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The term “Visual Search Marketing” has been around for a number of years. Although large companies like Bing, Yahoo and Google have been utilizing visual search technology in their search engines for a while now, it wasn’t until recently that this type of technology reached a point where it could become a top trend in the digital marketing world. In this blog, we'll walk you through the basics of what visual search is,  and why it is on the cusp of becoming the biggest marketing trend of 2021. What is Visual Search? Simply put, visual search uses Artificial intelligence (AI) technology to help people search for items using real-world imagery as opposed to a text search. When someone performs a visual search, they are searching for a product using an image, which saves them the hassle of typing multiple keywords into a search engine in hopes of finding what they are already currently seeing. Imagine you are on a hike in the woods and come across an animal or flower that you want to know the name of. As we know, it can sometimes be incredibly difficult to describe exactly what you are seeing. Instead, you take a picture of the object, using Google Lens, for instance. The software will identify the object as well as give you information on what you are looking at. There are a lot of reasons why visual search is becoming such an important component of integrated marketing, but here are the main top four:  
  1. The Demographic Demands It
Visual search has been around for several years so why is it now, in 2021, becoming a top trend? The answer is simple. Millennial and Generation Z consumers are drawn to visual search capabilities more than any other new technology. In fact, 62% of Millennials  desire the ability to visually search for products online. With Millennial consumers making up over 30% of total retail sales and Generation Z accounting for $44 Billion in buying power, it’s important that marketing trends closely follow these generational tendencies.
  1. Statistical Success

Note: If you received an actual card from me hopefully you weren’t offended by my greeting this year. Sometimes the only way to express oneself is through bad grammar and profanity. Personally, I find the combination quite soothing. “It does not do to leave a live...

If you’re browsing a company’s website these days, chances are likely a chat frame will pop up in your window. You’ll typically be greeted by a friendly photo and a “Hello there! How can I help you today?” Welcome to the era of the chatbot. This popular marketing trend is here to stay, and if you’re not already using one, you’re probably missing out. Want proof? From customer service to information sharing to sales, there are incredible possibilities for incorporating a chatbot into your marketing strategy - and no coding experience required! With some time investment up front, a chatbot can offer your clients and prospects a level of engagement that wouldn’t be possible otherwise. Here are some reasons to get on board:
  1. Customers want personalization, and chatbots deliver.
Today, customers simply expect personalized service. Though automation may seem contrary to that idea, chatbots can tailor content to an individual’s specific needs in real time. The flexibility of chatbot programming and settings allow you to build frameworks of messages around common customer profiles. This allows the bot to deliver accurate information for a wide array of user needs. You also define the rules for which visitors see your chatbot and when, whether that’s all visitors immediately upon accessing the site, first-time visitors only or those who spend a specific amount of time on your pricing page. And it’s a good practice to build in the option for users to connect to a human employee if they wish. Customers appreciate the quick, personalized service that a chatbot provides.
  1. Chatbots can save you time and money.

Twitter has been one of the biggest social media platforms for more than half a decade now, which means some of your potential customers are using it. 69 million people in the US are on Twitter, but what's more interesting is that nearly half use the social network every day. While this is a known fact, very few people know how to use Twitter for marketing a brand, product or service. You may have already realized that shooting out tweets about your business every five minutes brings nothing at the end of the day. But is that a reason to rule out the platform as an impracticable marketing channel? The point with Twitter is to gain influence and grow awareness but it can't be done by blatantly selling. You may have let your Twitter accounts languish in favor of Instagram or LinkedIn. But it's well worth your time to dive back in and take another look. In case you've forgotten, here is a refresher on how to use Twitter for marketing your brand and grow your influence.

Showcase your brand

Your profile is the face of your business on Twitter. It is the first thing anyone scrutinizes whenever they bump into your handle on the platform. Too many brands don't focus on the profile aspect. With so much competition on social platforms and every startup hyping their business to look like an international brand, you would have to put some effort to prompt clicks from potential customers. Users are overwhelmed with options and the decision to take further action or continue scrolling is only a glance into your profile away. Use your business logo, if you have one, and avoid adding a personal touch to it. This will add to your credibility and earn your brand respect and recognition. Your bio should be short, formal and informative and all background photos should conform to your brand concept. Try a provocative call to action with a URL attached to it and use a unique landing page to measure your results. Change this up every couple of months or so, to see what works best and what doesn't. Use hashtags in your bio as well to draw attention from like-minded users.

Above all, share interesting content

No one logs onto Twitter to look for a product to buy. On this channel, you're judged by the curation you keep. Most people who will come across your product will do it inadvertently while checking out tweets from friends and their favorite humor handles. To blend in seamlessly, use pictures and videos that users will enjoy without compromising the message in your tweet. This not only promises to capture the attention of your followers but also prompts them to share with their followers which attract views and clicks from people who are not in your follower list. Become an account that people follow as a news stream and influence will follow.

Build your own Twitter community

If you’re starting to build your online presence, consider being the first one to follow people so they can follow back. Don’t go on following random handles. Find people who hold some benefit for your business. For starters you can follow related businesses, your customers, colleagues, competitors, and relevant influencers and handles with the information you find useful. Engage with the people you follow. Don’t just share information about your brand and product. Be active, like and re-tweet other people’s tweets. Tools like Buzzsumo can help find good folks to follow and keep you up to date on trends.

Keep tweeting

For any business to succeed, you need to retain your customers. Once you win your customers’ loyalty, you can expect a good amount of revenue from repeat purchases. However, if you fail to retain your customers, your sales and profit margins are likely to suffer. It is more cost-effective to retain your existing customers than to acquire new ones. Acquiring a new customer can be five times more expensive than retaining existing customers. Customer retention strategies differ from industry to industry. However, regardless of the industry, data, artificial intelligence, and predictive analysis can help you improve customer retention. Here are a few ways to use predictive analysis to retain your existing customers.

1. Personalize Offers for Your Customers

Google+ is Google's social networking platform that launched in 2011. As of November 2016 Google+ had 440 million active monthly users. Although it's sometimes forgotten by marketers there are several ways to boost search wiht Google+ . Google has always denied any correlation between Google+  activity and Google search rankings. But many marketers claim that Google+ engagement seems to result in better rankings on Google. Let’s take a look at 7 of the best ways to optimize your Google+ page and improve your search engine rankings:

1. Post Valuable Content Consistently

Google always rewards the relevancy of content. Therefore, consistently posting useful content for your followers is of the utmost importance for improving your search engine rankings. But be careful not to overshare your content as Google considers too much sharing as spam. Share only your best posts with appropriate and attractive images. Make sure they are posted to public as well as shared with your existing circles.

[caption id="attachment_13722" align="alignright" width="300"] Great advice to protect your business from security threats.[/caption] Security threats are rampant these past few years, with global ransomware predicted to exceed $5 billion before 2017 ends. Just last year’s breaches is devastating itself — 95% of the breached records were from the government, retail, and technology sector. These three sectors have our information in store that can be used against us. They can easily create fake accounts, make fraudulent purchases in our name, and more. It doesn’t stop there; it’s alarming that among the thousands of global organizations, only 38% of them have handled cyber-attacks well. What happened to the 62%? It’s one of the biggest dilemma faced by businesses worldwide. There’s an insufficient amount of statistics proving that this problem can be dealt with accordingly; cyber-attacks are continuously happening around the globe as you read this article. Billions of dollars have already been lost; and billions of dollars more will be lost if we cannot at least hamper these hackers from infiltrating businesses and stealing private information. As the world becomes more tech-savvy, it’s proving to be more difficult to protect data from hackers who want nothing but to do no good. Businesses should learn how to defend and protect themselves from these increasing cyber-crimes, especially those that happen due to the lack of information on the basics of web security. It’s more than just a complicated password or a premium firewall subscription — here are 8 ideas to protect your organization from security threats brought to us by the team behind Local SEO Search Inc.:

1. Get to know what you need to protect: data