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  • Elegant Themes Review 2018 – Is It Worth The Money?

    Elegant Themes Review 2018 – Is It Worth The Money?

    ​If you are starting a blog and looking for a good WordPress theme, you probably come across Elegant Themes.

    ​Elegant Themes comes with a wide range of attractive themes, powerful plugins and a super active user community. Ultimately, Elegant Themes is oneof the biggest names in the WordPress ecosystem.

    You might have read a few Elegant Themes review when it comes to premium WordPress theme and plugin shopping.

    But, there are many questions that ​are left unanswered. Here are a few to start with.

    • check​Is Elegant Themes the right choice for your website?
    • check​Should you get Elegant Themes now or search for other alternative?
    • check​Is Elegant Themes worth it?

    ​At the end of this post, you will have a good understanding on what Elegant Themes is all about which will help you make a well-thought-out decision.

    ​What is Elegant Themes?

    ​At this point of writing, Elegant Themes has been in the market for over eight years serving close to 400,000 customers. The workforce for Elegant Themes is also huge, consisting of over 40 employees working across the globe. Elegant Themes is the brainchild of Nick Roach’s and it was launched back during his college days.

    An amazing feat to say the very least!

    ​Elegant Themes is popular because it comes with over 87 WordPress themes and five plugins. Elegant Themes has taken ‘a road less taken’ approach when it comes to their ​business model.

    ​They recently ditched the Personal plan and remodeled their pricing structures to remain competitive in the WordPress market. Take a look below at their old pricing model.

    old elegant themes pricing

    This is the old Elegant Themes pricing structure

    ​With the new pricing structure, Elegant Themes operates on a subscription model where it costs $89 per year for unlimited access or $249 for a lifetime membership (one-time payment).

    new elegant themes pricing

    New Elegant Themes pricing structure

    ​As you can see, this pricing structure is better and rather straightforward. Plus, it is less cluttered which helps Elegant Themes to serve its customers better.

    The only differences between the Elegant Themes yearly access and lifetime access is the payment or pricing. If you are looking for Elegant Themes discount, going for the lifetime access is going to save you a lot of money in a long run.

    With that being said, let’s move forward with the next part -> Is Elegant Themes the right choice for your project?

    ​WordPress Themes offered by Elegant Themes

    ​Signing up with Elegant Themes gives you unlimited access to over 87 WordPress themes at a single pricing.

    Here’s something you need to understand though. With the arrival of Divi back in 2013, Elegant Themes has been making this flagship theme as the single best WordPress theme available.

    Divi 3.0 was launched late in 2016 and it has become one of the best WordPress themes that offers multiple features including drag and drop WordPress editor.

    ​Divi 3.0 – The Multipurpose WordPress Theme

    ​Divi 3.0 allows you create just about any type of website without the need of using a single line of code.

    ​Divi 3.0 offers state-of-the-art features that allows you to customize any WordPress site within minutes, not hours. Here’s a video introduction of Divi 3.0.

    ​Divi 3.0 theme is build from ground up and the unique proposition about this WordPress theme is the ability to use on any website powered by WordPress – from blog to business homepages and from eCommerce stores to a single page landing.

    Divi 3.0 is a great drag and drop visual editor because it allows new WordPress users to create custom websites without using codes and professional web designers for building sites that are more efficient for their clients.

    ​Divi 3.0 is extremely flexible and allows the users to do literally everything under the hood.

    Changing the size of the column is just as simple as a drag and pull.

    divi 3.0 drag and drop website builder

    ​Want to change the font or adjust the number of columns? Yes, it is way much easier to do using Divi!

    divi 3.0 review

    Using Divi, you can change anything at real time (WYSIWYG) and you can even compare it on mobile and other views too!

    cheap drag and drop website builder 2018

    ​If you are an inexperience web designer or running a web design business from home, Divi is a great choice because it comes with a large library of templates.

    Loading up any of the pre-made Divi layout gives you a quick head start to starting your website.

    No matter what your skill level are, Divi does an excellent job in democratizing web designs.

    ​Combining the powerful drag and drop builder with the Divilayouts allows you to create the ultimate website design of your choice faster and cost efficient.

    ​Divi Leads Tool

    ​Divi Leads Tool is worth mentioning in this Elegant Themes review. Divi Leads allows you to run and manage split testing experiments on your site’s design and content.

    If you are looking to remove the guessworks and increase conversion rates (or engagement rates), you are going to find Divi Leads very useful.

    split testing using Divi Leads

    Divi Leads allows you to compare multiple versions of your website

    ​On the personal end, Divi Leads lets you run split testing on multiple elements on a single page. This means that you can change any element on the page and compare it (instead of the traditional split testing of page A vs page B).

    ​New Divi layouts and templates

    The crews behind ​Elegant Themes understand the importance of having new layouts and templates. Therefore, new content and updates are always introduced to the Elegant Themes community to ensure that freshness in ideas and new designs can be used by the users immediately.

    Overall, Divi 3.0 is definitely a great choice for both bloggers and website developers who like to build a custom WordPress website.

    ​Extra Magazine WordPress Theme

    ​Extra theme is launched right after Divi and make no mistake about it. It offers one of the best features that Elegant Themes can offer.

    ​While Divi 3.0 is often considered a multipurpose theme, Extra is more specific, offering professional website design designed specifically for blogs, online magazines and sites that offer content-rich information.

    extra magazine theme

    Extra is a great magazine theme for blogs and online magazines

    ​If you are looking for the perfect homepage for a news or magazine site, you don’t have to look far. Extra magazine theme allows you display your best content in a stylish grid format.

    Feeling advanterous? You can opt for carousels, tabbed areas and other custom widgets to display previews of your blog content.

    perfect homepage design

    Extra magazine theme offers perfect homepage design

    Want to further entice your web visitors? Not a problem!

    Extra magazine theme by Elegant Themes allows you todraw the right attention to your content by having multiple, well-placed focused areas.

    This is what I mean.​

    extra homepage layout

    Draw the attention to your content using images

    ​And that’s not all! Extra uses Divi Builder tool and therefore, you can customize anything on the page with ease.

    Divi Builder tool is a front-end drag-and-drop WordPress editor that connects you to the content library. You can easily import predefined content into the page or save one that you have created in just a few clicks.

    increase engagement rate

    Combining text and images allows you to increase the engagement rate of your website visitors

    ​Extra magazine theme by Elegant Themes allows you to make your article stand out from the crowd. Instead of using just wall of text, you can easily integrate images, videos and different fonts for your content upgrade.

    Ultimately, you will get a lower bounce rate and web visitors will stay for a longer duration.

    ​Other WordPress Themes Offered By Elegant Themes

    ​You have just seen the complete comparison of Divi and Extra by Elegant Themes (mind blowing, right?). How about the other WordPress themes offered by Elegant Themes?

    Remember the 87 WordPress themes I said earlier?

    wordpress themes by elegant themes

    Some of the WordPress themes by Elegant Themes

    ​You will find many other WordPress themes which are great within the Elegant Themes catalog. While these WordPress themes are great for the eyes, I highly recommend you to take serious consideration on Divi and Extra because there are many built in features which will skyrocket your site.

    Note: When you sign up for Elegant Themes, you have access to ALL WordPress themes by Elegant Themes including Divi and Extra magazine theme.

    ​Elegant Themes WordPress Plugins

    ​Elegant Themes doesn’t only offer premium WordPress themes, they also offer a wide range of high-quality WordPress plugins.

    By subscribing to Elegant Themes (either the yearly or lifetime plan), you will get unlimited access to these plugins.

    ​Divi Builder WordPress Page Builder Plugin

    ​Why would you want to use Divi Builder plugin?

    ​If you are using other WordPress themes, you can easily use the Divi Builder plugin to leverage the true power of a drag and drop WordPress editor.

    divi builder plugin review

    Divi Builder plugin is one of the best drag and drop website editor

    ​If you are looking to create custom page design through a back-end builder interface, Divi Builder plugin is your best option.

    ​Using this plugin, you can create advanced page layouts such as multiple rows and columns. At this point of time, there are 46 customizable content modules that you can choose from when using Divi Builder plugin.

    divi builder plugin review

    Creating multiple rows and columns is easy using Divi Builder plugin

    ​Apart from that, what I love about Divi Builder is the option to roll back any changes I had done. For example, I may accidentally add a new element which distrupted the mobile view. In just a few clicks, I can easily roll back the changes done.

    roll back changes done on Divi

    You can use Divi Builder history panel to roll back changes done recently

    ​This Elegant Themes review is not complete without mentioning the powerful feature of the Blurb Module. In short, you can save any layout, section or module to your Divi library and reuse it anywhere on your site at a later time.

    If you update any of the library items, you can even selectively applythosechanges to each instanceof the items throughout your site under one hood. Therefore, instead of going through page by page to do then painful changes, you can update everything with just a click of the mouse.

    what is selective sync by Elegant Themes

    Selective Sync feature allows you to control changes made to your module

    Is Divi Builder a good choice for you?

    Yes. Even if you are using other WordPress themes like StudioPress, you can easily install Divi Builder and create custom designs for your content without worrying that it will break your site.

    In short, the Divi Builder is a good option when compared with other drag and drop page builder plugins for WordPress.

    ​Bloom Email Optin Form WordPress Plugin

    ​​Collecting emails from your web visitors isn’t an easy task and without a powerful lead generation plugin, it is really hard to achieve your email marketing goals!

    Thankfully, there is Bloom. Bloom is an interesting optin plugin for WordPress.

    Here are some samples of the email optins by Bloom.

    bloom email optinBloom lead generation plugin

     

    ​Setting up Bloom plugin by Elegant Themes to collect emails is really easy.

    ​For a start, there aremany optin forms that you can choose from, such as pop-up, fly-in, inline and widget forms. You can take email lead generation a step further using locked content feature that comes in handy!

    Bloom plugin

    Bloom offers several optin forms to collect emails

    ​Next, you can choose a wide range of templates to be customized through the plugin’s editor.

    bloom templates

    Bloom’s ready made templates are mobile responsive and focused on conversion

    ​As an avid WordPress user who is constantly trying to hack email marketing and lead generation, I understand that having a flexible lead generation tool is critical for any success.

    ​I want absolutely control in the way my forms are showing up, including animation during introduction of the form, setting delay time and control the forms’ visibility.

    customize lead plugin

    Bloom provides advanced control for you to manage your forms

    ​Bloom allows you to define specifically where you can each form to be visible and the parameters which leads to activating the forms. You can also create multiple lead generation forms using Bloom to tailor the design and content to increase the conversion rate.

    split test using bloom

    Split test your forms to determine which is the best performing form

    ​Aside from that, Bloom allows you to perform split testing on various forms in just a few clicks.

    Instead of guessing which lead generation form will perform better, split testing feature on Bloom allows you to grow your list faster and more effective.

    ​Monarch Social Sharing WordPress Plugin

    ​Do you want more people to share your content on social media?

    If yes, the Monarch plugin will help you increase the number of times your content is shared on social media.

    NOTE: Do you know that social shares play a role in search engine ranking?

    ​Simplicity is the key for social media success. I have used many social media plugins for WordPress and many of them are very complicated!

    However, it is not the case of Monarch. Monarch social media plugin is another powerful creation of Elegant Themes.

    ​When you subscribe to Elegant Themes, Monarch will automatically be available for you to download.

    ​What makes Monarch a powerful social media plugin for website owners?

    monarch social sharing plugin

    Monarch offers simple and highly effective social sharing icons

    ​Once Monarch is installed, you can choose a wide range of social sharing buttons on your site. At this point of writing, Monarch supports over 20 social networking sites.

    ​Aside from that, Monarch by Elegant Themes allows you to choose a wide range of display location such as:

    • check​Always floating
    • check​Always visible sharing buttons
    • check​Time delay
    • check​Page scroll position
    • checkDisplay after commenting or purchasing

    ​Aside from that, Monarch by Elegant Themes allows you to choose a wide range of display location such as:

  • What Is The Best Landing Page Builder For Beginners?

    What Is The Best Landing Page Builder For Beginners?

    What is the best landing page builder for 2018?

    The answer will varies depending on who you ask. Most of us have our own preferences and ultimately, we will go with a landing page builder that solves our biggest challenges.

    What will you find in this article?

    • checkIntroduction to landing page builder plugin
    • checkFeatures of a landing page builder
    • checkFundemental elements of a landing page builder (super important)
    • checkThrive Architect landing page builder plugin review
    • checkDivi 3.0 landing page builder plugin review

    A landing page builder is God sent — especially for beginners and bloggers who doesn’t have much coding knowledge.

    Wait, what is a landing page builder? Let’s get down to the basic before we discover the best landing page builder for you.

    What is a landing page builder?

    best landing page builder 2-18

    Landing pages are one of the most essential tools for marketing. Marketers use them to generate leads by making the visitors subscribe to their websites in order to download the content that the user is interested in.

    Bloggers use landing pages to build high converting pages on popular CMS such as WordPress without coding skills. Landing page builder is also used to create blog designs that are awesome without spending thousands of dollars hiring web developers.

    Note: Landing page is extremely important especially in funnel building. If you are an affiliate marketer, this is ONE tool you need to have in your arsenal.

    Why use a landing page builder?

    Simplicity + low learning curve + time saving.

    A landing page builder goes a long way especially for bloggers who want to build beautiful website designs without coding skills.

    A good landing page has many features and elements which are often build on codes. After all, landing pages need to provide great conversions, right?

    Take a look at the 5 essentials elements of a landing page design:

    landing page essentials

    Does this look complicated for you?

    I bet it does and I can hear you mumbling right now.

    Headache!

    Here’s where a landing page builder comes into play.

    What happens if I tell you that you can start doing like this?

    cheap drag and drop website builder 2018

    Or this?

    divi 3.0 review

    Amazing right?

    This is what a landing page builder can do.

    You literally drag and drop elements, and do any customization that you want without coding skills.

    What is the best landing page builder?

    Okay, you are sold. You want to know which is the best landing page builder that you can use today.

    For me, it would be Thrive Landing Page Builder (also known as Thrive Architect).

    Why do I use Thrive Architect compared to other WordPress landing page builders?

    • Compatible with many WordPress themes including StudioPress child theme that I use
    • Loads fast and does not full with bloatware
    • Integratable with lead generation plugins such as OptinMonster and Thrive Leads
    • checkInexpensive
    • checkSupported by a great team of developers and support team
    • checkOver 200 ready made landing page templates ready to download
    • checkMobile responsive landing pages

    How much does Thrive Architect costs?

    The pricing is really simple. You can either go for a monthly subscription (for all Thrive plugins and themes) at $19 per month or a one-off fee of $67.

    I decided to go for the monthly subscription as I have access to all the premium plugins and themes from Thrive Themes.

    You can read more about Thrive Architect here — Thrive Architect Review 2018.

    Click here for the best Thrive Architect Discount

    Alternative Landing Page Builder

    What if you doesn’t really like Thrive Architect?

    Your next best option is Divi 3.0. Take a look the three videos below and tell me what you think.

    Video 1

    Video 2

    Video 3

    I don’t know but when I face came across them, I was speechless!

    Divi 3.0 is very similar to what Thrive Architect is. The only differences between them (for me) are:

    • checkDivi 3.0 loads slower than Thrive Architect
    • checkDivi 3.0 has a slightly higher learning curve
    • checkDivi 3.0 is slightly more expensive than Thrive Architect

    Overall, Divi 3.0 is still a very good choice when it comes to choosing the best landing page builder.

    You can get Divi 3.0 for $89 per year or $249 for a lifetime license. If you are looking for the best Divi 3.0 discount, go for the lifetime license as you are going to make more saving!

    BONUS: If you can’t decide between both of these awesome landing page builder plugins, then head over to this article — Thrive Themes vs Divi 3.0 (Comparing The Best WordPress Landing Page Builder)

    Try Divi 3.0 Demo Here

    What is the best landing page builder?

    It comes down to only two — Thrive Architect and Divi 3.0. Both are equally great and great landing page builders.

    What do you think? Will you go for Thrive Architect or Divi 3.0?

    Leave a comment below and tell me what you think!

  • How To Use MailChimp: Step By Step Guide For Beginners

    How To Use MailChimp: Step By Step Guide For Beginners

    If you are looking for an extensive tutorial on How To Use MailChimp, this is it.

    MailChimp is recommended by web developers and used by bloggers around the world. Make no mistake — MailChimp is the best email campaign management software that doesn’t cost you a dollar.

    The standard MailChimp plan comes with 2,000 email subscribers and 12,000 email delivery cap per month. For small businesses and bloggers who are looking to start with email marketing, MailChimp is certainly a no-brainer option.

    I hope you enjoy this extensive MailChimp tutorial and here’s the table of content before we dive in.

    Note: You will learn more than just how to use MailChimp to send emails and newsletters. You will discover some nifty tricks within this posts that you can use to multiple your email marketing campaigns.

    Quick NavigationThe MailChimp IntroductionPart 1: Register a free MailChimp accountPart 2: Familiarizing with the MailChimp dashboardPart 3: How to create email lists with MailChimp?Part 4: What is MailChimp segments and groups?How to send emails using MailChimp?Step 1: Creating a campaignStep 2: MailChimp campaign builderStep 3: Create an email using MailChimpStep 4: Basic MailChimp email setupStep 5: Design email using MailChimpStep 6: Craft your email contentStep 7: Final step before sending the email outMailChimp AnalyticsSummary: is MailChimp worth it?

    The MailChimp Introduction

    • checkWhat is MailChimp
    • checkHow good is MailChimp
    • checkAdvantage using MailChimp
    • checkWhy MailChimp is the right email marketing software for you

    MailChimp is an email marketing solution that offers both free and paid plans.

    In terms of features, MailChimp offers very competitive features which are often comparable to many MailChimp alternatives.

    what is mailchimp

    MailChimp allows you to:

    • checkMultiple sign up forms
    • checkCreate newsletters and emails using drag and drop editor
    • checkHTML-ready templates
    • checkPowerful and monitored servers for best delivery ratio
    • checkManage all your email subscribers under one roof
    • checkSend different types of emails to build engagement with your subscribers
    • checkAnalyze and track performance of your email campaigns

    Part 1: Register a free MailChimp account

    create mailchimp account

    The first step is pretty simple. Click on this link and you can create a free MailChimp account in minutes. No credit card required.

    Part 2: Familiarizing with the MailChimp dashboard

    mailchimp dashboard

    This is what the MailChimp dashboard looks like. It is very simple and above all, straightforward.

    Part 3: How to create email lists with MailChimp?

    create lists on MailChimp

    An email list is where you use to segment your subscribers. I recommend you to create different segments to deliver highly specific and customized newsletters to your subscribers.

    You can create unlimited lists on the free MailChimp account. You should also take sometime to understand the differences between segments and groups in MailChimp.

    Why?

    MailChimp calculates email subscribers based on number of times they are subscribed to a list. This means that if an email subscriber is subscribed to 3 of your email list, the total number of email subscribers is calculated as 3 instead of 1. This is one reason why many people opt for MailChimp alternatives as it will affect your bottom line in a long run.

    If you want to use MailChimp for email marketing, you should consider using both segments and groups.

    What! What is MailChimp segments and groups?

    Part 4: What is MailChimp segments and groups?

    MailChimp Segments and Groups

    Segments — Your list contains a lot of information about your contacts, like when they were added to your list, where they live, and how they interact with your marketing. You can use this information to filter contacts into segments, and then target them with email or ad campaigns.

    Segments are used to create target audiences based on shared data. When you create a segment, you’ll set conditions to filter contacts based on the information that’s available in your list. Each segment can include up to five conditions.

    Groups — You can use your MailChimp list to sort your subscribers into custom groups based on their interests and preferences. Groups function like categories in a list, and are an excellent way to manage diverse subscriber profiles in the same MailChimp list. Groups can be the basis for building list segments for sending to targeted audiences.

    In other words, group is a collection of subscribers, categorized by their interests or preferences. A group consists of a group category and group names.

    How to send emails using MailChimp?

    • checkStep by step guide using MailChimp
    • checkLearn how to create email campaign, creating email lists and sending out email newsletters without coding skills

    Here’s where the juicy part is. The process of sending emails (or newsletters) using MailCHimp is very fun. Seriously!

    MailChimp drag and drop UI is extremely intuitive and big brands such as Buffer uses them.

    Here is the step by step guide on how to use MailChimp to send email newsletters and mage your email subscribers.

    Step 1: Creating a campaign

    create campaign on mailchimp

    Click on the ‘Campaign’ tab on the top and select ‘Create Campaign’.

    Step 2: MailChimp campaign builder

    create campaign using mailchimp

    MailChimp campaign builder is pretty cool. You can choose from the generic three options below, or using the ‘Let us guide you’ option. Here’s what you will get if you choose ‘Let us guide you’ option.

    mailchimp campaign builder

    As you can see, there are different goals you can accomplish with MailChimp. Currently, there are 22 campaign options for you to choose from.

    For this tutorial, I will not use the above option and go with the generic email creation (I choose ‘Create an email’ option).

    Step 3: Create an email using MailChimp

    sending email using MailChimp

    You can opt for Automated, Plain-text or A/B Test apart from the Regular. Choose the one that fits your need.

    Step 4: Basic MailChimp email setup

    how to create newsletters using mailchimp

    Again, very straight forward. Click on the grey buttons on the right to toggle the settings.

    You can also link your Facebook and Twitter accounts with MailChimp to reach a wider range of audience!

    Click on the ‘Design Email’ option for the next step.

    Step 5: Design email using MailChimp

    design emails using MailChimp

    There will be a lot of designs you can choose from in this step.

    Tip: Hover your mouse to each template will give you a quick preview of the design.

    Step 6: Craft your email content

    After selecting an email template to work with, this is what you will see next.

    creating newsletters using MailChimp

    The left column will represent the template that you choose and the right column is the drag and drop editor where you can customize your email.

    You can add content to your email by clicking on each element.

    craft emails

    Once you have done adding the content for a particular element, remember to click ‘Save & Close’. By default, MailChimp has a 20 seconds automatic saving to ensure that you don’t lose any important changes you had done.

    Step 7: Final step before sending the email out

    The last step before sending out any email is to take a final look at it. Thankfully, you can do that easily with MailChimp.

    how to use MailChimp

    Once the final check is done, the blue ‘Send’ button will be clickable.

    MailChimp Analytics

    • checkPowerful reporting feature
    • checkEasy to understand reports
    • checkLow learning curve
    • checkAbsolutely free to use
    • checkAbsolutely beginner friendly

    I love MailChimp for it’s simplicity. It is really super easy to use and doesn’t require you to spend hours to learn it.

    Here’s how it looks like.

    mailchimp stats

    MailChimp reporting comes with industry average open rates. So, it serves as an excellent benchmark for you to improve your email marketing campaigns.

    mailchimp detailed reports

    You can also use MailChimp’s detailed reports to understand the open rates, clicks and reach for each email campaign.

    Note: The stats are pretty old because I am currently using ConvertKit as my main email marketing software. You can check out the demo or read the comparison.

    Summary: is MailChimp worth it?

    It really depends. Personally, MailChimp is one of the best email marketing software in the market for the price and user friendliness.

    If you are looking for an email marketing solution that is simple and beginner friendly, you should go for MailChimp. Morever, you can use MailChimp up to 2,000 email subscribers and 12,000 emails per month with the free account.

    If you are looking for other MailChimp alternatives, you can try AWeber (with 30 days for free trial) or ConvertKit (no free trial but with 30 days money back guarantee).

  • How To Increase Google Ranking: Step By Step Guide

    How To Increase Google Ranking: Step By Step Guide

    Getting your website to the top of Google is the ultimate SEO goal for any business. In today’s article, you will find how to increase Google ranking without going deep into black hat SEO. On top of that, you will discover my personal Google SEO guidelines for 2018.

    If you are searching for “how to get on the first page of google in 24 hours“, you will not find the answer here because it takes resourcefulness, dedication, persistence, and creativity to rank on the top page of SERP. This is especially true because of the constantly-changing nature of Google’s algorithm.

    Here’s what I can Guarantee

    Not many writers will tell you this, but I’m going to tell you that if you follow these steps, you are going to increase SEO ranking for free and at the same time, improve Google search skills.

    As search engine optimization is an evergrowing and ever changing business, you need to improve your SEO skills in order to beat your competitors.

    How to increase Google ranking the right way?

    In this article, you are going to discover the following:

    • Understand the Google ranking algorithm
    • Track and target the right metrics
    • Ensure your website is mobile friendly
    • check-circle-oImprove the average dwell time
    • check-circle-oDo keyword research
    • check-circle-oDo on-page SEO
    • check-circle-oUse LSI keywords

    Understanding Google Ranking Algorithm

    • checkWhat is Google ranking algorithm
    • checkWhat are the key metrics and algorithm you need to focus on
    • checkHow to rank higher on SERP using Google ranking algorithm

    Do you know what is Google ranking algorithm? In 2016, Backlinko published 200 major factors that affects the Google algorithm. And if you think those are the gems, you are wrong!

    There are way more factors that affects how a website rank on Google. 

    So, how can I rank my website on Google and not getting crazy? 

    The answer is simple. Focus on the right Google ranking factors and you will well on your way to increase the ranking of your website.

    Of course, it is easier said than done. It is hard work and takes a lot of time to get it right.

    Carry on reading the below to learn more on how you can increase your website on Google’s SERP.

    Important metrics for better search ranking

    I get this question a lot of time and I will share with you the major ones that are going to help you skyrocket your site to the first page of Google.

    1. Keywords

    Keywords — meta keywords, focus keywords and related keywords are all important if you want to rank your website.

    A detailed description of each type of keywords are as follow.

    Focus Keyword

    Focus keyword is your primary keyword in your blog post. Each blog post should only have one focus keyword to avoid ‘confusing’ the search engine cralwers.

    Meta Keyword

    Meta Keywords are a specific type of meta tag that appear in the HTML code of a Web page and help tell search engines what the topic of the page is all about. The best way to use meta keyword is to eansure that each keyword used accurately describe your content.

    Related Keyword

    Related keywords are keywords that are not the exact match to the primary keyword. However, these keywords are alternative keywords that provide similar meaning to the primary keyword. Using related keywords in your blog post will help the post rank higher on Google.

    2. Keywords ratio

    This is very complicated and I do not recommend you to follow to the ‘T’. However, I usually go with:

    • < 3% exact keyword
    • < 2% long tail keywords
    • < 5% related keywords

    3. Bounce rate

    This is pretty much a no-brainer. Lower bounce rate is always better. Get it under 50% and you will see a nice jump in Google search ranking.

    The dwell time that Google is looking for is the magnificent 3 minutes and 30 seconds mark.

    So, how do you make your website visitors stay for that long? It’s really simple and highly doable. 

    Here are some methods that you can use to reduce the bounce rate:

    • Embedding videos within the blog post
    • Giving a summary of the content upfront
    • Offer a bonus once they finish the article (giveaway, cheatsheet etc.)

    4. Website loading speed

    If your site takes more than 2 seconds to load, you are in trouble. When it comes to website loading speed, aim to be below the 1.5 seconds mark as it is going to help you rank higher on Google.

    Responsive andMobile Friendly

    • checkWhat is a responsive or mobile friendly website
    • checkHow mobile responsiveness affects Google ranking
    • checkWhat is AMP and how to use it

    Do you know how many website users are using mobile to visit your site?

    For my site, it is approximately 30% on a monthly basis. A non-responsive or mobile friendly website doesn’t display the content properly to the website visitors who use mobile devices.

    If your website doesn’t have a responsive design, it is time to consider this seriously. Take a look at the stats below.

    mobile responsive

    What is a responsive design?

    TL:DR A responsive design allows the website layout to automatically accommodate to the resolution, size and scripting abilities to provide the best user experience to the web visitors.

    According to Smashing Magazine, a responsive web design is the approach that suggests that design and development should respond to the user’s behavior and environment based on screen size, platform and orientation.

    The practice consists of a mix of flexible grids and layouts, images and an intelligent use of CSS media queries. As the user switches from their laptop to iPad, the website should automatically switch to accommodate for resolution, image size and scripting abilities. In other words, the website should have the technology to automatically respond to the user’s preferences. This would eliminate the need for a different design and development phase for each new gadget on the market.

    How mobile responsiveness affects Google ranking?

    The first and most important reason is mobile responsiveness will improve the site usability. If web visitors are not having an easy time navigating your site, they are not going to stay! 

    After all, good usability scores lead to repeat visitors and increased conversions. As noted above, Google is in the business of satisfying user queries.

    Besides that, page speed is critical. A mobile responsive design will always loads faster than normal design. If you want to improve ranking on Google (and a speed freak like me), mobile responsiveness is the fastest way to get higher ranking on search results.

    How to implement responsive web design?

    You are convinced that responsive web design is an important factor to get better Google ranking.

    Good for you … but what’s next? How do you actually go from not responsive web design to mobile responsive web design?

    There are two ways you can choose:

    • checkCheap solution: Get a mobile responsive theme
    • checkExpensive solution: Hire a web developer

    If you are looking for cheap and affordable solution, you can easily do so by changing your WordPress theme.

    Here are some of the best mobile responsive WordPress themes in the market today:

    And if you really can’t decide, don’t worry. This article is going to solve your problems once and for all.

    What is Google AMP and how AMP can increase your site’s Google ranking?

    AMP stands for Accelerated Mobile Pages, a Google-backed project designed as an open standard for any publisher to have pages load quickly on mobile devices. On Feb. 24, 2016, Google officially integrated AMP listings into its mobile search results.

    If you are NOT on AMP yet, you should! Google released a statement recently (in 2017) on mobile first. This means that content found on mobile devices (view) will be given top priority instead of the desktop version.

    How to enable AMP on WordPress?

    This is fairly simple (aren’t you happy to be a WordPress user?).

    Install Google AMP plugin (here’s the link) and it will automatically do the needed to enable your site for AMP.

    Note: While you may customize the way the AMP display looks like, this is highly optional and AMP for WordPress works automatically once it is installed.

    KeywordResearch

    • checkWhat is keyword research
    • checkThe best keyword research strategy
    • checkBest tools for keyword research

    Keyword research.

    Every blogger in the world reads about it but only a handful does it correctly.

    Keyword research is important if you want to improve Google ranking but it comes with a cost — keyword research is time consuming.

    The best keyword research strategy

    I love to believe that my keyword research strategy is the best in the world (please don’t hate me for that). 

    I don’t mean to be disrespectful but keyword research is really very straightforward. You can improve Google ranking fast if you follow these steps.

    1

    Determine the seed keyword (general keyword) you want to target

    Start your keyword research by determine the general topic or keyword you want to target. It don’t have to super specific, but it is able to give you a good idea of what you want to target.

    For example:

    • checkStart a blog
    • checkWordPress drag and drop editor
    • checkCheap WordPress hosting
    • checkMake money online

    2

    Find low competitive keywords

    The next step involves finding low competitive keywords and long tail keywords. I use KWFinder but you are free to use Long Tail Pro or any other tools that fit your needs.

    Examples of low competitive and long tail keywords are:

    • checkLonger than 3 letters
    • checkHas more than 500 searches in a month
    • checkTop 10 results are low in Page Authority and Domain Authority (use Moz Open Explorer to check)
    • checkThin or not up to date informations on the result pages

    3

    Find LSI keywords

    Latent Semantic Indexing or LSI in short, these are keywords that are semantically related to your primary keyword. They are not just synonym or keywords that are similar in meaning. They are keywords that Google considers them to be similar to your primary keyword.

    How to find LSI keywords?

    • checkUse LSIgraph
    • checkInput the primary keyword
    • checkUse the generated LSI keywords sparingly within your content

    4

    Craft and publish content

    You have all the advantages now because you did your homework. You know exactly what keyword you want to rank and you are only one step away from beating your competitors — crafting the best content ever.

    How to do so?

    • checkInstall WordPress SEO plugin (either Yoast SEO or All In One SEO pack)
    • checkOptimize your article for SEO
    • checkOptimize your entire site for SEO (seriously!)
    • checkUse a drag and drop website builder to improve engagement with your audience (I recommend using this WordPress editor)
    • checkEmbeded videos, images, quiz and lead in boxes to keep your audience occupied and stay longer on your site
    • checkAsk them to leave a comment and share their opinion (you can get way better engagement using advance commenting moderation and control with Thrive Comments)

    Summary: How do you increase Google ranking?

    I hope you like this guide on how to increase Google ranking.

    Do you have any specific tips to rank on Google? Leave a comment below and tell me all about it!

    By the way, click here if you are looking for the best plagiarism checker in the market today? 

  • How To Use Photography To Increase Sales Conversion

    How To Use Photography To Increase Sales Conversion

    In today’s world, buyers tend to have higher trust level when they can see the product. Products that are tangible are often much more sellable compared to intangible ones. Yes, you can’t showcase your products if you are selling your products online.

    When it comes to selling products online, one of the best ways to increase sales conversion is to use the right photographs to showcase your products.

    In this article, you will discover five effective ways you can use photography to increase conversion.

     

    Use only high-quality images

    Being in the consultancy industry, I have seen companies selling their products online either on Shopify, Esty, Amazon, eBay or Facebook using low-quality images.

    When enlarged, low-quality images will be pixelated in view. The worst part about this is that with the technology nowadays, smartphones and desktops are often able to display photos to the highest details — thus having high-quality images is an absolute must when it comes to sales conversion.

    Why are high quality-quality images important?

    It entices the customers to take deeper looks into the products and allow them to imagine the product in real life.

    Imagine you are providing your customers with a rotating, 3D photographs. What will happen when your customers use the feature, but the images are blurry? Of course, that will turn your potential customers off almost instantly!

     

    Stock photographs are critical for sales conversion

    Do you know that using stock photographs can increase your sales conversion triple fold?

    One of the biggest blunders done by most entrepreneurs in the online world is using photos that are very common and unprofessional.

    The usage of professional shots can easily increase brand awareness and get you the eyeballs you dearly need to close the sale. Plus, stock photographs are best when you are trying to grab the attention of your potential customers.

    This is also one of the reasons why Shopify had launched its stock photography collect called Burst. On a weekly basis, new photographs are added to the collection which allows business owners to use them in their online stores.

    Here’s how it looks like:

     

    Provide more than just static photos

    Showing more images (as much as you can) and from different angles can make a difference in your sales.

    We all love photos and brands such as Booking.com had been using photos to drive more business and increase the conversion rates for its hotel partners.

    Instead of providing a single photograph of the product, try providing several variations and if possible, consider using rotating and 3D photos to show the character of the product.

     

    Embed (virtually) context into the photos

    What does this mean to you?

    Simple!

    A bicycle is still a bicycle when there is no one riding it. But what happens when someone is riding it?

    Our mind will tend to imagine ourselves (or the recipient) riding on it. Take a look at this photo.

    As a father, I can imagine my son riding this and heck; this could be an awesome birthday gift for him in March!

    If you want your sales conversion to improve, don’t just show the product. Take into consideration who is your potential buyer and ‘show’ the product to them in context.

     

    Draw the right attention to the product

    Okay, this may sound geeky but bear with me if you want to improve your sales conversion. Images and photos can be used to draw attention to your products.

    How do you draw the right attention to the product?

    Take a look at this popular eye-tracking study:

    Simply by displaying the photo of the model looking at the product, there is more ‘engagement’ with the product compared to the model looking away from the product.

    Now, before you say “what?!”, take a moment to think about it. Or maybe even better, look at the photo above.

    Which one attracts you more?

    If you are using Etsy to promote your products, you can read this guide from them which explains the 7 essential types of product photos.

     

    Putting in the human touch

    Human photos are known to increase sales conversion and click through rates (CTR) — that’s why we place photos of real people on our landing pages.

    If you are running an online store, chances are you are going to have one or more landing pages.

    Now, dive into this fact: Medalia Art increased click-through rate (not sales conversion) by 95% simply by showcasing the photos of their artists on the homepage.

    The takeaway from this is simple. Adding real photos and human touch in your landing page, home page, and sales pages can easily skyrocket your CTR and sales in the long run.

    So, don’t be afraid to try this out!

     

    Now, it is your turn!

    Do you have any secret formula to increase sales conversion using photography? Leave a comment below and let’s discuss further on this!