Following on from part one in this two-part series, here we look at another five digital media phrases that have changed and what you need to understand about them in 2014.
6. Meta information
Traditionally, meta information – such as meta title and meta description – is used to give an insight into what the page is about. In theory, this is still true today, but the main focus of meta information should be from a customer engagement / marketing point of view.
The reason behind this is meta title and meta description is the information you see in the search engine results, so they need to be as attractive as they can possibly be (whilst keeping within the character restrictions), encouraging people to click through and read the content in full. If any keywords are included within the title and description, fantastic – but if they\’re not, they shouldn\’t be forced in.
7. SEO
A phrase that we could talk extensively about, the simple point you need to understand here is that SEO, whilst once considered a phrase that describes optimising your website so it performs well and ranks higher in the search engines, now describes a much wider topic.
SEO has developed extensively over the last few years and now effectively accounts for a vast array of different processes that help deliver the best customer experience possible, as when you\’re doing this, you\’re going to find you see more conversions, whatever they may be.
8. ROI
For many years, ROI – Return On Investment – was considered something that could only be a monetary value. For example, you would measure the return on your investment in digital media by judging how much business you\’ve received as a result.
There\’s no doubt an increased bottom line can be a great way to judge your investment\’s success, but there are many more ways to do so.
For instance, a great alternative could be the number of people signing up to your newsletter or liking your Facebook page. Although there\’s no guarantee these people will turn into customers, if the subsequent activity you carry out is as effective as it can be, it\’s highly likely you\’ll soon be seeing an increased number of conversions.
9. Social media activity
Having a presence on social media has been considered a must for a while now. However, it\’s vitally important to understand that it\’s not just about having a presence alone – you need to be active to truly see the benefits from it.
Your audience expects to find you on the likes of Twitter and Facebook, but they don\’t just want to see an account there. They want to see you actively making tweets and updates, talking about everything from your own products through to the goings-on in the industry as a whole.
If your account is inactive, what does this say about you as a company? You may think it says you\’re busy dedicating your time elsewhere, but it actually says you aren\’t making the effort to engage with your customers on the channels they want you to be doing so on.
10. Content is king
There\’s no doubt that in the world of digital media, content is still an important factor to consider if you want to see the most success possible.
However, rather than the phrase simply being \’content is king\’, it\’s much more accurate to say \’quality content is king\’.
Anyone can create a couple of hundred words and publish them on a blog or a Facebook page. Quality content that\’s going to engage, interact and increase conversions takes time, knowledge and experience. It requires more dedication and investment than most first understand, but the result of publishing quality content really will prove just how much of a \’king\’ it is.
There\’s so much to consider in the world of digital media that it can be difficult to keep up with it all. With these two posts on the meanings of various words aimed at giving you an insight into this changing industry, if you have questions on any other aspect, don\’t hesitate to leave a comment below or get in touch.