Three Things I’ve Learned About Myself As A Digital Marketing Intern

October 22, 2018 by Stivian Valchev

I’m just over a month into my internship at ElementIQ, and I’ve gone through some pretty big changes as a person in that time.

First off, this has been my first “real adult 9 to 5 job”, so that’s come with its own set of realizations. After having spent the last two years in film school, and the years before that working construction, landscaping, retail, and every other entry-level, no experience needed job out there, for the first time I feel like I’m on a promising career path. That’s pretty exciting (to me, at least).

While I was expecting professional growth, I’ve also run into some changes that go deeper than my skillset.

#1 – I Had To Become Organized Or Fall Behind Fast.

very organized library — This is what my brain had to become.

Admittedly, I’m not the most organized person. Never have been. I’m more of a ‘leave it until the last minute and get everything done in an anxiety-fueled manic sprint’ kind of person.

My college years involved more 4 AM nights than is even remotely healthy for an individual. While this method worked and got me through the program with half-decent grades, it wasn’t something I wanted to continue, mainly for the sake of my own health. (Do you know how dangerous lack of sleep is? I didn’t until I looked into it. Now I’m terrified of not getting enough sleep. Start here.)

If there’s one way working at an agency differs compared to working for a brand, it’s the amount of work you’ll be doing for a variety of clients. While I learned to juggle a variety of projects at BCIT (and our course load was no joke), it’s a whole lot different when the work you’re putting out is affecting someone’s bottom line.

Disorganization just doesn’t cut it in an agency environment. To stay on top of your workload, you need tools. One of the biggest eye-openers was when I got introduced to the various project management and task tracking platforms we use. I was nervous seeing what it would take. I’ve never been this organized, and I knew I had to adapt quickly or fall behind and jeopardize myself.

So I did. I killed the old, disorganized me, and boy, it feels good.

I’ve been doing my best to be disciplined and log all my time, stay ahead of late tasks, and get help when I need it. This has also directly affected my personal life, as I’m becoming a more organized person. I used to be known in my friend circle as the guy who’s always late for everything, but now I come to work 20 minutes early most days and I love it.

#2 – Imposter Syndrome Is Real (But I Might Not Actually Be One).

“Imposter syndrome can be defined as a collection of feelings of inadequacy that persist despite evident success.”

Our current team is six people, plus two remote specialists. Each person brings such a different skill set, that in unity, we’re able to cover a lot of bases. Given my film school background and very minor education in digital marketing, I knew there were some things I could bring to the table, but I still wasn’t sure how I was going to fit in the puzzle and be a valuable team member.

What if I’m not good enough to do the job?

I was pretty nervous to see how things would play out, but those feelings were laid to rest when I sat down with Vikram on my first day and was shown my roadmap.

The first 8 weeks consist of a different mentor teaching you a new area of digital marketing each week. After each 101, you’re quickly assigned to work on a client project, utilizing what you just learned. Jumping into work that is meaningful (and affects a clients’ bottom line) has been incredibly fun. This approach is a fantastic way to figure out what you like and what you’re good at early on.

The second half of the internship is more intensive, as you decide on your primary and secondary responsibilities and take on a pet project of your own. While I haven’t gotten there yet, I’m excited to lead a creative project and really hone in on the type of marketer I want to become.

I honestly think ElementIQ has a really unique internship program. You’re doing meaningful work (I still haven’t gotten anyone coffee), and are spending a lot of time learning. It’s essentially school with real clients. I’m excited to watch myself grow and see how I can contribute down the road.

#3 – My Opinion And Creative Direction Is Encouraged.

white guy drawing on white board — This is not me. We just look similar.

I love strategy.

I love sitting down, auditing a brand, and coming up with creative ways to tell their story.

I’ve had the chance to sit down for a few strategy meetings with colleagues so far, and each time has been remarkably mentally satisfying.

Best of all, when I have an idea about how something could be improved, not only do I feel like my opinion is welcome, but if it’s a legitimate solution to a problem, it gets implemented.

I’m a big believer that discussing tricky subjects is better than dishonest harmony (though I also give better advice than I follow). It’s fantastic when egos can be put aside and critique is encouraged for the sake of better work.

I feel I can really grow as a marketer at ElementIQ, due to the fact that I’m actually trusted to experiment, try things the way I think they could work, and own the results. There’s always help if I ask for it, but I have the freedom to take ownership of tasks as I see fit.

Is there a better, more efficient way to approach something we do often? I can go ahead and create a manual for that. Is there an outdated page that could use a touch-up? I’m free to tackle that myself.

There are many ways to step up to the plate and take projects to the next level. At its core, it seems that many of ElementIQ’s foundations are built on pillars of self-initiative.

As I mentioned earlier, I come from a blue-collar background where you’re usually waiting for someone to tell you what to do all day. Giving employees the freedom to approach situations as they see fit is a fantastic policy that has only boosted my confidence in my own skills, both in and out of work.

Conclusion

If you’re looking for a mentally stimulating career that isn’t going anywhere, consider digital marketing. With all the noise that’s generated every day, the ability to create content that people care about is becoming increasingly valuable. Learning how to do that is my obsession, and I’m forever thankful ElementIQ is taking a chance by giving me a shot.

The Importance of Call Tracking

January 31, 2019October 1, 2018 by Vikram Shivahare

What is call tracking, and why should you care?

You’ve probably heard that call tracking is important for your business, but why is this the case?

Online marketing campaigns typically drive traffic through multiple channels, such as paid search, email marketing, and social media. These channels work together to drive people to your website, where they can take any number of actions.

As a business owner, you want these people to eventually become your customers. However, when they reach your website, this probably won’t happen right away. Instead, they might show their interest or try to do more research before determining if your business best addresses their needs. Only then will they hand over their hard earned cash.

To understand and improve your marketing efforts, you need to be able to clearly visualize what is working for you and what isn’t. You need to know what activities are causing people to show more interest in what you have to offer, as well as understand their behaviours and how your internet presence can influence these behaviours.

One way of capturing marketing data is by tracking content form submissions. Almost all websites with contact forms will automatically track them. So why don’t we do the same for calls?

Despite the fact that we are living in an increasingly digital area, people are still calling businesses, especially when they’re interested. In fact, the number of calls to businesses is only increasing as smartphone capabilities improve. Phones now, making it easier to call a business than ever before. As well, according to digital marketing expert Neil Patel, calls convert 10 to 15 times more often than web leads.

If you don’t track calls, you are losing valuable data. Calls are far more important than you think.

How Does It Work?

Call tracking provides you with data that shows which marketing efforts are driving calls to your business. In fact, if you don’t track calls, you might not be tracking up to 80% of your conversions. Without accurate conversion data, you can’t appropriately allocate resources towards your most effective marketing efforts. You’re basically throwing money at all sorts of channels, with no idea of which ones are giving you the best ROI. You won’t have any idea which pages, tactics, and campaigns are effective and ineffective, as you will only be seeing part of the picture.

Check out this handy infographic we made to visualize how this works:

To track calls from different sources, digital marketers use something called dynamic number insertion. What this means is that your leads will see a different phone number to call, based on the channel and geographic location they are on. All of these numbers will lead back to your actual number, so the visitors will contact you directly. However, the usefulness of this is that you will receive data about the referring URL, search keywords, landing pages, and ads the caller came through. As well, the tracking code will remember the original channel for each visitor, so they will see the same tracking number each time they visit your site.

When Is It Useful?

Unlike traditional marketing, online marketing has the ability to clearly demonstrate which activities are yielding specific results. When you have this information, you can then make adjustments as needed and optimize your activities.

Imagine you’re working on an email campaign for your business which redirects visitors to a unique landing page. There might be a form on there for visitors to fill out, but there might also be a phone number at the top. If you only track the form submissions, you’re completely missing data about the email campaign. You won’t know how many people called your business because of that specific email. Call tracking will give you that data so you can see how successful the campaign is, and learn and make improvements for the next email campaign you do.

Call tracking can track calls from a wide variety of platforms. If someone calls your business from directly accessing your website, an ad campaign, Google My Business, or even from Yelp, you will know and be able to see exact data. This data will then allow you to better understand your consumers, drive conversions, and help your business flourish.

ElementIQ Internship: Malika’s First Week

June 12, 2018 by malika

Why Digital Marketing?

When I graduated from university in May 2017, I felt overwhelmed and confused, unsure about what I wanted to do next. I studied International Relations at a small liberal arts college near Los Angeles, and while I loved my major, I knew I wanted to try something different for a bit.

I decided to pursue digital marketing because I love writing. As an International Relations major, I spent most of my university career conducting research and writing long papers. When I graduated, I was uncertain about many things. However, one thing I knew is that I wanted to incorporate writing into whatever career path I chose.

After talking to many people in different industries, I decided that digital marketing was right for me. I could put my love of writing to good use and work to promote brands on social media platforms, two prospects that excite me greatly. I subsequently decided to enrol in the Digital Marketing Professional Program at RED Academy.

After completing my program at RED, I applied to countless jobs. I saw a post in a RED Alumni group from Joseph about the ElementIQ internship program and decided to try my luck and apply. After two interviews, I was lucky enough to be offered a position, which I immediately accepted!

Day 0 – Monday June 4

I arrived at CMPNY, a co-working space in Coquitlam, ready to begin my day. I live quite far from Coquitlam and am unfamiliar with the area, so I left my house at 7:30am, as I didn’t want to be late on my first day. Instead of being late however, I was extremely early, so I decided to walk around for a bit before heading inside.

The first thing we did at 9:08am was the Daily Huddle. Every day from 9:08-9:23am, we check in to discuss our wins (personal or professional), blockers (things preventing us from completing our work), big rocks (big tasks/schedule for the day), and chatter (other work-related topics).

As well, a different person is assigned to share a quote every morning. Lincoln shared the following quote, which I really liked:

“Don’t count the days, make the days count.” -Muhammad Ali

While I was initially confused about the Huddle’s structure, I appreciated the fact that everyone came together to start their day on the same page. I realized that the team is given a lot of autonomy in completing tasks, which makes the Huddle important for communicating with each other.

For the rest of the day, I learned more about ElementIQ and was given access to some of the online tools the company uses, such as Slack, Quip, and Teamwork. While I already had experience with Slack, I was excited to learn more about Quip and Teamwork, both of which help the team stay organized.

Teamwork is very efficient for completing tasks, as it facilitates tracking of what needs to be done and what has already been completed. It also allows the team to log time and assign action items to specific people.

Day 1 – Tuesday June 5

On my official first day, after the Daily Huddle, Lincoln gave me an introduction to Digital Marketing. He explained a bit about the different digital marketing channels that Element IQ focuses on (SEO, Social Media, Paid Advertising, Content). I had already been exposed to these channels during my time at RED, but I enjoyed hearing his perspective and learning about ElementIQ’s work specifically.

After lunch, he gave me an overview of all of ElementIQ’s clients and let me do some of my own research. I learned that most of EIQ’s clients are in the dental and cosmetic industries, which I don’t have a lot of experience with. Nevertheless, I was excited to read about coolsculpting and dental services, and am looking forward to deepening my knowledge on these areas.

As well, I was given my first client task! I had the opportunity to help Greg and Sagar write captions for Instagram and Facebook posts, which I had a lot of fun with.

Day 2 – Wednesday June 6

My first remote day! I joined the Huddle on Zoom at 9:08am, from a cafe in Downtown Vancouver. After that, I had the whole day to continue researching clients and reading an Introduction to Digital Marketing that Lincoln had sent me.

While I was initially kind of nervous about the prospect of remote work, I found that I liked being able to complete my tasks wherever I wanted. It was nice to not commute. As well, I often get tired of routine, so I appreciated the change of scenery.

Day 3 – Thursday June 7

Back in the office! Lincoln showed me Sweet Process, a tool that EIQ uses to record all of the company’s processes and procedures. At first, I was a bit confused about the difference between a process and procedure. I learned that a process is the overarching task that you need to complete, and the procedures are the steps you must take to complete the process. I spent the rest of the day looking through EIQ’s processes and trying to familiarize myself with Sweet Process.

Final Thoughts

Overall, I had an awesome first week. I liked getting to know the team and learning about EIQ’s approach to digital marketing. While I am a bit more familiar with digital marketing concepts than some past interns, I know I still have a lot to learn. As well, Lincoln mentioned that I might be doing client work a bit earlier because of my background, which I am super excited about! I can’t wait to see how the rest of my internship plays out.

The Intern’s Last Week – Rounak Sardesai

January 25, 2018 by Rounak Sardesai

“It is a beautiful thing when career and passion come together”
-Author Unknown

On the last day of my internship, I’d like to shed light on some of the things I’ve learned at ElementIQ. This may help some of you understand what you’d learn and work on as an intern at EIQ.

As an intern, I would often find myself working in collaboration with one of my colleagues to help them accomplish a bigger chunk of the campaign. Whether it was helping build a website for one of our biggest clients or auditing existing records of client data, it was all very exciting!

There were also a few times when I found myself taking the lead in certain aspects of the campaign. I was never so much a writer both in terms of skill and will. However, because I was born in the 90’s and grew up in the eon of social media, I could navigate through social platforms with ease. Karmen and Vikram noticed this and assigned to me small tasks to kick-off my involvement on the social media side of things. My interest in social media grew to a point where I am now individually managing two client Facebook profiles which seem to show constant growth in engagement.

Now that I’ve summarized a little bit of the work I was involved in, I’d like to talk about 7 awesome things that the ElementIQ internship has to offer!

All You Need Is ZERO Experience

As an international student who had just graduated, I was in need of a career starter. I came across a Facebook post talking about a digital marketing internship at ElementIQ. The post said that curiosity, enthusiasm and organizational skills were the only things the candidate was required to have (I did not believe this) so I went ahead and applied. With absolutely no experience in marketing or digital marketing, here I am, writing about my four month term!

The Workspace Is AWESOME!

On the day of my interview with the EIQ team, I walked into the Spacekraft co-working space by CMPNY where the EIQ team plays ball. I had one thought in my head “ I want to work here because this space is AWESOME!” This thought still lingers in my head every now and then even after four months because this office is genuinely great. The tall windows allow for ample sunlight and an airy atmosphere prevails in the office. Not to mention the free coffee and ping-pong room that is open to all.

Have You Ever Worked In Your PAJAMAS?

Honestly, I never thought I’d be able to work in my PJs. It may not be a very big positive for people who don’t mind winters, but for someone like me who was born and raised in a city that sees summer all year round, leaving the house for work on a winter morning is a task! I loved the fact that we worked remotely twice a week – not only did I save transit time but I also got to stay warm all day long.

Your Opinion And Ideas Matter!

I realized that my opinion and ideas mattered very early on in my internship. Every brainstorming session (or Pow-Wow as we call it) was a collaborative effort and the outcome was a mutually agreed upon strategy as per the agreement of the team. Every idea that I had in a meeting was heard by others, and I was always given feedback as to why the idea would or would not work.

The Team You Work With Is TALENTED!

At EIQ, each team member has a wide set of skills, if you’re as curious as I am you’ll learn a thing or two from each member. In the past four months, I’ve picked up skills like basic web development and writing from Joseph and Karmen respectively. Vikram has played a huge role in helping me analyze data and work on accurate reporting and strategizing. Sam, our CEO lives an ideal entrepreneurial life and I’ve learned a thing or two about serial entrepreneurship just by shadowing him.

We Promise A CARING Environment

The best part about the company is that each of its employees cares about not just themselves and the agency but also about their co-workers. There is a good vibe flowing across the room with constant helping hands trying to help you succeed at the task at hand. Moreover, the team understands that each individual has a personal life that affects their professional life. At EIQ, we try our best to accommodate each other’s struggles – whether it is a doctor’s appointment or just a short vacation back home!

We Support Your Progress

When I started with EIQ, all I had in my backpack was a University degree, just like the other 60,000 odd Canadian graduates that year. Sam and the rest of the team helped me study for certifications and take tests offered by Google. I am now a certified professional in Digital Marketing, thanks to the internship program!

Knowledge Is Useless Until You Put It To Use

I meet a lot of people who tell me they’re interested in learning more about a field. I was exactly like them before I started at EIQ. I wanted to learn. However, not too long after I started with EIQ, I realized that merely learning wasn’t enough. If you cannot apply the knowledge you have, it is as good as not having any knowledge in the first place. At EIQ, you learn and apply the things you learn almost immediately, enabling you to understand concepts better and get a sense of responsibility for your actions.

Your CEO Cares About You

In the four months that I’ve spent at EIQ, Sam, our CEO has had multiple one on one conversations with me. Not only has he taken the time to discuss what the company expects out of me, but has also spent a fair amount of time discussing my goals and how the company can help me achieve them. This is what I call being true to the start-up culture.

Work Hard, Play Hard

The EIQ team truly believes in the motto ‘work hard, play hard’, just check us out on Instagram and you’ll know what I’m talking about.
These are some of the reasons why my tenure as an ‘Intern’ at ElementIQ has been great! If you think you’re the kind of person who’d thrive in a company that is AWESOME, apply to our internship program.

How to do Keyword Research 101

December 21, 2017 by Rounak Sardesai

After spending the last couple weeks doing keyword research for some of our clients, I’ve decided that now would be a good time to shed some light on how it’s done. Before we look into how its done, it is essential that we understand why it’s done.

“In order to rank for searches and be visible to potential customers, your website must be optimized”

If I had a dollar for every time someone said these words to me, I’d have enough money to make rent this month. However, it clearly doesn’t solve my SEO problems, neither will it answer your questions on Search Engine Optimization. Thus, I’m going to take special efforts to make it crystal clear for you.

To simplify, Keyword Research is the process of discovering key search terms that internet users may be using to search for products or services through the medium of a Search Engine. This is then followed by optimizing your website, to naturally contain these keywords in the text or other forms of content.

How To Do Keyword Research?

Understand The Nature of Your Business:

It goes without saying that knowing your business (or the one you’re handling marketing for) is one of the most important things in any aspect of marketing. If you don’t know your company’s values, products or services, it is a good idea to start off by getting your hands on a catalogue or a similar resource that lets you understand the business.

Once you understand the products or services that the business offers, you’ll be able to categorize the keywords according to product or service type and also be able to figure out which keywords are more relevant than others. Let’s say we have a small online store that sells two products- Bread and Butter. When we try to hunt for keywords to target, we can separate them into two sections (at least) by product type so that it is easier to implement optimization and also track keyword performance.

Focus on Your Buyer Persona:

Buyer personas play a huge roll in keyword searches. If you know the kind of customer you are trying to target, you’re already halfway there. The challenge really is to be able to think like the buyer of your product or service. Let us look at an interesting scenario:

Case Study

One of ElementIQ’s clients, Keating Dental Arts, is a full-service dental lab that caters to dentists across North America. Let’s take a look at a snippet of their website traffic source by keywords.

If you take a look at the image above, the phrase ’emax stain and glaze’ brings 99 visitors to their website. The phrase is quite technical and will probably be used by dentists or people who are in the profession. Since KDA is a dental lab that only caters to dentists and not dental patients, It is a good idea to spend time optimizing for more technical keywords like this one so that it drives more traffic from dentists.

Just like the example above, focusing on industry-specific keywords and how the buyer uses those keywords, most definitely will benefit your process of optimization.

Start With Words Then Move to Phrases:

There are three kinds of keywords that you must consider when trying to optimize your page for both organic and paid searches – Generic Keywords, Broad Match Keywords, Long-Tailed Keywords. You can read more about these types of keywords here. The idea is to jot down words that are most relevant to your business or product/service. Let’s say you are a dentist (or you’re marketing on a dentist’s behalf), the words that you should start your research from would be something similar to these:

Dentist
Teeth
Denture
Dentistry

The above list is just an example, your list may look different in comparison to the one above depending on the nature of your business. The idea is to use these words to generate other keywords closely related to them using sophisticated tools.

Once you have this list, it’s time to put some tools to use.

Grab Your Toolkit:

The tool I like using for keyword generation is the built-in Keyword Planner (formerly keyword tool) that Google offers in it’s AdWords platform. The keyword planner looks something like this:

The keyword planner can be accessed by clicking on the tools menu in AdWords. You will need an AdWords account to access this feature. However, you do not need to spend money on ads to avail this feature.

Once you’ve gained access to the keyword planner, its only a few minutes before the magic happens!

We want to work in the ‘Multiply keyword lists together to get new keywords’. The idea is to enter a set of keywords in the List 1 section and another set in List 2 section. Here’s what I’ve entered, just for example sake:

Next, we want to adjust the location settings to our liking. This is important if your business caters to a specific locality. I’m going to set it to Burnaby.

The resultant page will give us a few keywords that are a product of the two lists. It is important to note that NOT all of those keywords are going to be relevant.

Once we have our final list of keywords, we can move to optimizing the pages we like.

Keep Track of the Keywords That You Feel Are Most Important:

Ranking for keywords is always a quality over quantity game. You’d rather rank for the most relevant keywords to your business to get the best possible conversion rate. However, to get the best possible results from keyword research and optimization, it is essential that we track the keywords that seem most relevant to the business and it’s goals. I personally use Ahrefs to accomplish this. I will soon be writing more about Ahrefs to help out with keyword tracking and analysis!

Contact Us

If you have more detailed questions related to Search Engine Optimization, you can leave a comment down below or get in touch with the ElementIQ team here.

Create A Great Email Marketing Campaign

December 11, 2017 by Karmen Clark

I recently had the pleasure of attending a webinar lead by Eric Shanfelt, email marketing guru, and digital marketing specialist. The webinar was hosted by the Local Marketing Institute. They provide frequent webinars about various e-commerce and digital marketing subjects.

Eric shared some valuable information that can often be overlooked when you are trying to coordinate an email campaign. Sometimes we get so caught up in deadlines and clients that we forget about the most important factor in email marketing: the audience itself. Eric gave some insight into what users really want to see.

They want short emails
All emails should be mobile responsive
The information should be relevant and useful to the user

Eric noted that emails should be relatively short with a single CTA (call to action). You don’t want to distract your users with long, intricate copy, too many offers or irrelevant information. A good email is a simple one. In order to have a focused and clear email, there are a few things you should keep in mind first. Eric outlined six main factors that contribute to a great, streamlined email campaign. These are:

Audience, Acquisition, Content, Frequency, Delivery, and Analysis

Let’s discuss what each topic means and the ways in which they, as a whole, can create a great email marketing campaign.

1. Audience: Define Your Audience

Your audience is the first and most important factor in your email campaign. These are the people who open and interact with your messages. In order to send emails that these individuals want to open, you need to be sure you know your audience.

If you work in the field of e-commerce or digital marketing, you may be familiar with the concept of buyer personas. These are fictional representations of your target audience. They are the product of market research and analysis into your customer demographics. Before you create an email campaign, you must consult your buyer personas.

Ask Yourself The Following Questions:

What is my audience interested in?
What do they want to know?
What’s their daily life like?

You want to make sure that the people receiving your email newsletters truly like the content you create for them. Do the market research before-hand and find out the age of your audience, their interests, and daily routine. Once you have a good idea of who you’re sending these emails to, you’ll be able to create custom content, catered to what they like.

2. Acquisition: Build Your Email List

How do I define an audience when I don’t have subscribers? There are many different ways to build your email list. A powerful email campaign coupled with an organized, clean list of subscribers is the recipe for success when it comes to email marketing. You can’t send out a campaign without subscribers. Here are a few ways that you can attract new email subscribers.

How To Build Your Email List

Have a prominent signup form on your website. You don’t want potential subscribers scrolling and searching your site to sign up for your list.
Ensure you have a prominent signup form on social media. You create and share quality content on your social media channels. Build your email list by letting your followers know where they can get even more great content and insider information on your email list.
Leverage POS systems (point of sale systems) You can automate subscriptions to your email list. Simply incorporate it into your POS system. After a purchase, let your users know where they can learn more about you, and stay updated on your products. Create an automated request to subscribe.
Have a strong customer feedback system. Gather customer feedback at every opportunity.
Train your employees to ask. If you are a business owner, let your employees know that they should always be gathering potential email subscribers for the business. They can ask your customers directly!
Use incentives. Give your customers that extra push and give them an immediate reason to sign up for your email list. Let your customers know that they can receive special offers and give them a sample by offering a one time discount to those who sign up. You can use different offers or create a giveaway to get them excited about receiving your emails.

3. Content: Plan Your Content

There is nothing worse than receiving an email that doesn’t make sense, seems out of context or contains information that you don’t find appealing or relevant. Create and share quality content with your subscribers to keep them up to date and in the loop.

Ask Yourself

What are you trying to accomplish?
What information would your customers find valuable?

Email campaigns are part of your content marketing strategy. You need to carefully plan out what each email will say. Set a positive tone for your email and pick your voice. Are you speaking on behalf of your company, the owner or is the email going to sound more personal?

You can share your current site content in your email campaigns as well. Let your users know about a recent ebook you’ve created or share the latest blog post with them. Make sure that the content you share with your users is relevant, relates to your company and to your users. Here are some tips on how to write good copy for the web.

Another important aspect of content is images. Try to avoid putting all of your written email copy in your email as an image. Images are unreliable and do not always render. Have the core of your email copy in plain text. Use images to supplement your message but make sure that your email is still easy to read and understand without any images.

Pro Tip

Eric Shanfelt mentioned that you should never use canned content. By this, he means that you shouldn’t buy content that is created in mass amounts for your industry. This copy is often general, it is not tailored to your business. Share posts that are about specific aspects of your company and avoid sharing general or bought content. Your users want to feel as though you are writing to them personally. They want the content you share with them to apply to your company and their interests.

4. Frequency: How Often Should I Send An Email?

The consensus on this varies. On one hand, you don’t want to overwhelm your email list by sending too many emails too frequently. Your subscribers are likely to get irritated, annoyed or mark you as spam and abuse. On the other hand, you don’t want to send your emails out so infrequently that users forget they’ve subscribed to your list.

They may wonder why they are receiving an email from your company if they’ve gone months without seeing a notification from you. This is also a reason that many people unsubscribe. So how frequently should you send out your email campaigns?

No more than weekly
No less than monthly
Every other week is optimal

You want to keep your emails short and sweet. In order to do this, you should send them out on a regular basis. Otherwise, you’ll end up cramming too much information into your messages. Keep your emails as simple updates to stay in your subscribers’ minds and avoid giving them too much information all at once.

Welcome Emails

Outside of your regular email campaign, be sure to send out welcome emails to those who are new to your subscriber list. You can include a double opt-in form in this email to ensure that your new subscribers really want to receive your emails.

Thank them for signing up and share the perks or benefits of being on your list. The welcome email should leave them excited and awaiting your next newsletter. You can create a welcome email template and schedule it to send to every new subscriber. Most email service providers allow you to automate this process.

5. Delivery: Help Your Emails Get Opened

When you put effort into your list, audience, and content you want to be sure that your emails actually get opened! This can often be one of the trickiest parts of your email campaign because it relies on getting into your users’ inbox. Avoid spam filters by using a reputable email sender.

Once your email gets into the users’ inbox, you need to give them a reason to click on your message. Use a “from name” that you know they will recognize, generally, this should be the name of your company. However, if your name is used synonymously as part of your brand, you can use your name as the “from name” You can also make the email sound more personal by using your own name and the name of your company. For example: “Karmen Clark, from ElementIQ.”

Similar to your subject line, your preview text gives context and credibility to your email campaign. Give your users incentive to open your email by creating a compelling subject line.

In Summary

Use a reputable email sender
Make emails mobile responsive
Use good from and subject line
Leverage preview text

These are the most effective ways of getting a higher open rate. When your email provider sees that your emails are getting opened, you gain credibility as a business and your emails are more likely to be seen as informative, rather than spam.

6. Analysis: What Are The Results Of Your Campaign?

Whether you use your email campaign to drive online sales, provide updates to your subscribers or promote exclusive, in-store offers there should always be a clear goal in mind. In order to improve your campaigns and determine whether or not your emails are achieving your goals, you need to analyze the results of your campaigns.

Look at the metrics and adjust
Look at any replies to your email and respond to people who write to you.
Analyze the ROI. The rate of return is the best way to determine whether or not your email campaign is actually driving sales.

Eric Shanfelt shared a list of statistics at the close of his webinar. These were the general numbers that determine good a good email campaign. You can use these benchmarks as a basic indicator of whether or not your email campaigns are meeting your goals and serving their purpose.

Good Email Benchmarks

20% Unique open rates – If it’s less than this, your subscribers aren’t that interested. How did you build your email list? You may want to clean out your list or change your on-site opt-in process.
2.5% Unique click rate – This is a good click rate. This depends on the nature of your email and your brand it only applies to a direct offer
0.3% Unsubscribe rate = Good
0.02% Abuse report = Anything more than this and your users are thinking “I didn’t sign up for this, it’s spam”
0.45% Hard bounce rate = This is an optimal percentage for hard bounces. Anything more and you should look into cleaning your mailing list.

Note

Clean out your unresponsive emails regularly. Remove subscribers that show no activity over a year. They’re dead weight. When you send to a streamlined list you have a better response rate. Your subscribers are there because they are interested in your products and your company.

Closing Thoughts

Hopefully, the information from this webinar was helpful. Eric Shanfelt holds frequent webinars about various aspects of digital marketing. He is well known in the industry for his success with email marketing and e-commerce. He’s also the Founder and CEO of Local Marketing Institute. If you are interested in staying up to date with our blog posts from ElementIQ, be sure to subscribe or comment below!

How To Kick-Start Your Career In Digital Marketing

November 21, 2017 by Rounak Sardesai

Are you thinking about a career in Digital Marketing?

Let’s face it, you’ve spent the last four odd years of your life struggling through university only to find out that you have ZERO skills that put you in a position to make an impact at a workplace. Moreover, The beautiful ads that say “live like a digital marketing nomad” keep popping up on your Facebook feed and you have no idea how those people make money while traveling around the world.

To make it worse, you keep seeing people posting videos shot in fancy Lamborghinis titled ‘I went from working at McDonald’s to making a 100K a year” and you keep asking yourself just one little question – HOW?

Well, I’m not here to lure you into the idea of making a 100K overnight.

If you’re still reading, I’m going to help you give your digital marketing career a kickstart so that some day with the right amount of hard work and application of knowledge, you make sufficient successful leaps in your life.

What Do Digital Marketing Experts Do?

Let’s start with understanding what a digital marketer does. A Digital Marketer is responsible for developing, implementing and managing online marketing campaigns. These campaigns promote a company and its products and services.

He or she plays a major role in enhancing brand awareness within the digital space as well as driving website traffic and acquiring leads. You can learn more about the Digital Marketing career here.

Now that we know what a digital marketer’s profession looks like, lets see how we can prep to jump into the career.

Remember, it’s a lifestyle not a JOB.

It is important to understand that to be a successful marketer, you need tons of good ideas and inspiration. It may seem like ideas are easy to fabricate but in reality, having the right ideas for the right brand or product at the right time (whilst not breaking the bank) can be extremely difficult (but not impossible of-course).

As an aspiring digital marketer, it is essential that your lifestyle facilitates the natural growth of ideas in your mind. Six of the best ways to do so (in my humble opinion) are:

1. Make Time For Social Media

Start following the top digital marketers out there. If you’re in the North American market, you should definitely follow people like Neil Patel and Kevin Payne who post at least 5 noteworthy blogs a day. These resources will be extremely helpful in understanding the scope of the profession in depth.

You can also follow people like me, who re-tweet posts by people mentioned above as well as contribute to their own ideas once in a while. Also, find marketing agencies around you and follow their social handles to gain some agency insights (follow ElementIQ on Instagram). I was personally not active on Twitter until I jumped into the field of Digital Marketing.

My Facebook and Twitter profiles would look very similar before I learned the hard way that Twitter is NOT for personal interaction. I have now come to an understanding that it is an amalgamation of Facebook and LinkedIn which lets you connect and build relationships with people who you look up to. This makes it an ideal lead generation and networking tool.

2. Follow Brands With Great Marketing Strategies

While some brands have digital marketing agencies that take care of their online presence for them, many brands have an in-house team that works behind the scenes and delivers appealing content.

It is a great idea to follow these brands on different social media platforms. Some of the brands that I follow are Mercedes-Benz Canada, Apple, Adidas, Nike, Mini, Chevrolet, and Sony. Brands like Dollar Beard Club (Check out the founder interview) and Mini (their North American launch strategy is noteworthy) have inspirational start-up and expansion marketing strategies. Great case studies to dive into as an aspiring marketer. It does not matter if your list looks a little different from mine. What matters is to be able to put yourself in the shoes of bigger brands and help yourself prepare for impactful roles in the industry.

3. Stay Organized

Like any other career, marketing requires you to be organized. Especially if you aspire to work in an agency setting. You may not be the kind that wakes up in the morning and makes their bed (I’m not either) but you will need to get into the habit of carrying a pen and diary for notes (or a digital notepad like Evernote). Managing your time appropriately and prioritizing important tasks is something you will learn eventually as long as you put in efforts to stay organized.

As simple as these things may seem, in reality, they can be the TOUGHEST to overcome. Especially when you find yourself downloading many files and images a day, managing multiple tasks for multiple campaigns, and working on various projects with different timelines. Organizing your tasks will do wonders for you in the industry. If you have a friend that is good at this, get help from them. The ElementIQ team has Sam and Joseph to look up to in terms of organized living!

4. Know The Tools Of The Trade.

As someone who aspires to be a digital marketing professional, it is a good idea to start off by learning about various tools that are used in the industry. If you know your tools well, you don’t have to spend time familiarizing yourself with them when you finally land your dream job. Instead, you can get to using these tools right away and get things done!

I understand that some tools are more technical than others and it may take less or more time to understand their optimal usage depending on your technical abilities. Thus, I have shortlisted some tools that most people will have no problems understanding, irrespective of their technical aptitude and prior knowledge.

These tools and applications are not necessarily (directly) used in formulating or analyzing a campaign but are used to carry out daily tasks like communicating, designing and planning.

Slack:

If you’ve not checked out slack yet, it’s time you do! Slack is the ultimate team collaboration tool your team will ever need. It provides a neat and user-friendly communication space not only for direct messaging but also group messaging.

What is great about this tool is its ability to allow third-party application integrations. You can seamlessly send documents to your colleagues whether they are on your computer or on third-party apps like Quip and Google Docs. If you’re on the go, Slack is availableinn the App Store for both iPhones and Android phones.

If all this doesn’t convince you, let me tell you that the free version of slack is so efficient and offers so much that most agencies haven’t felt the need to upgrade to the full version yet.

Quip:

As someone who uses a Mac, I absolutely dislike the capabilities of collaboration that Microsoft Office boasts about. Be it the lack of cross-platform abilities or the ugly user interface, Microsoft Office is just not an option for the beautiful documents I strive to create at work.

Thus, Quip!

Quip is an amazing cloud-based document creation platform that makes collaboration easier than ever before. Also, it integrates seamlessly with slack making things even better! Zero redundancy, seamless collaboration and a price of 0$ is what gives Quip the EIQ approval.

Canva:

I had no skills in designing or editing pictures before I started working as a digital marketer.

Canva is what changed the game. Canva is an online tool that allows you to edit photos and images without having prior Photoshop or designing experience. I highly recommend playing around with it and watching some YouTube tutorials.

Once you get a hang of these tools, it might me time to dive into some technical tools like MailChimp, Moz, Google Analytics, Google AdWords etc. The ideal way to master these tools would be to either watch YouTube tutorials, read books (A good starter book: SEO For Dummies), complete the respective certifications or to get your hands on to some free trials and play around!

5. Get Certified

There are two very specific reasons as to why I would recommend being a Certified Professional in whatever career you choose.

The first reason is that certifications tend to keep you updated and never let you stay out of touch. Most certifications come with an expiry date and you must re-take the test before it expires. Obviously, this means that you re-iterate the salient topics and get new updates along the way.

The second reason is more résumé focused. Your résumé might list a few digital marketing skills but the only way to prove to an HR rep that you deserve and interview, is by backing those skills up with a certification (a relevant portfolio helps too).

I’ve listed some of the certifications that I felt were most helpful to me. I will be writing more in detail about each of them in a different post (comment down below if you’d like me to write on a specific topic).

Communications Certification:

As a digital marketing professional, communication is unquestionably key. There are very few aspects of digital marketing in which communication does not play a major role.

If you’re trying to get into the Social Media Management side of marketing, communication is of utmost importance. I can vouch for the fact that it is not difficult to improve your communication and grammatical abilities since English is not my first language and I’ve managed to exponentially improve my communication skills over time. I spent hours reading books and watching movies to improve my linguistic abilities as a child and I still continue to do so.

My university accredited certifications in communication and English language testing have helped employers understand that I have the skills required to communicate effectively to an audience that I intend to market products or services to.

Google Analytics Certification:

I learned very early in my internship that it is absolutely pointless to present ideas without data to back them up. The most effective way to present ideas for a campaign was to analyze data from similar campaigns or similar companies/products and use this data to back my idea.

All of this came into picture once I got my hands on to the Google Analytics platform. The Google Analytics certification is a short 2 step certification ranging about three to four hours each, which allows you to understand the data that flows behind marketing campaigns. It is absolutely worth the effort and it doesn’t cost a penny!

Google Adwords Certification:

Although online advertising is a nexus in itself, it is essential as a marketer that we understand the basics of how advertising on the internet works irrespective of whether you want to specialize in PPC management or not. Google AdWords is Google’s advertising platform. Bing has a similar platform.

To be AdWords certified, you must complete the AdWords fundamental exam and complement it with either one of five specialization exams (Search Advertising, Display Advertising, Video Advertising, Mobile Advertising, Shopping Advertising). It takes about 3 hours to prepare for each exam and they are all free.

I would also recommend following Google Adwords on twitter for quick updates on the platform and upcoming changes, just to stay in constant touch with one of the most important advertising platforms out there.

Hubspot Inbound Marketing:

Digital Marketing works on the principles of Inbound Marketing. If you haven’t already understood the concepts of inbound marketing and how it differs from outbound or traditional marketing, I would recommended starting by watching this video on YouTube. The HubSpot Inbound Certification is the best way (by far) to understand what digital marketing really is and how it works. Also, just like the Google Academy courses, this course is available free of cost at HubSpot Academy.

6. Find an Internship

Once you’ve got a fair idea of these skills, it is actually time to jump into the industry. What better way to start than an internship with EIQ! Find out more about the ElementIQ internship program here.

Should I Hire A Marketing Agency Vs An In-House Marketing Team?

October 26, 2017 by Karmen Clark

The question will always arise at some point. Whether you are just starting out with your small business, or you own a well-established company one question remains the same: “How should I manage my digital marketing strategy?”

Digital marketing is just a simple Facebook post twice a week right?

Social media management is just one aspect of a much larger, cohesive marketing plan in action. As your business grows, you will find a greater need for a streamlined strategy.

You need online reputation management, paid ads, an email campaign, credible backlinks, social media calendars with engaging content, a functioning website with direct workflows, consistent – keyword rich content, and so much more in order to keep up to date and visible for your target audience.

You need a marketing team. But should that team be a part of your company, or should you look for a marketing agency? The following content compares both options, so you can make a more informed decision.

Consider Your Digital Marketing Needs

As a business, you have marketing requirements that are just as unique as you are. Your choice of marketing strategy will depend on your exact needs. In general, an in-house marketing employee has a very specialized set of skills.

They may be a social media specialist, copywriter, analytics professional or focused on paid search and ad words. In contrast, when you hire an agency, you are hiring a team with a variety of diverse talents.

1. Skillset: Specialized Vs Diverse

In-House Marketing

Those working in-house are keenly aware of your brand. They intimately know your goals and desired image because they eat, sleep and breathe your business. They are generally extremely specialized in the one area of marketing that you need.

It is rare to find an in-house marketing employee, well practiced in all aspects of digital marketing. Generally, there are various specializations that need to be combined for a cohesive and successful marketing strategy to take place.

Agency

Marketing agencies work with a variety of clients. All aspects of your marketing needs are met due to the sheer number of individuals working throughout the agency. When you hire an agency, there is no need to outsource work that your in-house workers can’t complete. Agencies possess a much more diverse skill set. You have separate individuals assigned to every different aspect of your marketing strategy.

The answer here comes down to asking yourself, can I afford to hire multiple people with different skillsets for my in-house marketing team? Or should I simply contact an agency where there is a talented team already assembled?

It depends entirely on your company needs. If you only need one aspect of your marketing campaign managed, you may want to hire a single in-house employee. If you are looking for a full-service marketing strategy to manage all aspects of your online presence, then it makes more sense to choose an agency.

2. Ease Of Communication

Communication is important in any business. In order for work to run smoothly, communication is key. Types of communication vary dramatically between an in-house marketing team and an agency. Both are effective and depend on your preferences as a business.

In-House Marketing

When you have an in-house marketing team, communication is relatively easy. You can get content and projects approved the same day they are created, there is very little wait time on assignments.

Agency

Due to the number of clients and client needs, it can take slightly longer for communication between clients and digital marketing agencies to occur. Generally, your agency will update you weekly or monthly, with what they are working on and what has been done. If they are waiting on your approval or want to discuss anything with you, it is done via an arranged meeting, email or quick phone call.

Both agency and in-house communications are effective, they are simply different. An in-house employee is right in the office with you, so it is easier to discuss ideas quickly. An organized marketing agency, however, will stay up to date with all communications needed in order to keep you informed.

3. Variety

Marketing is a naturally creative career. It attracts minds that are constantly thinking, busy and interested in what’s new. Marketing teams need to effectively make a brand seem interesting, and unless you’re selling fidget spinners, it’s easy for creative minds to get bored.

In-House Marketing

An in-house marketing team is solely devoted to you, your company and your brand. They are always thinking about ways to promote your image and products online.

As beneficial as this may be ( they intimately know your brand) it can also lead to a plateau in creativity and new ideas. Your in-house team can lack variety or get stuck in a rut. This can lead to a lower rate of employee stability. You may see your in-house employees jump between jobs due to sheer boredom.

Agency

Your agency has several other unique client accounts that they work with daily. Their minds are fresh as they navigate new topics at all times. It leaves very little room for boredom. It is also possible that they have similar clients to your company, depending on how specialized the agency is.

They may focus on one sector of business (such as marketing just for dentists or real estate) Agencies are working with several different clients related to your account, which makes it much easier for them to keep on top of industry news and trends. They are always motivated and rarely bored by what they do due to the variety of topics they get to work with each day.

Factor In The Costs

Cost is the final factor that should be considered when making any decision surrounding your business. Is it cheaper to choose an in-house employee or an agency? Again, the cost will depend entirely on your needs. But here is a general overview.

In-House Marketing

Initially, it may seem less expensive to hire a single employee for your marketing strategy. However it is a long hiring process, you need to ensure that this person fits in well with the rest of your company.

There are unforeseen costs that can arise after hiring, for example, you could hire a social media manager but then realize that you also need a paid search specialist to complement the social campaigns.

When you hire in-house you also need to consider the costs of adding a new team member to your office. Aside from salary, you need to budget for an office space, computers and programs that they may need. You may even find you need to pay for extra training if your in-house employee has a specialized skill set and needs to branch out.

Agency

When you hire an agency there is a pre-set price in place. There is an entire team of talented professionals that combine their skills to cater to all aspects of your marketing campaign. An agency pays for its own software, tools, and tech. They manage their own training and ensure their employees are up to date with education on any new programs and software.

Determine the annual investment you want to make in digital marketing and meet with agencies and in-house candidates alike.

Choose What Works Best For You

In the end, the choice is yours. It is important to weigh the pros and cons of each option. It is a good idea to meet with marketing agencies and potential in-house employees as well. Some businesses even settle on a mixture of both. Whatever the need may be, it is essential to have a prominent online marketing strategy for your business in the digital era.

In order to gain visibility, leads, and sales, you need to consider your businesses personal goals and how they can best be achieved. At ElementIQ, we offer a full-service digital marketing strategy, covering everything from paid search to content creation and promotion. Let us know if you want to learn more about working with a marketing agency!

Have you worked with a marketing agency before? Do you have an in-house marketing team? Share your thoughts and insight in the comments below!

The Intern’s First Week – Rounak Sardesai

September 27, 2017 by Rounak Sardesai

Exordium

“There is no passion to be found in playing small – in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.”

-Nelson Mandela

I was a sales and marketing professional with a degree in computer science before I came across the ElementIQ Internship program. Having a stable job which was paying the bills comfortably was not something I thought I’d complain about, but this thought was soon changed.

Have you ever skimmed through your résumé and felt like you really want to see something meaningful on there? Well, I did!

The moment I realized that I was not doing something that I really wanted to do, I opened my eyes to the opportunities that were out in the market. Whilst scrolling through my Facebook, I came across an advertisement for the ElQ internship. Although I was well aware of what traditional marketing was, I had no clue what digital marketing was.

Thus, the first step to my application was a google search titled “what is digital marketing” and “what does digital marketing include.” I realized that I had immense potential in this field because I had had some sales experience and I was computer savvy.

I shot out my résumé to EIQ and within the next 24 hours, I knew what to do next. Ramesh replied to my application promptly and asked me to complete two tasks before a probable interview – An inbound certification from HubSpot and an English grammar test. To be honest, I thought this was the most relevant pre-interview checklist I’ve come across.

The next step in my application process was a face to face to interview with Ramesh and Vikram at the Spacekraft office (a co-working shared space that reflects the start-up essence) in Burnaby. Suited up, I met with the two EIQ employees who were extremely welcoming and easy-going.

The interview was set up in the spacecraft lounge that turned it into a constructive conversation rather than a formal interview. The questions I was asked were very relevant to the job and were well aligned with the expectations mentioned in their advertisement. The interview that went on for just over an hour, was one of the most productive conversations I’d had in context to a job.

Next, I met with Sam a few days after the initial interview and we discussed what he expected from his employees and gave me a brief introduction of what EIQ believes in as a team. Sam came across to me as a person who motivates his team and wants his employees to grow with the team.

This was exactly what I was looking for in my life – to be a part of a motivated team where my opinion is valued and new ideas are a result of constructive conversation with fun being the by-product. I must admit, the Spacekraft office was also a catalyst to my affirmative decision once I was offered the position a week later. Allow me take you through the journey of my first week of work at ElementIQ.

The Pilot (Day O):

As soon as I accepted the offer, I was asked to come in for an onboarding meeting with Vikram. On a beautiful Thursday morning, I walked into the Spacekraft office in Burnaby and had the same expressions Harry Potter did on his first visit to Hogwarts. I knew there was so much I was going to learn and so much I was going to be good at. I may sound presumptuous when I say that I knew I was going to be good at so many things, but here’s why I am not:

“Surround yourself with people that reflect who you want to be and how you want to feel, energies are contagious.”

-Rachel Wolchin

My confidence came from a vibe, a vibe I got from my welcoming colleagues and the people I was surrounded with.

We went over a variety of tools and software I would need over time at EIQ to successfully carry out daily tasks. Some of the tools were as simple as an email account and an instant messenger and some were more detailed like Teamwork, Quip and Slack. Have you ever watched the detail in which the Quartermaster (Q) describes his exhibits to James Bond? Vikram was as passionate as Q in this scenario – you could tell that he was passionate about his operation space.

Following the tools of the trade were the tricks of the trade – Vikram went over some of the essentials of digital marketing concepts with me. Some of these concepts were The Marketing Funnel, Buyer Personas and Social Media Channels. What I appreciate most about this session was the fact that it was assumed that I was fresh to the field and all information was delivered without the need of a prerequisite.

(It was like enrolling in Comp Sci 404 at Uni without completing the pre-requisites and finding out the instructor is going to recap Comp Sci 304,204 and 104 again. Instructor goals!!)

The session had an open-ended activity to it which included me trying to market one of my favorite brands. All in all, my orientation day made me realize (for the first time) that following your passion could not go wrong!

The One With The First Huddle (Day 1):

The following Tuesday after my orientation was my first official day with the EIQ team. I was welcomed by the team and the day started with a morning huddle. This was the first time I was going to be a part of the huddle and I was curious to know what it was all about.

What Makes An Effective Daily Huddle?

Blockers: Any blockers that may be a hindrance to any tasks that have been assigned
Daily Tasks: Any tasks that may need attention or discussion
Chatter: Any mention-worth items from client tasks
Share Something: Each day one person shares something interesting, usually motivational or influential

As someone who tries hard to be organized in life (with little or no success), the huddle seemed like a very important part of my day.

The huddle was followed by a walkthrough of our clients and Vikram walked me through each client’s case thoroughly. I understood that each client was different and each case was interesting in its own way.

Although we had already touched base on some of the tools that I was going to need during my tenure as a digital marketer, Vikram took the effort to thoroughly walk me through each of the tools starting with TeamWork (a project management and task manager with collaborative capabilities). This was followed by Quip (a modern replacement of docs with uber-collaborative functionality and integration capabilities) and Slack walkthroughs.

The walkthroughs were followed by realistic activities that directly aligned with our line of work and enabled me to communicate with the team easily and manage my tasks to perfection (just what a true procrastinator needs in life).

The day went by so quick that it almost felt like an elementary school field trip. At the end of it, I was full of things I had newly learnt – my body relaxed and my mind tired enough to let me sleep like a baby.

The One With The Reports (Day 2):

I was the kind of student that went off to a library every time I needed to get some serious work done. I always thought that I wasn’t able to get work done at home because it wasn’t the right environment. This was proven wrong on my second day at EIQ.

My second day at work was another first-timer. The EIQ team works from the Spacekraft office three times a week (Monday, Tuesday and Thursday) and remotely twice a week (Wednesday and Friday) so my second working day was going to be the first time that I would be remotely connected with the rest of the team. To my surprise, it was as smooth as a face-to-face meeting with great coordination and pre-assigned tasks.

“Choose a job you love, and you’ll never have to work another day in life”

-Confucius

The challenge I faced was a different one. Whilst I was in school, mathematics and statistics was something I absolutely dreaded and my second working day at EIQ was meant to introduce me to analytics and reporting which can be broadly categorized as a result of statistics. Vikram introduced me to a software unlike any other called NinjaCat that is used in the marketing world to analyze the real-time ROI situation for a particular business.

As and how I got used to navigating around the software through the day, I realized that I was now dealing with real data, real numbers, and real situations. As unnatural as it may sound, real-world problems are what make our lives interesting! The moment I started to understand that my analysis or reports would make a difference to a business and its marketing strategies, the hidden mathematician within me rose out of the grave.

The day can be summed up into three great sessions where I learned a lot about Facebook Advertising, Google Analytics, and Reporting.

The One With The Norman Doors (Day 3):

The next day back at the office started off with some reporting tasks I had been assigned the previous day. I worked on these analytical puzzles like a child trying to find the right way to join two Lego blocks and I absolutely loved the challenge! By the time I had finished my task in hand, it was almost time for the most awaited activity of the day – a UX/UI walkthrough session with Joseph.

As a computer science student, I had a fair idea of the importance of ease of access or ease of use of a particular object. However, what I didn’t know was how often we come across bad designs and how they are introduced to us. Joseph had a great flow to his session. In fact, an exemplary one. One of the key takeaways from this session was the Norman Doors anomaly. Joseph set up a presentation explaining how bad doors are a part of our lives and how we have to face awkward situations trying to overcome the push and pull battle! As simple as this may seem, it was the start to a great insight on User Interface and User Experience Design.

This session was followed by some reading to be done on UX/UI and taking a look at the resources shared by Joseph. Following the session was the weekly meeting that the EIQ team assembles for every Thursday. This meeting was a more elaborate meeting in comparison to the daily huddle. The weekly team meet can be divided broadly into the following:

Weekly Meeting Composition:

Wins: Mention worthy achievements
Numbers: Numerical representation of our performance
Deep dive: Topics that need to be discussed in depth
Tasks and Challenges: Follow-up tasks in line with discussion

With the end of the weekly team meet, an eventful Thursday had come to an end.

The One About This Blog (Day 4):

My fourth day at EIQ was not only my second remote working day but also a Friday. FRIYAAY! The tasks I had for the morning were read a little bit about our clients. I got to know what our clients do in terms of business and what their business goals are. This study was followed by a short analysis of what these clients do, again using google analytics and NinjaCat.

The highlight of the day was a session on content writing with Karmen. Her session on writing for the web included multiple examples of good and bad writing. She made me understand that writing for a crowd is just like trying to read their minds. It is important to read their thoughts and cater to the needs of that crowd.

A brief part of the session also included information on structure, images, formatting and other such neglected factors. Some of the resources that she shared helped me in writing this post.

Well, with the week coming to an end, I had just one task to complete before I could sip onto the madness of the weekend – updating the notes for our daily huddle for Monday morning.

The One With WordPress (Day 5):

My fifth day at EIQ was a Monday. This was also my first Monday as a part of the team. Honestly, the best part of this day was just after I woke up and realized that I did not have the Monday Blues. I guess that is how it feels to work a job you really like. My Monday was a busy one, and what I had most to look forward to was a Web Development session with Lincoln and a Local Search Optimization session with Vikram.

The morning started off with some pending tasks from before the weekend. Just after lunch, Vikram and I got together for a short session on how Local SEO is carried out. The session was a great add-on to the other sessions I’d had with him as they were like joining different pieces of a puzzle.

After my first session, it was now time for a Web Dev walkthrough with Lincoln. This was the most technical session as yet and gave insights on how websites are developed, how they are themed and what goes into making an effective web page. Lincoln also walked me through some of the applications that would come in handy when wanting to create an effective website or landing page. This session definitely gave me a thorough introduction to Web Development.

This was the end of not just a great Monday, but also a fantastic first week at ElementIQ!

Guest Post: How To Get More Students For Your Online Course

September 12, 2017 by elementiq

In the 21st century, education has become more advanced. You can actually take a course on the other side of the world. Learning is no longer restricted to textbooks and e-learning has taken over. Both students and instructors find online courses appealing. Online studies improve accessibility for those who may not be able to sit in a classroom.

Why Choose Online Learning?

Distant learning gives instructors a greater reach. They make education accessible to those who may not live near a school. Online courses are exceptionally popular, and they are only improving.

Managing an e-learning business is just like running any other type of company. The success of your online course depends on how well the content of it appeals to your target audience.

You need to gain credibility and trust with your clients. You can do this by building a reputable website with good reviews and ratings. Advertising plays a key role in catching their attention. In this post, we will discuss how you can get started in promoting your own e-learning program. We will focus on how you can promote your services online, and attract an audience that is ready to learn.

Start An Email Marketing Campaign

Email marketing is a great way to keep those interested and updated about your online courses. Gather emails from your subscribers. List building is critical to an effective email marketing campaign.

Be sure that your website has a call-to-action. Let users know that if they want to receive more timely updates on your programs and enrollment, they should subscribe to your email list. You cannot send emails to them without their permission. It’s against the law to use purchased email lists.

When your course is ready to go live, you should send an email to your subscribers. It’s because, as per Cognique, 91% individuals check their inbox routinely. And 74% say that they prefer correspondence through emails.

In your emails, highlight what students will learn from your course along with testimonials of successful students that have taken it in the past. People love user reviews.

Likewise, include a call to action (CTA), where you give them the option to register for your course.

Reach More People Over Social Networks With Paid Advertising

Social media has consistently been a stand-out option for promoting any kind of business. You should definitely use social media networks to promote your online course.

You can easily connect with individuals over Pinterest, LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and so forth. Setup accounts for your company/institution if you haven’t already and post valuable content that appeals to your target audience. Include a link to your website in your bio so users can learn more if they are interested.

Share content that would incentivize someone to like or follow your page. The very content you create needs to relate to the audience you are trying to attract – students. Create different content buckets that will frame the kinds of content you share on social networks. This means critical updates about your course offerings, eligibility, enrollment, deadlines, and benefits should all be within the content buckets you create.

Furthermore, given that platforms like Facebook prioritize advertising platforms. It’s obviously a main source of revenue for them and they want you to invest money with the benefit of being able to reach people in a targeted manner. You should target a particular group of individuals who you believe will want to register for your course.

Post Frequent Blog Posts

You may be writing articles habitually for your site, but in order to maximize your business, it is best to post on a regular basis. Create a monthly blog post calendar, with topics and titles that are ready to go.

Write content based on keyword research. Get to know what your leads are searching for when they find your course. Try to answer any questions they might have in your blog posts.

You can also write helpful tips for those who are currently enrolled in your e-learning program, or address questions they have in a Q&A blog post. Include a CTA at the end of your blog post, so that users who are interested in your writing and your program can learn more on your website.

Promote Yourself In Conferences

There are many ways to meet other people in your industry. Mingle with others who are interested in online learning. Try to attend summits, conventions and online events whenever possible. You can make valuable connections at these meetings and promote your company as well.

It is a good idea to bring your business card, pamphlets, and infographics about your business. Distribute this information to the individuals who have expressed an interest in your course. Introduce yourself at conventions, you can exchange knowledge with others hosting online courses.

If you meet people who want to register for your program, use a sign-up app to properly gather and archive those who are interested in learning more.

You can use an amazing tool like LeadDigits which can be downloaded easily and synced with a number of Email Marketing Providers (ESPs).

Get Started

Now that you know the basics about marketing your e-learning program, you can go ahead and get started. Simply follow the above steps and you should have a better idea about how to gather leads and properly market to them.
This is the best way to eventually retain more students in your online courses!

Author:

Clara Decker is the marketing manager at CouponsMonk, a deals, and discounts provider company. She is passionate about money saving, investment, and the finance industry. Clara supports non-profit agencies that provide healthcare solutions to handicapped and disabled individuals.