Stephen White’s Post

Website redesigns are risky. Organic traffic that took years to build can be quickly lost. To stop this, we have a free 80+ point checklist on our website. But first, a little backstory on how a redesign can impact your SEO... 1️⃣  Your URLs change If the URL for a page changes, users and Google won’t find it. And Google will drop your page down the rankings and out of their index! This is fixed by the classic SEO migration task of adding redirects. A URL from your old website must return the same page. Or, redirect to an equivalent page on the new website. 2️⃣  Content on your URLs change If one of your pages ranks well for multiple keywords, it’s clearly resonating with Google and your users. Drastically changing your page's content will impact your SEO efforts. Ensure you copy over key bits of content from the old site for all page types. And keep an eye out for internal links! ➡️  These are two common reasons SEO takes a hit during a redesign. But to ensure you cover all bases, head over to our website. We have a free 80+ point checklist we use for SEO migrations. Don't leave things to chance. This needs to be thought of from the start. You can find that resource below👇

7 days to go until our B2B marketing event! 🥳 Here at the amazing Department in Manchester. We'll discuss marketing tactics that drive results, without resorting to a LinkedIn selfie. I'll be grilling a panel of 4 amazing marketers, with questions from the audience. Digging into the marketing strategies at their companies or what's working for their clients. It's a breakfast event so you'll come away with fresh ideas before most people have decided what to have on their toast! Some areas we'll be talking about: ➡️  Attribution ➡️  Podcasting ➡️  Video content ➡️  Corporate Gifts ➡️  Branded Merchandise ➡️  Pre-conference events ➡️  Account-based marketing As well as diving into the challenges they face as marketers in their day-to-day roles. How can you get ya hands on a ticket? Google "Bitesize B2B" or send me a DM and I'm offering a discount for anyone who signs up today. I look forward to seeing you next week!

Don't invest in a new website unless you have a: 5️⃣  Clear idea of your differentiator (unique position in market) 4️⃣  Consistent tone of voice and messaging 3️⃣  Memorable brand style guide 2️⃣  Strong value proposition 1️⃣  Detailed personas (ICP) These are all components of a strong brand and form the foundation of your new website. Without these, the whole design process will be confusing. There are no guidelines for the design team to follow and they'll lack direction. Before you know it, you’ve launched a website that doesn't... —  Stand out from the crowd —  Showcase what makes you unique —  Provide you with a good return on investment Great websites are built on strong brands. Firm up these elements first before diving headfirst into a website redesign. It does mean more time spent up-front. But the long-term increase in conversions and leads will justify it.

An easy way to stand out when applying for digital marketing roles. (This comes from an agency owner used to sifting through CVs) Ditch the generic email e.g. Gmail. Buy a custom domain. Why? This will allow you to do two things: 1️⃣  Have a professional-looking email Say goodbye to ginger_ninja69@gmail.com* Which you set up in secondary school but haven't changed yet. Say hello to a tidy-looking email linked to your new domain name. 2️⃣  Put your portfolio or a digital CV on your domain This is a must-have for developers and designers. But it worked well for our latest SEO hire as well. She had a landing page linking to content she's produced in the past. I'm not saying learn to code, you can use a page builder or find a template. There's plenty out there perfect for this. But you're fairly limited with what you can do on a CV. This portfolio can help you show some character. And shows that you take your personal brand seriously. ➡️  My final thoughts... Yes, there's a small cost associated with this plus your time. But it adds a nice touch and demonstrates your digital skills. We get 100s of CVs from people applying to our roles. You want to stand out as much as possible. This can help do that. *this is not my real email from school, don't email me!

I’m forever grateful to anyone who contributes to my business. You can view work as purely transactional: Bossman pays, employees work. But to me, it’s so much more. As a small business owner, each new hire is special. They shape the business in some way, leaving a lasting mark. They could work anywhere, but they chose your company. Believing in and working towards your vision. That's something I never take for granted. So a big thank you to everyone who has helped over the years. I can't thank you enough!

Sick of seeing selfies and the same old advice of "post more on LinkedIn"? I have the perfect marketing event for you... On July 17th, I'm hosting a Q&A panel discussion in Manchester: B2B Marketing That Converts: Tactics Beyond “Post More On LinkedIn”. The panel's made up of four fantastic marketers, worthy of a chef's kiss 🤌 ➡️  Joe S. ➡️  Kyle Daniels ➡️  Emily Newstead ➡️  Emma Raftery-Kenworthy Kyle and Emma are both in-house, Heads of Marketing, and have a combined experience of 30+ years. They’ll be dishing up some amazing insights on what’s actually working at their companies. Joe and Emily both run their own marketing companies with a range of B2B clients and years of experience. Sharing with us what's working for their clients across different sectors. We'll be covering topics such as: ➡️  Podcasting ➡️  Video content ➡️  YouTube Shorts ➡️  Corporate Gifts ➡️  Branded Merchandise ➡️  Pre-conference events ➡️  Account-based marketing ➡️  And I'll chime in with some website-related tips You don't want to miss this! So, how can you secure your ticket? Google "Bitesize B2B" or check down below for more info. I can't wait to see you there! Ps. Stick around to the end of the video for the best reason to come down! 😄 Pss. Thank you so much to Rosemary Jones for hosting us at Department

Our latest website redesign project launched last week 🥳 TripAdvisor acquired Bókun, but the site felt dated and didn't reflect this big change. We ran an in-person workshop alongside stakeholder and customer interviews to understand the brand and the users. Two key points came from this: 1️⃣  Bókun's Icelandic heritage One phrase featured in various sales and marketing materials was: "Made in Iceland, raised by Tripadvisor, built for the world." We wanted to ensure the new website reflected this. The design features nods to Bókun's Icelandic roots. Using a pattern throughout seen on traditional Icelandic sweaters - lopapeysa. As well as the slightly more obvious aurora borealis. Whilst still having the class you'd expect from a TripAdvisor owned product. 2️⃣  A lack of benefits and features The old website didn't convey just how great the software is and all the different ways it can be used. When it did, it didn't speak directly to the user. Highlighting the benefits. We broke down the pages into three key areas: Manage, Sell, Grow. With a range of subpages off of these to explain the product in more detail. Showing how Bókun can help the end user in multiple ways. Backed up by social proof throughout the site in the form of case studies. 📌  I love the end result but check it out for yourself in the comments. Couldn't be prouder of our team for all the hard work on this! Thank you.

Here's a quick check to ensure your website resonates with ideal customers. The best thing is, every B2B company has this resource already. Open up your sales deck. Now compare it to your website. “But what exactly am I looking for?” You’re looking for a gap. A gap between how your sales team is positioning your solution. The language they are using in their sales deck. And how this is (or isn’t) reflected on your website. More often than not, the sales deck is regularly updated with feedback directly from the customer, while the website lags behind this. Bridge this gap to ensure your website resonates with your target audience.

No mouse detector or activity tracker will fix bad management. Motivated teams are built on trust and empowerment. As a business owner, I’m passionate about this. I still can’t believe companies resort to this type of remote monitoring. It reminds me of the first thing you get taught in GCSE Business 😅 Douglas McGregor's Theory X and Theory Y: Theory X managers believe employees are lazy and need constant supervision. They rely on strict controls and micromanagement. But Theory Y managers trust their employees. Empowering them to take ownership and responsibility. Which do you think provides a better outcome? Times aren’t changing. They HAVE changed. Employees are sick of feeling like a cog in the machine. Stop treating them like one.