How to Boost Conversion of Your Business Blog

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Content marketing is a big part of today’s internet marketing landscape. Businesses are sharing valuable content to attract visitors and grow their audience. Content marketing is not just good for boosting traffic to business websites, but also for building a stronger online presence – and for branding in general.

While the main purpose of your articles and content must never be about selling products and services, you can still take active steps towards boosting conversion from a business blog. To help you get started, here are some of the tips to keep in mind.

Add a Call to Action

You don’t want to heavily promote your products and services in articles; this will only scare the audience and decrease the value of your content. However, you can add a subtle – but effective – call to action that will boost conversion.

Simple lines such as “Click here to learn more” and “buy now” are often more than enough to persuade users to take the next step in their purchase decision-making process. Place the call to action at the end of the article or in a relevant part for maximum effectiveness.

Speaking of relevance, you want to direct users to products that are actually relevant to the article. Write tutorials or how-to articles that help users maximize the benefits of your products and you will be able to enjoy a boost in sales from your content marketing efforts.

Make It Interactive

Another great way to boost conversion from a business blog is by adding interactive elements to the blog itself. Instead of directing users to another page, you can facilitate the purchase of your products and services from within the article.

There are several ways to add interactivity to a blog. webloggerz recently listed auction themes for WordPress. You can use one of the themes to auction a special edition of your product and get visitors engaged.

Another great way to add interaction is by asking visitors to share the article on social media to gain access to a special content (i.e. free downloads or a coupon code). Similar to the auction, there are plugins you can use to enable this kind of interaction on your business blog.

Content-First Approach

The last tip to keep in mind is focusing on the content first and sales later. This is the basic principle behind content marketing and it is the approach you should take every time. When you invest in producing high quality, valuable contents for the audience, the return you get on that investment is always positive.

At the very least, your brand – and the products and services you carry – will be at the top of the audience’s mind. You may not get a direct conversion from the articles, but visitors will still remember you whenever they need products and services available on your site. A boost in sales is only a matter of time.

These tips are very easy to implement and they can help you improve the effectiveness of your content marketing efforts. Implement these strategies and you can boost sales using valuable content as your marketing tool.

How to Turn Traveling the World into a Career

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It’s a story everyone has heard and maybe even experienced a hundred times before – the hard worker desperate to escape their monotonous corporate life to pursue adventure in far off lands. Each of us has at least a seed of wanderlust waiting to grow and tempt us away from routine and stability. The biggest obstacle people face when torn between staying and leaving is usually their finances. How do you expect to support yourself and perhaps your family while you give in to your dreams of chasing the horizon?

Think Carefully

The romance of fleeing the stifling regularity of living in one place and sailing off into the sunset could come crashing down when you are suddenly struck by how much you miss your own shower or bed, so make sure you’re mentally prepared for your trips. Take a few weeks to think about your reasons for traveling – do you want to experience more of the world? Are you seeking excitement and new stories to tell? Or are you simply a bit bored and could easily cheer yourself up with a short holiday? Before spending a lot of money on tickets and hotels, check with yourself that you won’t regret it once you’re halfway across the world.

Get Organized and Explore Your Options

Now that you’ve thought about it carefully and got the right vaccinations, make sure to plan at least a little bit ahead, even if the lack of schedule is precisely why you want to travel. Decide on a few key locations and do your research. There are sites dedicated to helping you on your journey such as www.mrhudsonexplores.com where you can learn from the experiences of others before venturing out for yourself. Focus on the reasons you are traveling and make them marketable. Here are a few examples to inspire you:

• Foodies can get in touch with businesses to blog about the restaurants they visit in different countries.

• Backpackers and hikers are sought after by companies that sell travel products because they make great spokespeople for reviewing the equipment. You would be paid to test their gear and write about it to boost their sales.

• You can find work abroad teaching English as a foreign language.

• Working in the travel or tourism industry will allow you to visit new places while being paid. Cruise ships are especially good at offering a wide variety of jobs – chefs, hairdressers, entertainers, bartenders – the list is endless.

• Hotels also require a vast range of staff. Working in an international hotel will give you opportunities to live in exciting places and contribute to the fun of other people’s vacations.

• If you consider yourself very knowledgeable about the places you love, why not become a tour guide? Share your passion for the place by teaching others all about it. You will be paid to work in your favorite locations while getting to know them more intimately.

Look online for companies willing to sponsor you to travel for them or simply apply for jobs where ships, planes or hotels are involved. Everyone has skills that would be valuable abroad, so find out what yours are and book them a seat on your next flight.

The Biggest Factors to Plan When Opening Doors Overseas

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Starting a new business can be an exciting and stressful time. Starting a business overseas can be even more exciting and stressful. When considering all of the work that goes into opening a new office, branch or business overseas and what opening in a new country signifies about your business’ success, it’s easy to get distracted.

Nevertheless, factoring in what may become a struggle or challenge before it happens is crucial in operating a successful overseas endeavor. From different cultural barriers to varying business regulations, there is plenty of room for things to go wrong.

Let’s take a quick look at some of the biggest factors any business should consider when opening a new branch, store or office overseas.

Evaluate Infrastructure

Regardless of the business or model you’re pursuing, infrastructure in any country is vital to long-term business success. In the case of internet-based businesses seeking refuge in low-cost countries, some obvious business infrastructure concerns include high-speed and reliable internet service, ample access to tech and accessories, and a variety of skilled workers.

In the case of a physical store front or office, they include roads and highways that can deliver products and services, transportation hubs that allow employees to come to and fro, and parking considerations for customers and clients.

Learn About the Culture

Whether the business intends to deal with the public directly or is merely hiring locally, an understanding of local cultural norms and traditions is crucial. For businesses that want to succeed overseas, keeping both customers and employees happy by understanding their ways of life is a great place to start.

Determine Employment Regulations

Even when opening a new business overseas, you may wish to place some domestic employees at the new location to oversee and/or assist in the new endeavor. Likewise, you may wish to hire fresh faces from other countries to work at the new overseas operation.

Whatever the case, it is crucial to ensure that all of the appropriate employment and hiring policies are understood and followed. For instance, nations like Australia require that potential foreign employees first be sponsored for jobs before arriving in the country (learn about what Australia sponsored jobs entail).

Procure Professional Financial Assistance

Opening a business abroad takes a lot of capital, and a lot of knowledge. The latter may be harder to come by than the former, which is why procuring legal and/or financial assistance is key. You’ll need to find one or more consultants who can help you navigate the realities of taxation, employment and accounting in order to ensure your business operates smoothly and properly.

Without such knowledge formally guiding your first moments overseas, you could fall into a situation where your business is shut down or goes bankrupt – something nobody wants to see happen.

Connect Locally

Last but not least, any business seeking to operate in a new country or climate must do the necessary legwork to learn more about the local business climate in an informal sense. There are many firms throughout the world who provide professional guides that can function as de-factor partners in arranging meetings, networking with other relevant leaders and helping to close deals as needed.

Having that local, personal touch can make a huge difference in how well new international businesses operate and whether or not they make the right impressions locally.

With so much to plan for a move across the ocean, it can be all too easy to forget about key factors. Before you break soil or open doors, it is vital to cover these five points thoroughly and have a game plan for each. By connecting locally, using professional financial assistants, learning about the culture, familiarizing yourself with hiring practices and determining infrastructure needs, your business will have maximized its chances at success on a new continent.

Should You Accept Cryptocurrency on Your Website?

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Bitcoin – and cryptocurrency in general – is creating many headlines in recent weeks. The staggeringly volatile market and the way Bitcoin jumped from $1,000 to over $17,000 within months garnered a lot of attention to the cryptocurrency. The popularity of Bitcoin also brought attention to other cryptocurrencies on the market, including Ethereum and Litecoin.

The big question remains the same: will cryptocurrency be the next mainstream payment method? Some businesses are in a wait-and-see pattern while others are jumping right in and accepting cryptocurrency payments. Should you accept cryptocurrency on your website?

A More Mature Market

One of the reasons why many businesses are still reluctant when it comes to accepting cryptocurrency on their websites is the volatility of the current cryptocurrencies. The way Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies fluctuate massively in a matter of hours is not what businesses expect from a solid payment method.

Last week, Bitcoin jumped from $12,000 to around $17,000, before steadily correcting itself to the mid $14,000 level. Customers who paid for products or services when the cryptocurrency was trading at $12,000 will regret making the purchase as the value of Bitcoin jumped. On the other hand, businesses don’t want to accept payments at $17,000/Bitcoin, only to see the value of those payments dropping by a substantial margin.

For cryptocurrencies to become mainstream payment methods, market maturity is needed. With the high volatility we’re seeing today, accepting cryptocurrency payments may not seem like a good idea.

Forks and Alternatives

While the major cryptocurrencies are very volatile on the market, some of the forks are showing that level of maturity expected from a currency. Bitcoin Cash, for example, fluctuates at a much more manageable rate than Bitcoin. The same trend is seen in forks of other cryptocurrencies.

According to a recent report by WallStreetHedge.com, these forks and alternatives are seen as more viable payment options, especially in the eyes of businesses and the consumers who use them. In fact, many services are starting to accept Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash, and Bitcoin Gold.

Experts believe that the trend will continue, especially with news that several central banks are releasing their own cryptocurrencies. There is no doubt that cryptocurrency is the future, and businesses who get in the game early will be the ones benefitting the most from this new trend.

Easy Integration

From a technical standpoint, integrating cryptocurrency payment processing is a lot easier than anticipated. Since the currencies are already based on blockchain, processing payments on websites is straightforward and secure.

There is also the benefit of irreversible transactions, especially for businesses. There are no more chargebacks to worry about and every transaction is final. That level of security is further strengthened by the nature of blockchain itself.

To make cryptocurrency payments more attractive, there are stakeholders who invest in improving the blockchain concept altogether, promising faster transaction processing and better features for business users.

So, should you accept cryptocurrency on your website? If you stick with less volatile cryptocurrencies and you implement the payment system securely, there is no reason why you shouldn’t accept this type of payment today.

Keeping Abreast: Aligning Managers With Your Orders

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One of the greatest difficulties in business has been and may always be, maintaining a good level of communication. This is especially true for the people you rely on to make your business function from day to day. It goes without saying that the most numerous employees will be junior and or regular staff that are the individuals making things happen at ground level. Here is where the most action takes place, but the most difficult decisions take place higher. As the business owner and leader, it’s your job to keep your workers functioning at a consistent level, getting everyone to pitch in and do their best. However, you’re only one person, and cannot reach out to every single person every day. Your managers are essentially your long arm strength. These people are the ones you trust to make sure your decisions are implemented and carried out as and when ordered. If your managers aren’t in the know and aligned with the company’s direction, this can lead to fallout and massive disruption. Keeping them abreast and knowledgeable should be a part of your modus operandi.

Meetings of superiors

Every week businesses around the world, conduct meetings with employees and superiors. Whether it be in the boardroom, or at the managerial level everyone in the business must be updated and give updates too. Generally, managerial meetings take place after the boardroom meetings whereby executives, partners and stakeholders discuss how various parts of the business are progressing. One way to be ready for the meeting with the managers is to be clued up on all aspects of the business that are divulged to each section and or department. Another way to be planted in this meeting is to know what you require of each manager even before the week has started. This could be things that aren’t even related to the general proceedings of the day and or week. It may be just to get employee holiday paperwork in on time, or discussing sick pay for those who are off work will an illness. The key to keeping your managers abreast is to inform them when you’re ready. All too often leaders just want to get the show rolling and show managers that they are competent enough to lead them and not be hesitant. Unless you have a clear picture of how things are going at ground level, don’t give out orders as this will result in a wastage of time.

A cohesive backroom

Every business has an advanced software interface that employees utilize to remain in the business mainframe. Using their company accounts, managers can sign in to access memos and statistics in their department. Anything from orders, sales, work history, task allocation, reports, and updates are all accessed via the managerial interface. However, the process of signing up and re-signing in are the most fraught moments in this procedure. For security purposes use two-factor authentication with plivo’s sms api. When a manager is first signing in to his or her account, proper verification of who they are must be made not just for security purposes, but to officially have them on record on the servers. If a manager somehow forgets or loses their account information, when resetting a password or changing a username, must also be met with the same level of integrity testing. This can lead to a cohesive backroom of your business, whereby only those permitted are allowed access to sensitive information, which protects your business from wannabe saboteurs.

Encouraging managers to communicate in real-time

When work is being allocated, and in the process of completion, things can often change. It may be because an order has to be altered or cancelled, an error that has been carried over from another department, or simply because the client changed their mind. Managers must communicate with other not just in the interface, but face to face also. When something needs to be changed, it’s all well and good to do so digitally through software because it’s the fastest and easiest form of relaying alterations. However, there is always a culture of rivalry and sometimes egos to play a part. If used properly these are actually great traits to have because it allows your employees to feed off of each other’s energy. However, there should be no such room for invisible territorial lines. Every manager no matter what department must feel welcome in other sections of the business, and if something needs to be discussed in person, this should be encouraged.

Keeping managers abreast of developing situations is the key to aligning your orders with employees. Not only must they be working in tandem in the business online interface, but communicating in person too.