SaaS for Small Business in 2024: Must-Have Tools

Marketers opting for advertising programmatically is on an all-time high! According to a recent study by eMarketers, by 2019, as much as 84% of total digital advertising spend will be made programmatically, which is projected to reach $46 Billion. And it makes sense as well, programmatic advertising gives 10x better control to advertisers and publishers over their digital assets as compared to traditional advertising. While we have already talked about why programmatic is the way to go in the future if you’re looking to advertise digitally and mentioned some common threats to the programmatic industry as well. Today, we will talk about some things to take care of when you’ll be actually buying advertisement spaces over the web programmatically, which will help you spend your marketing budget wisely. So, when it comes to programmatic ad buying services, here are some things you should take care of to get the best out of your efforts - Defining a clear strategy Defining a clear, cut strategy before venturing into the world of programmatic is an absolute must not just for buying advertisements programmatically, but marketing in general. You must know well in advance the type of ads you want to vouch for, the biddings you are willing to make, the audience you want to target and the type of creatives you’d create that would resonate with your target audience. Doing this would help get you the most bang out of your advertising bucks. In programmatic, it’s not just about buying banner spaces on publisher’s websites, you can place your ads on Youtube videos, Facebook in-stream advertisements, mobile ads and every other form of advertisements you see on the web. So, making a strategy and choosing the right platforms is important. Moreover, you can choose to go for a RTB approach, buy advertisements from private marketplaces or directly buy advertisement spaces from advertisers through direct programmatic. While each of these buying methods involves different approaches, selecting the best method is vital for efficiently spending your marketing budget. Also, knowing in advance the audience you want to serve will help you choose the best platforms in the marketplace to actively advertise on. DMPs or data management platforms can help you with that and most of the DSPs are integrated with DMPs as well to provide a holistic view to advertisers of their audience. They combine first and third party data to form look-alike audiences for your campaign which you can use to attract more customers. Focus on your audience When it comes to defining a programmatic strategy, you absolutely have to focus on impressing your audience with your creatives. And that includes having stunning visuals and stellar content on all your Ads that resonates well with your target audience and makes them click! Fail on doing that, and your audience will not even bother to give your ad a second look. So, creating buyer personas is important to target the kind of audience you want to reach and it requires extensive audience research as well to figure out where your audience really resides on the web. Again, DMPs can come to your rescue here as they usually have all the audience information you’d require to create great ads that would resonate well with your target audience. Focus on understanding your audience more than the quality of your creatives. Don’t get me wrong here, while quality visuals are important for your ads, it will not be beneficial to you in any way if they are appearing at the wrong places and in front of the wrong people. Include a mix of creatives It’s all about the creatives when it comes to making people click on your ad. But like most of the advertisers out there, don’t fixate all your programmatic efforts on a single ad creative. Instead, make 5-6 creatives for a single campaign with different visuals & content. That way you can easily A/B test the performance of each of your ad by making small tweaks to the ads that are not performing well. Doing this will give you a better idea about what kind of content works best with your unique audience and you can double down on that information by reiterating everything that is currently working with your audience in all your future digital advertising campaigns. Monitoring performance is key Talking about A/B testing, one of the main advantage of going programmatic is the impressive analytics DSPs provide for measuring performance of your each and every running ad, which was never heard of before in traditional advertising and probably is the reason why a majority of marketers are shifting to programmatic ad buying and you should too! Monitoring performance is not just necessary to excel programmatically, doing it will help you optimize your each and every marketing effort in general. Keeping a close eye on the actual performance of your ads will help you discard in an instant the ads that are not performing up to their mark and save a few extra bucks of your advertising budget. Like I said above, when you closely check the performance of all your ads, you can easily point-out the ads which are not performing optimally and tweak it a bit to bring it back on track, which is always a good thing to make sure the ROI of your whole campaign doesn’t take a hit! So, there you go! Before you step into the complex but extremely quick-paced world of programmatic, keep in mind the above-mentioned points to take the results of your programmatic efforts to a whole another level. Work on your strategy, figure out the people you want to target who are interested in availing your services and platforms where they actively hang out on the web, create an intriguing ad (and 4-5 versions of it) for them and constantly measure its performance based on KPIs that matter and watch your programmatic efforts bring in a ton of exposure for your business… and users of course! But which top platform should you use to begin advertising programmatically? Stay with us as we’ll be tackling this exact question in our next blog where I’ll tell you about some of the best DSPs out there that will make programmatic a piece of cake for you! ...

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With the advent of the internet, businesses from all over the world have now got many different types of content through which they can increase their business presence and the best part is using these different forms of content is pocket-friendly as well. But if you will go through the current top trends of SEO then you will notice that there is one form of content that is leading the digital platform and that is video based content. Even if you go by the stats, you will find that most of the people on the digital platform are now preferring video based content as more than 54% of the consumers look forward to seeing more video content from brands. But instead of being dependent only on one type of content and limiting your reach, you should start considering live video marketing as well. The proliferation of live video began almost a decade ago with platforms like Livestream and Ustream. And now because of the features like Go Live on Facebook and integration of live mobile streaming on YouTube, live video marketing has become a strong weapon for the modern day marketers. Live video marketing as an inseparable part of marketing One of the most important things to know about live video streaming is its success is totally dependent on timeliness and this is why it has slowly become one of the most used SMM techniques by businesses of all sizes and industries. And the current lockdown phase has fueled the growth of live video marketing as a crucial part of marketing. Because of confined outings, people are now more interested in joining live sessions through live streams right from the comfort of their home. And since live video marketing is more interactive, it becomes a unique marketing approach. Nowadays, brands are even using influencers for live videos because this is being considered as one of the most ideal ways to add value to the content so that more people will find it not only interesting but valuable and full of information. The benefits of live video marketing Live videos allow a brand to get connected with its audience on a human level and this type of human touch and interaction is not available in any other form of content used on the digital platform. There are other many benefits of live video marketing and we have mentioned some of them below. Better engagement According to a recent report, it has been found that 80% of the consumers will be more interested in watching a live video than reading a blog from a company. Since video based content is visually more appealing and easier to grasp, people prefer it more than any other form of content. Wider reach Through live videos, you can get connected to millions of people and this is why its reach is better than all other forms of marketing. Because of better reach, you will also have better brand awareness. And since there are no geographical restrictions in live videos, you will never be confined to a certain type of audience base. This is why live video marketing is used to spread awareness about new products and services. Improved customer relationship Since you will be interacting with your customers in real-time and on a human level, you will be able to build a better customer relationship. It has been seen that live video marketing proves to be more effective in building trust and loyalty among customers in comparison to all other forms of marketing. No other form of marketing allows you to interact with your customers personally. So, even if you are looking forward to improving customer relationships, you can use live video marketing. Better conversion rates If you will use live video for your firm then you can easily demonstrate your product instead of moving through the step-by-step process which begins with first explaining how your product works or how it is different from others. So, this way, you can directly show your products to your potential customers and thus you will have higher conversion rates. Even 70% of the marketers out there believe that live video is much better at improving conversion rates than all other forms of marketing. How live video marketing is being used? Live interview with industry experts People on the digital platform are always hungry for reliable information and you can fulfill this growing demand through live videos. If you will start doing live interviews with industry experts then it will surely make people succumb to watching videos since industry experts are trusted among the customers and they will consider them to be a reliable source of information. By doing live interviews with industry experts, you can even work on improving the credibility of your brand, regardless of the size of your firm and the industry domain you are dealing with. Questions and Answers with professionals If you will go through the current social media trend then you will realize that people are more interested in watching Q&A sessions and thus it can be included as a part of your live video marketing strategy. By choosing the right subject of discussion and by choosing the right industry expert, you can easily make Q&A sessions both informative and entertaining. You are not even restricted to a particular type of niche while organizing such sessions since it will allow the audience to get directly in touch with industry experts. Live tutorials You can’t make a person succumb to buying your product through colorful ad banners or catchy taglines only. The modern day consumers are always looking for a strong reason to buy your product or service and through Livestream, you can surely give those customers a solid reason. Through live tutorials of your product or service, you can easily highlight the purpose of the product and thus it proves to be highly fruitful for sales. You should know that live tutorials have even become an inseparable part of influencer marketing as brands have started hiring experts to do live tutorials related to the product or service which makes the Livestream more reliable. But you will have to make sure that your live tutorials are not only about a sales pitch. Live unboxing This is one of the most common types of videos being used on platforms like YouTube by bloggers and customers are more interested in watching these types of live videos since it gives them the first look of the product. People who are crazy about gadgets and other types of products wait eagerly for unboxing videos. But unboxing is not only limited to gadgets now as it is now being implemented to lifestyle-based products as well. So, if you are launching a new product then you can promote your product by asking one of the bloggers related to your industry to do a live unboxing of the product. Live behind the scene Using behind the scene live videos can be a great way to engage the audience since it will give them a view of how their brands work and function. There are many ideas to use a live video on such topics. You can give your audience base a look at the manufacturing plant or you can simply show the working culture of the office. You can even use funny bloopers to make the audience aware about what goes behind the scene and since the customers will also be interacting with you, it will make the audience get connected with your brand on another level. Live video marketing has slowly started gaining popularity among most of the marketers and in order to take advantage of this strong marketing tool, you will have to be aware about the basics of successful live video marketing. Make sure to include platforms like Facebook and YouTube in your live video marketing strategy and use innovative ways to get in touch with your audience in real-time. ...

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Ever listed products on Amazon, hoping for a sales bonanza, only to find your listings mysteriously vanish? It's a head-scratcher, right? Well, you're not alone. Many sellers face the same issue – it's called Amazon listing suppression. And knowing why it happens is vital for your success in the world of Amazon sales for their Suppressed listing. Amazon is among the biggest online shopping hubs on the planet. Everyone wants a piece of the action, from huge brands to small businesses. It's a chance to reach a massive audience, boost your sales, and build your brand. On Prime Day 2022, Prime members made an impressive 300 million purchases, averaging 100,000 transactions per minute. Additionally, they collectively saved a remarkable $1.7 billion, setting a new record surpassing all previous Prime Day events. So, to grow on this opportunity, many businesses are taking their business on Amazon. But here's the catch: Amazon has rules and some seller code of conduct. Lots of them. And they expect your listings to follow those rules. You can't just list your products and forget about them. Neglecting your listings can lead to Amazon hiding them or, in really bad cases, kicking you off the platform. In 2022, sales for brand owners on Amazon shot up by more than 20% compared to the year before. That's a big deal! It shows that Amazon is a place of big opportunities but also a place of fierce competition. In this blog, we will uncover the mystery of Amazon listing suppression. We will explain why it happens, what could go wrong if it does, and, most importantly, how to stop it from happening to your listings. If you face the danger of having your product listing suppressed on Amazon, we are here to help you! So, come along as we uncover the secrets of Amazon listing suppression and give you the know-how to keep your products in the spotlight. Why Your Amazon Listings Are Getting Removed? Amazon is known for its stringent guidelines to maintain a high-quality customer shopping experience. When your Amazon listings don't meet these standards, they can get removed or suppressed. Here are some common reasons why this might happen: The Main Image is Missing Imagine starting to create a product listing and you forget to add the main picture. It's like leaving your product without a face on Amazon. And Amazon doesn't like that. They need a main image to show customers what they're buying. You can use a placeholder image at first, but you will want to replace it with the real deal later. Object Does Not Meet Requirements Some products are not allowed on Amazon; others might require special permissions to sell. Amazon might remove the listing if you are trying to sell something that falls into one of these categories or if your product doesn't meet safety and authenticity standards. To avoid this, be sure you are selling products that are allowed and safe to use. Too Long Title Amazon has limits on how long your product title can be. If you go over those limits, they might remove your listing. The idea is to keep titles concise and easy to read. In order to avoid this situation, you need to keep in mind that your title should accurately describe your product without being too wordy. Assigning a Promotional Title Amazon doesn't allow certain sales words in your titles. No "special launch offer" or "best product ever" talk. Also, using words like "best" and "top-rated" can get your listing hidden. So, check Amazon's rules on what words you can use in your titles and stick to those. It is better to not use such words to avoid getting suppressed listing on Amazon. Multiple Entries Sometimes, when you add your products to Amazon's catalog, you accidentally create several listings for the same item. Amazon doesn't like this clutter. They may hide these duplicates. But it's usually a simple error, and you can fix suppressed listings by contacting Amazon or removing the extra listings. You can give unique codes or names to your products to avoid getting notified by Amazon. This is the key to fix suppressed listings. Missing Characteristics Amazon asks for specific details about your product, like its size, color, and other important attributes. If you leave these fields blank or provide incorrect information, your listing could be removed. It is important to provide accurate and complete product information to avoid this issue and try to add all the relevant information without forming a clutter situation. How to Check if Your Suppressed Listing on amazon has been removed? Keeping tabs on your Amazon listings is essential so that the seller can check the status of the product listings regularly. This means the responsibility falls on you as a seller to check the status of your product listings regularly. Even if you have the product in stock, if Amazon removes the listing, customers won't be able to buy it from your business. Staying informed about Amazon's policies is vital to prevent your product on having suppressed listing. As an Amazon seller, you have several options to monitor your listings: Regular Manual Checks: "Suppressed" button in the primary menu bar will indicate suppressed listing for your products. You can check the list there and get it rectified to make your products visible on the platform. A product page needs to be reworked if there are issues. In some cases, you will have to create an entirely new listing from scratch. Check this on the Inventory tab and select Manage Inventory. Check if you can see a link for your suppressed listings. By clicking on it, you will know which items are flagged for you. If not, you're clear. Amazon Seller Software: You can consider investing in reliable Amazon seller software to make you aware of Amazon listing suppression. These tools identify suppressed listings for you and save you time for other essential business tasks. With such software, you can quickly locate removed listings in the "Manage Inventory" section, even if you don't have any suppressed listing on Amazon. What Role Can Suppressed Listings on Amazon Play in Your Company's Success? Companies need to make sure that their products comply with Amazon's guidelines is the best way to prevent listing suppression. You can manage product compliance through Seller Central and use resources like the Amazon Listing Quality Dashboard to identify listings at risk of suppression. Amazon's guidelines are crucial to follow especially for your suppressed listings on Amazon. If Amazon suppresses one of your listings, it won't appear in search results or be visible to customers. Without visibility, your product won't attract your target audience, resulting in lost sales. Important Factors To Consider For Amazon Listing Here is a checklist for you to consider to fix a suppressed Amazon Listing: Amazon Algorithm and SEO The Amazon algorithm is a navigational guide for your products within the platform. Its operation significantly influences where your products surface in search results. You need to know this algorithm and apply effective SEO techniques like Amazon Advertising, Amazon Video Ads, and Amazon PPC automation to enhance the visibility of your listings and attract potential customers. Amazon SEO involves optimizing various elements, such as product titles, descriptions, and keywords, to ensure your listings are readily discoverable. Amazon Marketplace Optimization is another aspect that can help you increase your visibility. Customer Reviews and Ratings Customer feedback wields a substantial influence on Amazon. Positive Amazon reviews and high ratings are important in building trust and credibility among potential buyers. Actively encouraging customers to leave reviews, promptly addressing their feedback, and consistently maintaining an exemplary reputation can lead to more buyers selecting your products. Inventory Management Proficient inventory management resembles a finely tuned balancing act. It entails maintaining an optimal stock level at the right time. Depleting stock levels can result in lost sales and adversely affect your product rankings on Amazon. Conversely, overstocking can tie up your financial resources and storage space. Amazon's Brand Registry For brand owners, Amazon's Brand Registry offers a protective shield against counterfeit products and brand infringements. Brand registration gives you greater control over your product listings and provides intellectual property safeguards. This control secures your brand's reputation and enhances the overall customer experience. Some Amazon marketplace hacks can help you carry out your business safely. Enhanced Brand Content (EBC) and A+ Content Enhanced Brand Content and Amazon A+ Content empower you to elevate your product descriptions through multimedia elements. Utilizing fundamental A+ Content has the potential to foster repeat purchases and boost sales by 8%. Investing in enhanced content can increase conversion rates and make your listings more prominent. D2C businesses use Amazon A+ content to expand their pool of customers and gain more revenue. Pricing Strategy A pricing strategy necessitates pricing your products attractively while simultaneously preserving profitability. Regularly monitoring your competitors' pricing strategies allows you to make sure that you make necessary adjustments to remain competitive. Amazon ACOS is an important factor that helps in making a pricing strategy for any business on this platform. Safety and Compliance Ensuring your products adhere to Amazon's safety and compliance standards is non-negotiable. Non-compliance may result in suppressed listings or, in severe cases, account suspension. Staying well-informed about product-specific requirements like product description and assuring that your listings conform to these standards is imperative for maintaining a positive standing on Amazon for its suppressed listings. Listing Analytics and Performance Metrics Amazon analytics insights into the performance of your listings. Monitoring metrics such as conversion rates, click-through rates, and sales data empowers you to refine your listings and make informed decisions. Amazon Seller Central Support is a valuable resource for resolving issues and obtaining guidance. Timely and effective communication with Amazon Support can expedite issue resolution and facilitate a smoother selling experience. Do not hesitate to reach out when you encounter challenges or require assistance in managing your listings and account. Never Miss Amazon Listing Error with Saffron Edge! The journey of managing your Amazon listings extends far beyond the moment your products go live. One common challenge many Amazon sellers encounter is Amazon listing suppression. It's crucial to regain lost ground when your suppressed Amazon listing is restored. While we have explored numerous strategies for enhancing Amazon product listings and also Amazon Product Summary Page, remember that you don't need to tackle them all at once. Instead, consider taking incremental steps. Begin by fine-tuning your product titles, ensuring they are enticing and optimized for search. Once your titles are in order, shift your focus to crafting compelling and informative product descriptions. Approach this process step by step, making gradual improvements. As is the practice in marketing, consistently test these adjustments to gauge their positive impact on your listings. Selling on Amazon may be a demanding endeavor. Sellers often juggle various responsibilities, including marketing efforts, logistical considerations, and managing customer issues, particularly when building and protecting their brand. Amid all this, the continuous monitoring and upkeep of Amazon may have its product listings to be daunting, especially when contending with unauthorized sellers. This is where a partnership with a trusted Amazon Wholesale Seller or Amazon Seller Consultant can be a game-changer. At Saffron Edge, we specialize in simplifying the complexities of Amazon seller central for sellers. We are here to streamline and enhance your Amazon business, making your journey smoother and more successful aided by the Ecommerce giant. Our range of Amazon Marketplace Services, including Amazon vendor services, can help you gain better visibility. Our Amazon marketing strategy is helping many businesses improve their flow and better manage their Amazon listing. Connect with our professional for better guidance! ...

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