You’ve probably heard of Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) and you may know it’s important for your business, but what about local SEO? If you’re a Southland business, local SEO is something that should be at the forefront of your digital marketing strategy. Local SEO (including getting your business on Google Maps), helps you connect with customers in your area, boost visibility, and increase traffic to your website. Let’s take a look at why local SEO is so important for New Zealand businesses. Not just businesses in Southland!
Why Local SEO is Important for Southland Businesses
If you’re a Southland business, you most likely rely on customers located in Southland. That means these are the people who should be seeing your website. Search engines like Google have become increasingly savvy when it comes to knowing where users are searching. And what kind of content they want to see. That’s why using local keywords associated with Southland can help boost visibility for Southland businesses looking to maximise their online presence online and on Google Maps.
In addition to using targeted keywords associated with Southland, businesses need to ensure information regarding their location is consistent across all platforms (website, social media profiles, etc). This includes street address, phone number(s), opening hours, contact info—even photos of the physical location can help enhance visibility and improve trustworthiness among potential customers. This information needs to be included in both website content and metadata such as Alt tags & Meta descriptions.
Maximising Visibility on Google and Google Maps
Local search engine optimisation isn’t just about understanding which keywords work best for Southland businesses; it’s also about making sure those keywords reach the right audience. One way to do this is by setting up a Google Business Profile (GBP). GMB allows businesses to create a profile that includes contact info such as address & phone number as well as opening hours & reviews from past customers. This ensures that when someone searches for a service or product near them, your business will appear first in the results list!
Local SEO is essential for any Southland business hoping to increase its online presence on Google Search and Google Maps. It will also help grow its customer base within its immediate area. By focusing on local keywords and maintaining accurate information across all platforms, businesses can ensure maximum visibility among potential new customers who are searching in their area. Additionally, creating a profile via Google My Business can help put your business ahead of competitors by boosting its ranking in search results pages – putting you one step closer to ultimate success!
Need help with your business SEO? Back9 can help. For more information, click the banner below.
What is SEO? It stands for Search Engine Optimisation. SEO is the process of improving the visibility and ranking of a website on search engines. A good SEO strategy can help to increase website traffic, leads, and sales. To help you on your way, you’re probably looking for a list of the best SEO companies in New Zealand to deliver on your SEO goals.
Back9 is the only Southern agency on the list so if you’re looking for someone local who can deliver results, get in touch. We let Google search users see the results for themselves and if you were to search best SEO Agency in Southland… well, you can guess who is ranking at #1.
If you’re looking for the Best SEO company to help improve your online presence, here’s some that come up on or around the first page of Google. Specifically for ‘best SEO company in New Zealand’ organically (unpaid) – so they must know a thing or two.
1. Back9 Creative
We’re good at SEO and as proof, our website ranks highly on Google. We’re a humble bunch but we like to toot our own horn when the results speak for themselves. We guess the fact that you’re on our website and you more than likely found us in a Google Search, then reiterates the fact that we know our stuff. We’re much like the other 9 on this list below. Especially when it comes to offering a similar list of SEO services.
So you’ll choose to talk to us if you think we can deliver value (pssst… we can by the way…). And furthermore, we’d love to have a chat and see if we can work together…
2. Top Rank Digital
Offering web design, SEO, SEM, Branding and digital other marketing services, Top Rank Digital has the vision to become the first choice for every business when it comes to digital marketing. They’ve helped thousands of businesses be seen online.
Through brand visibility, revenue growth and great customer experience, Top Rank Digital has become a renowned digital marketing provider that is focused on client growth.
3. The Web Guys
Located in Parnell, Auckland, The Web Guys are a rapidly expanding digital creative agency. Their comprehensive services include strategy development, content creation, product building, campaign launches, and system design, all aimed at engaging the target audiences of their clients’ brands.
Throughout their years of experience in the digital realm, they have crafted innovative solutions for a diverse range of clients. From emerging startups to established corporations, The Web Guys have delivered state-of-the-art creative work across various sectors including technology, e-commerce, hospitality, trade, and more.
4. Firefly
Emerging in 2014, Firefly was driven by a desire to address the shortcomings in the industry and the scarcity of effective digital solutions for business advancement. Anthony Baxter, fuelled by his entrepreneurial spirit, established an agency with a distinct vision. His aim was to create a growth-oriented firm that remained impartial to specific channels or platforms.
Instead of adhering to predetermined approaches, Firefly’s mission became to craft tailored strategies and utilise the most suitable mix of channels to help businesses achieve their unique objectives.
5. Pure SEO
As a digital marketing agency in New Zealand, Pure SEO has earned the distinction of being a Google partner. The team, comprised of certified experts who have garnered industry recognition, offers a comprehensive suite of online marketing services. These include search engine optimisation (SEO), pay-per-click advertising (SEM), strategies to improve conversion rates, data analytics, content development, social media management, and various other internet marketing solutions.
Their expertise spans the full spectrum of digital marketing tactics to help businesses thrive online.
6. Kiwi Website Design (KWD)
With locations across New Zealand and Australia, Kiwi Website Design’s mission has been to transform innovative concepts into exceptional outcomes. Since their inception in 2011, they’ve refined a growth strategy that has attracted thousands of clients and generated millions in revenue.
They pride themselves on delivering high-quality, strategic solutions that drive business success.
7. Chalk & Cheese
Running on the theory that ‘likes’ don’t pay the bills, Chalk and Cheese believe that digital marketing strategies should ultimately lead to sales and inquiries. This Auckland based agency offers a full suite of digital marketing services. Including; Google Ads, Social Media Ads, Website Design, Website Development & Email Marketing.
8. Just SEO
If Just SEO don’t deliver you results to the first page of Google, they claim that you’ll receive a 100% refund. They are a New Zealand based agency who focus only on Search Engine Optimisation. They claim to guarantee they will get you to the first page of the Google rankings.
9. Mint Design
With offices located in both Auckland and Christchurch, Mint Design isn’t just limited to SEO. They cover everything from websites to videography. They say to give them 90 days and they’ll improve your digital marketing campaigns and if they don’t, they’ll refund you your management fees.
10. First Page
Boldly proclaiming their place in the SEO landscape, First Page states they’re the digital marketing agency that will outshine your rivals and drive valuable, conversion-ready traffic to your site. Boasting their status furthermore, as New Zealand’s highest-rated digital marketing firm. (you be the judge!) In addition, they emphasise their core mission: guiding the ideal audience to the most relevant sections of your website.
Their confident approach underscores their commitment to subsequently delivering tangible results and outperforming competitors in the digital marketing landscape.
There are many Best Practise SEO companies in NZ
These are just some of the many fantastic SEO companies based in New Zealand that we’ve found online. But who is the best SEO company in NZ? How do you even pick an SEO Agency? A good Seo company can definitely help you to improve your online presence. But can the best SEO companies in New Zealand give you a return on your investment? Truth be told, they should be able to. Especially if they’re like us and they love SEO too 😉
To sum up, When choosing any SEO agency, let alone the Best SEO Agency in New Zealand, it’s important to consider your budget, objectives, and needs so that you can find the perfect match for your business. With the help of a good SEO company, you can expect to see an increase in website traffic, lead conversion rates, and sales. Look for SEO companies who have a featured Snippet in Google too. So what are you waiting for? Start your search for the perfect digital partner today!
TikTok isn’t just for teen lip-sync videos and dance challenges anymore. TikTok is an increasingly popular platform for businesses to reach new customers. But is it the right fit for your business? Let’s take a look at the pros and cons of leveraging TikTok for your business in your Social Media Marketing Strategy. Then you can decide if it’s worth getting involved.
Pros of Using TikTok for Business
TikTok for business is an incredibly powerful marketing tool. It can help you target potential customers in fun and creative ways. Here are some of the benefits of leveraging TikTok for your business:
Huge Reach – With over 700 million active users worldwide, your content has the potential to be seen by millions of people. This makes it ideal for businesses that want to reach a large audience quickly.
Creative Opportunities – The format of the app gives businesses plenty of room to get creative with their content. That allows them to stand out from other brands and capture attention in unique ways. Whether you use videos, GIFs, or photos, there are endless possibilities when it comes to creating engaging content on this platform.
Low Cost – One great thing about using TikTok for business, is that it can be done on a budget. You don’t need expensive equipment or software in order to produce high-quality content either. All you need is a smartphone and some creativity! Plus, since you won’t have any paid advertising costs, you can save money while still reaching a large audience.
Cons of Using TikTok for Business
Although there are many positives associated with using this platform, there are also some negatives too. These should also be taken into consideration before jumping into Tiktok. Some potential drawbacks include:
Short Attention Spans – Most videos on this platform are only 15 seconds long. That means they require very little commitment from viewers. This means that if your content isn’t captivating right away, viewers may quickly lose interest and move on without taking any action (such as following your account). This could make it difficult to build a loyal following or generate leads from this platform.
Younger Audience – Although there are certainly many adults who use this app, the majority of its users tend to be younger generations such as Gen Z and Millennials. So if you’re targeting older demographics (such as Baby Boomers), then this might not be the best choice for your business goals.
Algorithm Changes – This is a drawback of any social media platform. Changes in algorithms can have an impact on how much visibility your content receives. Which in turn could make it difficult to maintain consistency with your posts or build engagement over time. It’s important to keep up with algorithm changes so that you don’t miss out on valuable opportunities!
The Choice is Yours
Deciding whether or not to use TikTok for business is ultimately up to each individual company’s needs and goals — but one thing is certain: If used correctly, this platform has tremendous potential when it comes to reaching new customers and growing sales online! If you think that this platform could benefit your business, then give it a try — after all, what do you have to lose? With its low cost and huge reach potential, using Tiktok could be exactly what your business needs in order to take off!
Starting a business can be an extremely rewarding experience, but it can also be quite challenging. In fact at times it can seem bloody impossible. There are so many things to consider when you decide to start a business in NZ. These things start from the initial planning stages, and choosing a company name and logo, to the day-to-day operations. And then how to advertise a start-up business too.
From experience having started a business from scratch, there are several things you should do. And some things you need to understand – and accept. One of the best bits of gold I discovered, was the E-Myth Revisited by Michael E. Gerber. There are some mixed reviews, but the fundamental message is good. And it is well worth the read if you’re looking to start a business in NZ or even anywhere.
In this post, we will provide 10 tips for starting a business that will help you get started on the right foot!
1. Do your research
Before you start a business, it is important to do your research and understand the industry you are entering. This includes understanding the potential customer base, the competition, and the regulatory environment.
2. Create a business plan
A business plan is a roadmap for your business that outlines your goals, strategies, and how you plan on achieving them. This document will be essential as you start to raise funds and grow your business. We recommend talking to our business advisor and mentor, John Schol, or one of the team at Malloch McClean and looking at the one-page business plan
Click the icon below to get the book.
3. Choose the right structure
There are many different legal structures that businesses can choose from (e.g., sole trader, Limited Liability Company, Partnership). It is important to choose the right one for your business based on factors such as liability protection and tax implications.
4. Register your business
Once you have chosen your business structure, you will need to register your business with the relevant authorities. This typically includes registering for a Business Name, obtaining a Tax File Number, and applying for any licenses or permits that may be required.
5. Find the right location
The success of your business can often hinge on its location. When choosing a location for your business, consider factors such as foot traffic, parking availability, and public transport access.
6. Create a marketing plan
A strong marketing plan is essential for any business looking to succeed. This document should outline your target market, marketing strategies, and how you plan on executing them. Check out the options here for a digital marketing roadmap
7. Hire the right employees
hiring the right team is one of the most important aspects of starting a successful business. Be sure to take the time to find employees that are skilled, driven, and share your company’s values.
8. Keep your finances in order
Proper financial management is crucial for any business, big or small. Make sure to keep track of your expenses, create a budget, and stay mindful of your cash flow.
9. Manage your time wisely
As a business owner, you will have a lot on your plate and it can be easy to get bogged down in day-to-day tasks. It is important to manage your time wisely and delegate where possible to free up some time for strategic thinking and planning.
10. Seek professional advice
When starting a business, there will be many challenges and obstacles along the way. It is often helpful to seek professional advice from experienced businesspeople or mentors to help you navigate these challenges.
It sounds easy right… Well, it can be a whole lot easier, if you know what you are trying to achieve. Whilst it will take some time and there’ll be some hard lessons learned along the way, by committing and following these tips, you will be well on your way to starting a successful business!
When it comes to website building, you have plenty of options. But can a Squarespace website rank well in Google? Is it worth the time, money, and effort to build a website on the Squarespace platform? We’re here to answer those questions once and for all.
Squarespace is Popular
Squarespace is an incredibly popular platform for creating websites. It’s easy to use, has a wealth of features, and boasts an impressive suite of templates. But does that mean you should use Squarespace for your business website?
Let’s take a look at what Squarespace offers when it comes to SEO.
The Pros of a Squarespace Website for SEO
First off, Squarespace is equipped with basic SEO tools like meta tags and titles that you can customize for each page on your site. This means you can provide search engines with detailed information about the content of your pages, which helps improve their visibility in search results. In addition, Squarespace also provides an XML sitemap that makes it easier for search engines to index your pages. Finally, the platform also has built-in support for SSL (Secure Socket Layer) encryption and AMP (Accelerated Mobile Pages). Both are important for improving your website’s security as well as it’s ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs).
The Cons of Squarespace for SEO
There is one major downside when it comes to your Squarespace Website and SEO – its codebase isn’t optimized for speed or performance. That means if your website takes too long to load or isn’t responsive enough on mobile devices, it could hurt your SEO rankings in the long run. The codebase for Squarespace is also not accessible, so there’s a disadvantage there too when it comes to technical SEO. There are certainly ways around this issue – such as using caching plugins or leveraging content delivery networks – but they do require extra work and knowledge on your end.
All in all, Squarespace is a great option if you’re looking to quickly set up a basic website without investing too much time or money into the process. Its built-in SEO tools are useful for optimizing your site’s visibility in SERPs, but there may be limitations due to its non-optimized codebase. However, these issues can be addressed by leveraging external services such as caching plugins or content delivery networks. Ultimately, whether or not a Squarespace site ranks well in Google depends on how much effort you put into optimizing it for performance and speed!
What about Squarespace for Ecommerce?
Squarespace offers a comprehensive e-commerce platform, it’s true. But… How does the proprietary system stack up against the opensource Woo Commerce for WordPress? Check out this article: Selling online: Squarespace vs WooCommerce, which is better?
The quick answer is, Yes, you can. You can create a google ads account and set up an advert that’ll be up and running fairly quickly. But ask yourself, how well can you manage Google Ads? Do you understand the intricacies of:
Identifying key reports that will give you the most insight into your campaigns?
Are you comfortable interpreting the data in your account and knowing what actions to take to optimise your campaigns?
Can you explain key Google Ads data such as Ad Rank, Search Impression Share, Quality Score, or Interaction Rate?
If you do, then you probably don’t need to read on, and I’ll bid you a good day. However, if those things seem a little foreign to you then perhaps you should consider outsourcing an expert to Manage google ads for you.
Can, would, or do you service your own vehicle? Or if you employ people do you do your own employment contracts? And do you do all of your accounting with the aid of an expert in their field?
Again if this is something to consider. Having an Expert manage google ads for you will ultimately give you the best opportunity to see measurable, tangible results – and a positive ROI.
If you choose to manage Google Ads yourself, whilst it may seem easy to get started, it is virtually impossible for a novice user to know whether or not they are getting the best results possible, and there are a lot of parts to a successful campaign.
Managing Google Ads
Managing a Google Ad account is not simply looking at the reports once a month and making a couple of random tweaks. It’s about knowing exactly what’s happening in the account day to day. And then being able to dedicate time each week to check key reports. It’s also important to understand how to research ppc keywords, costs per click, and even the user’s search intent. Then there is the landing page each ad directs the user to. Is it optimised for user experience, is it even relevant?
Google is pretty smart – we all know this. But an expert in Google ads will make calculated adjustments and apply new opportunities to maximise traffic, conversion, and ultimately revenue.
In competitive industries, like law firms, travel, and tourism, or Finance and insurance to name a few – this requires daily check-ins and adjustments to bids strategies, for example, just to maintain the ad position and level of traffic to the website.
A lot can happen in the space of a month. Google Ads is definitely not a “set and forget” platform, so don’t be tempted to think that a profitable campaign will remain profitable without any intervention from you. It’s likely that it’s taken months, maybe years, to get it to a profitable state, and it will continue to require work and time to keep it profitable.
You Can Lead a Horse to Water…
You may have heard the saying ‘you can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink’. This also applies to Google Ads. And in particular your website. Imagine the information (or content) on your website is the water. Once you lead your prospects to said water, you need to ensure they find what they are looking for. Simply put, what do you want those visitors to do once they get there? And how easy is it for them to drink – or take that action – How will you make them stay longer? How will you convert them into contacts and then customers?
And if they do convert, what is your lead nurturing process or strategy?
These are all relevant questions to be thinking about and if possible answering before you even set up the Google Ad account.
Why you shouldn’t Manage Google Ads yourself
On more than one occasion I have heard from clients who tried to manage Google Ads on their own. And all too often, have made a complete mess of it. They end up spending thousands of dollars and have no idea if they got any ROI from it.
We’re all human, and with digital marketing being such a minefield, we understand the attraction to manage Google Ads yourself.
Google encourages you to have a go, with their ‘easy’ AdWords Express offer that pops up with every Google service you sign up to.
It seems by doing it yourself you will save on agency fees.
There are so many companies offering SEO and Google Ads services. They hail from who knows where around the world at seemingly cheap rates. (if you’re like me you get at least a few emails a week in your inbox)
All the Google Ads companies claim to be “experts”
Yellow Pages have sale reps selling Google Ads every time you want to talk about how expensive their adverts are.
It’s really hard to know who you can trust and at least if you manage your digital marketing yourself, you’re the one in control right?
If you have tried outsourcing to digital marketing companies before you may have had a bad experience. Unfortunately, as marketing companies, even the honest ones, often get tarred with the same brush, or worse we inherit the distrust or the baggage the client carries with them from the previous firm.
There are still a number of reasons you’ll see better results using a certified expert to manage Google Ads and should avoid trying to do it yourself –
Being found in ways you don’t want to be
Showing the Search Results in the wrong locations
Being found for the wrong keywords
Appearing for negative searches
It’s always Changing
Get a professional to Manage Google Ads for you
Like the references above in the first section, about vehicle servicing legal contracts and accounting practices, there are some tasks or jobs we don’t (or shouldn’t) do ourselves. Factors like not having the time, resources, or expertise to do them as well as they need to be done all contribute here..
Some people may ‘have a crack’ at certain tasks (probably) to save money, some may just enjoy learning or doing it themselves. When it comes to digital marketing and Google Ads, it all depends on how much time you have to learn and keep up-to-date with the ever-evolving changes.
It’s a well-known fact that time is our most valuable commodity – in fact, the one thing on earth we can literally never obtain or acquire is more time. Smart people understand that swapping money for (other people’s) time is an investment – after all, we can always get more money – but we can never get more time!
The Damaging Effects of upsetting Google
We see this so often. To save money, people sacrifice their time to create their own templated websites. Often they try to do their own SEO and manage Google Ads themselves too. Months down the track, they give up in frustration and ask for help. Or worse – they deduce that digital marketing doesn’t work! The trouble is that on the internet, some things last a long time. A website that has been penalised by Google or damaging SEO practices can take months (or more) to put right.
If you’ve tried to manage Google Ads yourself, we understand you’re probably just trying to lead your horse to water. But you may be just getting led down the garden path…
You could actually be doing or already have done some lasting damage that will take time to put right. If you’re spending a bunch of money on Google Ads but not getting results, or even worse, you have no idea if you’re getting results at all – the best advice we can give you is, STOP! Talk to someone who understands and get yourself back on track.
