10 Zoom Backgrounds HubSpotters Love

When I first started working remotely, I quickly realized that I didn't like the available backdrops in my house.

First, there's the cluttered living room. Then, there's the rarely spotless kitchen. Or I could go with the yellow wall.

That's when I started looking into Zoom backgrounds.

I found a few funny ones, some professional ones, and even a couple of creative options. It turned out to be really fun to express myself with a Zoom background.

If you're in the same predicament, look no further.

Below, let's learn how to set up a Zoom background, and then we'll show you our favorite ones.

1. Open Zoom

Before we dive into our favorite Zoom backgrounds, let's learn how to set one up. To start, open your Zoom app and log in.

2. Go to Zoom "Preferences"

Once you're logged in, click "zoom.us" on the top left and then hit "Preferences." You can also get to this page by clicking your profile image on the top right corner, and then clicking "Settings."

3. Click "Virtual Background"

When you've opened your settings, click "Virtual Background" on the left-hand side.

4. Click the "Plus" sign and "Add Image"

Now, click the plus sign on the right, and click "Add Image." Voila. Now you can add any image that you have the rights to and that meets the image guidelines.

Tips for Determining When to Use a Zoom Background

So, when should you use a Zoom background?

Well, some days you might wake up and your living room is a mess, or the dishes haven't been washed, or your roommates are walking around.

In fact, I've actually had to take meetings in the bathroom because it was the only empty room in my house and I had an important meeting.

Whether it's a noise-related issue or you want to limit distractions in the background, that's when Zoom backgrounds come in handy.

Plus, these backgrounds can be a great way to break the ice. They can often be used as a conversation starter. A lot of people on my team were actually surprised when they learned that my house did not look like the Zoom background I always use (see screenshots above).

However, it's important to remember the tone of the meeting when you're choosing a background.

If there's a professional meeting, it probably isn't time to break out a Taylor Swift concert background (which I have and use for informal meetings).

Additionally, your Zoom backgrounds shouldn't be distracting. In fact, sometimes the point of the background is to lessen distractions.

So try to avoid super bright, or complex images. Also, make sure you have the rights to use the images you've downloaded. Your images shouldn't require licensing or attribution.

How to Troubleshoot Glitchy Backgrounds

Now, this probably isn't a surprise, but sometimes technology doesn't work as planned. If your background is glitching, try a few of these quick options to fix it.

• Sign out and sign in again
• Ensure virtual backgrounds are enabled
• Make sure your background meets the image requirements
• Update your Zoom app

Our Favorite Zoom Backgrounds

Now for the fun part. Choosing Zoom backgrounds is one of my favorite activities. Below are some of our top picks at HubSpot.

Zoom Backgrounds for Casual Meetings

1. Vacation Vibes

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2. Cute Animals

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3. Nature

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4. Concert

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Zoom Backgrounds for Formal Meetings

5. Library

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6. House

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7. Minimalist Architecture

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8. Splash of Color

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Original Zoom Backgrounds from HubSpot

9. Colorful Background

10. Bubbles

Zoom backgrounds can be a great way to limit distractions and start a conversation. Just remember to think about the tone of the meeting when you're choosing your background images.

10 Zoom Backgrounds HubSpotters Love was originally posted by Local Sign Company Irvine, Ca. https://goo.gl/4NmUQV https://goo.gl/bQ1zHR http://www.pearltrees.com/anaheimsigns

8 Innovative & Inspiring Examples of Augmented Reality in Marketing

For now, augmented reality (AR) is still largely a novelty -- AR's newness alone contributes to its ability to surpass print, online, and television advertisements in terms of shock-factor. As The Drum reports, AR can capture people’s attention for over 85 seconds, increase interaction rates by 20 percent, and improve click-through rates to purchase by 33 percent.

Right now, people will stop and look at AR-inspired experiences, regardless of the campaign's overall quality. But as more companies incorporate AR into their marketing strategies, and as AR technology becomes more ubiquitous, you’ll need to produce more thoughtful campaigns to impress your audience. Eventually, AR will become mainstream, and its prevalence in the industry will make it harder to compete.Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, has said that AR will one day be as important in our everyday lives as “eating three meals a day.” So, the question is -- how can your marketing strategy effectively capture an audience’s attention, once AR has become commonplace?

Here, we’ll look at eight companies that use AR in innovative and inspiring ways. These examples should be all the inspiration you need to brainstorm and execute a brilliant long-term AR marketing strategy.

Augmented Reality Examples

Augmented Reality for Product Marketing

1. Home Depot

Decorating a home isn’t easy -- how do you know if you’ll actually like the yellow paint that looks beautiful online, but might be too bright in your bathroom? What if that coffee table doesn’t fit in your living room like you’d hoped?

In 2015, Home Depot released their Project Color app, which uses patent technology to show users what a paint color will look like in their home. The AR technology takes into account lighting, objects, and shadows in the room, so you can see how that yellow shade will look in real life. If you don’t trust your own judgment, you can also share images from the app on social media, to get a friend’s opinion.

In 2017, Home Depot took it a step further -- now, you can also use their app to check out how objects like patio furniture, faucets, and other products look in your home.

Home Depot isn’t the only home furniture store to use AR to create value for their users -- Lowe’s and Ikea have similar AR technology built into their apps.

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2. Timberland

If you’re anything like me, the idea of trying on items in the dressing room can sometimes deter you from shopping at all. More than once, I’ve said, “I’ll buy it, try it on at home, and return it if I don’t like it,” just to avoid the hassle of carrying a pile of clothes into a dressing room line.

In the interest of convenience and comfortability, Timberland created a virtual fitting room in Moktow Gallery in 2014. Using Kinect motion sensing technology, Timberland’s virtual fitting room allowed shoppers to see an image of their face, and a similarly-sized model body, in different outfits.

If you’re going to use AR, you’ll want to brainstorm unique ways to help your customers avoid an otherwise burdensome process. While fitting rooms might not be the end of the world (first-world problems?), Timberland stands out as a helpful brand by offering customers a fun and useful alternative.

3. Sephora

There’s a reason many women don’t buy makeup products online -- it’s impossible to know if you’ll like the lip color or foundation coverage if you don’t try it on, in-store.

Sephora understands this struggle, and created an augmented reality experience, Virtual Artist App, with ModiFace to ensure Sephora app users can see how makeup products will look on their face via their phone’s camera. Users can also find out which tools or products they’ll need to apply certain products.

Additionally, Modiface’s augmented reality technology can show users the effects of months of skincare on their skin -- a visual they won’t find in-store.

Bridget Dolan, Sephora’s head of innovation, appreciates the necessity of a long-term AR strategy. “When it comes to augmented and virtual reality, it can only be successful if it’s truly useful,” Bridget told Glossy. “We weren’t interested in just buzzy. A lot of things like technical accuracy and timing had to come together, and there was a time last year when, during testing, we hit a tipping point.”

Sephora’s use of augmented reality isn’t just helpful for users -- it also drives sales by appealing to Sephora’s more tech-savvy consumers, and encouraging those consumers to become brand ambassadors by recording and sharing their augmented reality experiences online.

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4. AMC Theaters

Delivering a message when and where your audience wants to receive it is a critical component of a successful marketing strategy. This is especially true when it comes to AR.

AMC Theaters, understanding their audience is most interested in upcoming movie trailers when they’re at the movies, incorporated AR technology into their AMC app. When a user sees a movie poster in a theatre, they can open the AMC app on their phone, scan the poster, and receive relevant information, including a cast list and a trailer.

If they’re interested in the movie after scanning, they can also purchase a ticket immediately, within the app.

Ultimately, AMC Theatres is providing optimal convenience with their use of AR -- while a user can YouTube a trailer or Google a review, there’s an added incentive to check the movie out and purchase a ticket when the user can do it all in one place.

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5. Taco Bell

There are two big reasons you’d visit a Taco Bell in 2012 -- to try their new Doritos taco shell, or to play with their augmented-reality packaging.

Taco Bell placed an AR feature on each Locos Tacos box and soda cup for their Doritos shell campaign. When a user scanned the box with the Taco Bell app, they could see product-related Twitter and Facebook content on their phones.

By connecting their users with live social media content, Taco Bell successfully used AR to cultivate a stronger sense of community. They also showcased their brand as a major player in innovation, particularly in the fast-food industry.

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6. StubHub

Augmented reality enables you to both visualize and interact with a space -- two critical functions when choosing how much you’re willing to pay for a stadium seat.

For Super Bowl LII, StubHub introduced an AR feature on their mobile app that allowed ticket buyers to see a virtual 3D model of the U.S. Bank Stadium, as well as nearby parking garages and concession stands. This enabled potential buyers to visualize their full experience before purchasing, and minimized the risk of paying for a subpar seat.

StubHub’s reliance on AR solved for a common customer problem -- as StubHub CTO Matt Swann points out, "We’re solving for real pain points, not just tech for the sake of tech. For a lot of people, it's not an event you just show up for, it's kind of a bucket list item."

Particularly for out-of-towners, the ability to virtually compare different seat locations adds a level of comfort for hesitant buyers.

Back in 2016, the company also introduced a “virtual view” option on their app, letting ticket buyers preview their view from their seats before purchasing. The results were tremendous -- StubHub saw app engagement more than double within one year.

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AR and Experiential Marketing

7. Netflix

To market season two of the Netflix original series Stranger Things, the streaming company launched a series of AR/VR lenses on Snapchat. With the lens shown in the video below, users could record videos of themselves walking through one of the houses seen in the show, as monsters called Demigorgons pop out of the wall. 

Aside from this lens, which is incredibly immersive for a mobile app, Netflix has also leveraged AR filters to promote its content.  The video below highlights just a few that were featured on apps like Facebook and Snapchat. 

8. Pepsi

In 2014, Pepsi installed AR technology in a London bus shelter, making it appear as if a lion, UFOs, flying saucers, and other objects were headed straight for Londoners.

The production showcased Pepsi’s playful personality and provided the audience with an exceptional experience. Afterwards, a video of the bus shelter’s AR technology attracted over six million views on YouTube -- making it one of YouTube’s most viewed advertising campaigns.

Pepsi’s campaign highlights the effectiveness of AR when a company truly knows their audience. Pepsi didn’t need to use AR to advertise their products -- instead, they trusted their consumers to appreciate the surreal experience and naturally share the story with friends, creating buzz around their brand as a result.

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The State of AR in Marketing

While a number of brands still can't access AR quite yet, marketers can still take a note from how these brands creatively implemented a new technology into their content marketing strategies. 

Ultimately, as the media landscape changes and technology gets more advanced, marketers at business of different sizes might have more opportunities to implement technology. And, when they do, they'll need to think creatively and innovatively about how they invest in it. 

To learn more about AR in marketing, check out this ultimate guide. If you want to dive deeper into virtual reality, you might enjoy this list of examples.

 

8 Innovative & Inspiring Examples of Augmented Reality in Marketing was originally posted by Local Sign Company Irvine, Ca. https://goo.gl/4NmUQV https://goo.gl/bQ1zHR http://www.pearltrees.com/anaheimsigns

Bing PPC Ads: How They Work (and Compare to Google Ads)

If Googling has ever let you down, you may have come across another search engine called Bing.

This search engine is powered by Microsoft and strives to outdo Google at every turn. Bing wants to revolutionize digital search and rival the industry's long-standing powerhouse.

It's an ambitious goal, but one place where Bing differentiates itself is through its Pay Per Click ads, or PPC. According to our guide, Pay Per Click ads are, "a form of search engine marketing (SEM) where the advertiser pays for clicks on an ad."

Simply put, the advertiser has to pay the publisher whenever a visitor interacts with the ad. In exchange, the ad is added to the search engine's database, which displays the ad whenever the content matches a visitor's searched keyword.

While Google Ads offers a popular PPC feature, Bing's has unique advantages that distinguish itself from the search engine giant. And, if you're the owner of a small- to medium-sized business, you may be more interested in Bing's PPC benefits than Google's.

In this post, let's break down how Bing PPC ads work, as well as how they compare to Google Ads.

Bing PPC

Bing PPC ads operate on Microsoft's three popular search engines: Bing, Yahoo, and AOL. When you use Bing campaigns, your content is shared across all of these platforms at once. With over five billion monthly searches being made on the Microsoft network, this makes Bing PPC a notable marketing tool for paid ad campaigns.

In terms of functionality, Bing PPC ads work similarly to Google ads. You bid on keywords based on their traffic volume, then your ad is displayed when that keyword is searched, and finally, you pay Bing whenever a visitor clicks on your ad. Like Google, your ad's copy can have up to 80 characters and Bing even has support tools that can help your team build a cost-effective keyword list, so you never waste money on ads that aren't being displayed.

With Bing, you can also set up targeting filters that determine where and when an ad will be published. For example, if you want your ad to only appear on mobile devices, you can select the mobile traffic option. Or, if you want the ad to appear solely on Yahoo, you could filter it from Bing and AOL. This gives your team more flexibility and optimizes the effectiveness of your PPC campaign.

Bing PPC ads present a timely opportunity for marketing teams. It's less competitive than Google AdWords, and its users shop online 36% more than any other search engine. While Google AdWords is still a very powerful tool, there are some advantages of Bing that makes it attractive for small- to medium-sized businesses. So, now that we're familiar with how Bing PPC ads work, let's discuss some of the key differences between Bing PPC and Google AdWords.

1. Bing Ads offers unique filter options and social extensions.

While both Bing PPC and Google AdWords allow you to filter your ad's targeting, Bing's software has a unique innovation that sets it apart from Google. With Bing, you can set age filters for your search ads, so only visitors of a certain age group will see them. Or, you can set up a location filter so visitors in a certain part of the world see your content. This way, you'll ensure qualified leads are being exposed to your marketing campaigns.

Another key feature that Bing has an advantage in is its social extensions. Social extensions are a line of copy on your ad that tells the visitor how many social media followers your business has. On Bing, this feature shows your social following for Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Google AdWords, however, can only show you the number of Google+ followers.

2. Google has a bigger reach, but Bing's audience is older and tends to have higher income.

According to Microsoft, Bing represents more than 34% of the world's desktop search engine marketplace. That means about one in every three people will use Bing over another search engine.

And, more importantly, Bing's PPC ads can reach 60 million users that Google AdWords cannot.

In terms of the largest audience, Google is the outright favorite. But, that doesn't mean Bing isn't worth your investment. Bing has over 137 million users who search roughly six billion times each month. These people tend to be older than Google's users, and have an income of more than $100K.

So, even though Google has a larger audience, Bing works with users who have substantial buying power.

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3. Bing users are interested in financial and shopping services, so you might see higher conversion rates on Bing depending on your industry.

When tested by Blue Corona, Bing PPC experienced a 34% higher click-through rate than Google ads.

Additionally, new research found that financial and shopping services have experienced the most success with Bing PPC. This is mostly attributed to MSN's and Yahoo's popular financial reporting, which yields more keywords related to online shopping and business reports.

Bing users tend to be more engaged with sites after ad clicks, as well. In one industry, Bing ads had a 56% higher conversion rate than Google AdWords. That's because Bing users typically have more interest in e-commerce and are willing to spend money online.

4. Bing Ads often appear higher on the search results page.

Since there are fewer users on Bing, its ads tend to display higher on search results than Google AdWords. In fact, Bing ads appear 35% higher in search results than Google ads.

Bing copies Google's keyword auction technique, which favors its users because they don't have to outbid Google's massive user base. With Bing's less-competitive market, you won't have to bid as much on keywords to maintain your spot on the search results page.

5. Bing has lower cost-per-click.

With fewer competitors bidding on keywords, you can expect to spend less on your Bing ads. In fact, one business spent 35% less on Bing ads than it did on Google AdWords.

In terms of cost-per-click (CPC), ReportGarden found that the average CPC for Bing was $7.99 whereas Google's was $20.08. Since there's less overall traffic occurring on Bing, CPC is typically less expensive.

This presents an opportunity to obtain a strong ROI if you can capitalize on the right keyword at the right time.

Google Ads vs. Bing Ads: Which One is Right for Your Business?

If you're choosing between Google AdWords and Bing PPC, both tools can be valuable assets to your marketing team.

With Google, you have access to a massive audience with users from many demographics, and you can trust that your content will be displayed on the world's preferred search engine.

However, this space is highly competitive, and you'll need to monitor your campaign diligently if you want to see a positive return on your investment. Your marketing team will need plenty of means and experience to make Google AdWords a reliable source of lead generation.

Bing PPC presents a lower-risk option for paid ad campaigns. You still have access to a large audience, but keyword bidding isn't as competitive as Google.

The tradeoff here is that Bing traffic is significantly lower than Google's. So, while your ads may be positioned higher and cost less, they may not be seen by as many people. That limitation may be discouraging to larger companies that have bigger marketing budgets.

For more information about PPC ads, read these PPC campaign tips.

Bing PPC Ads: How They Work (and Compare to Google Ads) was originally posted by Local Sign Company Irvine, Ca. https://goo.gl/4NmUQV https://goo.gl/bQ1zHR http://www.pearltrees.com/anaheimsigns

How to Determine a Bidding Strategy for Different Types of Ads

When I first learned how to ride a bike, I remember being scared. It was a daunting process because I'd never done it before and was terrified of falling.

I actually remember feeling similarly when I first started getting into paid advertising campaigns at the marketing agency I worked at. The first time doing anything can be an intimidating process.

But as a marketer, it's important to understand how to set up your paid advertising campaigns so you get the most out of your budget.

To do this, you can use several types of bidding strategies for different types of ads.

Below, let's review the bidding strategies that will drive results when you use Facebook ads and PPC/Google Ads.

Facebook Ads Bidding Strategy

When you're just getting started with Facebook Ads, it's not easy to figure out what strategy to use.

Luckily, Facebook has a guide that explains the different bidding strategies you can use. Let's dive into those strategies and figure out how to determine which one is right for you.

1. Lowest Cost (Auto Bid)

With this strategy, you won't have a lot of manual work to do. In fact, Facebook is the one who sets up the bid automatically.

If you want to spend your full budget, this is a good choice for you. It's a hands-off strategy and you can get more bang for your buck while spending your budget.

So, how do you know if this is a strategy you'd want to implement? Well, this is a good idea if the goal of your campaign is brand awareness, impressions, traffic, post engagement, or lead generation.

2. Bid Cap

This strategy is slightly different because of the manual processes. For this one, you'll be the one who sets up the bidding.

This is a good option if you want more control over the cost. In fact, with this strategy, you might not even spend your full budget.

This type of strategy works for the same types of ads as the lowest cost strategy, it's just more manual and gives you more control over your spending. Plus, it can help you increase competitiveness against other advertisers.

3. Cost Cap

If the goal of your ads is traffic, event responses, offsite conversions, or lead generation, then this is a good option as well.

With this strategy, Facebook sets the bidding while you determine the maximum amount you're willing to spend.

You could use this type of bid strategy if you want to maximize cost-efficiency and keep cost within a certain threshold.

4. Target Cost

Another semi-automatic option, this strategy will allow Facebook to choose the bid while you set a target price. This is the price that you'd like to strive for, but Facebook could over or underspend slightly.

If you want to maintain a consistent cost, this is a good strategy to look into. You'll be able to predict your cost and get the most conversions possible at your target cost.

However, it's important to keep in mind that you could lose out on other cheaper options.

This is a good strategy if the goal of your ad is traffic, lead gen, or conversions.

5. Value Optimization with Minimum Return on Ad Spend (ROAS)

If you set your objectives to app installs, conversions, or catalog sales, then this is an interesting bid strategy to consider.

With this strategy, Facebook sets up the bid that's specific to optimizing value. If you're using ROAS as the primary metric of success, this is a good option.

This bid strategy will focus the campaign on the bottom line, so you get the most opportunities while maintaining a minimum ROAS.

6. Highest Value

If you want to spend the full budget and get the highest ROAS, then this is a good bidding strategy.

It's hands-off, meaning Facebook manages the bidding. You can spend your budget, while achieving the highest value results.

This is a good strategy if the goal of your ad is app installs, conversions, or catalog sales.

Now that we know more about Facebook ads bidding strategies, let's dive into strategies you can use with pay-per-click (PPC) ads, whether it's through Google or another search engine.

Google Ads/PPC Bidding Strategy

Similarly to Facebook ads, getting started with PPC ads can seem like a difficult task if you've never done it before.

Before you review the options for Google bidding strategies, it's important to understand how to build a campaign.

In the video below, HubSpot Academy reviews how to build your first Google Ads campaign and explains how the Google Ads auction system works.

Now, let's dive into the options that Google has for bidding strategies.

1. Manual Cost Per Click (CPC)

Similar to the manual strategies for Facebook, if you want to have more control over the cost and spend, this is a good strategy for you.

With manual CPC, you select the price that you're willing to pay for each click. Then, Google will ensure you never spend over that amount for a click.

2. Target Cost Per Acquisition (CPA)

With this strategy, you can set a target CPA that lets Google know how much you want to spend on producing an action.

According to Google, "Using historical information about your campaign and evaluating the contextual signals present at auction-time, Target CPA bidding automatically finds an optimal bid for your ad each time it's eligible to appear. Google Ads sets these bids to achieve an average CPA equal to your target across all campaigns using this strategy."

With this set up, you pay for conversions rather than clicks.

3. Target ROAS

Similar to the ROAS strategy for Facebook, you can determine how much you want to get back from your ad spend with PPC ads as well.

This is a great strategy to use if you want to get more conversion value at a target ROAS that you've set yourself.

4. Maximize Clicks

Sometimes when you set up a PPC campaign, all you care about is maximizing your clicks.

When that's the case, you can use this strategy to let Google adjust your campaign automatically to get the most amount of clicks.

This is the simplest, most straightforward way to bid for clicks. All you need to do is set your average daily budget and Google will do the rest.

5. Maximize Conversions

On the other hand, if conversions are the main metric you're using for success, you might want to look into a maximize conversions strategy.

With this strategy, Google will focus on optimizing your bid strategy to help you get conversions.

This is a good strategy to use if you want to spend your entire budget while getting the most conversions possible.

6. Target Search Page Location

If you want your ad to rank in a specific place on the search engine results page, this is a good strategy to consider.

Google will optimize your bidding strategy to get your ad to show up in a specific place.

7. Target Outranking Share

With this type of strategy, Google allows you to choose how often you want to outrank your competitors.

This is a good strategy if you're focused on increasing the competitiveness of your ads.

8. Enhanced CPC

With this strategy, you can automatically adjust your manual bids to try to maximize conversions.

This is just an enhanced version of the manual CPC strategy. If you're testing out CPC ads, this is a good strategy to learn more.

Ultimately, you should experiment and figure out which strategies work for your business. Even if you do an automatic bidding strategy, you should watch it carefully and monitor the results.

How to Determine a Bidding Strategy for Different Types of Ads was originally posted by Local Sign Company Irvine, Ca. https://goo.gl/4NmUQV https://goo.gl/bQ1zHR http://www.pearltrees.com/anaheimsigns

20 Free Professionally Designed Landing Page Templates

When it comes to turning web visitors into leads, landing pages convert at 23% on average, making it the highest converting type of signup element.

A strong landing page usually offers your website’s visitors a resource, such as a piece of content, in exchange for contact information. Sharing or hyperlinking to the URL of a landing page, rather than a homepage, also increases the likelihood of turning traffic into conversions.

While landing pages can play a vital role in lead generation, they don’t have to be complicated. In fact, you should aim for a page that’s concise and inviting, rather than complex and overwhelming.

Rather than just placing a rigorous contact form on a page, it can be more productive to tease an interesting offer or a free resource in exchange for only a small amount of information.

Even when you know what you’re going to offer and what information you’d like to receive from a visitor, the idea of building a landing page can still feel daunting.

If you don’t have the bandwidth to build a page yourself, have little experience in design software, or have limited resources to hire a designer, using a pre-designed template could be the most efficient way to launch a professional looking page in a short amount of time.

20 Free Professionally-Designed Landing Page Templates

We’ve put together a list of 20 free, easy-to-use templates that can guide you through the process of building your next landing page.

1. Royce

Available on Squarespace

Royce is specialized for event reservations. There is no navigation bar, but the layout features a customizable background image, a headline, and a call-to-action button that says “RSVP.”

To fill out the form and reserve a spot, visitors can click the RSVP button to see a form appear, or scroll down below the fold to see a static reservation form. This is an interesting template because it amplifies visuals and keeps the layout simple while still offering visitors two ways to convert.

2. Architecture

Exclusively Available With HubSpot's Free Landing Page Builder

The Architecture landing page template is ideal for capturing blog subscribers with an attractive hero image at the top, space to provide context about what users can expect if they subscribe, and the default module for past content right below. It can also be customized with your brand and edited with drag-and-drop functionality.

3. Invest

Available on HubSpot

This design includes a photo, customizable text, no navigation (to keep visitors focused on your offer), and a short form. Users can also customize and add other elements such as the icons seen at the bottom of the image. Below the fold, users can also add more information about the offer or company.

4. Hubstrap

Available on HubSpot

The Hubstrap template has a simplistic look and feel but devotes a bit more room to text. This might be a good option if your content offer has less imagery to go with it. For example, you might use this page to describe an offer or a long whitepaper on a topic related to your industry. Users can similarly personalize the design and add drag-and-drop sections to the page.

Unlike the above landing pages, this example does include navigation. However, it’s simple enough that it doesn't detract from the offer.

5. Vibrant

Exclusively Available With HubSpot's Free Landing Page Builder

Let's say you don't want your conversion elements at the top of the page, instead opting for a longer-form sales page. Vibrant is a modern, minimalist-looking template that can be customized with your detail-rich sales copy. Pairing each section with a compelling image is a great start to creating a user experience prospects will love.

6. Landing Form

Available on HubSpot

This template includes a background image with a dark overlay, a headline, text, bright call-to-action buttons, and a form. It eliminates the navigation bar but includes a button at the top of the page. The image also has a dark overlay to keep it visible, but less distracting. As you scroll below the fold, this template also includes spots for more imagery and details that could relate to the product or offer.

 

7. Gradient

Available on HubSpot

Gradient is sleekly designed for a content-based offer. It has a simple layout with a form, headline, description text, photo, and logo, but continues the theme of no navigation. Like the other HubSpot templates, users can add a photo or product shot, a background image that appears behind a gradient color, and descriptive text. They can also adjust or change the gradient background’s color.

8. University

Available on Wix

This layout may be useful for those seeking leads for an educational event, course, or a similar service. The form is more detailed, but the layout itself also allows room for more text and imagery. Above the fold, you can see a headline, supporting images, and a form. If you keep scrolling, there are additional sections where more text and imagery can be placed.

9. Skyline

Available on Wix

This template may be helpful to a company or individual that hasn’t yet launched a website or product but still wants to gain early leads in the meantime. Above the fold, there’s a giant headline area, where the template has “Coming Soon” printed.

When you scroll down, you can see a quick description of the company and a box where visitors can add their email. Users can also add a photo or video to the background.

10. Bold

Exclusively Available With HubSpot's Free Landing Page Builder

With a big headline, a short subtitle, and a conversion element above the fold, Bold makes its point concretely and succinctly. This makes it a great landing page for nearly any piece of gated content from ebooks to newsletters and tools.

11. Online Store Coming Soon

Available on Wix

This template is very simple. Like the above “Coming Soon” template, the text could be edited to use this layout for a different purpose. There is no navigation and any information about the company is off to the corners. This layout allows space for a clear product shot, as seen with the shoes. Headline text, a small amount of descriptive text, an email box, and a button are pre-designed in the layout. Users can also link their social media accounts to the icons under the “Notify Me” button.

12. Lead-Gen Landing Page

Available on Wix

This template seems specialized for B2B products. It allows users to edit and customize the text and images through Wix. Users can also place background videos into the layout. The page is designed to be long, with the form and call-to-action above the fold followed by sections that detail different aspects of a company or firm, such as staff information.

13. Fagri

Available on WordPress.org

Fagri was designed broadly for multiple purposes and industries. According to its description, the theme’s widgets, such as the contact form are customizable. Users can also change the text and images. Although there is a navigation bar, the layout’s design still draws attention to the text, call-to-action buttons, and the contact form.

14. Rally

Exclusively Available With HubSpot's Free Landing Page Builder

Great for ebooks, Rally establishes a three-column format at the top to help website visitors visualize the offer, digest what it's about, and convert above the fold. If they need more information — for example, if you're offering an in-depth white paper or report — additional modules can be added to further persuade them to opt in. It also helps that the form design is fantastic, offering a place to craft a true value proposition that conveys what they will get out of the information.

15. Real Estate Landing Page

Available on Wix

Although this template doesn’t offer a resource for information, it can be edited and customized to include an offer. As you scroll down the page, the background image can remain static. With the current page’s design, there is room to add company information below the fold. There is also a second form at the very bottom so visitors will have another chance to convert.

16. Construction and Lawyer Landing Pages

Both Available on WordPress.org

Wordpress also offers two similar Lawyer Landing Page and Construction Landing Page templates. Although the original designs are targeted at the two job fields, they can be customized to fit other brands and industries. Both have a header image, overlaid text, and an arrow pointing to a decently sized form above the fold. They also both offer the visitor a free quote.

17. Nightfall

Exclusively Available With HubSpot's Free Landing Page Builder

Another landing page with versatility and flexible real estate with regard to layout, Nightfall is a great option if you want to create a gripping narrative around your copy. With plenty of room to give context about the offer before presenting a conversion element and drag-and-drop capability for extra modules, this template can be adapted for long-form content or short, snappy, and hard-hitting copy.

18. Gardenhouse

Available on MailChimp

This template does not include a navigation bar, which forces a visitor to focus on the given offer. Towards the bottom of the page, it can be customized to include logos or other company information. Like all MailChimp landing page themes, this layout is optimized for mobile and will automatically adjust to different screen sizes.

19. Bandmates

Available on MailChimp

This template is also pretty simple with room for customization. It similarly removes navigation and keeps the company logo, text description, and a subscribe form above the fold.

Users can also drag in more elements, like text or form boxes, into the design. Just below the form, users can include a product shot or another image. The blue background allows the form and call-to-action button to pop, but these colors can also be customized to fit your brand.

20. O-Book

Available on Unbounce

Unbounce layouts come with its subscription, but here's one of the landing pages that you can test out with a free 14-day trial. This template is focused on book-specific lead generation. There is a clear spot for a product image, headlines, detailed description text, and a form box.

The top navigation is minimal, but it does include social media buttons. Since this layout is only free for a trial period, this might be a better option for a company that has already gained revenue from landing pages and is looking to test out a more detailed, but affordable design.

Landing Page Best Practices

The above templates already follow a number of landing page best practices. For example, many of them exclude a navigation bar, which may detract attention or clicks away from the offer on the page. Most of them also leave room for a photo or video. While photos offer a great product tease, videos have also been seen to increase conversions by 86%.

To learn about other landing-page best practices, check out this guide.

Editor's note: This post was originally published in May, 2019 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.

20 Free Professionally Designed Landing Page Templates was originally posted by Local Sign Company Irvine, Ca. https://goo.gl/4NmUQV https://goo.gl/bQ1zHR http://www.pearltrees.com/anaheimsigns

The Ultimate Timeline of Google Algorithm Updates (+ Recommendations)

Google is a fickle beast. The search engine is imperative to the success of your web content, but no one truly knows how the Google algorithm works (except for the elusive Google search-quality team, of course).

Google’s search engine is also ever-changing. Google didn’t become the number one search engine in the world without prioritizing its user experience. It achieved this leading position by continually updating its algorithm to meet its user’s needs and delivering the best possible results (not to mention engaging users with new daily doodles on the Google homepage).

If your content doesn’t keep up with these Google algorithm updates, you risk losing valuable space on the search engine result page (SERP) … as well as potential visitors, leads, and customers.

In this guide, we’ve covered everything you need to know about the Google algorithm, its nine most recent updates, and how your company and content can follow suit.

While the exact number isn't certain, SEOs believe there are certain ranking signals that Google considers when displaying results. These include factors like keyword usage, domain history, site usability, and more.

This is why, as businesses and marketers, we must optimize our on-page SEO, off-page SEO, and technical SEO to make it easier for our pages to rank and so consumers can find our content.

Did you know over 3.5 billion Google searches are made every day? The search engine is by far the most popular among its competitors, which means the vast majority of your audience (and potential audience) is actively searching Google for information your website or blog can deliver.

How can you ensure your content ranks high enough on the SERPs to get your audience’s attention? By adhering to the Google algorithm and its updates.

Since its conception twenty years ago, Google has made thousands of updates to how its search engine works, including the ones in this timeline. In fact, the team makes small updates to its algorithm on an almost-daily basis.

Google also releases Core Updates a few times a year — you can read about Google's recommendations on those here.

In this post, I’ve detailed nine of the biggest and most impactful Google algorithm updates in chronological order. 

1. Google Panda (2011)

Release date: February 23, 2011

Google released the Panda Update to combat thin, duplicate, or plagiarized content, keyword stuffing, content farms, websites with high ratios of ad-to-content, and other quality issues. It was also released to reward unique, high-quality content.

Google Panda gives every web page an internal quality score that attempts to mimic human qualification, i.e. how a human might respond to and rank a piece of content. This score is then factored into how each website ranks on the SERPs.

Panda was originally introduced as a filter for search engine results, but in January 2016, it was added to the core algorithm.

How to adjust for the Google Panda Update:

• Use a site crawler like Botify or Screaming Frog to identify thin (e.g. low word-count or duplicative) content on your website and blog. If you find any, consider combining and/or archiving those pages.
• Ecommerce sites are especially vulnerable to duplicative content — in these cases, use canonical URLs to indicate to Google which version of each page should be prioritized in the SERPs.
• Rewrite and update content to reflect better grammar, syntax, and language. Keep content formatting consistent.
• Remove or rework any low-quality or underperforming content. (You can identify this content based on low traffic and/or low conversion rates.)
• Focus on creating genuinely unique content that provides unique value to your visitors and customers. Google provides 20+ questions to help you determine quality and value.

2. Google Penguin (2012)

Release date: April 24, 2012

The Google Penguin Update was released to combat black-hat link building techniques, such as spammy links, link directories, and keyword-stuffed anchor text. Google calls them “black hat webspam” and defines them as “techniques that don’t benefit users, where the intent is to look for shortcuts or loopholes that would rank pages higher than they deserve to be ranked.”

Prior to the Penguin Update, link volume — regardless of quality — was a heavy influence on how pages ranked on the SERPs. Penguin attempts to better understand how websites were earning their links and ensure that only high-quality, trustworthy, and relevant links were rewarding the sites they led to.

Google Penguin only affects inbound links — the links leading to a site, not away from it. Penguin monitors for black-hat link building techniques and over-optimized anchor link text. This is when too many inbound links for one website contain the same anchor text, which can alert Google that the links aren’t natural or earned.

Penguin was also added to the core algorithm in late 2016.

How to adjust for the Google Penguin Update:

• Follow white-hat link building techniques to build high-quality, relevant backlinks.
• Don’t participate in Private Blog Network (PBN) link schemes, which often lead to site penalties.
• If you hire an agency or freelancer for link-building, make sure you ask how they’re building links. No money should be exchanged between the agency and the person or organization linking to your site.

3. Google Hummingbird (2013)

Release date: August 20, 2013

Google released the Hummingbird Update to provide a more conversational, human search experience. Google wanted to better understand the context of what people were searching for — versus the specific terms within their search query.

The Knowledge Graph was introduced the year before, but Hummingbird improved upon this feature. This update also brought about Google Authorship, which was discontinued in 2014.

Hummingbird uses natural language processing that includes semantic indexing, synonyms, and other features to interpret queries and produce results. It weeds out keyword-stuffed, low-quality content to create a more personalized, accurate search process and show SERP results that matched searcher intent.

How to adjust for the Google Hummingbird Update

• Focus on conceptual content, not simply keyword-driven content. Expand your keyword research to include different phrasing, commonly asked questions, and similar terms.
• Use tools like AnswerthePublic to expand on context when doing keyword research.
• Conduct competitive analysis by searching your keywords on a new Google SERP and see what related content and SERP features (like Knowledge Graphs or featured snippets) pop up.

4. Google Pigeon (2014)

Release date: July 24, 2014 (in the US) and December 22, 2014 (in the UK, Canada, and Australia)

Google released the Pigeon Update to better calibrate the local algorithms with the core algorithm. The goal of this update was to reward local businesses that have a strong organic presence with better SERP visibility. It was also to answer user search queries with accurate local results influenced by traditional web search ranking signals.

Pigeon treats local search the same as traditional organic search, just with local cues. It considers searcher location when displaying SERP results, and allows searchers to treat Google Search and Google Maps the same. For example, you can search “best accountant near me” in both engines, and the results should be similar.

How to adjust for the Google Pigeon Update

• Leverage on-page SEO and off-page SEO tactics to ensure Google recognizes your business’s location and other local ranking factors.
• Create content and media that associates your business with a specific location, such as a neighborhood, town, or city. This will help improve your local SEO.
• Register with Google My Business to manage how your business information appears on Google SERPs. Create and manage profiles on other important directories like Apple Maps, Facebook, Factual, Foursquare, Superpages, and Yelp.
• Make sure your location information is consistent across all your web properties, i.e. your website, social media, Yelp listings, etc.

5. Google Mobilegeddon (2015)

Release date: April 22, 2015

The Google Mobile Update (nicknamed “Mobilegeddon”) officially incorporated mobile-friendliness as a ranking signal. The update prioritized mobile-friendly websites on mobile SERPs, and the sites that weren’t mobile-friendly were either penalized or removed from the SERPs altogether.

Mobilegeddon was yet another effort by Google to continue providing the best possible search experience for its users. “When it comes to search on mobile devices, users should get the most relevant and timely results, no matter if the information lives on mobile-friendly web pages or apps,” Google announced in 2015.

Mobilegeddon penalizes websites that aren’t mobile-responsive and rewards those that are. It only affects mobile searches and individual web pages (not entire websites), and it affects queries and websites globally, in all languages.

(Since Google moved to mobile-first indexing, however, the mobile-friendliness of your site now impacts how you rank for every query.)

How to adjust for the Google Mobilegeddon Update

• Confirm your website is mobile-optimized! (Here’s a blog post on how to do this.)
• Use Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test tool to see how your website performs. This tool will show you how your site looks on a mobile device and alert you to any loading or processing problems.

6. Google RankBrain (2015)

Release date: October 26, 2015

The Google RankBrain Update was part of Hummingbird. RankBrain is a machine-learning powered component of Google’s algorithm that works to better understand searcher intent and deliver the most accurate, relevant SERP results.

Many SEO strategists believe it serves to measure how searchers interact with search results and then ranks the results accordingly. (This could explain why your SERP looks different when you search for the same thing multiple times.)

It has also been theorized that the RankBrain algorithm identifies relevance features for the websites that rank for a given query, establishing query-specific ranking factors and signals.

Google has called RankBrain the third-most important ranking signal.

How to adjust for the Google RankBrain Update

• Refer to the recovery steps recommended for the Hummingbird Update.

7. Google Snippet Length Increase (2017)

Release date: November 30, 2017

Google’s Snippet Length Increase Update increased the Google meta description length from 155 to 300, almost doubling the word count. The goal of this update was to provide more useful descriptions of web pages and help searchers better understand how a result might be relevant to their query.

For about six months, meta description lengths were reported to be between 160-300 characters (depending on the search and resulting content), but as of May 13, 2018, Google rolled back most snippet lengths to about 150 — where they originally were.

How to adjust for the Google Snippet Length Increase Update

• Given that Google rolled back their meta descriptions to their original length of ~150, we don’t recommend changing your snippets at this time.
• Keep your descriptions under 150 characters to ensure the full snippet shows up on SERPs.

8. Google Mobile-First Indexing (2018)

Release date: March 26, 2018

The Mobile-First Indexing Update was another nod from Google to those websites that are using a mobile-friendly website.

Here’s how Google explains: “[Historically,] our crawling, indexing, and ranking systems have typically used the desktop version of a page's content, which may cause issues for mobile searchers when that version is vastly different from the mobile version. Mobile-first indexing means that we'll use the mobile version of the page for indexing and ranking, to better help our – primarily mobile – users find what they're looking for.”

When producing search results, Google will continue to pull from a single index of data; this update means they’ll be populating more of this index with mobile versions of website content. Also, this update primarily affected how websites are indexed, not how they are ranked — but that’s not to say it’ll affect rankings down the line.

“Having mobile-friendly content is still helpful for those looking at ways to perform better in mobile search results,” Google says. “[But] we may show content to users that’s not mobile-friendly or that is slow loading if our many other signals determine it is the most relevant content to show.”

How to adjust for the Google Mobile-First Indexing Update

• As always, ensure your website is mobile-friendly. (If you have AMP and non-AMP pages, Google will prefer to index the mobile version of the non-AMP page.)
• If you have separate URLs for your mobile site (an m-dot site), confirm that your mobile page reflects the same content as your desktop site. (Google prefers to index your mobile URL.)
• Make sure structured data and metadata are used on both your desktop and mobile versions.
• Read through Google’s best practices for how to prepare for mobile-first indexing.

9. Google Medic Update (2018)

Release date: August 1, 2018

The Google Medic Update was the third, broad, core algorithm update of 2018. The disproportionate impact it has on sites in the health and wellness industries is how it received its nickname. However, it didn’t target those industries; it also had a large impact on websites in all other industries.

In general, SEO specialists theorized that the Medic Update was another update that targeted “quality” issues like thin, duplicate content, slow load times, inaccurate title tags, and bad user experience.

Unlike the other updates on this list, the Medic Update didn’t target a specific type of web content or release a new part of the core algorithm. However, Google released an official statement about it: “There’s no “fix” for pages that may perform less well other than to remain focused on building great content. Over time, it may be that your content may rise relative to other pages.”

How to adjust for the Google Medic Update

• Make sure your off-page SEO and technical SEO are intact and that there are no underlying issues.
• Continue to produce helpful content that provides unique value to your visitors.
• Follow white-hat link building techniques.

10. Google BERT Natural Language Processing Update (2019)

Release date: October 25, 2019

The Google BERT (Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers) update was an effort by Google to better understand the language in which people search. It's similar to RankBrain and serves as an additional effort to understand searches; it didn't replace it.

BERT was a significant search algorithm update. As reported by Google: "With the latest advancements from our research team in the science of language understanding ... we’re making a significant improvement to how we understand queries, representing the biggest leap forward in the past five years, and one of the biggest leaps forward in the history of Search."

In short, BERT helps Google users find useful and accurate information. The update allows Google to capture more of the nuance and context in queries and not lean so heavily on the use of prepositions or phrasing to clarify questions. (Check out some live examples of BERT here.)

BERT was also applied to featured snippets in over two dozen countries and languages.

How to adjust for the Google BERT Update

• Focus on writing high-quality, clear content and avoid writing for machines (as BERT) is Google's effort to not be a machine.
• Refer to the recovery steps recommended for the Hummingbird Update.

Grow Better with Google Updates

As a business owner and marketer, these Google updates may seem repetitive, detailed, and a lot of work. You’re not wrong. When I first reviewed these and considered the changes I needed to make to my website, I’ll admit I was a little overwhelmed.

But it’s important to remember that Google wants to create a fantastic search experience for its users … including you and me. These algorithm updates are designed to prune out the lazy, low-quality, and illegal content that’s not only filling up our search queries but also competing with our own business and marketing content.

In short, these algorithms are good things! It’s up to you to use them to your advantage.

Editor's note: This post was originally published in August 2019 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.

The Ultimate Timeline of Google Algorithm Updates (+ Recommendations) was originally posted by Local Sign Company Irvine, Ca. https://goo.gl/4NmUQV https://goo.gl/bQ1zHR http://www.pearltrees.com/anaheimsigns