Roland Dransfield Blog

Spoiler – there’s no one size fits all approach. We know, we’re sorry.

It’s no surprise that companies who blog generate more traffic and more than half have won a customer through this activity. A blog that's updated regularly with interesting, relevant content attracts new and returning visitors.

When introducing newcomers to content marketing, one of the biggest hurdles to overcome is the belief that their customers have neither the time, nor inclination, to delve into a lengthy blog post.
 
Despite what your own reading habits and conventional wisdom might suggest, long-form blog posts – among other types of content – are the most successful format on the internet.
 
In this guide, we'll explore why readers gravitate towards longer blog posts, how you can emulate the best performers and offer advice on how to go about producing long-form content that engages your key audiences.

As SME month comes to an end here at RDPR, we've decided to end proceedings with a detailed look at real-life examples of how some of the top SMEs in the region are utilising online marketing.

Using the SME 300 table produced by North-West Business Insider in November last year as a basis, we've delved into the web presence of the top ten companies to see how actively they're embracing online marketing, what platforms they're using and suggested potential areas where they could expand their efforts.

PR and marketing for SMEs can be a trial, especially when your business is just getting off the ground. While there's obvious benefits to promoting your product or service on a wider scale - smaller firms are often constrained by time, resources and budget.

In this guide, we'll examine some options that you can implement today for little-to-no cost and offer some top tips on getting started.

A large part of any digital agency's role is advising clients and prospective clients on how they can improve the way they use their website.

But while many companies are vaguely aware of issues with their site, devoting the time, resources and strategy needed to correct them often gets pushed to the back of the to-do list in favour of more pressing day-to-day tasks.

In this guide, we'll give you the low-down on how to objectively review your site, see how your current offering compares to that of your competitors and most importantly - offer advice on how to make the most of your online assets.

Content marketing is the marketing buzz word for 2013 and with good reason. The convergence of Google updates that penalise spammy content (and reward sites with a good stockpile of quality stuff) alongside the exploding popularity of social media means that more and more organisations are starting to behave like publishers.

The quality of your content has become one of the key things that differentiates you from your peers in the online world and it's therefore unsurprising that there's a growing amount of competition for the attention of prospects. However, not everyone has the time to churn out eye-turning content, nor the budget to outsource their efforts. And here's where the strategy of content curation can come in handy.

For small businesses, marketing is a key concern and finding the time, resources and tools to properly promote yourself can be a never-ending struggle.

Thankfully, the last decade has seen a sea change in the way we interact with the online world. With connection speeds growing and the ever-increasing proliferation of internet-capable devices, more people than ever are routinely turning to the web as part of their purchasing process.  

This changing behaviour has opened the floodgates for small businesses looking to attract leads through a process commonly referred to as inbound marketing. But how does this new discipline work and what are the best ways for SMEs to take advantage of the opportunities presented by the web?