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Month: March 2015

The Challenges of Developing a Mobile App

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With the advent of smartphones came mobile applications, also known as apps, which are software programs that users can download to play games, get turn-by-turn directions, and access news, books and so much more.

According Apple, users are downloading more than 800 apps per second from the app store, meaning more than two billion apps are being downloaded per month. For businesses, these numbers are telling, demonstrating the power that an app can have in engaging customers, driving brand image and creating a loyal fan base. Yet, developing a mobile app isn’t as easy as it seems. Our San Diego internet marketers share some of the most common challenges faced by businesses.

  1. Differentiation

    According to Apple CEO Tim Cook, there are more than a million apps currently active in the Apple iStore. Add another million from the Android Market and it becomes even more important to deliver a clear, compelling value proposition with your app. How can your app solve the problem of one of your users? What can your app offer that a competitor might not be able to?

  2. Cost

    Although there are some programs that can help you to build your own app, they often lack in providing you with options for design and customization. Building and programming an app from scratch takes extensive programming experience to ensure high-functionality with a beautiful design. Finding quality mobile app designers and programmers at an affordable cost can be a barrier for businesses, especially smaller companies and start-ups.

  3. Meeting Compatibility Requirements

    Whether you favor the iPhone or Android, you will need to make sure that your app is in line with the latest technology changes. To make sure your app is compatible with all the latest devices, you’ll have to learn about current requirements, how to meet them and will likely need to devise a long-term arrangements to keep it updated.

  4. App Pricing and Promotion

    Many users are resistant to apps priced with the standards of commercial desktop software in mind. Without effective pricing and a clear way to either win subscriptions or consistently grow your user base, your app’s costs may overrun its revenue potential. It is important to consider this early in the development stages to ensure that you are making a sound investment.

Creating and realizing an app idea that will capture your target audience takes careful planning and budgeting. As with any marketing effort, it’s important to fully understand your customers so you can offer a product that will truly connect with them.

For more information about building a mobile app for your San Diego business, reach out to Saba, Inc. today. We offer mobile app services that are affordable and tailored to your individual needs, and our knowledge in marketing, advertising and SEO in San Diego can help to ensure that your app can successfully reach your target audience.

How to Use #Hashtags in Business Marketing

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As the importance of social media grows in advertising and marketing, it is important to stay up-to-date in the technology to gain an edge in a competitive market. Companies that used to allocate marketing funds almost exclusively to television and radio are now expanding their budgets to include social media. A brand-driving feature of social media is the #Hashtag, which can enable your product or brand to be reached by millions.

Today, the trusted San Diego online marketing company, Saba, Inc., is going to share some general information about using hashtags to help reach targeted customers, increase brand visibility, and drive sales.

How Hashtags Work

The functionality of hashtags can vary from platform to platform. Twitter, considered by many to be the “inventor” of hashtags, gives users the ability to have their tweets placed into groups of posts organized by, you guessed it, hashtags. Clicking on any #hashtag link will bring real-time posts from anyone who tweets with the same keyword preceded by a hashtag symbol. Other social media sites (Instagram, Google+ and Facebook, to name a few) function similarly to Twitter, although they might have slightly different rules about the use of hashtags.

Implementing the Right Hashtag

The success of a hashtag campaign depends on the method of employment. Simply creating a hashtag like “#AcmeCandyIsDelicious” probably won’t gain much attention. However, when coupled with traditional media it can be a valuable tool for creating two-way communication with the consumer.

For example — if the fictitious company Acme were to announce in a television commercial that one lucky winner will receive a year’s supply of candy for Tweeting a picture of themselves to #AcmeCandyIsDelicious, the results can be outstanding. The marketing industry is learning that consumers want to be engaged with the products they buy.

The Power of a Hashtag in Marketing

In a real-life scenario, Travelocity quadrupled their Twitter engagement with their #IWannaGo contest. A staggering 95% of all followers continued engagement by scrolling below the ‘loading’ level to view more posts. San Diego social media managers have always said that product engagement drives consumer purchasing, and with numbers like this, Travelocity reaped excellent benefits.

What Not to Do

Of course, hashtagging can have negative impacts. Long hashtags #LikeThisTerriblyLongAndAnnoyingHashtag can turn off your audience. Also, irrelevant hashtagging can make your brand appear to be desperate. Yes people chew gum at work, at the gym, and at school. But hashtagging your post with #ChewingGumAtWork, #ChewingGumAtTheGym and #ChewingGumAtSchool may be a bit too much. By keeping it simple, relevant, and most importantly fun, your hashtag campaign can drive the targeted traffic you need into sales.

To learn how to make your company more visible in the online world, reach out to Saba, Inc. today and schedule a free website audit and consultation. We are a trusted online marketing company offering a range of services from social media and web design to PPC and SEO in San Diego, CA. Call us today at 858-277-1717!

Why the Best SEO Companies Don’t Offer Guaranteed Results

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When comparing San Diego SEO companies, you’re sure to look for a few key offerings right away, including cost, services offered, current clients and testimonials. However, among these offerings, some SEO companies also promise page one rankings in search results. Going with a company offering this type of guarantee seems like a no-brainer, right? Wrong. The best SEO companies don’t offer guaranteed results, and here’s why.

Google is the preeminent market leader with respect to search engines. Their algorithm changes at least once daily, and even some high-level Google engineers aren’t entirely sure how well the ever-changing algorithm will perform. Guaranteeing results implies the SEO company you’re considering can predict and immediately respond to these frequent and complex algorithm changes.

Dishonest and unscrupulous SEO companies have claimed for years that they have the expertise to influence search results, with some companies going so far as to say they have a “partnership” with Google that will land your company on the first page. But let’s think about this realistically. Google’s main goal is to provide searchers with the best user experience and the most relevant data in organic search results. Why would it partner with specific SEO companies to give their clients a competitive advantage? There is no benefit for Google or the user.

Now, what if the SEO company in question can provide concrete results showing a number of their clients on page one? Getting to page one isn’t necessarily difficult. However, getting to page one using white hat tactics that will survive even the most drastic Google updates is. There are shortcuts and deceitful strategies for ranking websites quickly, such as securing unnatural links on websites and blogs, or keyword stuffing a website’s pages, but these can threaten the long-term success of a website. A website can even be removed from SERPs completely should Google find it guilty of gaming the system.

SEO is a long-term strategy that can take anywhere from six months to a year depending on your product or service and the competitiveness of your market. Companies that tell you something else are not trying to improve user experience–they’re attempting to boost their own bottom line.

If you’re interested in learning more about organic rankings or the best white hat SEO tactics, schedule a complimentary consultation with Saba, Inc. today. With more than a decade of experience in search engine optimization and online marketing, you can trust our experts to provide you with the honest truth. Call us at 858-277-1717 and find out if SEO is the right choice for you.

The Hotly Debated Topic of Net Neutrality

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So, what is “net neutrality”?

Recently introduced into the American lexicon, net neutrality is the guiding principle that Internet service providers (ISP), such as Verizon or Comcast, should treat all web traffic the same and not discriminate or charge based on content, platform, site, or user. Without net neutrality, ISPs could charge customers for faster access speeds or content delivery.

Who’s For It

Internet giants like Facebook, Google, Netflix, Amazon and eBay are all for net neutrality, and more than 100 technology companies have reached out to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) with pleas to protect web users against discrimination. Beyond discrimination, proponents of net neutrality worry about a digital world with rampant Big Brother censorship, where basic access to timely information will be reserved for the rich.

On November 10, 2014, President Barack Obama gave net neutrality the thumbs up, arguing for “no blocking, no throttling and increased transparency.”

Who’s Against It

By and large, ISPs are opposed to net neutrality. Most ISPs stand to significantly deepen their pockets by charging for tiered bandwidth plans, a practice called “paid prioritization.” ISPs trumpet the benefits of laissez faire business, arguing that discriminatory bandwidth fees will encourage them to upgrade their infrastructure, a benefit for everyone.

Impact on Marketing and SEO

Net neutrality is the foundation of modern search engine optimization (SEO) and allows for equal competition among all advertisers. Without it, the scales tip in favor of large companies that can afford to pay for top-tier bandwidth. Meanwhile, small content producers like mom n’ pop enterprises who can’t afford the premiums for “fast lane” content delivery see a significant drop in their website traffic.

Additionally, if ISPs are able to regulate content delivery, not just speed, high-quality media used for things like marketing and breaking news on smaller sites could potentially disappear as well. Website analytics and demographic statistics would be skewed, search engine popularity would be no guarantee of performance, and money would count more than merit.

At Saba, Inc., we’re interested to see how the net neutrality debate plays out and will continue to keep you updated on any breaking news! In the meantime, if you’d like to learn more about how the Internet can help grow your business, don’t hesitate to reach out to us – 858-277-1717 – we’re here to help!

5 Reliable & Reputable Website Hosting Companies

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In today’s business world, an online presence is extremely important. In order to attain a strong presence on the internet, you’ll need a solid online marketing plan that likely includes San Diego SEO services, and possibly a PPC campaign. However, before all of this, you’ll need to build a website, and that starts with enlisting in the services of a website hosting company.

What Does a Website Hosting Company Do?

Just like you need to buy or lease the address of where you live, you need to lease your virtual address. This process, known as domain registration, is done through your website hosting company. Once you have a registered domain (www.yourcompanynamehere.com), you need to make sure potential clients can access it. Hosting companies will store your files on servers, which will allow the public to view the information you want to share.

Get Your Website Hosted Today

Now that you have a brief idea of what a website hosting company is, you’ll have to choose the one that’s right for you. Although there are many options, all offering different levels of services, here are some of our favorite website hosting companies known for their reliability and reputations.

  1. Squarespace

    Squarespace is one of the newer website hosting companies, but they are increasingly growing in popularity and are a great option for individuals and businesses of all sizes. Their plans range from $8/month to $24/month, all including unlimited bandwidth, unlimited storage, and full e-commerce integration.

  2. MediaTemple

    If you’re looking for a fast and reliable website hosting company that can offer you as much or as little bandwidth and power as you need, look no further than MediaTemple. Their shared hosting plan is only $20 a month and allows you to host up to 100 websites with 1TB of monthly bandwidth and 100GB of Storage. They also offer hosting exclusively for WordPress sites.

  3. HostGator

    If you’re building a site but want room to expand, HostGator is a popular choice for many. They support both Windows and Linux hosting, and offer unlimited disk space and bandwidth starting at $3.96 a month. Plus, you can easily upgrade when you need more power.

  4. SiteGround

    Similar to MediaTemple, SiteGround offers specialized hosting for WordPress as well as Joomla. They also offer easy SSL certification for if you plan on supporting an e-commerce site.

  5. Rackspace

    If you are looking to host a high-traffic website and have specialized needs, Rackspace is the top of the line when it comes to website hosting. Rackspace offers you a fully controllable cloud-based environment with easy scalability to ensure your site always has the power it needs to deliver to your visitors.

Are you thinking about creating a new website for your company or business? Consider building a custom website with help from the professional San Diego web designers at Saba, Inc. We can help bring your vision to life, and can help you register your domain, finding the best company for your needs. And if you need further help promoting your online presence, we have a team of online marketers who can help you rise in the search engine rankings!

For more information about our local San Diego online marketing company, or to schedule a complimentary consultation, call 858-277-1717 – we look forward to hearing from you!

Is an Open-Plan Office Right for Your Business?

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There has been much talk of large businesses and corporations eschewing the old office format and knocking down the walls between employees, converting their tired, old floor plans into something new, exciting and collaborative. But what are the benefits and what are the downfalls of open floor plans in a business environment?

Why Businesses Love the Open-Plan Layout

An open floor plan presents a youthful image to a prospective employee. It promotes teamwork and collaborative growth as the focus rather than personal achievement. Employees are encouraged to chat and bounce ideas off one another, and as a result, the more casual and friendly atmosphere can help foster stronger work relationships.

Concerns of “Too Much Collaboration”

By taking down the cubicle walls and removing the barriers between employees, businesses are also making assumptions about their employees. Not every person is built the same way, however, and the insecurity of open floor plans may be a hindrance to productivity rather than a boost for those who feel exposed. Distractions become a real problem as well, with many employees turning to wearing headphones or earbuds to avoid coworkers who aren’t as involved in their own work or want to stop by and chat.

Consider the Nature of Your Business

With an open floor plan, it can be difficult to determine who is in charge. While collaboration rules the day at new-school businesses ranging from San Diego internet marketing agencies to cloud computing companies, stratified offices such as governmental departments will find it difficult to make the adjustment when the corner office is gone. Productivity and contribution rule the day, not seniority and familiarity.

Trending or Traditional

As with any business strategy, there are advantages and disadvantages of open-plan offices, and it will be up to you to decide if trending or traditional is the best match for your needs, goals and company culture. Stay true to your business and you’ll be able to confidently make a decision.

Interested in learning a few more business tips? Check out our Facebook or reach out to us directly at 858-277-1717. Saba, Inc is a premier internet marketing company in San Diego, specializing in SEO, PPC, mobile app development, web design and more!

The Latest AdWords Feature You Don’t Want to Miss

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If you’re a San Diego online marketer or business owner familiar with AdWords, you know the time it takes to create a successful ad campaign. In addition to tailoring your campaign and bidding strategy to ensure top placement of your ad above competitors, you must create engaging AdCopy that entices users to click on your ad.

Callout Extensions – Google’s Newest AdWords Feature

A new AdWords feature, callout extensions, may give businesses a competitive advantage when used correctly. Callout extensions are very similar to sitelinks, allowing the advertiser to add an extra line of text to ads in the form of short selling points. A few examples of callout extensions are:

  • All Orders Ship Free
  • Price Matching
  • Get a Free Quote Online
  • 60 Day Free Trial
  • 24/7 Customer Service
  • Serving San Diego County

Benefits of Callout Extensions for Advertisers

While callout extensions are similar to sitelinks in terms of verbiage and length, they do not have to link to a specific landing page. That said, you may be wondering, “If callout extensions don’t link anywhere, what’s the point?” Our experienced San Diego AdWords managers explain some of the top benefits of callout extensions in more detail below:

  • Increased Ad Space

    Callout extensions help advertisers gain the attention of prospective customers by increasing the actual size of the ad. When a callout extension is added, an extra line is added to the original AdCopy, thus making the ad larger than the ads of competitors who are not utilizing callout extensions. It makes sense that a prospective customer would be more inclined to click on the larger, more dominating ad.

  • More Targeted Ads

    You have the ability to decide exactly what you want your callout extensions to say. Whether it’s including a location specific callout such as “Serving All of San Diego County” or a callout that highlights your products like “Hurry, Limited Inventory”, you can create highly customized ads that appeal specifically to your target audience.

  • Additional Selling Points

    Callout extensions such as “100% satisfaction guarantee” and “free shipping” are great terms that advertisers have always wanted to include in their ads, however did not have enough space to include them. With callout extensions, you are still able to provide a brief description of your service, while adding additional selling points, which can increase click through rates and conversions.

With the potential to increase clicks, leads and sales, you’re probably ready to get started! Fortunately, just like sitelinks, you can add callout extensions on the account level. Simply login to your account, select four callout extensions that are a good match for all of your ads and apply them – a process that takes about five to ten minutes.

Interested in learning more tricks to enhance your online presence? Reach out to Saba, Inc. We are a full-service San Diego SEO company that specializes in organic ranking, pay-per-click advertisements, mobile app development and web design. Call us today at 858-277-1717 and schedule a free website audit or consultation!

Do I Need a Web Design Company?

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As a business owner, budget is always on your mind. So when it comes time to update your website, you may be enticed by the many build-your-own website applications available on the internet. While this is an option, it may not be the most advantageous for you.

Your website is a reflection of who you are as a business owner, and is one of the best ways to showcase your product and/or service. Don’t you want a website that is tailored to your exact offerings, preferences and needs? This is where a great San Diego web design company comes into play.

Benefits of Working with a Web Design Company

While we’ve discussed the cost-benefit of building your own website, consider the advantages of working with a professional and experienced company that specializes in web design and development:

  1. Time

    Even the most basic software programs for building websites can take time to learn, and you’ll be required to spend hours, days or even weeks fine tuning your website to perfection. With a web design company, you share your vision and they bring it to life in a timeframe that you often help decide.

  2. Experience

    We all have our own opinions about what website may be aesthetically pleasing, but personal preference doesn’t trump years of experience. A web design company can help ensure the appearance of your website targets the right market for your product or service. For instance, they may suggest a flat layout if your product relates to the tech-industry, or a more traditional layout if you have an e-commerce website.

  3. Data

    While your website can be used as a true selling point, it can also give you amazing analytical details and help you better understand your customer and how effective your website is in targeting that customer. Do you know how to set this up? Would it be better to leave it to the experts to show you how to review important analytic data?

Finding a Great Web Design Company

If you are considering a web design company in San Diego, it’s important to work with one that shares your vision and understands your needs. While price will play a role in your final decision, your website is a long-term investment and will be an asset to your business. In addition to a company that is reasonably flexible with your budget, consider these other tips for finding a great web design company:

  1. Meet with the company and have a sit-down conversation

    You want to work with a company that you feel comfortable with and it’s important to get to know the individuals who might be working on your project.

  2. Check out references and the company’s portfolio of work

    Look at the different designs for website projects that the company has already completed and see how they were able to modify designs for different clients. This gives you a good idea of their rage of skills.

  3. Consider the services offered by the company

    Web design companies should be up-to-date in the latest design practices such as responsive design. Some companies are also full service marketing firms, and can offer additional beneficial services such as quality content, PPC or SEO in San Diego.

With so many consumers making decisions about who to do business with online, trust your website to the design experts and reap rewards from your investments with increased leads and sales.

For more information about web design and online marketing, visit our website at www.sabaseo.com or call us directly at 858-277-1717 and schedule a complimentary, website audit with one of our internet marketing specialists. We are here to help businesses make the most of their online presence!

New AdWords Campaign Designed to Drive Calls to Businesses

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Calling all business owners, online marketers and AdWords managers in San Diego – and across the nation! Google is changing the pay-per-click landscape again, offering a new call-only campaign that is designed specifically to increase the number of calls that a business gets from their online advertisements.

So what’s the difference between call-only and AdWords ads?

  1. First Line of Ad Copy

    If you’re familiar with AdWords, you know that you get three lines of copy. The first line generally states the name of your company or the service or product that you’re providing and the second two provide more insight into your offerings. With a call-only ad, this first line is simply “Call: your number here”

  2. Contact with Customer

    With a typical AdWords ad, the user is taken to an advertiser’s landing page or website when he or she clicks on the ad. With a call-only ad, a click connects the mobile phone user directly to the company via a phone call. In fact, users can’t even get to the advertiser’s website by clicking the ad.

  3. Where the Ad Shows

    Call-only ads are specifically designed to show on devices that have the ability to make phone calls (most smartphones). While the advertiser will still pay for the click incurred, it will be a phone call to the advertiser’s business.

Call-only ads seem to be Google’s way of emphasizing the importance of being relevant to users not only on the internet, but on mobile phones as well. With more and more users turning to their mobile phones to conduct research and searches to find information about products and services, call-only ads may help to boost sales by providing the user with an immediate point of contact. This simple ad prompts an immediate call with the idea that your user should be able to reach you, right as they are searching.

Setting up a call-only ad campaign is extremely simple as well. San Diego internet marketers and online managers simply need to log into their AdWords accounts, click to create an ad, and in the drop down, the “call-only ad type” option can be selected. Then, simply fill out the remaining ad copy as you would a regular AdWords ad.

Interested in learning more about SEM? Reach out to Saba, Inc. today. We specialize in PPC campaigns and search engine optimization in San Diego and offer free website audits to help ensure that your website is set up for optimal visibility and traffic. Call us at 858-277-1717 and schedule a free consultation for more information!

5 SEO Mistakes Most Bloggers Make

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Whether you blog to share a passion or interest or are looking to drive traffic to your company’s website, there are certain things that most bloggers do that can hurt their chances of ranking highly in search results. The following are some of the most common blogging mistakes that we see here at Saba SEO:

  1. Writing for the search engines first

    Perhaps the most detrimental SEO strategy is to create content with the sole purpose of gaining a better position in the SERPS (search engine results pages). Great content is content that is shared by many. Content written to engage the reader and to offer helpful and interesting information always stands a much better chance of finding its way around social circles, increasing it’s relevance and
    popularity. The more content that is shared, the higher the site will rise in the SERPS.

  2. Weak or irrelevant headlines

    If the headlines or titles of a site’s posts don’t grab a visitor’s attention, they will likely find another website. Relevancy and a reason to read further are the driving force behind magnetic headlines. If the headline compels a visitor to read further as if they can’t get enough, the headline has accomplished its purpose.

  3. Failing to perform proper keyword research

    Search engines look for the proper use of relevant keywords and keyword phrases within content. In order to rank highly in organic search, great content with a few specific keywords and more importantly, related words, are critical.

  4. Creating a crowded website

    A big turn-off for website users is to spend more than a few seconds to find the content they’re looking for. They don’t have time or want to sort through ads or a large number of images. In fact, this causes the dreaded bounce rate to skyrocket. Additionally, San Diego web designers also note that not having the correct amount of white space around content and images creates an unfriendly crowded appearance that can frustrate visitors.

  5. Omission of a sitemap

    Forgetting to create a sitemap for visitors and one for the search engines makes it difficult to navigate a site and once again, frustrates visitors. The same is true for the search engine robots. If the search engines can’t index a website, it prevents otherwise great content from being found. Assuming a site is built with simple, effective, and easy navigation, visitors will enjoy the ease of finding the information they’re searching for and the robots will successfully index the site.

Have other questions about search engine optimization? Perhaps you’re looking to drive more traffic to your website or increase your leads? Call 858-277-1717 and schedule a free website audit with one of our San Diego SEO specialists and see if a new online marketing strategy is right for you.

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