AVIF (AV1 Image File Format):

AVIF is an open-source image format derived from the AV1 video codec, introduced in 2018. It provides superior compression efficiency, achieving 30–50% better compression than its predecessors without compromising visual quality. This results in smaller file sizes, leading to faster website loading times and reduced bandwidth consumption. Additionally, AVIF supports advanced features like high dynamic range (HDR) imaging, wide color gamut, transparency, and animation, making it versatile for various web applications. (Medium)

WebP:

Developed by Google, WebP is an image format that offers both lossy and lossless compression. It generally provides better compression than JPEG for lossy images and PNG for lossless images, resulting in smaller file sizes. WebP also supports transparency (alpha channel) and animation, similar to GIFs but with improved compression. Its widespread support across major browsers like Google Chrome, Firefox, Microsoft Edge, and Opera makes it a practical choice for web developers aiming to optimise image loading times. (Gee-Tech)

Comparing AVIF and WebP:

While both AVIF and WebP enhance web performance through efficient compression, AVIF often surpasses WebP in terms of compression efficiency and image quality. However, AVIF may require more processing power for encoding and decoding, and its browser support, though growing, is currently less extensive than WebP’s. Therefore, the choice between AVIF and WebP should consider factors like desired image quality, file size, browser compatibility, and encoding/decoding performance. (Cloudinary)

Conclusion:

Adopting modern image formats like AVIF and WebP can significantly enhance website performance by reducing image file sizes without sacrificing quality. This leads to faster loading times and an improved user experience. As browser and application support for these formats continues to expand, they are becoming increasingly viable options for web developers and designers seeking to optimise digital content delivery.

Furthermore, websites built by ib3 will automatically serve the best image format based on the user’s environment. This means you will have the best speed of loading optimisation, without any compromise to the quality of your images.

Why not get in touch today and find out how we can help you to fully engage with both your existing customers and target audience alike.

Improves website ranking

On-site optimisation helps search engines understand the content and structure of your website better. By optimising the title tags, meta descriptions, heading tags, and other on-page elements, you can make it easier for search engines to crawl and index your website. This, in turn, can improve your website’s ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs) for relevant keywords and phrases.

Increases organic traffic

Higher search engine rankings lead to increased organic traffic to your website. When your website appears on the first page of search results for relevant queries, it’s more likely that users will click through to your website. On-site optimisation ensures that your website is optimised for both search engines and users, making it more likely to rank higher and attract more traffic.

Boosts user engagement

On-site optimisation is not just about optimising for search engines, but also for users. By improving the website’s structure, navigation, and content, you can provide a better user experience. A user-friendly website leads to increased engagement, longer dwell time, and lower bounce rates, which are all signals to search engines that your website is valuable and relevant to users.

Enhances website credibility

On-site optimisation can also improve your website’s credibility and authority. When your website ranks higher in search results, users are more likely to perceive it as a trustworthy source of information or product/service provider. This, in turn, can lead to increased conversions, sales, and revenue.

Cost-effective marketing strategy

On-site optimisation is a cost-effective marketing strategy compared to other forms of digital marketing. Once your website is optimised, it can continue to attract organic traffic and generate leads and sales without the need for ongoing investment in paid advertising. This makes on-site optimisation a highly valuable long-term investment for your business.

In conclusion, on-site SEO optimisation is a crucial component of any website project and a successful SEO strategy. By optimising your website’s structure, content, and HTML code, you can improve your website’s ranking, increase organic traffic, boost user engagement, enhance credibility, and enjoy long-term cost savings. If you haven’t already, it’s time to start investing in on-site optimisation for your website.

The What

UX is the overall impression a visitor retains of your business as a result of interacting with one of it’s digital arms. This would typically be through a website, but it may include apps or indeed any electronic media.

In short, UX is the interactive presentation of your brand, products or services.

The How

When it comes to great UX, we should be thinking about great design and all it encompasses. Creativity, clarity, functionality, simplicity…the list goes on.

When ib3 develop a website, UX is initially driven by the experience of our senior design team. Put simply, they already have a great understanding of “what works and what doesn’t work” when it comes to online. The benefits of experience cannot be taught. Always enquire of your agency how many years professional experience the design team have. Furthermore, check specifically if they use junior designers. As part of their ongoing development our designers keep themselves abreast of latest trends across the web. This allows them to better deliver to the users’ preconceived notions of an easy-to-use/modern online platform.

Our designers will perform searches of the leaders within your sector, aggregating online profiles to develop an initial data-driven framework. A great starting point for your website from a UX perspective, is to build something new upon foundations already familiar to potential new clients.

Such competitor analysis helps the design team better understand specific market requirements. The analytical process is further augmented by our much broader, cross-sector, insight into current trends and the technology shaping them. All this goes into a big pot which we use to bake new processes, surprises and occasionally radical re-thinking into our concept work.

During the initial development discussions, the team will look to understand the drivers behind the new website. These drivers may include ROI, brand modernisation, disruption of an established marketplace etc. We will also take into account any broad-stroke views regarding presentation, from corporate funky to, well, plain old corporate

So already we can see that good UX is shaped by good communication between client and agency, the more we talk, the more we learn. Are we trying to increase online communication, phone contact, collection of user data, sales on specific lines, or making a bold brand statement etc. Such conversations have a significant impact upon the design and ultimately, the client satisfaction achieved

The Technical

ib3 invest a great deal of R&D into the delivery of systems which make the complex look and feel effortless. Whether the user is a member of the public or a member of your team, we work to deliver market leading experiences for your organisation

Analytics, hotspots, goals and filters are then monitored after launch to build an understanding of user interaction in the wild. Analysis of this data alongside a review of the original targets discussed in the build phase, may then lead to further work – AB Testing for instance

AB Testing allows alternate versions of the full/partial site to be presented to different users at the same time. The analytical data from such tests allows the site to be incrementally improved based on real-world data analysis.

Thanks,

Wayne

Plenty of food for thought from the expert! If you have any further questions or require more information on UX, get in touch.

Frank

frank@ib3.co.uk
07850 729444

Clearly, there is more than one answer. Maybe that’s why Media Management is often undervalued, certainly in the B2B sector. According to recent research “18 percent of advertisers have taken planning and buying in-house” – although that sounds low to me.

Let me give you an analogy. If you were flying a plane, wouldn’t you feel better having a qualified pilot next to you? The sky is far busier today than it has ever been!

Where should you be advertising?

With the wide range of options available to businesses nowadays, knowing where to target your advertising, content and PR efforts can be overwhelming.

• Digital or traditional?
• Print or online?
• Features or banner ads?
• Google or Facebook?

The choice seems endless.

Online media consumption has increased strongly over recent years. Internet advertising overtook all other types of advertising in the UK back in 2017. It now accounts for over half of overall ad spend and is set to rise. 

There’s no doubt that channels like PPC advertising, social media and email marketing are extremely effective ways of getting your message out there. But it’s wise not to put all your eggs in one basket when it comes to reaching your ideal customer – at least not without testing first!

One size does not fit all.

The ib3 approach to media management

Here at ib3, we employ an all-encompassing, holistic approach to media management. That’s not to say we’ll advise a scatter-gun strategy, but we will ensure that we’ve considered all channels and assessed their suitability for your business. By doing this, we can help formulate a strategic and manageable plan within your budget – crucially one that’s designed to maximise the return on your investment, something that’s much easier to measure with the rise of digital advertising. The old ‘spray and pray’ approach of the past no longer applies.

Our expertise doesn’t just lie on the digital side. We have many years of experience working and negotiating with contacts at trade publications and business websites worldwide. Our processes have been honed to ensure that we can deliver the very best exposure for your brand, service or product.

We have a very calm exterior, but what you don’t see is the years and years of experience, management, research, evaluation, planning, designing, creating, reporting and blood, sweat and tears that go into managing all types of media to generate the very best ROI for our clients.

Call us on 01732 449970 or email info@ib3.uk today to see how we can help you.
rebecca@ib3.uk

PPC- The Headlines

So, PPC is an online marketing model that does exactly what it says on the tin. Every time an advert is clicked, the advertiser pays a fee. Google AdWords is the most used form of PPC allowing advertisers to reach customers through online searches and the Google Display Network (GDN).

Adverts appear whenever you begin searching through engines like Google and Bing. They can appear as text (as above) as images through display ads, as videos on the likes of YouTube and also, ads in apps. This means that you can access a wide range of mediums on a wide range of devices.

Let’s take a look at Google Adwords and hopefully answer a few questions that you may have about PPC.

Structure

Campaigns, Ad Groups, Keywords and Ads; all elements of the Adwords structure. Campaigns are made up of Ad Groups, which have a set of Keywords leading to an adv. Let me explain.

• Campaign: This is the overarching concept of what you want your campaign to be related to. For example, “Acme Inc. Car Sale”
• Ad Group: The level beneath a campaign. This is a collection of related keywords that focus on a specific area. So, to use the car sale example, one Ad Group could be “Family Car Sale” another could be “Sports Car Sale”. Each has a different target in mind.
• Keywords: These are the words that people search for within the search engine. So, “Buy new family car” or “best sports cars to buy” etc.
• Ad: This is the physical advert itself. It could be text, video or image. Several ads can be used per Ad Group.

Being Relevant

If a user is searching for a “red sports car” and an advert for a “blue motorbike” comes up, what’s the point? When creating a Campaign, relevance is extremely important. Understanding what people are searching for, when they’re searching, trends and why are they searching, are all elements that must be taken into account when producing a PPC campaign. Not only will this influence when the advert will appear (through keyword selection), but also the wording and tone within the advert itself (advert creation).

Goole PPC Partners understand how Google measures campaign relevance and also know how to create adverts that set you apart from your competition. They also know when people are searching, what they’re searching for and why they are searching. Time and resource must be utilised at the beginning of any campaign creation. Get the structure robust first time and then continue to alter and improve throughout the campaign life cycle. That leads to clicks!

Budgeting

Google Adwords allows you to set a daily budget. This means that you have full control on spend. You may want to spend £20 per day for a month or £2,000 per day for 12 months, it’s so flexible. Think of PPC like an auction. You set the limits on what you want to spend per click. Cost per click varies by industry. Costs are based on demand like any auction. If your business sells cars, the demand for those keywords is high. Think about how many manufacturers and dealerships are competing in this arena. Equally the reward for converting from a click (turning a web visitor to a sale) is rather high. You may spend £15 for a click, but this visitor may become a customer and you sell them a £30,000 car! Always think ROI. Google Adwords allows plenty of fantastic insight to be gained.

End Product

Please don’t spend a single penny on PPC if the landing page is not up to scratch. Google will also penalised you too with a low Quality Score The landing page is where the customer ends up after clicking the link. For example, if you click on the “Sports Car Sale” advert and it takes them to the “Meet the Team” page, then you’re not in a good place! Also, think about the “Call to Action”. Do you want the visitor to place an order for the car? Call your sales team? Email an enquiry? What do you want them to do when they are there?

Time, Expertise, Dynamism, Creative

You may not have the time or expertise to manage your own PPC account. As such, you need to outsource to an agency. To effectively utilise PPC, a wide skill set and knowledge base is required. Research, analysis and quality copy writing are all fundamentals of skilled and effective campaign management. Combine this skill set with a deep understanding of how Adwords operates and you’re on your way to success.

Make sure that you find an agency who understand you and your business. That they have the credentials (Adwords Certified), that they produce insightful reports and offer solutions and suggestions.

We are slightly different from most agencies offering PPC services due to our dynamic approach. We have a team made up of creatives, copy writers, PPC specialists and analytical experts who think outside of the box. This gives us access to multiple opinions and different angles in which we can tackle projects. Equally, our clients get a lot more from us than they would from a PPC agency. We learn from the vast array of data that we are privy to, in order to make suggestions to be implemented across the marketing mix. Think of PPC as an important tool in the marketing toolbox, not just a stand alone method of traffic generation.

For any further information regarding PPC, get in touch!

Thanks for reading.

Adam

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adam@ib3.uk
07794 492587

Mapping Out Your Year

So, first steps are to map out the events, when are they? Who is involved? How do your clients interact with these events? What are your competitors doing? So many questions you could ask. But clarity is vital. If you don’t have the time or resource to do this, get someone to help with your media management (preferably ib3!)

Due to the short time periods of many events, you must get it right. What I’d advise is to prioritise events and go after them as hard as you can. There may be certain events in the year that are synonymous with your industry. Mistletoe grower, Christmas. Easter Egg manufacturer…well…Easter. These are obvious of course. But what about industry where they are less obvious?

Picking The Best Events

Don’t force fit you offering onto an event. Christmas for instance, may not be the time to push your product or service. There’s something almost cringe-worthy when businesses push campaigns that don’t quite work. Look outside of the box. Smaller events throughout the year may be the real opportunity. Think on a local basis if your business is regional. Fairs, festivals, special dates etc can all be great ways to promote your business. There are so many different events nowadays. National Pie Week, National Gin Day, World Book Day, National Hug Day. Plenty of events to get stuck into. All events are opportunities (in very differing ways and on very different scales!). Why not find an event, plan it in the calendar and then put a strategy together on how you can capitalise? Remember, be relevant and be sure that the link to the event is explainable and marketable.

Events, Great, But What Else Is There?

Events aren’t the only opportunity throughout the year. Think slightly shorter term. News articles and current affairs can be an excellent way to promote your business. Is there a story that you can capitalise on? Brexit, a storm with a strange name, a major cup win for England (unlikely in most sports!) or even some breaking news on the Great British Bake Off! We recently ran a PPC campaign for a client within the legal sector following a news article about a national, medical negligence court case. What a success! Why was it so successful? Well speed, creativity and expertise from both our clients and ib3 meant that we had a campaign created and up and running within hours of the news story breaking.

What Tools Are Out There And What Channels Should You Use?

No matter what size your business is, there are tools out there to use. Whether you have a £100 or £100,000 you can produce a campaign that can work for you. There a so many different channels and options when creating a campaign, but let’s look at three of the tools that we use and have the best results from!

PPC: Pay-per-click is a fantastic campaign medium. Using endless sources of data and fantastic levels of analyse, PPC enables businesses to switch campaigns on and off instantly. This allows opportunities to be maximised. Targeting can be achieved and the most specific of levels. Budgets managed and awareness raised to very high levels. Using Google and Bing, campaigns reach your clients on any of their devices.

Print Media: Whether it’s an editorial or advertisement in a journal or corporate leaflets and flyers, print has a great way of connecting with your clients. Vibrant colours, well written copy and striking images combined with good quality paper gives print advertising a real striking feel. Tailoring your message around an event or season can be done in many creatively unique ways. Always be prepared in advance. Get your creative ready to hit the right times throughout the year. Don’t forget print as a channel. It has real impact.

Email Marketing: Adding subtle touches to your email marketing can also have real impact. Seasonal imaging, themed messages or special event based promotional offers. All fantastic ways to engage with an audience over an email. Target clients with personalisation and unique themed content. Don’t forget to A/B test!

So, there are lots of opportunities out there to drive your business forward. Pick the event, plan, select the correct mix of channels and you’re there! Of course, if any help is required, get int touch!

Thanks for reading.

Adam

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adam@ib3.uk
07794 492587

Print is dead, long live the Social Media King

What a load of rubbish! Yes, social media is a wonderful platform to hit millions of people, gain instant feedback and have great conversations, but print is still an integral part of any marketing strategy. From the humble business card to huge roadside billboards, print is still extremely relevant. 15 years ago, I was excited about receiving an email, now you can’t move for SPAM or badly designed and constructed marketing emails. But when some quality, well designed literature hits my desk, I open it with intrigue. It’s even better once it’s been personalised! How many times have you met someone at a networking event, in a meeting or an industry event and they give you a business card? A flimsy, drab piece of floppy card from the 1970’s? First impressions, not good! The business card is an extension of your marketing strategy, give it the attention that it needs.

Journals and magazines are another brilliant way of spreading your message. Of course, finding the right publication is key, but you’re hitting your target audience at a time when they’re interested in your product or service. A well designed, creative print advert in the right publication at the right time. Winner!

Digital. e-this, e-that, e-by-gum, Tweets, Posts, Blogs, Vlogs, Clogs (wooden shoes)

Digital is a huge area and delivers massive opportunity once you overcome the challenges you will face. Websites, web-banners, PPC, mobile, social media, e-mail and the list goes on, but let’s not bore ourselves with listing every element. There are hundreds, if not thousands of companies who work in digital marketing, so how do you know what is right thing to do? Well here is our advice.

Carefully dug foundations

The website. Think of your website as your deeply dug foundations that the rest of your marketing strategy rests upon. The website shouldn’t just be an expensive, online brochure. It should serve a purpose. What do you want people to do when they are on there? Buy something? Download information? Sign up to a newsletter? I understand that budgets differ greatly and that many won’t have and endless supply of money. Your website should be fit for purpose. As I mentioned about business cards early, the first click on the website is many people’s first impression of your business. Get it right!

Traffic is good online, but not when you’re stuck on the M6

You’re really happy with your website. It’s brilliant, you’ve never seen anything like it. But no one has visited it. Oh, right. You need start creating some traffic. This is when the likes of SEO, PPC, re-marketing, web banners and e-mail marketing come in to play. SEO; get your content right. PPC; understand how your target audience find you. Re-marketing; make sure visitors don’t forget you. Web banners; stand out from your competition on third part sites. E-mail; whatever you do, do not SPAM, add value. Easy? No, not at all. This is where you must stack the odds in your favour. If you do not understand how to drive traffic to your website, get someone who can. Bring in the experts. Don’t rush into choosing your agency. There are plenty out there and ensure that they understand your needs and can deliver on their promises!

Attempting to kill the Radio Star

Video is of course an area with a hug amount of focus. VLOGs and channels such as YouTube are a fantastic way of getting a message across to your audience. Rather than reading through a blog like this, you can be visually entertained through engaging content. Make it different, give it personality and showcase your brand. Now not all content may be suitable for a video as it may be too technical or may just flow better when read, but why not give it a go? Just make sure that what you produce adds value. You want your viewer to finish the video with an appetite to view another or engage with you. If you don’t and you waste 3 minutes of someone’s time, it will be very hard to get them back.

Hashtag YOLO

Facebook, LinkedIn, twitter and Instagram. Everybody is on them, well most people! Conversations, feedback, sharing, introducing connections etc. Social media is a great tool to increase engagement with your brand. Being active, creating unique content and sharing advice leads to conversations starting and noise creation around your business. For more information on Social Media, take a look at one of our previous blogs for more insight.

There are a lot of options out there. Many will be successful for you, many not. But to get it right the first time, use an agency with experience to guide and advise you through the process. Multichannel agencies such as ib3 know which channels to use and when to use them. Through a process of carefully understanding your needs, researching the market place and gaining insight into your consumers we will provide the advice that you need to achieve balance in your strategy. Get in touch for more details.

Adam

07794 492587

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adam@ib3.uk

Looking back over the last week or so, what has happened?  Well, let’s delve into it.

Edinburgh to London in 45 mins

Catapulted from the Scottish capital to the English Capital at 500mph on a cushion of air.  The hare to HS2’s tortoise.  Elon Musk has hit the headlines again with his trials of high (very high) speed travel.  The Hyperloop is a new system described by Musk as “a cross between a Concorde, a railgun and an air hockey table”.  It certainly seems like an exciting mode of transport.  Due to the Hyperloop being such an extreme project, there will always be staunch supporters and critics.  Is it safe?  How much will it cost?  Will you be able to get a trolley service with over priced crisps and nuts?  Many questions still need answered, but what a thought!

Building a sustainable future at ecobuild

Last week I visited the ecobuild show.  Having worked within the FMCG industry for a number of years, this wasn’t my first tradeshow, but I must say, what a great day I had down there.  Meeting so many people from the industry with such passion and expertise on their field is great to see and be a part of.  From robotic drones to cavity wall insulation, what a variety of exhibitors ready to talk to you about their offering.  A particular highlight for me was chatting to a student from Newcastle University about a research project called BESiDE to better understand the needs of the elderly in care home design. They are combining data capture and wearable technology to collect and collate a set of recommendations to improve the lives of the elderly in care homes.  Good luck to the team over there!

Hold the mayo

Hellmann’s Mayonnaise owners Unilever are spending £7m on a marketing campaign around it’s new pack design.  The new brand style is aimed at giving the product a fresh feel to appeal to the consumer who are “looking for authentic and natural offerings” when making their choice.  Unilever’s move here is surely a response to the recent emphasis Kraft Heinz has been putting on its Seriously Good Mayonnaise.  Who knew that the egg based condiments sector could provide such a battle ground?  When you’re the number one player with sales worth over £90m per annum, then yes, this is a huge sector worth fighting for!  Britons are certainly big mayonnaise lovers (on the whole).

Marketing is like a box of chocolates

As I have mentioned, our client base is very diverse!  We see our dynamism as one of our major strengths.  When you work with an array of business in different industries, you begin to think outside of the box.  This is where the magic can happen!  Ideas and thinking shouldn’t be just confined to the ‘norm’.  We always try to give our clients an option.  In addition to proposals based on your brief, our ‘Wildcard’ proposal has accounted for numerous implemented campaigns with our clients.  Whilst still focused on your needs, the wildcard is exactly that, it’s a thought provoker!

Finally, a nice thought from Ikea Australia, ‘The Best Day is the Everyday’.

Thanks for reading,

Adam

Doris certainly had her day

A weather bomb?  I’d never heard of a weather bomb before, but Doris certainly made her present felt.  Up here in Yorkshire we felt the winds and the rain but nothing too extreme!  The naming of storms certainly has drawn more attention to the weather and added character to these weather fronts. Can we take learnings from this as marketers?  Most definitely!  Bringing personality to elements of marketing plans where there once was none must be of benefit.  A prime example of this was our work with H+H and their Aircrete blocks.  Changing the perception of products and services are what we are all about.  We made grey, almost forgotten Aircrete blocks into fun, super heroes with a personality of their own, to great affect!

And the winner is…

La La Land, Moonlight!  A mix up of epic proportions.  You have got to feel sorry for the losers, equally what an under-whelming way to receive an award.  What a response though! Breakfast TV, global news network broadcasts, twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn all blew up.  The Academy Awards certainly do not need any more exposure, but what a great way to get your business or message out there.  Is all publicity, good publicity?  Within reason, but I think the perfectionist within all of us wants our public opinion to be a good one based on successes rather than short-comings.

I used to love Snake

The Nokia 3310 is coming back!  Everyone had one of these back in the days when you could only store 20 texts on your phone.  Is this a launch that’s rooted in nostalgia?  Most definitely, but there is a market for the simple approach to communicating.  This is the phone for no-nonsense users who want to call and text.  They don’t want to tweet, watch videos of cats or  catch Pokémon whilst they’re out and about.  They want to call home or chase a dot around a screen with a line that represents a snake.

So to answer my original question, the common theme is simplicity. Whether it’s giving something a personality, creating a buzz, or bringing back a favourite, they’re all simple but extremely impactful.

The simplistic approach is alive and well in marketing.  We are firm believes in the simple and practical approach to marketing.  Find the objectives of a campaign or the needs of a business and aim to achieve them.  Simple.  Who do you want to speak to and what’s the best way to contact them.

Thanks for reading,

Adam