Temple

Bringing Wisdom Online

Carmen Barends

How to help your customers find your website

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Are your clients finding your website? Do you know how to get people to find your website? We take a look at one of our clients who found a solution to this common problem.

Zylem SA focuses on sustainability. Soil health and plant health which ultimately equals human health. They help the agricultural industry ensure top health of their crops by taking care of the soil’s health.

Zylem is at the forefront of the industry producing environmentally friendly products that forge the way forward for agriculture. Their products just weren’t being found or seen by their customers online.

This left them feeling uncertain and confused as to a way forward for the business. They approached Temple to create a digital presence for their business to reach their market and to find a way to promote their homegrown products.

After discussions with Temple it was decided that:

  • A website would be designed and built
  • Products they produced would be promoted on the website
  • Google ads would be designed to inform the public about sustainable farming 
  • SEO and Google ads would point to their consulting and soil testing services.

Google Ads for website traffic

We needed to reach farmers via Google ads. After 3 months of testing and experimenting, we finally reached the sweet spot via display search ads.

Content Marketing for SEO ranking

A strategy creating more content has increased the organic presence of the website. This means uploading regular blog content which is being shared on Facebook and also putting together a monthly newsletter. 

The combination of Google ads display campaign, weekly blogs on the site, social sharing and a monthly newsletter create more awareness in the targeted audiences and increase sales.

At the beginning of the process, the client wanted to rank for “Seed potatoes”. To achieve this, we launched a Google ads campaign and optimised SEO so Zylem could rank for the particular keyword.

soil website

This strategy has worked so brilliantly for the client that they no longer have stock of the product and enquiries are still coming in.

We have paused the Google ads campaign but due to their organic search ranking Zyem still receive requests for Seed potatoes. We have had to slow down the flow of queries and try to close the tap for Seed potato enquiries.  

The client is receiving a minimum of two quality enquiries a day via their website’s online forms and Facebook enquiries.

Continuing Website Strategy

Google ads took about 3 months to reach its sweet spot. After this, we launched a more content-heavy strategy, which has run for about 4-6 months, after which we have seen more quality leads coming through.

With this strategy, Zylem SA has a digital presence and is getting more recognised locally and internationally in the sustainable farming industry. 

Temple is continuing with a “traditional digital marketing” strategy, which is Google ads and SEO (regular website content). The new Zylem website will be launching at the beginning of next year with more focus on soil testing and Zylem’s homegrown products.  

If you are looking for ways to get your business found, get in touch with us to put your business on the right track to success. We specialise in helping your business have an effective digital strategy and carrying it out successfully.

How to get more website traffic

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It is no good having a website when you are not getting any website traffic to it. A website is an effective business tool when it achieves the purpose it is designed for. Does your website generate sales and bring in business for you? Is it an awareness generator, or is it just a stake in a piece of internet real estate indicating you exist?

If generating traffic and enquiries that lead to business is your aim, then we will share some tips on how Midlands Pumps manages to achieve this goal.

Midlands Pumps was established in 1990 and supplies clients with installations, repairs and sourcing for all makes of pumps and pumping accessories for any application. Their services include borehole research and yield testing, dewatering and water quality testing.

They were not getting enough sales. The phones were not ringing like they were used to and they needed the business to continue to grow. Lack of sales and exposure was causing their business to suffer.

Midlands Pumps began to feel unsettled and anxious about the turn of events which was causing uncertainty in their business and where it was going.

They approached Temple to see how they could change their digital marketing and during discussions, decided to build out a “traditional digital strategy” including Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), content marketing and Google ads to increase website traffic. 

Search Engine Optimisation and Content for website traffic

SEO and regular content works hand-in-hand. Temple helped build out case study pages with a high keyword density in order to get better rankings on the organic search front. To keep the website relevant, more content was built out using the “before and after” state and the “problem and solution” state.

Website pages talking about the drought in Africa and rural developments needing clear water, as well as the local farming solutions were built to keep the content relevant to their services.

traffic

Google Ads for website traffic

Google Ads were initiated for Midlands Pumps:

  • A Brand Campaign was created to expose the brand to new audiences.
  • A Competitor Campaign was created to attract people already looking for a solution, and
  • A general Product and Service campaign.

Once we received a steady inflow of hits on the website, we implemented a remarketing campaign. 

A combination of regular fresh, relevant content was posted on the website and Google ad campaigns were added. Once these campaigns were running, Midlands Pumps began to receive a steady inflow of traffic and enquiries from the website.

The client is extremely busy to the point where he said “everything is working – don’t change anything”.

Google ads had an immediate impact, but everything started to reach its ‘sweet spot’ after a year and a half. Patience is a virtue we try to stress with all our clients when advising and assisting them in their digital marketing journey. This patience, for Midlands Pumps, was rewarded with an increase in queries and clients, and ultimately more business.

We monitor new methods, but at this point are continuing with their SEO and Google ads strategy. There are plans to upgrade the website and enable an e-commerce storefront run in conjunction with a Google ads shopping campaign.

If you are looking for ways to market and improve your business, get in touch with us to put your business on the right track to success.

Digital Debut | Nicole – Web Developer

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I am Nicole, a Web Developer at Temple.

I consider myself a down to earth individual, with an interesting upbringing. I’m in my early 30’s, married with 2 kids, living under the warm African sun, in sunny Durban. Thanks to my father’s career working for the United Nations, I have lived and grown up in multiple countries; Croatia, Rwanda, Tanzania and Zambia. I finally moved to sunny Durbs to study and begin my career, where I met my now-husband and settled down.

I have always loved art and design. During my last year of school, I did some research into what possible vocation I could go into with art as my base. I was surprised to find many options, but only one stood out for me, that was graphic design. I studied graphic design and it grew into a love for designing and building websites.

In the Beginning

My digital journey started when we got our first computer. I was 11 years old and was fascinated by how my Dad used it, not only for work presentations, but for personal projects. As soon as my Dad showed me how to use it, I was hooked.

Dev - Nicole

Skills that are needed as a Web Developer

For design, you need to not only have a keen eye for design and layout, but the right tools and you need to know which tools to use when. You also need to know your audience, what kind of people will be visiting a website, to enhance the user experience as much as possible. For development, an understanding of key programming languages is fundamental.

I’ve developed a lot of my skills from continuing my personal development; I prefer on the go learning. I have various mentors who have guided me in growing each of my skills, from client communication, project and time management amongst others.

My average day involves lots of project meetings, communicating with the Temple team as well as clients. I work on various website projects at one time, not only from the beginning of a website build/design, but well after it has been designed, built and approved.

Once a website goes live, it still needs attention with ongoing maintenance and support. Depending on my day, I can go from assisting with project management of a new website, to designing and building websites, to assisting with general maintenance and support.

Give an example of a successful campaign you have had at Temple

Client problem – Client who has a service of selling goods, but needed a simpler, easier way of selling their goods to their customers and getting paid in a timely and simpler manner.

Solution – This client came to Temple with their problem, our suggestion was to build an online e-commerce store which would, in turn, allow them to manage their products, stock and orders, all in one place. The process was simplified for their customers by allowing their customers to browse their in-stock products, place their orders and pay, all in one online shopping experience.

How was it carried out? – The team met with the client; from the project manager, inbound marketing manager and the developer, together they created the e-commerce website from concept, design, build and launch, keeping the client involved every step of the way.

What was the result? – The result was more than the client expected, their customers took to the new website with great excitement. The site has been running now for 2 years and we are currently looking at building a whole new custom solution to help manage the bulk of their sales and better fine-tune their internal processes.

If you are looking for a beautiful and efficient website, book an appointment now by getting in touch with us via our website. Make a difference for your business, get in touch now.

Digital Debut | Carmen – Social Media & Communications Manager

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I am Carmen, a quirky character who heads up Social Media Marketing and Copywriting at Temple, as well as an avid coffee consumer.

Writing has always been a passion as long back as I can remember, and I think it was journal writing that started the whole journey to copywriting. My love of stringing words together was nurtured at school, where I started writing short novels. Later in life, I started writing travel pieces for websites, commercial blogs, and eventually creating SEO structured blog content for various website clients at Temple.

In the Beginning

Social media marketing kind of happened to me more than I found it. I didn’t start using social media until it became a career. I found social media marketing very challenging when I started (who am I kidding, it still is). Maybe that is why I stuck with it, exploring the borders and wide-ranging territory it occupies to understand how it can be best utilised in a given situation. 

Social Media & Comms - Carmen

Skills needed in Social Media Marketing

I would say the ability to work with systems while allowing for creativity is a winning skill. Social media without any kind of systems and controls to manage work processes and measure results, is a surefire way to lose your mind and patience quickly. Another required skill is to be able to channel creativity to be put into a feasible strategy to carry it out.

I have been given the opportunity over the years to spend time doing courses with the likes of Red & Yellow, Digitalab and Digital Marketer, and developing those skills online. But also, I have made a lot of mistakes, which is a hard way to learn, but it works too. 

I do what a lot of people will tell you not to do … I wake up to social media. Early morning is primetime on social media, so this is a good time to be responding to questions and engaging with audiences. Next is planning what needs to be accomplished within the time available for the day with regard to setting up social calendars, content writing and content creation.

Developing content, in general, is not a quick task, especially when you are working with different clients who have varying strategies and brand voices. I try to end the day with something that my brain can be creative with, whether it is learning some new skills or coming up with new strategies for clients.

An example of a success with a Client while at Temple

Client problem – Organic growth and engagement was slow on Instagram.

Solution – To entice users to create user-generated content and interact with the brand.

How was this done? – The brand started using user content in stories and tagging them, which exposed the audience to fresh content from a variety of perspectives, as well as allowed the people tagging the brand to get exposure to a large audience. 

What was the result? – Fresh content and tagging increased for the brand, and resulted in increased engagement with comments, conversations and liking, which also increased reach and impressions for the brand and ignited growth in numbers.

If you are looking to build audience and engage future customers on social media, book an appointment now by getting in touch with us via our website. Take your business into new territory, join up for social media marketing with Temple now.

Digital Debut | Leesha – Google Ads & SEO Specialist

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I am Leesha, the Google Ads and SEO Specialist at Temple.

I started my career when I attained my Marketing Degree and Advertising Diploma. I set out to Johannesburg in 2011 to search for a job in my field of study. I had no experience in the Industry because I had just finished studying, and 99% of marketing jobs were looking to hire people with experience! This was somewhat of a challenge. The first company that offered me a position, I accepted.

In the Beginning

My digital journey started in Houghton, Johannesburg, when I was thrown into this wonderful world of digital marketing. Digital marketing was something I knew NOTHING about. I didn’t even understand what I was doing for the first few weeks.  

Little did I know that 9 years later I would still be in the same field with so much passion for this industry. Due to this ever changing industry, there is so much to learn and never a dull moment. 

Wisdom Online - Leesha

Skills needed for a Google ads and SEO Specialist

The skills needed by someone getting into this field are to be analytically minded, and have strong organisational and research skills. I was also aided by an incredible mentor in my first job who helped me hone innate skills for this line of work, and guide me to continue growing.

A day in this job is never boring. The first half of my day is spent on Google ads, making sure that all the campaigns have enough budget and optimising the campaigns in order to attain a better quality score, therefore, reducing the cost per click. The second half of my day I spend working on SEO, and making sure my clients are ranking for their specific set of keywords. During the month I spend time looking at overall traffic to my clients’ websites and send them detailed monthly reports. I also keep in contact with clients on a weekly basis to make sure that they are up to date on what is happening.

Give an example of a successful campaign you have had at Temple

Client problem – A client was not getting any leads. 

Solution – A Google ads campaign was launched and backed up with SEO optimisation.

How was this done? – I spent more time than was actually available to set up an indepth campaign with correct tracking and tagging. 

What was the result? – The client is now averaging 2 online enquiries a day and 5 phone calls a day. 

If you are looking for the Yoda of Google ads and SEO, then Leesha is the person you need to get in touch with. Book an appointment now, by getting in touch with us via our website. Make a difference for your business, get in touch now.