The voice of business in the Tees region | 57
Web.com staff at a recent Google training
event after the Stockton-based firm became
a Google Premier Partner.
“Teesside is becoming
more of a ‘tech town’ and
businesses who don’t
invest in technology and
marketing will, I feel, be
left behind.”
our customers a fantastic service in helping
them grow online.”
Last year saw impressive growth across
all things digital with internet use continuing
to soar.
Yet, Emma concedes: “50% of small
businesses don’t have a website and 38%
of people will stop engaging with a site if it
doesn’t have an appealing layout or design.
“Web.com know that when it comes
to design, one size does not fit all. All our
clients have unique needs, but failure to
have a mobile-responsive website and great
UX (user experience) could have a negative
impact on customer acquisition.
“Websites that haven’t been built with
these factors in mind are likely to have
lower search rankings; increased bounce
rates and lower conversion rates, thus
leading to lower sales.
“For every second your website delays
in loading, conversions may fall up to
20%. Additionally, 84% of people will not
make purchases through an unsecure
website. That’s why websites remain the
cornerstone of our clients’ digital marketing
strategies.”
As for lead-generation, Emma explains:
“The process starts by finding out where
your target market ‘lives’ on the web and
this is exactly what we help our customers
do.
“More than 50% of website traffic
is brought in through a search engine.
Marketing campaigns in the SME space
are driven from new business acquisition
activities.
“If an SME can put their services in front
of the right people at the right time, new
customers will be found profitably.
“We work with customers to build
campaigns which put their companies,
products, and services into the spotlight.
Through paid, organic and local search,
they build a business profile that gives
customers and search engines trust in a
company.”
Where once online advertising was an
uncertain bet, it is now the primary platform
for companies marketing in the UK.
“There is huge scope for Web.com
to capitalise on the growing marketing
budgets businesses now know they need,”
says Emma.
“We believe we’re best placed for market
share because we have a solution for
everyone. From small brochure websites to
complex marketing campaigns and larger
functionality-filled sites, we can meet the
needs of all customers.
“The secret to making it in the digital
sales world is the human touch. We have
the technology and systems in place to
achieve great results.
“However, it’s our people and their
expertise in each field that makes us stand
out from the rest.
“Our successful B2B sales teams strike
the human-digital balance customers
want and need in three core areas: speed,
transparency and expertise.”
Teesside is an area which Emma believes
could benefit from Web.com’s expertise.
“I believe the North-East of England in
general is a great place to live and work”
she enthuses.
“Businesses in our region continue to
grow at an accelerated rate, with small
businesses contributing £26.5billion to
the North-East economy and employing
359,000 people.
“As these businesses begin to thrive, this
leaves business owners less time to look
after their website and marketing. This is
where we can help and leave people to do
what they do best – the day-to-day running
of their business.
“Teesside is becoming more of a ‘tech
town’ and businesses who don’t invest in
technology and marketing will, I feel, be left
behind.”
As for the future of Web.com, well it is
constantly evolving – and the firm is proud
to have become a Google Premier Partner.
The agreement gives Web.com’s
marketing specialists access to Google
experts to help SMEs run Google Ad
campaigns with the help of Google certified
account managers.
“We’re committed to enhancing and
refining our marketing best practice and the
team attend regular training and meetings
at Google HQ to leverage the partnership,”
adds Emma.
“Ultimately, it’s all about bringing the
benefits of Google Ads to companies both
large and small.
“Web.com can help Google extend its
reach and services. The beauty of Google
Ads is ROI, and you can set a budget that
works for your business.
“We will also continue to keep our finger
on the pulse and improve everything we
do. Some of the team attended the Google
Partners Academy training at Manchester
recently to hone their skills and we recently
trained two members of staff to be certified
lead implementers of ISO27001, something
we hope to be fully certified within the next
12 months.
“We hope to keep penetrating the UK
market, occupying more of the agency
space and offering cutting edge products
and services.”
Adrian Blockus, Google’s head of channel
sales for the UK and Ireland, said: “We’re
pleased to have Web.com on board as a
Google Premier Partner.
“The team has the product knowledge,
advanced technology, insight and most
importantly, the right people needed to
create and optimise effective Google Ads
campaigns for their customers.”