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1.0 Introduction
The following report outlines an online marketing plan for xxx to assist in increasing revenue and return site visitors.
2.0 Where are we now?
XXX is a children’s directory of shopping and information. It currently attracts around 250,000 unique visitors a month with an income of around £1k a week.
2.1 SWOT
This considers the current internal strengths and weaknesses of XXX as well as the external opportunities and threats facing the site.
Strengths
- Google positioning on terms
- Good traffic levels – high number of unique visitors
Weaknesses
- Site design – hard to navigate
- Users only click few links when they come to the site
- Inbound links
Opportunities
- Build more of a community
- Build on traffic levels – increase time spent on the site, links clicked and money generated per person.
- The addition of a shop as well as an affiliate program.
- Large market, very lucrative
- Information resource
Threats
- Competition – increasing number of children/parent related websites
- Google changes way indexes sites
3.0 Where do we want to be?
The objectives for XXX over the next year should include the following:
:
- Increase returning site visitors, 2 fold
- Double site income
- Increase awareness of XXX as a brand amongst site visitors
- Improve Google rankings on all terms
4.0 How we going to get there?
4.1 The site
Currently the site is hard for the user to navigate their way around, it needs to be simplified to ensure users stay on the site and can find what they are looking for. Consistency within the site is key as well as ensuring that the links are relevant for each section. For example, there is a xxxx holiday banner within each section, regardless of whether it is the holiday section or not.
Information of the product areas should be increased – this will not only assist with search engine submission, however, it will also help with attracting and keeping users on the site. The site could be more of an information portal, with recommended buys than a simple kids shopping directory as this will increase earning potential.
To ensure success of the above the actual site structure needs to be changed in order to maximise its potential.
4.2 Proposed Structure Changes
Search Box
In proposed structure alterations the site can benefit from a in-house search facility – however to increase revenue generating opportunities it would be of greater financial benefit to use the google search box, ensuring that you select the one that does site search too. Place near top of site so that it gives visible accessibility to users.
Alt Tags
As each page is read as individual by spiders – it is important for SEO to dress each page for the search term that is being worked on. Whilst it is not good practice to use the alt tags for this purpose when considering accessibility and those using page readers (disabled equipment), however, for SEO this works very well, and it backs up your page relevance. It is good practice to name the images and ensure one of the key search terms is used on those images, including the main site logo.
Anchor Tags
To make the site pages easy to navigate it would be practical to put a short menu at the top of the page, and link directly to the sections that are below the fold
See here for example Click Here
Code
Reviewing the code, the pages are very heavy to load and full of code that does not need to be there. The code can be reduced through:
- Metaname copyright and distribution
- Change meta tags for each page.
- Red uce keywords – only 3 terms
- Add H1 and H2 code
- Remove tables and use <li> tags and stylesheets
- Add style sheets – take out styling in page to make pages light.
It is suggested that the HTML coding is revisited – Black Book of HTML is good guide.
4.3 Site Structure
Some of the site structure needs to be made clearer and easier to navigate.
The navigation can be improved by restructuring the site. A normal site structure would have a home page and from the home page, a link should be made to the main section on a navigation bar as well as having access to a site map. The site map should be on one page, not every page as it is now.
Suggested pages to include in the site structure:
- Home page
- Directory page
- Site map
- Product / information page
- Forum
- Shop
- Link partner pages
Home page
This should really not go below the fold, and should contain quick jump links to the main sections of your site and it should also have key search terms relating to the main topic.
Sitemap
This should have a link to every single page in the site, split into categories – except for the link partners; it needs deeper pages in for those.
Product / Information
These pages should be focused around a main search term and a maximum of 2 others that are related. It should only have links to products and services that are related to that specific topic.
For example: a page on rocking horses should not have links to holidays – users found the page by searching for rocking horses, therefore, this indicates that they are interested in rocking horses. The more focused a page is, the less the page bleeds and will be higher optimised for the terms aimed at.
Link Partner
These pages are ideal for working on the link swapping strategy. From the sitemap, there should be pages that contain other site links related to the topic. When links are negotiated – try to ensure a deep link into the section that is relevant to them. For example if they are behaviour site, get them to link to the page of tantrums.
Directory
The site currently is a type of directory and the fact that it is on static rather than dynamic pages is a bonus for spiders, mostly because it is unique content and not a feed. Access to the pages in the form of a proper category list, with subcategories will improve the navigation and define the directory section away from the information and forum and shop sections.
Shop
The structure of this section will determine how easily it will be spidered. When constructing it try to avoid ‘?’ and ‘&’ in the urls – code can be obtained to change those symbols to _ or – signs, which are more spider friendly. Each product should have its own page, with the key search terms for it included into the Meta tags and page content, beware that lots of software prevents this.
Registration / Newsletter
See below in the CRM strategies
Forum
It is suggested that the shop and forum have same user database and have spider friendly urls. Splitting the forum into categories leaving one of them open for spiders to crawl, will increase early memberships.
Information
By adding more information on things relating to children (for example “what is dyslexia” “temper tantrums”) to the site, it will increase the volume of pages, giving more landing opportunities organically in search engines.
At the moment that site has got pages that cover more than one topic or “search term”. By refining each page down to one product and optimising it for between one and three key search terms relating to that one product, it can also increase the number of pages and opportunities for landing.
Every section on the site has great potential for much more information and by feeding good information and unique content that grabs readers and spiders, there is room to drop links in for recommended services and shops (say 3 a page), followed by a short “recommended links” section at the bottom.
4.4 CRM strategies
Another key area to XXX success will be to encourage users to return to the site. This can be achieved through customer relationship management strategies and making additions to the site – this can also increase revenues too.
Newsletters
Newsletters are an important way of communicating with your users and creating dialogue and trust. XXX should look to send out a monthly or bi-monthly newsletter with latest news from the site as well as recommended purchases – these can then be themed, such as school holidays with ideas for parents. Through adding affiliate links to the newsletter, extra earnings can be made. Email addresses can be collected through a simple box at the top of the site, with no extra data collected.
Competitions
Competitions can benefit XXX by increasing content on the site and newsletter as well as providing an opportunity to increase data collection and what is known about the site users. This is important so you can tell potential advertisers and clients what type of people are coming to the site and not just the numbers.
The competition can allow for opt-ins for the newsletter as well as 3 rd party emails – this can then be used as an additional revenue stream (sending out affiliate emails on a CPA basis).
Clients should also be offered the chance to sponsor competitions in order for them to gain market research from an important market segment (parents with young children).
Forums
This is another method of encouraging users to return to the site is by having a forum to use on the site – it is also a great method of encouraging a community. The forums should be used as a place for parents to meet and discuss issues they have as well as get advice.
Online Polls
Online polls can give another element of interactivity with the site users as well as give an insight to their values and beliefs. These can be run daily or bi-weekly to encourage visitors to return to the site.
5.0 Conclusion
The above report lays out an online marketing plan for XXX, focussing on increasing the return on the current levels of traffic – making users stay on the site and increase the revenue per user. It also focussed on changing the site structure to ensure ease of navigation.
