In this article, we look at some of our digital predictions for 2023 and reflect on the year past. So if you want 2023 to be the year for your business, read on.
Another year has flown by. To stay ahead of the curve in the digital world, we always take some time at the end of each year to think about what worked, what we achieved and what we learned.
With 2023 well and truly here, it’s time to ensure you and your business take full advantage of all the digital technology currently available. If you don’t, you’ll be left behind!
Carla Schesser, our dynamite CEO here at Five by Five, joined us for our latest Lunch and Learn. We talked about what we can expect in the coming year; shared reflections, lessons from the past year, and predictions for the digital marketing industry that will no doubt affect you as well.
At Five by Five, we build great-looking, high-performing websites, and are known as one of the Gold Coast & Australia’s leading WordPress web design & SEO agencies. We have 16+ years of experience in the web design industry. If you or your business need a new, high-performing digital solution, then contact us today and find out why we have 200+ 5* Google reviews.
Reflecting on 2022
The work doesn't stop when you’re ranking number 1
Even though we were number one this year for a bunch of keywords, our competitors sneaked past us and took some of our top spots. We paid with this in the form of fewer leads and clients. What a bummer!
We realised we had become too comfortable and stopped trying as hard to keep our SEO ranking after we got to the number one spot.
To fix this, we treated our website as just another client and worked on it as if it were so. We had monthly meetings, and the SEO and Leadership teams reported to us. This approach quickly fixed the problem, and we were back on top.
The lesson here is that the work doesn’t stop when you’re ranking number one or even number five, for that matter. You have to stay on top of things and keep trying. Getting to the top is hard but staying there is even harder – you aren’t the only one that knows about SEO, and there are many competitors that will hungrily take your spot!
Don't put all your eggs in one basket
It was a tough lesson to learn, but when our leads suddenly stopped coming in, we realised that we had been relying too heavily on SEO for our traffic and leads.
We put all our eggs in one basket, and it backfired. It was time to diversify our lead generation efforts.
We needed help, so we teamed up with a trusted digital ads agency. They were able to revamp our campaigns quickly, and the results were impressive – our conversion rate doubled in no time.
And just like that, we started thriving! Diversifying our lead generation efforts became a game-changer.
Consistency is key to success
Going on a marketing spree is easy, but continue to remain consistent, even though It’s not always glamorous because consistency is absolutely vital to success when it comes to digital marketing.
By consistently showing up and putting in the effort every day, you can make significant progress towards your goals. Whether it’s tackling one task at a time or focusing on a specific skill, consistent effort can lead to great results over the course of a year. Running a campaign and plastering your name all over the web for a few weeks is great, but being in the same channels day-in-day-out creates community and means people can trust they’ll find something new when they check in on you, whenever it may be.
So don’t neglect the little things – much like in life, it’s the little things we do every day that add up and end up playing the biggest role in our growth.
Our top digital predictions for 2023 & how to improve your digital marketing this year
AI and Machine Learning
Artificial intelligence and machine learning are groundbreaking technologies that are poised to revolutionise the world of SEO and digital marketing as a whole.
As a forward-thinking agency, we are always eager to try new ideas and approaches, even if it means serving as guinea pigs.
By experimenting with these cutting-edge solutions, we can learn how to use them to amplify the work we do for our SEO clients and ourselves.
The potential for these technologies is vast, and we can’t wait to see what the future holds. Bring on the innovation!
Leverage Local SEO
Local SEO continues to be increasingly important for businesses. It’s not just a buzzword – it can bring up the results of local businesses when you search for a specific term. For example, if you search for “Palm Beach cafe,” you’ll see a list of cafes in your area.
This is thanks to the Google My Business Pack, which is powered by SEO. This is a great way for local businesses to attract more customers and increase their visibility online.
We will continue to leverage local SEO for ourselves and our clients.
Google Zero-Click Searches (SERP optimisation)
Have you ever Googled something and seen the answer at the top without even needing to click on the result? This is known as a Zero-Click Search, and the result itself is known as a Google Snippet (see our example above of a Zero-Click Search on Zero-Click Searches).
They’re important for SEO because people want an answer really quickly. The way to get these Snippets is to make sure to optimise content to be Google-friendly – this means answering the target question of your blog clearly and early.
Voice Search Optimisation
By optimising your content for voice search, you can increase your chances of being included in the results provided to users. It’s an essential aspect of SEO that helps businesses tap into the popularity of voice assistants like Siri, Alexa, and Google. And with about 40% of people using a voice assistant in 2022, it’s easy to see why it’s important. When people use these devices to search for local places or businesses, the results they receive are influenced by the SEO content of those businesses. Here are some basic tips to help you optimise for voice search:
- Try and target questions in your content and other long-tail keywords.
- Snippets are your friend: try and get a few as outlined above.
- Use easy-to-understand language when writing content.
- Schema markups also help.
- Ensure that your site load time is quick.
- Remember that mobile is king!
Fast-loading Page Speed and Responsive Design
While it’s important to stay up-to-date with the latest technologies and trends, we’ll continue to prioritise practical functionality on your website. This includes things like fast-loading page speed and responsive design, which enhances the user experience.
Nobody wants to use a slow-loading website, so in addition to staying current with the latest innovations, we won’t forget to focus on the basics that make your website user-friendly and enjoyable for visitors.
Double Down on Retargeting
We plan to double down on retargeting this year 💪
Retargeting is a way to stay in front of potential customers who have already shown an interest in what you’re selling. It’s a cost-effective way to generate leads. We create guides and checklists as well as other valuable resources that we can show to people who have visited our site or who are similar to our target audience. This helps us reach potential customers and encourages them to learn more about us and opt into our assets.
It can also be an effective recruitment tool as it allows you to target your ads to specific groups of people based on their demographics and interests. By showing your recruitment ads to people who are likely to be interested in your company and the job opportunities you have available, you can increase the chances of finding qualified candidates who are a good fit for your organisation. It’s a great shortcut!
More Personalised Data Capture
We predict that personalisation will be huge in 2023, and thankfully it is relatively easy to implement in your current workflow or marketing process.
Asking get-to-know-you questions is a common strategy for gathering personal information from users in exchange for something of value. This could be a free resource, a discount, or other incentives encouraging users to provide their personal information.
A quiz can be a valuable tool for engaging prospects or visitors and gathering valuable information about their needs and interests. They can also provide users with personalised recommendations or solutions based on their responses.
We implemented a quiz in the middle of this year called the Digital Strategy Scorecard. It’s super valuable for our prospects or our visitors.
The mindset you need to GET STUFF DONE
Advanced technology is only useful if it helps you reach your objectives and take action. That’s why we created the “Get Stuff Done” process, which is designed to take any project from concept to completion.
We use this process to identify a need, make a plan, and turn it into reality. Then, we analyse what worked well so we can continuously improve.
We developed the “Get Stuff Done” process when we identified a major obstacle in our workflow: a bottleneck caused by the need for the business owner’s attention on anything related to marketing before it could be fully implemented. This was slowing down progress and halting the workflow.
To solve this problem, we needed an inventive solution. That’s where the “Get Stuff Done” process comes in. The framework we use to get results fast without getting sucked into the implementation.
It allows us to identify the best person to execute a task and gives them the responsibility and autonomy to figure out how to get it done. This helps us streamline our workflow and achieve our goals more efficiently.
This formula (if used) makes the business more successful and makes everyone happy.
By continuously analysing and improving our process, we can stay ahead of the curve and adapt to the ever-changing digital landscape.
If you’re struggling with bottlenecks and need a solution to get things done, consider using this framework in your organisation. Here is how it works:
The Get Stuff Done framework:
- Start by understanding WHAT you want to achieve
- Then, establish the campaign’s intent and answer WHY you want to achieve it
- Then answer WHEN you need to have it implemented.You may already be doing the above steps – but the next question is the KEY!
- Ask WHO is the best person to do it?
- That person then figures out HOW to do it!
WARNING: Most times, it’s NOT the person that came up with the idea or identified the gap.
Even though you may want to, as the business owner, It’s not your job to figure out the HOW. Your job is to find WHO’s the best person to help you achieve the goal – it could be an employee, agency, partner, or supplier.
This way, you don’t only leverage technology, but you also leverage expertise to support our efforts and make the most of our time and resources
Let Five by Five be your partner in Getting Stuff Done
At Five by Five, we have a long list of satisfied customers that can attest to our top-notch digital solutions. We have the know-how with SEO and more to get you the best results.
Whether you want to launch a new site or improve your old one, we have the knowledge and determination to make it happen.
With Five by Five, we know what it takes to get you ranking and how to get you there. Contact us today to get started.
