let that soak in for a minute…one-third.

Can you imagine absorbing one-third of your customer’s internet time?

Of course, just because you are video marketing doesn’t mean you are capturing all that traffic, but the data is enough to make you pause.

Where is all of this video consumption happening? Primarily on YouTube and social media, according to WordStream:

“YouTube has over a billion users, almost one-third of total internet users.”

Did you know that YouTube is the second largest search engine in the world behind Google?

Yes, YouTube receives so much traffic that it is considered a search engine.

Where does social media come into the video marketing mix? WordStream says right here:

“Over 500 million (half a BILLION) people are watching video on Facebook every day.”

YouTube and Facebook are truly the platforms of choice when it comes to video marketing (WordStream):

“45% of people watch more than an hour of Facebook or YouTube videos a week.”

So what does that look like from an ROI standpoint? According to WordStream:

“Marketers who use video grow revenue 49% faster than non-video users.”

“Sixty-four percent of consumers make a purchase after watching branded social videos.”

If you want to see outstanding results from your marketing efforts, video marketing is the way to go.

It is also the way of the future, as per WordStream:

“The 25-34 (millennial) age group watches the most online videos.”

Millennials have become the dominant generation in the workforce with more purchasing power and say in cultural norms.

Even more video-savvy is their counterpart, generation Z. According to HubSpot:

“59% of Generation Z (16-24-year-olds) have increased their YouTube usage since last year.”

If you want to get in front of the next couple generations, you will need to invest in video marketing.

Video Marketing Is Important Because It’s Human

So why are so many people turning to video?

To be honest, it’s because it allows for a more human experience.

Video lets human faces, expressions, tones, and inflections come through, something that text can never dream of and photos only strive to achieve.

Video marketers have found that the more raw and authentic video seems, the better it performs.

This is important for one reason: The basis of every relationship is trust.

Behind every question your customer asks you is the question, “Can I trust you?”

Video marketing answers with a resounding, “Yes.”

With video, there is no hiding behind fancy graphics and smiling pictures–there is just you in front of the camera, doing your thing.

Here are some other things we have discovered about people and video:

  • People care about people. Heatmapping data shows that on websites, people’s eyes go to faces before they go to text. Our natural instinct is to assess the people involved in any situation before we assess the situation itself. How much more so with a video of faces!
  • People feel overwhelmed. Digital experts estimate that most of us are exposed to over 4,000 marketing messages a day. People don’t want to filter through all of that information any more. They want to receive the information that is important to them in the simplest way possible. This is something that video excels at.
  • People are bored or lazy. Video is entertaining. You can spend hours watching video and not notice. It is the absolute easiest format of media to consume.

At this point, you are probably wondering how to get the power of video to work for your business.

We have just one piece of advice: Use it everywhere.

Use Video Everywhere

In business, video can be used just about everywhere for just about anything! Not just your marketing, but your full customer experience.

If you think about it, a video can replace just about any touch-point you have with a customer.

Thinking about sending a thank you email to a client? Send a personalized thank you video instead!

Planning to schedule a product training with a new customer? Record an in-depth training video instead!

Video can be used for:

  • Product demos
  • Client onboarding
  • Customer education
  • Introduction to the company
  • Meeting the team
  • Customer support
  • And much, much more!

Of course, common video marketing applications include:

  • Brand promos
  • Event promos
  • Thought leadership
  • Explainers
  • How-tos
  • Customer testimonies
  • And more

Video marketing can come in the form of pre-recorded videos, live videos, 360° videos, and virtual & augmented reality.

Here are some stats to show just how big a difference video can make in every aspect of your marketing:

“Video on landing pages is capable of increasing conversion rates by over 80%.”

– HubSpot

“The mere mention of the word “video” in your email subject line increases open rates by 19%.”

– HubSpot

“Blog posts incorporating video attract 3x as many inbound links as blog posts without video.”

– WordStream

In everything you’re doing, ask yourself the question, “Could I record a video for this?”

Our 14-Point Checklist for Effective Video Marketing

We know that getting out there and starting something new (especially video marketing) isn’t easy.

Simply pulling out a smartphone or turning on a webcam and recording works for some people, but not everyone.

For commercials and promotions especially, we recommend a formal video production process.

This ensures the highest level of quality so that you represent your business in the best light possible.

Our video production process is a straight-forward, 14-point checklist:

Location ✔  Reserve the filming location beforehand so you don’t have to worry last-minute.

Actors/Actresses ✔ Find the talent for your video ahead of time so you don’t have to scramble.

One Day of Filming ✔ Get all the footage you need for many videos from one shoot to save time.

Storyboarding ✔ Start with a scene-by-scene plan that leaves nothing up to guesswork or “winging it.”

Scripting ✔ Feel confident in what you are saying with a plan of action and prepared script.

Editing ✔ Edit the video to remove any “ums” and “uhs” so you can be sure you sound your best.

Focused Message ✔ Stay on topic so people stay online and watch your engaging video production.

Plot-Oriented ✔ Use every scene to drive the plot forward and keep your viewers interested.

Transitions ✔ Implement smooth transitions so your viewers stay focused through the full video.

Call-Out Titles ✔ Share important information like names and titles without detracting from the video.

Branding ✔ Brand your videos with your logo, colors, and fonts so people know it’s you.

Licensed Music ✔ Match the video with licensed music that aligns emotion and message.

High-Quality Audio & Video ✔ Put your best foot forward so you have every opportunity to earn trust.

Content Repurposing ✔ Create multiple video assets from one shoot so you have more to work with.

This checklist combined with creative video ideas had led to some of our best video marketing work.

Try the checklist for yourself and see what you think!

~

Do you feel ready to start video marketing yet?

We hope that some of this data and anecdotal evidence has shown you the importance of launching a video marketing campaign for your business.

Video is booming and it looks like it’s here to stay.

If you would like to talk more about the value of video marketing, we would love to chat!

Please schedule a free consultation with one of our co-founders.

We look forward to meeting you and discussing the future!

Why Is WordPress So Popular for New Websites? (VIDEO)

Picture of Adrienne Wilkerson

Adrienne Wilkerson

You’ve probably heard a lot about WordPress, but did you know that it is the most popular content management system in the world?

Here are a few facts to confirm that statement:

Like many businesses, non-profit organizations, medical practices, and even media outlets, at Beacon Media + Marketing, we choose to use WordPress for our websites.

While there are several competitive options out there, WordPress offers several unique advantages that set it apart.

Are you interested in upgrading your website to a WordPress site? Chat with us to see how we can help.

1. WordPress is Free and Open to Everyone

WordPress software has been and always will be free.

By visiting wordpress.org and clicking the “Get WordPress” button, you could download your very own copy of WordPress right here, right now!

If you are web-savvy and know how to set up and host your own website, you might want to do just that.

However, most people need a little extra help.

Although the content management software is free, setup and hosting services are not.

That said, one of the many reasons why WordPress is the preferred option is the extremely low ($0) price point.

Please note: There is a difference between wordpress.org, which offers a free download of the WordPress software but requires separate hosting, and wordpress.com, which offers paid packages that include hosting. While wordpress.com packages are great for beginners, they do not allow for much expansion and growth with your business. Other CMS (such as Wix, Weebly, and Shopify) only offer such packages which is why they are not preferred.

2. You Can Build Any Kind of Website You Want on WordPress

Looking to launch a blog, create your first company website, or set up and online store?

WordPress can do it all through themes and plugins.

Theme – In the context of websites, a design structure that can be customized to your needs.

Plugin – A software that can be added to the primary software for additional features and benefits.

You can find thousands of themes and over 50,000 plugins through WordPress and third-party developers.

All you must do is choose the theme that supports the type of website you would like (e-commerce, portfolio, forum, etc.), then, install the plugins that add any custom features you desire that are not included with the theme.

Many themes and plugins are free, however, some more robust features cost money.

Other CMS only offer certain kinds of themes with their packages and have limited app stores (again, limiting your options and expansion opportunities).

3. WordPress Is Easy to Use

WordPress is a WYSIWYG editor, which means “what you see is what you get.”

WYSIWYG – “What you see is what you get.”

The changes you make through the WordPress dashboard look the same as they do on the live website, so you don’t have to make guesses about how things will turn out while you are editing.

Additionally, the WordPress editor is as easy as Microsoft Word.

You can bold text, italicize it–whatever you want to do–all without ever touching the HTML.

That said, if you want to touch the HTML, you can always switch from the visual editor to the text editor using the tabs on the right.

4. You Don’t Have to Learn to Code to Use WordPress

As mentioned, you don’t have to touch the HTML to edit text with WordPress.

You also don’t have to touch the CSS, PHP, or JavaScript (the other three languages WordPress runs on).

Any basic styling that you want to do–whether it’s changing a theme color or font or updating your logo–can be handled through the “Appearance” tab on the dashboard.

This is also where you can change your theme, add widgets, and update your navigation menu.

The entire WordPress system is a gorgeous interface that is made to be intuitive for anyone.

5. You Can Get WordPress Support Just About Anywhere

WordPress has an extensive support database, and WPBeginner is a great resource for newbies.

In addition, because WordPress is so popular, you can find the answers to your most burning questions all over the internet.

Everyone wants to be a WordPress expert, so a simple Google search on your dilemma should do the trick for delivering a myriad of helpful results.

6. WordPress Is Scalable and Can Handle Business Growth

Say you have a company website and you would like to add an online store.

That’s easy–simply install the most popular e-commerce plugin (that’s WooCommerce) and make sure you have a theme that supports it!

Changing themes and adding plugins are not difficult tasks, just be aware that changing your theme means you may need to go through the customization process again.

The best practice is to plan ahead and choose a theme that supports future growth–if you know you want to add an online store in the future, pick the right theme!

You can plan for adding anything down the road with the right theme.

7. WordPress Integrates with Most Business Software

Want to allow visitors to subscribe to your company newsletter directly from your website?

Whatever software you are using to run the sales and marketing side of your business, you can bet there is a WordPress plugin out there to facilitate integration.

8. With WordPress, You Own Your Business Website – Not so with the “Other Guys!”

What happens when you forget to pay or can’t pay your monthly bill for your Wix, Weebly, or Shopify website?

Well, you don’t own your website or its content–you are merely renting the internet space–so your information is at best held or at worst lost when your website inevitably goes down.

When you host your own website because its WordPress, you are in charge of the backups so if you have been faithful, you will have a copy of your website if it goes down.

If you work with an agency who hosts your WordPress website for you, make sure they:

  1. Perform regular backups to multiple locations
  2. Say that you own your website and its contents in their contract

We have had many, many clients who have been burned by other website providers and agencies because they got themselves roped into contracts that were not written in their favor.

Please be careful and get a WordPress website with an ethical agency!

9. WordPress Is the Best Blogging Platform in the World

WordPress was originally built to be a blogging platform exclusively!

Over the years, they have adapted to offer all kinds of websites, but they are still the best blogging platform on the planet.

Every WordPress website you create comes with a blog that you can either turn on or off.

If you choose to turn it on, you can count on the fact that your WordPress blog will be top-of-the-line–a classy writing experience for your writers and editors and a clean reading experience for your visitors.

WordPress allows for scheduling blog posts in advance, setting roles for everyone from administrators to contributors, and much more.

So whether you want a small blog for company updates or a full publication, you can do it through WordPress.

10. WordPress Is SEO-Friendly

The WordPress framework was designed with SEO in mind.

SEO (Search Engine Optimization) – The process of making your website as friendly for a search engine (such as Google) as possible so that it ranks higher on the results page.

Whenever you create a new blog post or web page on your WordPress website, WordPress automatically generates a title and description.

This information is very important for SEO–it’s the information that shows up in the search results for that page:

With an SEO plugin, you can also customize the title and description–we use SEOPress.

Some SEO plugins like SEOPress will also rank your content by other important factors for SEO so you know how to improve your page or post:

11. You Can Upload Photos, Videos, & Documents

WordPress supports all of the most common file types including .jpeg, .png, .pdf, and more.

Unfortunately, some of the other guys do not support as many file types as WordPress.

So if you are planning a media-rich site, WordPress is the way to go!

12. WordPress Is Mobile-Friendly

In 2015, Google released an update that rewards mobile-friendly websites, placing them higher on the results page (marketers lovingly called it “mobilegeddon”).

Consequently, non-mobile-friendly websites are penalized.

Mobile-Friendly a.k.a. Responsive – A mobile-friendly website is a website that is easy to view, read, and navigate on a smaller screen; it adapts to the screen size it is being viewed on.

Many WordPress themes are built to be responsive to all screen sizes including smartphones and tablets.

With WordPress, you know that your website is being rewarded rather than penalized in the search results!

13. WordPress Is Safe & Secure

The WordPress team is constantly releasing new updates to make WordPress software safer and better at keeping threats at bay.

As the most popular CMS out there, you can count on this being a priority.

WordPress provides security for over 30% of the internet!

14. It’s Just Popular!

Finally, the popularity of WordPress itself means that you can count on it sticking around and getting a lot of tender loving care.

~

We have used WordPress for all our new client websites and we thoroughly enjoy it.

Are you ready to join the 30% of the internet that uses the best CMS out there?

If you are interested in learning more about launching a WordPress website with us, we would love to geek-out with you in a free consultation!

Wherever you go, we hope that you can find the perfect website tool to meet your needs.

Happy marketing!

Embracing the power of a negative review

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Adrienne Wilkerson

Originally published on January 19, 2016. Updated on May 30, 2019.

“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.”

That saying has been making the rounds on playgrounds for well over a century. It’s an adage that implies that words and insults can’t hurt whoever is the brunt of the comment.

If we’re being honest, it’s never really made any of us feel better, and that’s especially true in the age of digital marketing and social media. Words certainly can, and have, hurt plenty of companies over the years. Many people rely on social media reviews when they’re making purchasing decisions, so when they see a bad review that was handled poorly or ignored, they’re most likely not going to trust the company with their business.

Negative reviews aren’t all bad. Many companies have misguided fears and that result in an aversion to bad reviews, but that’s not the answer. It is impossible to make everyone happy, and if you’ve been in business for any length of time, you are going to have someone out there who is unhappy with something. Reasonable consumers understand this and will take it into consideration when scanning reviews. What do you do?

Take a bad review, handle it with respect and stellar customer service. Turn the situation around. You have the opportunity to mend any damage with the reviewer, build your reputation for making customers your top priority, and build trust with anyone that sees your response. Use negative reviews to your advantage!

Need help managing a marketing crisis? Schedule a free consultation today.

Bad reviews have been shown to improve conversion by 67%. If you handle them properly, having negative reviews can actually build trust with consumers.

Approach each negative review calmly

Make it a habit to check social media accounts for what people are saying about you. Don’t just rely on customers to post to your business page or to tag you, because many won’t. Choose a social media tool, such as Google Alert, that will tell you every time your name is mentioned on a blog, website, or in the news. There are other sites available that will also track social media sites for mentions as well.

Remember, it’s not you that the customer is upset with, it’s the situation. Take a few minutes to read through all of your reviews and mentions. Reply to the positive ones first. Then, when you’ve had a chance to process things, take a deep breath and go back to the negative ones. Facebook tracks business response times, displaying it as a badge on their pages, so try to reply within an hour of receiving a complaint.

Most importantly, never delete negative reviews. Customers want to know that you care about them and are reading what they have to say, discerning customers will notice an absence of negative reviews and may become suspicious – such is the nature of the Internet. Address each concern promptly, publicly and personally. (Of course, if they contain inappropriate language or are defamatory or otherwise offensive, then you should delete or report the comments. We definitely want you to be responsible social media users!)

“When you answer a negative review and address the upset customer, you are also speaking to the hundreds of other consumers that want to know how you conduct your business. Consumers understand that mistakes happen, so when they see a business trying to do the right thing, it builds trust.” ~ Phil Penton, President of Social Integrations.

Read more: Must-read tips to rocking your online reviews

Acknowledge the concern raised

Acknowledge the customer’s issue and let them know that it’s being looked into. Give them a sense of when and how they can expect a response. Don’t just copy and paste an automatic response to issues. Customers can spot those immediately, and they’ll feel as though they’ve been brushed aside. Keep your tone conversational, include their name, your position with the company (it gives you credibility), and mention their issue in your response.

Look into the issue and assign the appropriate person to handle it. Having an escalation plan for employees is helpful and will ensure more consistent customer service. The plan can tell staff who deals with various types of complaints, what can be done at each level to alleviate the issue, and who has the power to offer compensation.

Going the extra mile makes a big difference. People know that no business is perfect and that mistakes happen. Take ownership of what went wrong so that you recognize the problem and prevent further blame from being thrown at you. Owning the issue will allow you to focus on finding a solution instead of stemming a flood of anger.

It is vital to make sure to keep your tone conversational and natural and come across as genuine. It takes time to build trust with a customer but only seconds to lose it. Empathy and honesty (without blaming the customer) can fix almost every situation. You don’t have to have the answers, but you need to be willing to find them.

Read more: The future of marketing

Take your response offline

Don’t rely on free products and services to fix problems raised in negative reviews. You’ll find your policy will be abused if this is your first line of defense. Helping them find an answer or fixing the original problem should be your default action. Offering coupons, vouchers, or replacements can go a long way toward earning you a second chance. Follow up by encouraging the client to update their review if their second experience is better.

After your initial response to a complaint, see if you can take further conversations out of the public eye. This will give you a chance to work with the customer one on one, be more personal, and avoid other commenters from dog piling on top of you. Private messages, email, or even a phone call are ideal ways to continue the conversation.

Finally, always follow up.

Don’t assume that an issue is resolved just because you responded to it. Follow up with the customer to make sure that they’re satisfied. Taking the extra time to touch base is a personal touch that lets them know that you really do care about them and their relationship with you in the future. It also provides you with an opportunity to gain some feedback about your processes and make changes to prevent future hiccups.

You can’t make everyone happy all of the time, but you can be honest and open with your customers and you can make them feel valued. If you take the time to make amends with customers who have had a negative experience, then you’re more likely to get their business again, and they’re also more likely to recommend you to others.

Let’s develop a strategy to improve your online reviews. Schedule a free consultation!

3 Things to Know About Google Advertising for Your Medical Spa

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Adrienne Wilkerson

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRIwoyPBUV4&list=PLpbaGJihu8fP1DJyXqpXBctAgZDDnbG8s&index=6

Originally published by Beacon Media + Marketing. Updated and revised by Jeremiah Blanchard, Digital Marketing Copywriter on 07/12/23

Are you considering launching a Google advertising campaign for your medical spa? That’s a fantastic idea!

Let’s explain why we’re so enthusiastic about it:

Google, being the most widely used search engine globally, boasts a staggering 4.3 billion users and commands an impressive market share of 92.24 percent as of 2023.

In simple terms, if you want to reach your target audience exactly where they’re searching online, Google is undoubtedly the best platform to utilize. And we can’t wait for you to witness the immense power of Google advertising!

However, before you dive in, there are a few essential aspects you should be aware of. While Google ads are a great way to get your brand noticed and increase your consumer base, being clued in on the way Google operates is the first step toward developing and understanding your advertising campaign.

Here, we’ll dive into what Google advertising entails, how it operates (including the algorithm and associated costs), and most importantly, what steps you can take to ensure the success of your medical spa campaign.

Are you ready to learn how Google ads can help you reach the right audience? Contact us at Beacon Media + Marketing today for a free consultation.

  1. What Is Google Advertising?

No matter if you’re in the medical spa industry or any other, we all relate to common experiences. So, let’s illustrate a common process with a real-life example.

Have you ever had a conversation with a family member or friend about something, such as the college your sister is attending or the product your mom uses, only to find that very topic appearing in an advertisement on a website you visit the next day?

It can be a bit freaky, right?

This occurrence is likely due to being targeted by a Google display ad that utilizes a technique called “remarketing.” Google employs this tool to place ads on various websites throughout your browsing experience, tailoring them based on your interests and the websites you frequent.

As a medical spa, Google ads will give you access to similar tools.

Now, let’s dive into the two types of Google advertisements.

The first type is Google display ads, as mentioned earlier, which resemble the LastPass ad displayed below.

Source: BuzzFeed

These can be identified by the grey “ADVERTISEMENT” text that hovers over the top.

The second are the Google search ads, which display at the top of the Google results page as you can see below:

Source: Google

A Google search ad can be easily recognized by the small, green “Ad” label displayed next to the URL beneath the page title.

When you click on one of these ads, the business behind them incurs a charge. This payment model is commonly referred to as “pay-per-click” or “PPC” in the marketing industry.

Below the paid advertisements, you will find the section we commonly refer to as “organic” results.

At Beacon, we recommend that our clients running med spa Google ads also use a strategic mix of paid ads and tactics to achieve rank organically.

In addition, there are a few critical aspects you should be aware of regarding the two distinct types of Google advertisements.

Google search ads consist of three essential elements: a headline, a URL, and a description. In contrast, Google display ads provide a greater level of flexibility.

For med spas, when it comes to Google display ads, you have the opportunity to utilize up to sixteen unique combinations of logos, graphics, headlines, and descriptions! This allows for a wider range of creative options to capture the attention of your target audience.

  1. How Does Google Advertising Work?
google ad words infographic

To be effective in Google advertising for medical spas, you will want a solid understanding of the Google advertising algorithm, bidding structure, and cost.

All of this is managed through a program called Google AdWords, which you will want to create an account with when you are ready to get started.

The Google Advertising Algorithm

Google’s operations are truly remarkable. And it’s truly astonishing how swiftly and seamlessly everything unfolds when performing a search.

From the perspective of Google advertising when running Google ads, within that split second, Google takes stock of all the ad accounts that contain the relevant keywords or phrases utilized in the search.

Let’s say your medical spa aims to rank for the search query “botox near me.”

When someone searches for “Where can I get botox in my location?”, your ad account will be included in Google’s inventory. But how do you communicate to Google the keywords and phrases you wish to rank for?

You do so by bidding a monetary amount that you are willing to pay if someone clicks on your ad (remember, it’s pay-per-click!).

For this reason, many marketers refer to this process as the “Google AdWords auction.” And the outcome of this auction is determined by two key factors:

  1. The maximum bid you have set for your keyword.
  2. The quality score of your advertisement.

Pay close attention to that last point. As a profit-driven entity, Google places great importance on delivering a high-quality search experience to its users, and this includes the advertisements displayed!

Satisfied Google users translate into increased market share and greater revenue for Google. And this is a crucial aspect to keep in mind as you craft your Google ads for medical spas. Thus, the quality score of your advertisement itself also depends on two factors:

  1. The historical performance of your ad, ad group, and overall account.
  2. The relevance of your chosen keyword, ad (including title, URL, and description), and landing page to the search query and to each other.

In addition, two terms you may not be familiar with are “ad group” and “landing page.”

An ad group refers to the collection of keywords you are targeting with your ad.

Your landing page is the specific page to which your ad directs users — a page where they “land” after clicking on your ad. Clever, isn’t it?

Both the ad you write and the landing page you link to should incorporate your chosen keyword and maintain a focused approach on the relevant topic. And all these factors culminate in the following equation that determines the final rank of your ad on the search results page:

CPC Bid x Quality Score = Ad Rank

On the Google display ad front, the auction process differs slightly.

For display ads, maximum bids are established at the ad group level, rather than for individual keywords.

Moreover, you have the option to bid based on impressions, which represents the number of times your ad is displayed to users.

This bidding method is commonly known as “cost-per-impression” or “CPM” bidding.

Remember: “As a company that wants to make money like everybody else, Google values delivering a quality search experience to its users, which includes your advertisements! Happy Google users = more market share = more money for Google. This is an important thing to remember as you write your ads.”

How Much Google Advertising Will Cost Your Medical Spa

As mentioned, when you run Google ads, you will be charged every time someone clicks on one of your medical spa’s Google advertisements.

The equation to determine the cost-per-click (CPC) is as follows:

Next Highest Ad Rank / Quality Score + $0.01 = CPC*

If you did well with ratios and statistics in school, you will realize that the higher the quality score of your ad is, the lower your cost will be. And this reinforces Google’s commitment to quality.

*Note: The cost-per-click will never go above your maximum set bid.

  1. Can Google Advertising Grow My Medical Spa?

Having a great position in search engine results is one thing, but Google advertising can absolutely grow your medical spa!

However, we must emphasize that success is not guaranteed, unfortunately. This is because various factors, such as the level of competition within the medical spa industry in your specific area, can significantly impact the performance of your Google ads.

Certain industries and locations tend to have higher levels of competition than others, and the choice of search terms also plays a pivotal role.

To illustrate this point, let’s take an example from Beacon’s headquarters in Anchorage, where the cost-per-click in the legal industry has soared to as much as $50!

Given the absence of substantial profit margins, it would be unwise to allocate such a significant budget for every click through your Google ad, particularly when you consider that a click represents a lead rather than a confirmed customer (at least for the time being). It is crucial to note that these results may vary in your specific location.

Correspondingly, the bid figures we observe tend to be relatively high, indicating a high level of competition within the medical spa industry and widespread adoption of Google advertising within the community.

How do we come to this conclusion, you may wonder, apart from the “high” and “medium” markers on these results?

Because we rely on industry benchmarks to gain insights into the landscape and dynamics of the field.

Source: WordStream (at the date of this blog post)

Let’s examine the “Health & Medical” industry as a whole to gain insights. The average cost-per-click in this industry stands at $2.62, which is lower than the lower end of the bid range in our findings.

Don’t let the moderate competitiveness of the medical spa industry discourage you. Creating high-quality, relevant ads that generate valuable leads can make a significant difference for your marketing campaign.

At Beacon, our Google team consistently achieves below-average cost-per-click for our clients, resulting in substantial cost savings.

Curious about our approach? For each service we advertise, we allocate a budget of at least $300 per month, often more. This corresponds to our recommended minimum cost-per-click budget for each keyword across 1-3 ad groups.

We always strive to target niche keywords that have lower competition but effectively capture internet users searching for specific services. As an example, at Beacon headquarters in Anchorage, we focus on marketing for a holistic dentist. Instead of targeting broad terms like “family dentistry,” we prioritize “holistic dentistry” as it offers lower competition and is easier to capture. The results we’ve achieved for this client have been truly remarkable.

Our team prioritizes the creation of quality, relevant ads, and landing pages to generate leads so you can reach potential customers. And few things contribute as significantly to the success of a Google advertising campaign as this approach. Crafting clear, concise, and compelling ads that lead users to the appropriate pages with relevant keywords is paramount.

Are you feeling prepared to launch your first Google advertising campaign for your medical spa?

We hope this article serves as a valuable resource as you embark on this endeavor!

For all medical spa owners, if you feel overwhelmed or lack the time to handle Google advertising for your medical spa, we would be delighted to offer our Google advertising services to you. Our team holds Google Partner certification and stays abreast of the latest developments in Google advertising to deliver the best possible results for our clients.

Are you interested in amping up Google ads for your medical spa? Please reach out to Beacon Media + Marketing to schedule a complimentary consultation.

(VIDEO) How to Create a Vibrant Brand for Your Medical Spa

Picture of Adrienne Wilkerson

Adrienne Wilkerson

“Your brand is what people say about you when you’re not in the room.” – Jeff Bezos

If you are ready to brand or rebrand your medical spa and you want more than the humdrum logo you can get off a popular freelancing website for $5, this blog is for you.

We are going to share with you a branding process that has taken us over 20 years to refine.

It is the formal process that we use with all of our corporate branding clients.

This process is truly all-encompassing, from discovering your brand identity to selecting the right icons, colors, and fonts to make your medical spa shine.

Let’s get going!

First: What Is a Brand?

For starters, we are going to clarify what we mean by “brand.”

What is a brand?

We firmly believe that a brand is more than just a logo.

Your brand is what your customers perceive about your medical spa, who you are, and what you do.

According to Jeff Bezos, “Your brand is what people say about you when you’re not in the room.”

So who are you?

Answering this question will provide you with the context that you need to put your brand in the format that most people expect it: icons, colors, and fonts.

We begin our branding process by getting to the bottom of this question in a discovery meeting.

The Brand Discovery Meeting

Our brand discovery meeting is a key part of the branding process as it sets the tone for everything that follows.

The goal is to get all of the brand decision-makers in one room and dig deep into the medical spa’s present perception and vision for the future.

Please do not attempt to rebrand your medical spa without the buy-in of executive leadership! This can lead to different ideas about what your brand currently is and what it could be.

We typically ask a long series of honest questions, such as:

  • Tell us who you are and what you do in two sentences or less.
  • If your brand “promises” something to your customers, what is that promise?
  • What kinds of things does the community think about your medical spa? What would you like them to think?
  • Given your competition, how are you different? Are you high-cost, but high-value? Do you consider yourselves innovators in the way you do business? Have you changed the way your community thinks about the medical spa industry?
  • What are your mission, vision, and values?

Give these questions due-diligence, and you may be surprised by what you learn about your business.

How to Name Your Medical Spa

If you do not already have a name for your medical spa, this is the first step for you.

Depending on the results of your discovery meeting, you may have a great lead on a new name.

Here are some ideas that can help you solidify a name:

  • What are competing medical spas naming themselves? Although you (clearly) do not want to take one of their names, this can be a helpful launching pad for your own creative ideas.
  • Does the doctor have a strong reputation in your community? If so, you may want to incorporate his or her name in the medical spa name.
  • You may want to use your location (city, state, or region) in your name.
  • When you were in the discovery meeting, were there any words used to describe your medical spa that resonated with you? For a more abstract naming approach, you could use a noun, adjective, or verb that says something about your medical spa.

For teams using that last approach, we highly recommend pulling up a thesaurus.

As silly as it may sound, we have found some of our favorite client names with thesaurus in hand.

Time for a Tagline

Taglines are opportunities.

If you cannot capture enough of the amazing qualities of your medical spa in a name, you may be able to do it in a tagline.

Taglines are important for your brand messaging.

Once your tagline has been made, everything you write for marketing your medical spa should be able to connect back to your tagline.

This makes it imperative to get a tagline right.

While you are brainstorming a name, take a few of your “second place” concepts and see if they might not fill out your name as a gorgeous tagline.

How to Pick the Right Icons, Colors, and Fonts for Your Medical Spa

If you are not trained in art or design, you may find it difficult to communicate concepts of reputation in visual forms like icons, colors, and fonts.

We are going to outline a few tools to help you start thinking this way.

It all comes down to human psychology and how we mentally and emotionally perceive objects of designed, informed by our nature and our nurture.

Understanding Iconography

The icon is the part of your brand that most people consider “the brand” or “the logo.”

It is the part of the logo that uses form rather than text to visually communicate something about your medical spa.

Your icon may represent aspects of your name, your location, or your mission.

A strong example is a logo we designed for Juneau Youth Services (JYS).

JYS is a mental health service for youth and their families.

When youth participate in JYS, the goal is to inspire hope and freedom for their present and future.

Because JYS is in Juneau, Alaska, and to communicate the freedom JYS youth and families feel when they receive treatment, we used mountains and a bald eagle in their icon.

Icons are extremely versatile–more so than a full logo including all of the fonts and colors.

An icon can be used in a variety of ways, as art on promo products, watermarks on forms, and more.

In your search for a perfect icon, try browsing Pinterest for other medical spa logo ideas or visiting The Noun Project to view icon art created by people all over the world.

Consider making your own board of logo ideas on Pinterest for reference.

Creating Emotions with Colors

We recently wrote an article about the emotions associated with the colors.

There are some emotions that you will want associated with your medical spa, and some that you will not.

Take a quick look at what some colors mean to our emotional minds:

  • Red – Red comes in a variety of shades, each with their own distinct meaning! Red could say “temptation,” “stop and pay attention,” “warning” or “danger,” “celebration,” “love,” or “femininity.”
  • Orange – Mmm, orange. We often associate this color with tasty food! A gentler version of red, orange can also communicate qualities like “light” and “life.”
  • Yellow – Just like orange, red can mean light and warmth. Like red, it can catch attention too. Yellow in its gold form represents wealth, luxury, and rank. In other shades, yellow can mean joy, optimism, or comfort.
  • Brown – If you take a natural approach to beauty at your medical spa, you may want to use brown! Brown portrays earth, wholesomeness, the outdoors, organic products, and all-natural ingredients.
  • Blue – No, blue does not just mean “sad.” Blue tells our emotional minds to be at peace, reminding us of tranquility, mystery, depth, and strength. It is also used in the health and wellness industry.
  • Green – Green can be a hard color to get right. It comes in the most shades of any color in the world and it has a wide range of emotional associations! Green can mean anything from new beginnings to relaxation depending on which green you choose.
  • Purple – A mix of red and blue, purple can take on the attributes of both! If it leans in the direction of red, purple communicates energy and intensity. If it leans blue, purple takes on a calmer and loftier feel.

Adobe offers a fantastic online color wheel tool for selecting color palettes.

Colors and how they relate to each other is a science that is governed by mathematical laws.

Depending on what colors you choose, the Adobe tool will automatically adjust the other colors in the palette according to a color algorithm, to keep the palette looking great.

Experiment with the color wheel until you find the exact feel you are looking for.

Matching Typography

You may not realize it, but just like with icons and colors, typefaces matter for communicating the brand of your medical spa.

Once again, different choices will portray different emotional feels.

Let’s talk about a few obvious examples.

Think about a horror film and what kind of font might make it on the cover.

You are probably picturing something scratchy, screamy, disjointed, or broken.

Now think about your favorite online publication and the font used there.

The font that comes to mind is likely clean, sophisticated, and editorial.

Matching typography to the other elements of a logo is often a matter of font study and gut instinct.

Browse through the fonts on Google Fonts and see if anything stands out to you.

You may want to run a list of 3-5 fonts by your branding team to see if they get the same thing you do from the fonts you have chosen.

How to Manage Your Medical Spa Brand

After you have put hours into perfecting your new medical spa brand, you will want to do everything you can to protect it!

That’s where brand management comes in.

At Beacon, we provide all of our branding clients with a style guide that tells the staff what the logo, colors, and fonts are, as well as how they should and should not use them.

This is an important step that you should consider if you want to maintain a strong brand.

Brands can easily be tainted or confused if they are not protected.

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As we mentioned at the beginning of our blog, this branding process is the very process that we use for all of our medical spa clients.

We hope that it helps you and your team clarify your brand!

If you would like to partner with the Beacon team in your branding, we would love to work with you.

You can reach out directly to President Adrienne Wilkerson at [email protected] or schedule a free consultation with her using our Acuity scheduler.

Adrienne has been branding clients in the health, wellness, and beauty industries for over 20 years!

She would be more than happy to talk with you about your branding vision.

(VIDEO) How to Make Google Advertising Work for Your Reno Business

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Adrienne Wilkerson

“The best place to hide a dead body is on the second page of Google.” – Anonymous

It is often the first question our clients ask us. “How do I get on the first page of Google?”

Many times, it comes in the form of a demand. “Get me on the first page of Google.”

We understand why!

Google is the go-to search engine for 1.17 billion people–that’s 77% of all search engine users in the world!

Whether your business is in Reno or any other part of the country, you should know what Google advertising is, how it works, and how to make it work for you.

Today, we will discuss these topics as well as the Google advertising algorithm, and how much Google advertising costs. We’ll even throw in some of our agency best practices!

Enjoy!

What is Google Advertising?

Have you ever told a friend about a product you were thinking about buying, a place you were thinking about traveling to, or a musician you would like to go see, only to have an ad for that very topic pop-up on the next website you visit?

If so, you know what Google advertising looks like, even if you can’t put a name to it.

Google advertising takes two forms.

The first is the results that populate at the top of the search engine results page (SERP), indicated by a little green “Ad” box to the left of the URL. See below:

The second is the display advertisements that travel with you from website to website.

There are actually two Google display ads in the screenshot below. Can you find them amid all the noise on BuzzFeed?

They are indicated by little, grey “advertisement” text above each:

Whenever you click on the first kind of Google ad–the one displayed on the results page–the advertiser is charged a fee.

This is why we marketers call Google advertising “pay-per-click” advertising or “PPC.”

We call everything below the Google ads on the results page “organic” results because no one is paying for them to rank, they are simply considered relevant to the search performed by the Google algorithm.

It is challenging to rank in organic results, which is why so many Reno business owners consider Google advertising an attractive marketing tool. That said, ranking organically is “free”–requires no ad spend, only the cost of the production of content–and therefore incredibly valuable to the businesses who “make it.” We recommend an integrated strategy, paid and organic, at Beacon.

“Results page” Google ads are made of just text–a headline, a URL, and a description.

“Website” Google ads are called “Google display ads” and they are comprised of headlines, descriptions, logos, and graphics–a bit more diverse, they can come in sixteen different formats.

Google display ads “follow you” from website to website by a marketing tool called “remarketing.”

When you visit the website of a business that uses remarketing and then go somewhere else online–if the next website allows Google display advertising–Google will pull ads from the first business onto the second website.

The idea is to encourage you to come back and do business with the first!

How Does Google Advertising Work?

Both results page Google ads and website display ads are created and managed in a program called Google AdWords.

If you want to start Google advertising for your Reno business, your first step is to create a Google AdWords account.

After that, you will need to learn a few things about how the Google advertising algorithm works so you can create effective advertisements.

The Google Advertising Algorithm

What happens when you perform a search on Google?

An incredible amount of work, all in a split second!

In regard to AdWords, the first thing Google will do is find all of the accounts that would like to rank for the terms used in the search.

For instance, you may be trying to rank for “(your services) in Reno.”

If someone searches, “How can I get (your services) in Reno?” your AdWords account will be considered in Google’s sweep.

The way you tell Google that you would like to rank for a particular search term, or, keyword is by bidding money on it in AdWords.

So really, any given search is an “auction” of sorts for Google AdWords advertisers!

Here are the factors that go into the AdWords auction:

  • The maximum bid you have set for your keyword
  • The quality score of your advertisement

As you can see, Google not only cares about monetary value, but also about the quality experiences it is delivering to its users.

A “maximum bid” is the maximum amount you are willing to pay if someone does indeed click on your advertisement (remember, this is pay-per-click).

Another term for maximum bid is “cost-per-click (CPC) bid.”

Your “quality score” is calculated by additional factors:

  • Past performance of the ad, ad group, and your account in general
  • The relevance of your selected keyword, ad, and landing page to the search and to each other

What is an “ad group?” What is a “landing page?”

Ad groups are the groups of keywords that you are trying to rank your ad for.

A landing page is the page that you send users to after they click on your advertisement, and it should be directly related to the topic that your keyword indicates.

Here is the equation that determines your ad’s rank after the AdWords auction:

CPC Bid x Quality Score = Ad Rank

The AdWords auction for display ads is a little different from the auction for results page ads.

In this case, CPC bids are set on the ad group level, not for individual keywords.

With display ads, instead of bidding on clicks, you can also bid based on impressions, the number of times your ad was delivered.

The term for this is “cost-per-impression (CPM) bidding.”

Fun fact: It is in Google’s best interest to rank your ad higher if it is high-quality and relevant! That’s because relevance and quality mean a better user experience for Google’s users. The better the experience, the more likely users are to prefer Google as a search engine, the more money Google makes. The more users Google has, the more clicks you receive, the more customers you get as a relevant advertiser on Google. It all checks out!

How Much Google Advertising Will Cost Your Reno Business

In pay-per-click, each time an internet user clicks on one of your Google advertisements, your Reno business will be charged for that click.

What determines the going rate? This equation right here:

Next Highest Ad Rank / Quality Score + $0.01 = CPC*

How good is your algebra?

What you will notice from this equation is that, the higher your quality score is, the less you must pay per click.

Once again, Google rewards advertisers for relevance.

*Please note that the cost-per-click will never go above your set maximum CPC.

Can Google Advertising Grow My Reno Business?

Here is an answer that you may not like, but is absolutely true: It depends.

The factors that determine your rank on Google are not only your bid and relevance, but also the amount of competition you have for Google AdWords, in your industry, in Reno.

Some industries and locations see a lot of competition, while others see very little.

At Beacon headquarters in Anchorage, in the legal industry, we have seen cost-per-click upwards of $50!

This would be a deal-breaker for some clients, to whom we might recommend an organic strategy or place more emphasis on social media marketing, depending on the competitive landscape.

Others are perfectly comfortable paying this rate because they have seen how the $50 they spend on one, qualified click has a massive return on investment.

For Reno, here is a breakdown of the keyword competition for three of the top industries currently in the market:

Keyword Average Monthly Searches Competition Page Bid (Low Range) Page Bid (High Range)
healthcare 50 Medium $2.60 $9.66
startup 20 Low N/A N/A
technology 140 Low $0.79 $1.70

Source: Google AdWords Keyword Planner (at the date of this blog post)

This is a broad range of results.

In general, you want to see high average monthly searches (comparatively), low to medium competition, and cost-per-click (CPC) that are lower than industry average (see chart below).

Please note that the actual cost-per-click is a different figure than the maximum cost-per-click bid.

How to Make Google Advertising Work for Your Reno Business

Source: WordStream (at the date of this blog post)

As you can see, cost-per-click in Reno is right around industry average for healthcare, whereas technology is very low, and there is little to no data for Google to report on startups.

However, just because your industry reports a certain average cost-per-click does not mean that your cost-per-click will be the same.

Relevance goes a LONG way in Google advertising.

At Beacon, we frequently achieve cost-per-click below industry standards.

Here are some of our own best practices for Google advertising that we have developed over the years:

  • For every service advertised, you should have a budget of at least $300 per month (we recommend more). This means a minimum cost-per-click budget on each keyword in about 1-3 ad groups.
  • You should find a niche that differentiates your business in your industry for more nuanced keywords. The more nuanced your keywords are, the less competitive they are, and the more likely they are highly relevant to the internet users who are searching them. For instance, we have seen great results in Google ads for a local dentist. In our advertising for her, we don’t simply use the term “dentist,” but rather, “holistic dentist,” because that is what she is and FAR fewer local dentists are competing for this specific phrase.
  • Create relevant ads and landing pages. Make sure your ads are compelling, to-the-point, and send people to a landing page that is keyword-optimized for the keywords you are targeting. Keyword-optimized means that the keyword appears across headers and text on the page.

How can you make Google advertising work for your Reno business?

To sum it all up, you MUST do competitive keyword research, niche your business, spend enough money to see results, set appropriate CPC bids, and create highly relevant ads.

“Is that all?” You may be asking, sarcastically.

If this is a little too overwhelming, we get it–It has taken us years to perfect our Google advertising strategy at Beacon.

Today, we have a Google Partner certificate, and we greatly enjoy helping other Reno businesses grow using Google ads!

If you are interested, please reach out to our President Adrienne Wilkerson to schedule a free consultation using our Acuity scheduler.

Adrienne is on-location in Reno and she would be more than happy to talk to you in person, over the phone, or via video chat!

If not, we hope you find these resources helpful and we wish you the best as you make Google advertising work for you!

The Connected CEO: Part 2

Picture of Adrienne Wilkerson

Adrienne Wilkerson

Originally published on August 3, 2013. Updated on May 31, 2019.

So you want to be a connected CEO? You want to take the plunge?

Great! But where do you actually start?

Corporate social media 101

  1. Make sure your company has a social media policy that both the PR and HR can agree and live with. Then stick to it. This may seem obvious, but depending on your industry, there can be some tricky areas to navigate when communicating via social media.
  2. Decide which social media platforms you want to “own” as the company’s CEO. There is a lot out there and it’s easy to get burned out. We recommend picking three to focus on and master. We also recommend checking with your PR/Marketing department to find which ones they believe to be the most effective for your company and industry.
  3. Be consistent! It would be better to not do social media or only use one social media outlet than to be sporadic. Set up yourself on a schedule for posting and/or blogging. Some social media platforms like Twitter take a lot more time and should have multiple posts a day to be effective, others like a blog could have one post a week.
  4. Establish and maintain a voice. Social media is just that, social. It is all about conversations. Be yourself and communicate the way you would naturally do with a friend or colleague. People want to connect with the real you, they are looking to feel connected to you and therefore the company you lead.
  5. Finally, we highly recommend having a least one person who can be a second pair of eyes to double check content, basic typos, or other things we might miss composing material. After we take the time to actually post, the last thing we want are typos in our material. Twitter is a little more difficult since it is probably the most casual and spontaneous of the social media outlets. But even so, if you’re responding to a PR issue or posting a response to a national or international crisis for instance, it is better to take the time and get the post proofed prior to sending it out.

Have questions? Schedule a free consultation today.

(VIDEO) The Best Social Media Strategy for Reno Businesses

Picture of Adrienne Wilkerson

Adrienne Wilkerson

 

Ready to finally get a social media strategy up and running for your business? With as competitive as the Reno market is becoming, now is the time to get your social media off the ground.

Our team has fine-tuned the following best practices after 20 years in the marketing business. First, we’ll cover the platforms you’ll want to be on, how they work, and what your posting schedule should be. Then we will get into our secret to consistent publishing, the editorial calendar! We will also cover paid social media advertising at the end.

Enjoy our expertise at your fingertips!

Facebook Is the #1 Social Media Platform, Use It!

Facebook is the most popular social media platform of the whole gamut, no question. That said, we’ve gathered a few important statistics to give you a frame of reference.

It may sound crazy, but almost 75% of online American adults use Facebook.1 Monthly active users for Facebook totaled at 2.32 billion at the end of 2018, just about one-third of the population of the world.2

We love Facebook for marketing because it has fantastic targeting tools. If you are using paid advertising on Facebook (see the last section of this blog), you can target audiences with your content based on their location (say, Reno), title, income, interests, etc. This allows you to narrow your focus so you are spending money on just the exact group of people you want to, no more, no less.

Posting Schedule

Our recommended posting schedule? Three to five times per week. This is just enough content to keep people engaged without numbing or frustrating them with the frequency at which they see your brand. Use an editorial calendar to determine the content of these posts (we will talk about this in a moment).

For a brief summary of the information shared in this blog, watch Social Media Manager Sarah Testen discuss social media marketing on Beacon’s Digital U!

 

Instagram for Reno

If your target audience includes anyone born in the 21st century, you will want to be on Instagram. The most active users on Instagram are between 18 and 29 years old,3 and 72% of teenagers say that they use Instagram.4

Struggling to know what to post on Instagram? Here’s our rule of thumb: “Everything that goes on Instagram can be shared on Facebook, but not everything that is shared on Facebook should go on Instagram.” Instagram content is a bit of a strange animal–Unless you are posting warm, engaging images shot in good perspective with interesting subject matter, you are unlikely to get engagement. Not all Facebook content has to be this way.

Instagram can be summed up in one word: Visual. If someone on your Reno team has a natural bend for photography, consider putting them on Instagram publishing as a special social media project.

How do you capture engaging photography when the subject matter is your business? Think strategically about your products and services. If you are a product-based business, it’s a no-brainer–Take photos of your products at interesting angles and with beautiful back-drops! If you are service-based, maybe you take more shots of your team in-action or before-and-after photos of your client when they experience your services.

Posting Schedule

Using your editorial calendar (we will talk about it soon, we promise!), plan to publish a couple posts per week that have strong visuals to your Instagram account.

For more on Instagram, read our blog: 14 Ways Businesses Can Optimize Their Instagram Profile Right Now!

You Should Be Social Media Marketing on LinkedIn, Too

Thought LinkedIn was dead, or at best, stuffy? Think again!

LinkedIn has recently made a come-back and the primary beneficiaries are business-to-business companies. If your Reno business is targeting other businesses, you will want to be on LinkedIn, which is also great for vendor relationships and reaching job seekers.

Here’s a winning statistic for you: Of all social traffic to business-to-business websites and blogs, LinkedIn contributes 50%.5 Unlike Facebook, LinkedIn only has 154 million users, but this is a highly select group of people.6 We’re talking about senior-level staff and company decision-makers. If you are looking to grow, LinkedIn is a great social media platform for finding personnel, with 40 million students and recent college graduates on the platform.7

The best content for LinkedIn is local (Reno) business and industry news as well as personal coaching/life advice. Considering the demographics of the platform, this should not be surprising!

Posting Schedule

Depending on the goals of your company–if it is business-to-business or not–we recommend a posting schedule of three to five times per week. If you are not B2B, you should only be on LinkedIn if you are strengthening vendor relationships or in the process of hiring new staff.

An Editorial Calendar Will Help You Publish Consistently for Your Reno Audience

Now for the moment you have all been waiting for! *drumroll please* The editorial calendar!

Very few people can maintain a consistent publishing schedule on social media without a strong editorial calendar. The reality is, even if you are a creative genius, you will have your ups and downs. If you expect yourself to be able to sit down in front of your computer or pull out your smartphone three to five times per week and come up with a brilliant post idea on the fly every time, you may be sorely disappointed. But if you have a plan–something an editorial calendar provides–you will find your genius comes much more naturally! Here is an example page from one of our clients’ editorial calendars to show you what we are talking about, blurred for anonymity:

Get Your Orthodontics Social Media Strategy Off the Ground!

This is a “post type” page. It gives an example post idea for the client that they can use as a general category for one type of post to publish each week on their social media. In a given editorial calendar, you can have five to ten of these post types for content creators to choose from. Post types accomplish two things, #1 they take the think work out of day-to-day social media publishing, and, #2 they create consistency for followers.

At the start of service for each of our Reno social media clients, we come together as a team and brainstorm post types based on our research and knowledge of the client, their goals, the market, competition, target audiences, trends, and more. Here are some general post type ideas that frequently surface in our brainstorm meetings:

  • Educational (like the example above) – Educational posts provide audiences with the baseline of knowledge they need to engage with your business. They also have the power to change incorrect perceptions about your industry or the product or service you provide. Educational posts can establish your business as a thought leader with authority in your subject matter.
  • Blog/Article Shares – Consider maintaining a blog for your Reno business. It provides great content for this particular post type. Not only does writing your own blog content establish more authority for your business, it also drives audiences to your website instead of somebody else’s for industry knowledge, with the chance of converting them to customers.
  • Human Interest – This is one of our favorite post types. Everyone loves stories about fellow humanity and the challenges we all face and overcome. Human interest posts typically feature an image of the person of interest, perhaps a quote from an interview with them, and their story. Note: These types of posts work well for some industries, not others, and there must be a clear and obvious connection between the series and a business goal. For a strong example of a group that harnesses human interest, see Humans of New York.
  • Behind-the-Scenes – We all want to know what happens behind-the-scenes. Posts like these give audiences the sense that they have an intimate knowledge of your business, which can create trust and loyalty. They promote transparency and authenticity. Publish shots of your Reno team at work providing your service or the manufacturing process behind your product.
  • Before and After – The more concrete you can make the benefits of your product or service, the better. Before and after posts scream the value of what you provide loud and clear.
  • Lifestyle – Nothing is more impactful for selling your product or service than tying it to the lifestyle that your target audience wants to live. They are already bought-in to the lifestyle they want, so it is a small step to go from there to your offerings! Posts like these use smiling, happy photos of the people in your target demographic enjoying what you provide.
  • Videos – Video is the most easy-to-consume form of media out there. It is the low hanging fruit of social media engagement. Produce a promo video for your business!
  • Events – Host or sponsor a lot of events in Reno? Your social media is exactly where you should be sharing them.
  • Promotions – If you run a lot of deals and specials at your business, you definitely want to be sharing these offers on social media as well.
  • Contests – Social media contests naturally produce significant engagement. Everybody wants to win something! We typically run photo contests where followers are asked to share a picture from “their last vacation” or “their favorite food”–something related to our client’s product or service.
  • Quizzes – Quizzes are equally engaging. Ever clicked on a link to find out, “Which character from The Office are you?” If so, you have experience with social media quizzes. We use a tool called Lead Quizzes to generate questionnaires for our clients. The great thing about quizzes is that they can ask for an email address to get started, which gives you a lead.
  • Campaigns – We use social media campaigns whenever we want to push a particular message, service, or promotion for one of our clients. Campaigns are typically a little more in-depth than simply brainstorming a post type.

In addition to creating an editorial calendar, we also recommend that you schedule your social media posts in advance. Facebook Business Manager allows for the drafting of posts as well as scheduling. As a practice, our team creates posts at least a week in advance of when they should go live. This also helps keep us on track so that we do not get stuck on creative for a particular day.

Give Social Media Boosting and Advertising a Try!

Ever wondered what that blue, “Boost Post” button is at the bottom of your business’s Facebook posts?

Boosting is one way that Facebook allows you to pay to reach more people than just the followers on your page. You are also able to do the kind of targeting that we mentioned at the beginning of this blog with Facebook boosting.

After recent Facebook algorithm changes, it can be impossible to grow your following without using paid advertising. This is because Facebook will only share your content with your followers and their friends unless you pay. If you want to reach new audiences, you have to put some money forward.

There are two ways that you can pay for Facebook advertising. One is by clicking the little blue button and following the prompts to create an audience, set a budget, and select how long you would like your ad to run. The other is by using a Facebook Ads Manager. There is a lot more you can do in Ads Manager–including A/B testing your ads–if you have the knowledge and time to dive deep. It also provides a lot of useful analytics.

We recommend that clients spend a minimum of $300-$500 each month, purely as the budget for the paid ads, distributed across two to three advertisements. That in mind, no matter how much you spend, your ads will flounder if you do not know how to target properly (location: Reno, etc.). For more information on that subject, read our blog on Facebook Ads Manager.

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Get ahead of the competition in Reno! Plan and launch an integrated social media strategy. We’re rooting for you and your business as you find what works best.

If you would like the assistance of a local digital marketing agency in the brainstorming and implementation of your social media strategy, we would love to get the conversation started. Our President Adrienne Wilkerson is currently offering a free consultation to anyone who is interested. Adrienne is onsite in Reno and she would be happy to meet with you in person if you’d like!

(VIDEO) Design a Strong Website for Your Reno Business in 5 Steps

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Adrienne Wilkerson

https://youtu.be/CkAwZJb8A4M

“Your website is potential customers’ first impression of your business.” – #TeamBeacon

If you are like most busy business owners or marketing professionals in Reno, you probably have an outdated website that has been floating in the internet abyss for years now, just waiting for some tender loving care.

Although website experts recommend a redesign every 2-3 years, a lot of folks struggle to keep up with this pace.

Every time a significant industry trend changes, a new product or service is added to your business, or new staff are hired or fired, you face another website update.

Sometimes you simply need to start from scratch.

Never fear, our proven process is here!

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Cheesiness aside, we truly have an excellent website design process that has been 20 years in the making.

It is this process that we are going to share with you today!

Our desire is that, as you read this article, a concrete path forward begins to clarify in your mind. Enjoy!

1. Schedule a Meeting with Your Reno Team

Your first step is a meeting of the minds.

It is likely that everyone on your Reno team has a different idea about why you are designing a new website, what your goals are, and what a strong website looks like.

Use the power of collaboration to refine your collective vision!

Ask your Reno team some key questions to discern a path forward–we have outlined some of the questions we ask our clients below.

Request that the team comes prepared having looked at some websites they like as well as some that they dislike.

  • What are your overall business goals? Is there any area of your business that you would like to grow?
  • Why do you want a new website design? List two goals that you would like a new website to achieve.
  • Of all the information on your website, which is the most important for customers to find quickly? What are your primary products or services?
  • What features stand out to you on websites that you like the look and feel of?
  • Is there any imagery that you want on the website? Any that you don’t? Do you have a brand guide?

The goal of this meeting is to discovery concrete features and specifications for your new website design.

For example, do you want Reno customers to schedule appointments directly online? In the design phase, you will need to be sure you have a plugin that allows for this.

Also discuss your current marketing strategy–differentiators and target audiences–to ensure your new website design aligns with your marketing efforts.

2. Create a Site Map and Wireframe for Your Website Design

Industry terms like “site map” and “wireframe” may sound daunting, but they are actually fairly simple when stripped away to the basics.

A site map is simply a flowchart of the information you want on your website and how it should be organized.

The simplest site map takes the form of a bulleted list, for example:

  • Home Page
  • About Us
  • Services
    • Service A
    • Service B
    • Service C
  • Blog
  • Contact Us

This is the most basic site map format that we recommend to our Reno clients.

Of course, your new website design may be a bit more complicated with multiple service pages, an “Events” tab, or perhaps a place for published deals, but you get the gist.

Your site map is the foundation for your website wireframe, which is why we have included these two elements in the same step.

What is a wireframe?

According to Google, a wireframe is:

“…An image or a set of images which displays the functional elements of a website or page, typically used for planning a site’s structure and functionality.”

At its core, a wireframe is a sketch–a mock-up–a drawing of your website pages and how you want them to be laid out.

A wireframe is not as detailed as a fully developed site; it is simply lines, boxes, and perhaps a few images if you have them at this point.

Taking your site map in hand, create a wireframe for each of the pages listed, portraying where you want all headlines, images, written content, and buttons to go:

Source: SmartDraw

Wireframing can be a bit harder than creating a site map at first.

If you would like to practice before you wireframe your own original website design, a great way to learn is to look at the elements on a page of a strong Reno website and try to imitate the layout in wireframe form.

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At Beacon, we love our free online tools!

Although we use paid software called Adobe XD for our wireframes, there are a lot of free options available online.

Take a look around and find something that you are comfortable with using.

We recommend a software that offers templates and drag-and-drop features for beginners.

MockFlow is popular and offers a basic package for new users.

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In your wireframe, it is okay to use filler text such as “lorem ipsum,” but you will want to be thinking about your final content as early in the process as possible!

3. Write the Website Content with Your Reno Team

Once again taking up your site map, write content for each of the pages you are planning for your new website!

Keep the following best practices for website content in mind as you go.

A. Reno Relevant Keywords

Keywords are the words and phrases customers are searching to find you and the products and services you offer, for example, “website design in Reno.”

In order to rank on the first page of Google for these searches, you must tell Google that you are relevant to those keywords in its own terms.

Google likes to see relevant keywords incorporated throughout website content–this is called search engine optimization (SEO).

Focus on 1-2 relevant keywords per page of your website and place them naturally throughout the content.

Write 400-600 words on each page for the best results, but watch yourself!

Do not overuse your keywords of choice.

This is something called “keyword stuffing” and it is not acceptable to Google or to the customers who read stuffed content.

B. Eye-Catching Headers

Fashion is just as important as function when it comes to website content.

In some aspects you are writing for Google, in others, you are writing for your Reno customers.

To keep customers engaged and to satisfy Google’s requirements, use strong formatting practices such as short paragraphs, pull quotes, bullet points, imagery, and eye-catching headers.

Headers indicate to users the end of one thought and the start of another.

They are also important for SEO!

Place the relevant keywords you have chosen in your headers to boost your rankings.

Once you place the content on your website in the development phase, specify that the headers are either “H2” or “H3” in the content management system you are using, whether that be WordPress or something else, for best results.

C. Quality Website Content

Another important metric considered by Google is the quality of your content.

This is measured by parameters like “unique words” and “bounce rate,” or, the rate at which users visit your website and leave.

To encourage people to stay, write unique, compelling content that is from your distinct point-of-view!

Speak directly to customers in second-person using the word “you.”

Empathize with their challenges in Reno and present your product or service as a tool they can use to overcome them!

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Something that must be a part of every website page is a call-to-action (CTA) at the very end of your content.

This is a proposed step that the reader can take to act on what they have just read!

For example, at Beacon we would say, “schedule a free consultation to learn more about our website design services,” linking to our scheduler where appropriate.

4. Implement Your New Website Design

The content you write, the wireframe you create, and the site map you plan all form the groundwork of your new website design.

Once these pieces are in place, it’s time to get started!

At Beacon, we use an advanced WordPress plan that allows us to custom develop all our Reno clients’ websites.

WordPress also offers several packages for beginners that do not require the skills of a web developer.

These packages allow you to select pre-developed themes and customize them according to your brand!

Source: WordPress

Select the package that best fits the needs of your website and create an account with WordPress.

You will be ushered into a guided set up process that allows you to pick a theme and begin customization.

Be sure to choose a theme that can be customized to match your site map, wireframe, and content!

After you are in, upload your logo, colors, and fonts where indicated.

Add your images and upload your written content according to your wireframe.

~

WordPress can be tough to navigate for the first time.

Use a resource like WPBeginner to see you through to the end if you ever get stuck!

5. Set Your Website Live!

If you are happy with your website design, it’s almost ready to go!

We have a go-live checklist that we follow with all of our Reno clients.

Here are just some of the items that you will want to cover:

  • Check all links on all pages of the website and make sure they go where they say they do.
  • Test the contact form by submitting an entry and seeing if it arrives in the correct email inbox.
  • Visit the website in all major browsers–Chrome, Firefox, and Safari–as well as on mobile to ensure it looks great everywhere.

If you are operating on a basic WordPress package, your website should already be “live.”

That said, the domain name for your old website is not yet pointing to your new one.

Visit the account you made when you first purchased your domain and set it to point to your new website.

Now your website is truly “live” and operating at the correct address!

Congratulations!

~

If your Reno team is busy with other aspects of your business and would like an agency to take care of their website design, please reach out!

We would be happy to set you up with one of the free consultations we mentioned.

Otherwise, we hope you enjoy learning from this process that we have developed after 20 years in website design!

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