Epic Web Studios | Posts

Epic Web Studios is a web design & development firm located in Northwestern Pennsylvania. We build websites for people, not programmers. 814.746.6987

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The Ins and Outs of User Experience

Emphasizing the user from Discovery to Implementation

Whether the chicken or the egg came first is still up for debate. But in the world of website design, the user always takes precedent. When we describe user experience (UX), we are referring to how your website looks, feels, and functions holistically. Do its individual elements (such as graphics, navigation, media, and content placement) add up to a cohesive whole? It’s critical that they do — by catering to the user’s needs and expectations, you’ll ultimately satisfy both Google and your company’s objectives. Nowadays, almost all of Google’s best practices for search engine optimization relate back to the user and the quality of their overall experience on your website to help determine rankings in search results. How does Epic Web Studios work with clients to optimize user experience?

Step 1: Determining the who, what, where, and why of your user

This may seem obvious, but it’s challenging to design a relevant (and resonant) user experience without first understanding your users. What kind of person is seeking your product or service? How old are they? Single or married? Where do they live? What do they struggle with? Prosper with? These are just some of the questions you should try to answer before we even begin your project. Who is your user, what are they looking for (and why), and how do you make it as easy as possible to obtain it? 

At the outset of any website design or redesign project, Epic Web Studios will try to gather as complete a snapshot of your target audience as possible through a combination of interviews, surveys, and analytics research (which might include analyzing keywords your target audience might use to find competitors in your industry). We refer to this as our Discovery Phase. 

Step 2: Determining how you will get there

All the data gathered in the Discovery Phase serves a very important purpose — designing a website fine-tuned to the needs of the users you serve. This can, does, and should vary greatly — would you expect a senior services website to look, feel, and/or operate the same as a website for an energy drink? Would the content have the same tone? Of course not. Wireframes and mockups will be completed to figure out whether we’re on the right track. 

During the Development Phase, we will weave the findings of our research into the look (graphic design — colors, fonts, imagery, and layout), feel (branding, personality, and presentation), and functionality (navigation and modules, or built-in features) of your website, producing a working prototype. 

Step 3: Evaluating effectiveness

From there, your team and our team will put ourselves in the user’s chair, feeling out what components of the website work and which do not (although we do strive to get it right the first time!) Is all content readable, with legible typeface and proper contrast? Is all the pertinent information on your product or service easily accessible through navigation menus and sidebars? Is the flow of each page easy to follow? Does it load quickly? Is there a missing element that could add value to a page? An unnecessary element that could be done away with? 

Communication and feedback are critical in the lead-up to full launch — our goal is to produce a fully optimized website that will land conversions from the get-go.

Step 4: Testing and tweaking

Delving into analytics may seem intimidating to some, but the insights it yields are invaluable as your website is molded into its best possible form. Keyword research can help hone your content into what users are searching for and improve your visibility. Google Analytics is a tremendously powerful tool in understanding your visitor behavior demographics. Applications like HotJar provide a look at how visitors interact with your web pages and their constituent pieces — and where they lose interest. 

By acting on analytics findings, we can build a user experience that will have people coming back time and time again.

Build a web presence that converts

Epic Web Studios has a full web development and digital marketing team filled with designers, developers, copywriters, digital strategists, analytics specialists, and others who are completely dedicated to helping companies get more online leads. Let us prepare a custom digital marketing strategy that will have you growing in no time.

Contact our team to get started today »

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SEO and Google Ads: How They Work Together

Done right, Google Ads can make you a lot of money; done wrong, they can cost you serious campaign dollars without much return on investment. Because Google is a search engine, the difference between flailing and flourishing on the Google Ads platform often comes down to search engine optimization (SEO).

How Google Ads works

Google Ads is what’s known as a cost-per-click (CPC) or pay-per-click (PPC) platform. The terms are interchangeable, but they both mean that the advertiser pays a predetermined amount whenever a user clicks their ad. Advertisers can choose from a variety of formats, or campaigns, for their digital marketing, including:

Search campaigns: Displays text-based advertisements on Google’s search engine results pages (SERPs) whenever someone searches for a product or service similar to yours. 

Display campaigns: Image-based, ads manifest themselves as clickable banners embedded into websites and apps. 

Video campaigns: Ads are triggered either before or during streaming video content, such as YouTube.  

Shopping campaigns: Promotes your product in a catalog-style format (company/product name, image thumbnail, price, brief description) on the Google Display Network. Advertisers must register with the Google Merchant Center to be eligible.

App campaigns: Developers market their iOS or Android app through Google Search, YouTube, Google Play, and beyond. 

How much do I pay per click?

That depends on the keyword(s) you’ve bid on and your Quality Score (more on this later). Keywords are the heart of search queries — the distillation of what searchers are looking for. They also trigger the display of related Google Ads. The more popular keywords are with searchers, the more coveted they are for advertisers.  When more than one advertiser lays claim to a keyword, it is put up for auction. 

The prize here is visibility (more visibility = more potential customers), and unlike a traditional auction, visibility isn’t awarded outright to the highest bidder. It is awarded to the highest bidder with the most relevant advertisement. Display priority is a function of cost-per-click bid multiplied by Quality Score (which is on a scale from 1-10). 

Quality Score is based on three factors:

Click-through rate (CTR): number of times a user clicks the link to your website versus the number of times it is shown (impressions)

Keyword relevance: how closely your product or service matches the keywords you’ve bid on

Landing page user experience (UX): once people click on your link, do they stay on your website and actually convert (i.e., buy what you’re selling) or bounce (i.e., leave) because the experience didn’t match their expectations?

Consistency between the phrasing and visuals of your ad and your website (message match) thus becomes critical; this is where SEO comes into play. Businesses who optimize their content attain higher Quality Scores and pay less to get seen than those who don’t. And when customers take action (whether that’s visiting a website, making a call, or showing up to a physical store), you’re more earn their business because you’ve given them exactly what they’re looking for.

SEO: The ultimate Google Ads discount 

Connect the content on your website or online store with the keywords people are searching for and you stand to profit majorly. Not only will you reel in more customers, but you’ll also pay far less for results than your competition. 

Get Started with a Google Ads Campaign >>

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Heat-mapping your website with Hotjar

A website that looks good can only get you so far; a website that works well is even more critical for getting visitors to stick around and convert. How, though, do you quantify whether your visitors are interacting with your website the way you intended? Sure, it’s nice having traditional analytics tools (numbers, charts, and graphs, etc.) at your fingertips, granted you know how to interpret that data. But what if you could be that fly on your user’s wall or parrot on their shoulder literally watching their online behavior?

Here at Epic Web Studios, we have grown to appreciate a tool that lets you do just that. Hotjar boasts three incredibly useful functionalities that can offer immediate insights on whether your website is up to snuff.

Website User Heatmaps

Getting warmer or colder? Hotjar will overlay webpages you choose to analyze with a color-coded heatmap, with areas of most activity highlighted in red and areas of least activity highlighted in blue. This allows people like marketers and web designers to instantly identify where end users are (and aren’t) spending their time with minimal guesswork. Hotjar can generate three different types of heatmaps:

Scroll maps: Hotjar’s proverbial reading rainbow — bands the designated page with corresponding warm or cool color based on the percentage of users still reading as they scroll down.

Move maps: The longer a user’s mouse cursor lingers in an area, the hotter (redder) that spot will appear on this heat map variation. For desktop user analysis only.

Click maps: Sums up the total number of clicks or taps within a defined number of page views (the free version of Hotjar caps it at 2,000) and creates a heatmap based on where the greatest percentage of those clicks or taps fell.

Website Visitor Recordings

Does Hotjar’s Visitor Recordings function qualify as spying? Maybe, but with only the purest of intents — to help web designers construct the most cohesive, streamlined user experience possible. Hotjar will record individual sessions and allow you to replay them, which is as close as you can get to being in the same room and asking them for feedback yourself. Within a relatively small sample size, you’ll be able to see whether users are navigating through your website with confidence of a longtime resident or the hesitancy of a stranger in a strange, strange land. With that information, you’ll be able to make adjustments in design, content, and functionality accordingly.

Website Conversion Funnels

Establish a goal (such as someone signing up for your service or buying your product), the pathway users might take to get there, and see where they are dropping off. Hotjar will calculate a conversion percentage and corresponding graphic based on the total number of sessions in a given time period.

Hotjar’s basic package is totally free, easy to set up, and analyzes up to 2,000 page views a day. The Epic Web Studios team has made a habit of including it with every new website we build, as its application in getting the absolute most out of your website and business is tremendous. For older websites, it is a great tool for guiding redesigns, preserving what worked well and scrapping what didn’t. Harness the insights of Hotjar’s heatmaps and get your website — and, in turn, your business — on the larger heatmap of your industry.

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5 Tips on Managing your Google Reviews with GMB

When managing a business page with Google My Business, it is essential to know how, why, and when to respond to your customers’ feedback. Here are five tips on managing your Google Reviews using Google My Business.

1. Use the Google My Business app.

With the Google My Business app for iOS and Android, you can track and respond to Google reviews right at your fingertips, quite literally. When you’re on the go, you can opt-in for notifications of new activity on your Google business listing, including reviews. With this useful tool, you will never miss a review again, and you won’t have to worry about it after you respond almost immediately to your reviewer!

2. Respond in a timely manner.

Sometimes it can be time-consuming to check your reviews consistently, but it is still imperative. It is best to respond to customers within 24 hours of their initial review. However, 52% of customers expect a response within seven days. The quicker the response, the more likely the reviewer will stay your customer and the more likely they are to recommend you to someone else. It looks pretty good to potential customers as well.

3. Always respond to your reviewers.

It is always a good idea to respond to your customer reviews, whether they give good feedback or negative feedback. It is important to remember to be polite and not get too personal. If a customer leaves a negative review, take a moment to calm yourself down before responding and avoid a back-and-forth commenting war; this can only hurt your business and unintentionally burn some bridges. Find a way to take the conversation offline, whether it be over the phone or in person.

4. Your response to negative reviews matters.

The most important thing to keep in mind when responding to reviews is how your response may affect your business. As stated above, it is crucial that you do not get into an argument over the internet, so you should assess the situation before you respond to the review. Remember to keep your response fairly general so you are not taking the blame for something that may not have happened, and you’re not pointing blame at your customers.

An excellent example of a response for a review 3-stars or below is, “We appreciate your feedback regarding your experience with My Company Name. May we ask you to please send us a direct message to [email protected] or give us a call at (***) ***-****  so we may work to fix this issue? We look forward to hearing from you so we can make this right.”

5. Some reviews may not even be real.

If you suspect that a review may be fake, whether it be based on a silly username or users not being one of your customers, report it to Google and plead your case to have the review removed. In the meantime, it is still important to treat all reviews as real. You don’t want to call out a “fake” review to find out later that it was real. Respond politely and use language that does not accept blame, or does not blame the customer. Because current and potential customers cannot tell when a review is fake, use all of the tips you have learned to respond to a real negative review. Your company will show that they are willing to listen to customer reviews and, in turn, will be more likely to be thought of positively.

Following these tips will enable your company to successfully manage Google Reviews. Google My Business also offers other ways to optimize your business listing, so be sure to look at all of your options to get the best chance of seeing your business over your competitors.

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Google My Business: Free Advertising in Local Search

Everywhere you go, there’s probably at least one person looking down at their phone scrolling through social media feeds, shopping online, or looking something up on Google. As a business owner, it’s important to make sure your business is visible on Google. Google is where a majority of online users go to find basic information about businesses whether it be directions, hours, customer reviews, a phone number, or even to view photos before going somewhere.

Google offers a free tool called Google My Business to help people find important information about businesses. The Google My Business listings appear as little “profiles” or “panels” at the very top of search results and in Google Maps. The more details you make available, the more Google will recognize your business as a relevant and useful result when people are searching for your products or services. 

How to find your business on Google.

If you are unsure if your business is on Google, you can search for your business by name to see if a knowledge panel appears on the right side of the Search Engine Results Page (SERP). If so, check to make sure your listing is claimed so that you can start taking control of your listing by taking advantage of the many features offered by Google. If you do not see your business on Google, you can visit the Google My Business page for adding and claiming listings on Google.

Optimize your Google business listing.

Once your listing is created and verified, you can start optimizing your listing with all of the features available in Google My Business.  You will be able to add your business’s hours of operation, update your phone number if/when needed, and make sure your address is complete and correct. There is also a section to add a description of your business to help people learn more about who you are. The more information you make available to a prospective customer, the more time they will spend looking through your listing to learn more about whom you are and what you can offer to them to help meet their needs.

Add photos to your Google business listing.

Google also allows you to add photos of your business, services, and goods to help give your customers a better idea of what your business offers. Google has a variety of categories in the photo section to help organize the photos. You can add external photos of your store or office, as well as, internal photos of your waiting area or other spaces throughout your business. These photos help to give prospective customers an idea of where to find you if they have never been to your location. It also helps them get a feel for who you are before they make a visit. Other photo categories include your team members, your products, photos of employees at work, and more.

Engage your viewers with Google posts.

Google My Business has a post feature which allows you to create and post content to engage your audience. The GMB post feature allows you to upload a photo, add copy, choose a call to action button, and link to any page on your website. Once you create and publish your post it will be visible right on the business listing for 7 days. After 7 days, you will need to create and publish a new post.  As long as there is a post visible on the listing, people will be able to view more and see your past posts. Once a post expires, and if a new one is not published, then people will no longer have access to your past posts. So, it is very important to keep your posts up to date.

Manage positive and negative Google reviews.

Reviews are important and managing them is a must. Whether your business has a positive or negative review, it is important to respond to the customer. GMB allows you to respond to customers who have reached out to leave feedback about their experience with your business. If a review is positive, you always want to thank them for taking the time to leave a review and tell them you’re glad they had an enjoyable experience. If a review is negative, never take fault or place blame publically. It is best to say something like “Thank you for your feedback. Please contact John at [email protected] or 555-555-5555 so we can hear more about your experience.” It is best to always take the conversation offline. It even looks good to have a back and forth negative conversation on your business’s Google listing.

Give them what they’re looking for with the Q&A section.

Customers may be seeking an answer about one of your services or products that your business offers, but they may not make it from your listing to your website before clicking somewhere off of your listing to find the answer. This is where the Q&A section on your GMB listing comes in handy. The Q&A section allows customers and business owners to ask and answer questions. It is important to stay on top of managing the Q&A section because other customers can also answer questions. To make sure the questions are answered with the best possible information it is best if the information comes from the business owner rather than other customers. Another way to use the Q&A section would be to post questions that are frequently asked by your customers and also answer them. This way you know the questions prospective customers will most likely ask is available and they also know that it is accurate information as it was provided by the business owner.

No time? No worries.

It’s understandable that staying on top of managing all of this can be challenging when you’re also running a business. ASAPmaps is a low-cost subscription tool that fully optimizes and updates your listing for you every single week with a new post and photo.

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Google AdWords for Law Firms: Get the Most Out of Your Digital Advertising Budget

Why pay-per-click advertising is the best way for lawyers to get new leads.

Digital advertising is one of the most effective ways to use a marketing budget in today’s world. In search engines like Google, keywords and phrases related to legal services are arguably some of the most competitive terms out there. Pay-per-click campaigns allow you to bid on these ever-so-popular keywords so you can target your ideal clients and maximize your total return on investment. Here are the top reasons why law firms should strongly consider advertising with Google AdWords.

1. Total Budget Control

When using Google AdWords, you have total control over where your money is going. AdWords will never go over the budget that you set. Plus, you don’t have to pay a single dime until someone views or converts from your ad (depending on the type of pay-per-click campaign you choose). Keep in mind that the more you spend, the more results you’ll see.

2. Target Ideal Clients

You can target each ad to specifically display at a defined geographic area, time of day, the specific device (i.e. mobile), or when someone searches for related keywords and phrases. You can also determine which keywords you want to bid on, how much you're willing to bid, and which keywords you don't want to show for. The key to targeting the perfect client is to think of yourself as being in their shoes. What would they type into Google when they are looking for your legal services? Our paid search team performs deep keyword research in order to determine these answers.

3. #1 SERP Display

Paid ads in Google display at the very top of search engine results in pages (SERP) above organic (unpaid) listings, Google Maps, and even featured snippets. If your ads are relevant to users, they have the very first opportunity to be clicked on and convert. Google AdWords also has more engaging displays than any other type of listing. You’re able to have a title, subtitle, link extensions, descriptions, and more.

4. Custom Landing Pages

When using pay-per-click advertising, it’s important to create custom landing pages that properly help users funnel through as a conversion. Most landing pages have very minimal content, don’t have a regular navigation, and have some sort of online form. Landing pages should perfectly match the campaign that you’re advertising for through Google.

5. Analyze & Refine Campaigns

When using Google AdWords, you definitely should not “set it and forget it”. It’s very, very competitive so your campaigns should always be monitored and refined. With Google AdWords, you can make changes to your ads on the fly to get them to look exactly how you want. When they are set up properly, you will be able to see when people clicked on your ad, where they were, and which word they typed into Google's search bar to find your ad. You have access to other valuable data such as what device they were on when they clicked or called from the ad. You can tell when they filled out a form on your website, visited a certain page, or even how long they were on the site and the number of pages viewed. The list goes on and on in regard to measuring and analyzing the precise data from a successful Google AdWords campaign.

When comparing against traditional media, such as park benches, TV, and Radio, Google Ads are highly measurable. By taking control of your Google AdWords campaign, choosing the correct keywords, and creating a custom landing page with the proper sale funnels, you are sure to find success that will substantially grow your law firm. Contact Epic Web Studios to learn more about how AdWords can help your law firm.

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How To Plan A Budget For SEO In 2019

Search engine optimization (SEO) is an ever-changing practice that requires impeccable attention to detail and creative long-term thinking. Long gone are the days where keyword stuffing and invisible text help you more than it hurts you. It’s time to get one step ahead of the game in organic search results by setting aside a budget for SEO in your 2019 plan. Here’s how.

1. Analyze your current search presence.

Understanding your position on the web is an important first step for planning an SEO budget. Do you have a website? Is your website responsive? Does it have optimized meta data? Do you update your website with fresh, new content on a regular basis? Do you have a strategy for promoting the new content? What are your competitors doing online? These are all questions that need to be addressed before diving into SEO specifics.

2. Research SEO trends in 2019.

The ways people use the web are constantly changing, Google’s algorithm is continuously getting smarter, and Googlebots are crawling deeper and deeper into websites and their content. Staying up-to-date with the latest SEO trends will give you a bettering understanding of unique opportunities for you and your business.

A few of the most popular SEO trends predicted for 2019 include optimizing for voice search, shrinking SERP real estate, mobile-first indexing, and overall user experience becoming one of the largest ranking factors.

3. Set your SEO goals.

So, you’ve heard SEO can do wonderous things for business growth but what are you actually trying to accomplish? Take a step back and think about what you’re ultimately trying to achieve.

Would you like more local searchers to find your website or come to your storefront? Are you an e-commerce business looking for more sales? Sometimes, it’s as simple as increased website traffic.

4. Consider your resources.

When deciding on next steps for SEO planning, it’s important to make sure you’re using in-house talent, an SEO agency, or freelancers who know exactly what they’re doing. Tasking someone in-house with SEO gives you more control of the situation, but could take away valuable time and energy in other areas of your business. Working with freelance contractors is typically the least expensive, but comes with the highest risk. Partnering with an agency who specializes in SEO tends to cost a bit more at first, but most often comes with guaranteed results and allows you to tap into a wider range of expertise.

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A Digital Marketing Internship at Epic Web Studios

Digital marketing is redefining how my generation interacts with brands, companies, and businesses. I fell in love with marketing during my junior year of college, and quickly learned that digital marketing is taking over the older, more traditional methods of marketing (no surprise there!). I realized that to truly learn and succeed in digital marketing, I needed actual experience from a company that specializes in it. That, of course, is how I discovered this internship opportunity at Epic Web Studios. 😎

My favorite thing about this internship was definitely the variety of work that I got to do. Everyone at Epic was more than willing to help me learn everything and anything I wanted to know. My official position was in the Digital Marketing Department, but I was able to work with almost every other department at one point or another including the Content Development, Graphic Design, Business Development, and Website Development Departments. The people here are awesome and so talented at what they do! I got to work on something new and exciting everyday, which is something that I really loved.

Day-to-day, I managed and created new content on different social media platforms for a few different clients. I was also able to view the analytics of everything that I was doing, and often reported on them back to the clients to show progress. I also learned Search Engine Optimization techniques, how to make and send email marketing campaigns, and how to create a Social Media Strategic Plan for a client. Like I said, I was lucky enough to work on something new almost everyday so it’d be impossible to list everything that I learned- but it’s safe to say my expectations were definitely exceeded.

This internship also made me realize how much I love writing, after getting to help Becca and Angela write copy for client’s blogs and websites. When I started this internship, I didn’t think that I would get to write very much for clients, but I was pleasantly surprised that they liked my writing enough to bring me on numerous projects with them. I’ve gotten to write a huge variety of content for clients- from fun coffee-related blogs to impactful web pages for a non-profit organization. On top of writing the actual copy, I was also taught how to write metadata for everything to fully optimize a website. My writing skills have significantly strengthened since working here, and now I know that writing is something I’d love to do in my future career. Getting a good education is so important, but I think it’s just as necessary to get real-world experience too while you’re in school. Internships are the perfect way to get that valuable experience while getting your degree, and I would recommend Epic Web Studios to anyone. Digital Marketing is a fast-growing field and I am so grateful to have had such an amazing experience here that will give me a major head-start in my career! Amy Ruhlman is a senior at Edinboro University and a spring Digital Marketing intern at Epic Web Studios. She will be graduating on May 12th with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration, concentrating in Marketing.

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Design-Centric Companies Increase Profit by 211%

by Heather Kamanu’iu Froman, Graphic Designer at Epic Web Studios August 10, 2017

These big name companies all have one thing in common: Apple, Target, IBM, Walt Disney, Starbucks, Nike, and Coca Cola. Out of 75 publicly traded companies, these companies have shown a 211% return over the S&P 500 Index. What do they all have in common? They take design seriously.

What does it mean to take design seriously?

Right now, we live in an era where people are overpowered with information. There are billions of businesses and websites infiltrating the internet, your desktop, and your smartphone.

Taking design seriously means not only having a design that is simple and pleasing to the eye in this sea of information, but also one that meets the needs of the end consumer. Their experience and satisfaction upon viewing your website, online ads, and social media will determine whether or not they’ll come back.

Why don’t companies take design seriously?

Most companies don’t take design seriously because they see it as a frivolous expense. Focusing on aesthetics seems more like celebrating arts and crafts. Color schemes and imagery, however, can influence a person’s mood making them decide within a few seconds if they want to be associated with your company and your service or product.

Design is also equivalent to problem solving and engineering. People are influenced by aesthetics, but they also want something that is simple to read and navigate. How quickly you grab their attention matters. How quickly they can find what they’re looking for determines how satisfied they’ll be with their experience and if they’ll come back.

How can your company become more design-centric?

The first step is to apply the principles of design to how you work. Empathize with your customer because their experience matters. Create and iterate prototypes, tolerate failure, and foster a culture that’s flexible and responsive. Don’t be shy to try a new idea, and while you shouldn’t encourage failure, you should be aware that most success stories don’t get it right the first time around.

*Epic Web Studios has worked with just about every industry and business size. View our client portfolio.

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The Woman Behind the Words, Epic’s Content Developer Becca

Where are you from?

Born and raised in Erie! A true Erie-ite at heart. I grew up right off of Peach Street near the mall. What brought you to Epic Web?

My degree is in Marketing and I knew I wanted to be in the tech industry since there's always room to grow in the digital realm. After discovering Epic's website, I knew I wanted to work here because of how fun and exciting it looked. The large variety of clients, unique and custom designs, and quirky team - the whole essence of Epic was appealing to me. Why did you choose to go into website development?

I've always had a strong interest in design in general. The first thing that I ever wanted to be was an interior designer.  I used to always rearrange my room and paint the walls. Now that I think about it, I guess you can kind of relate that to content development in a way. The programmers are the builders, in charge of the foundation, and the content developers are in charge of filling the site with visually-appealing elements and compelling words. Who has been your favorite client to work with?

That's a toughie. Every project has its unique quirks about it and I wouldn't say that I have a specific favorite. I do enjoy working with Jim Farrell at Panache because we're always brainstorming new ideas for the site and trying to enhance it. What’s your earliest experience with the internet?

Hmmmm, most definitely dial-up internet and waiting for what felt like hours to even open up a browser. It was indeed THE worst. I used to use MSN messenger to talk to my friends, too (before AIM). That was pretty fun. Oh yeah! Ebaum's World! That site will never be forgotten. Where do you think the internet is going?

I can see the future of education being 100% online, with complimentary fieldwork from the start instead of at the end. The in-person class time isn't the same anymore. If you want to get into super futuristic and idealistic visions, it would be cool to be able to actually transport through VR with all senses instead of just vision. Like, I'm going to use my lunch break to go swing from trees in the jungle. BRB. What do you do outside of work?

When the weather is nice enough, I love being adventurous and active outdoors doing things like camping, hiking, and kayaking especially when whiskey is involved. My friends and family are a huge part of my life too so I spend a lot of time with them. During the weekdays, hot yoga is my jam along with a happy hour or 2. Travelling is a part of my being. My family went to a different location every year for almost my whole life. I don't think I could live a life without exploring new places.

Read more about Becca Goldsmith and the rest of the Epic Web Studios team on our website.

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How to Rock Your Summer Internship

Ah, the summer internship. A chance to learn something new. A chance to hang out at a pretty cool company. A chance to be part of the “real world” and anticipate -quite excitedly - life outside of university or college.

(And yes, the internship is also a chance to make money or snag some of those coveted college credits, but this is quite often secondary to the Real Life Experience so many crave.)

So...you wanna be an Epic Web Studios Intern?

We love our seasonal interns here at Epic, so if you’re curious about a position, go ahead and apply. Our current interns - read about them here - are enjoying their experience thus far, and even decided to compile a list of tips for future interns, be it at Epic or elsewhere.

Being an Intern: Tips and advice before starting your assignment.

Research the company, do your homework on your position

We think most people can agree it’s normal before starting an internship to get those first day nerves.  If you don’t - you’re lucky!  We also found that to ease these nerves you should do your homework before starting your internship.  Taking a look at the company’s website (if they have one) will make you feel a little more prepared.  While looking around the site, take some time to re-read the internship posting to revise your responsibilities and expectations. If there’s something you don’t quite understand, Google it. And if you’re still unsure, save your question for your first day.

Stalk the company’s social media (LOL)

(This isn’t creepy…just don’t accidentally like a post from 2015) If you are a social media intern, stalking can actually be research! Taking a look at a company's past posts can be useful to see what the dress code is like and to get a feel for the team’s personality.  It can also be interesting to learn the kinds of conversations they're having on different social platforms. This will help you better understand a) what is relevant and b) which news they determine to be conversation-worthy or important and c) how they represent themselves online and interact with others.

Don’t show up the first day underdressed even if you know it’s a casual setting. 

Better to arrive super dressed up the first day and then enjoy dressing down on subsequent days than be the only one in jeans...which leads us to...

Make a good, lasting first impression

From what you wear to your attitude it all counts. Be positive and friendly to everyone you meet while maintaining a professional appearance - in every sense of the word. No matter how casual the setting, you are essentially a guest at the company, working for them. It is a true position with responsibility, but if you come across as immature or incapable, you’re less likely to get to do fun tasks -- that require poise and maturity. Of course, at the end of your position, you want to be remembered for the best reasons possible.

And who knows, maybe they’ll offer you a job when you graduate?

Establish good relationships with your coworkers (with a filter)  

Taking on an internship allows you to experience a full (or part) time position with a real company. Unlike some of your classes, you see the same people every day in the same setting. Working with your team in their place of employment will give you the opportunity to build different kinds of relationships; you can be friendly while keeping it professional.

Treat your internship like it’s a real job (even if it is unpaid)

Seriously, having the internship experience is only going to do good things for you - now and in the future.  You were brought for an awesome, real-job experience - so respect that.  This is your time to show people that you are capable of “adulting”

Set personal goals and establish what you want to learn during your internship

It is important for the person you are working with to know what it is specifically that you want to gain from your assignment.  If there’s something you want to learn, it doesn’t hurt to ask. If you’re NOT learning anything at all, speak up: don’t waste the opportunity! The team knows that your internship is also a learning experience for you: you may discover new talents, or a desire to work in a different part of the company than you first thought.

Be involved and Don’t be afraid to ask questions

Being able to communicate with your team is extremely important, especially  at Epic where people do so many different things and all work together. Even though sometimes it can be a little intimidating, it’s always better to speak up and ask!!!

Finally...SURPRISE! You CAN really use what you’re learning at college during your internship. There will be times during your internship that you are reminded reminded of information in lectures, something you researched, or skills you developed in some of your classes. And see, there are real-life applications to your studies after all! (Although we can’t make any promises.)

This is your experience. Put in the right amount of effort, and you will truly learn.

[epicwebstudios]

Meet the Epic Web Studios Interns

Summer has arrived, and with the warm weather comes...summer interns. This season, Epic is hosting three interns across its departments: one works with the digital marketing team, another is part of our graphic design department and the third is collaborating with and learning from our developers.

Each intern brings his or her perspectives, aspirations and pretty neat backgrounds.

Julia Colao • Erie, PA native • Communication Studies major, Journalism minor, enrolled at Edinboro University, PA • Graduating December 2017 • Digital Media Strategist Intern

Kirsten Larson • Born down South, lived half her life in Erie, PA • IT: Web Development major, Graphic Design minor, enrolled at Lynchburg University, VA • Graduating May 2018 • Web Development and Graphic Design Intern

Sen Wang • International Student from China • Math and IT major at Mercyhurst University • Graduating December 2017 • Web Development Intern

So, why did you pick your major? JC: I was a bit lost at first, so I chose my major at the start of my sophomore year. I wasn’t sure what career direction I wanted to take, but after joining clubs and really getting involved, taking advanced courses and talking with professors, I chose Communications Studies and Journalism.

KL: I tried a few majors, but at the end of my freshman year none of them really grabbed my interest. I was writing a blog, and realized I liked designing the pages more than writing; the HTML and CSS really challenged me and I loved creating graphics. I found my school offered a major in IT: Web Development which offered coding and classes in graphic design, and then I selected graphic design as a minor.

SW: My major is Math and IT, because I enjoy calculating and computers. I studied computer science in China and thought it would be a good opportunity to find work post graduation.

How did you find the internship with Epic? JC:  I randomly got an email from Epic Web about a Christmas event.  I was really confused to receive the email since I didn’t know much about Epic Web Studios. I did some Google research and found myself interested in the company and its offerings.  I was already in the process of looking for a summer internship, so when I saw their opportunities I applied.  Two days later I had a phone interview!

KL:  I wanted to get an internship close to home in Erie for this summer. I Googled a bunch of places and Epic Web Studios seemed like the best option and they also had an internship program. This winter I applied and here I am now.

SW: Mercyhurst's internship office provided me with a list of employers in Erie who offered internship opportunities. When I was doing my research, I found Epic’s website and social media. I liked what I saw on their website and decided to apply - I'm glad I did!

Describe a Typical Workday JC:  Since I am a social media intern I am working with - I am sure you could guess - social media!  I am currently assisting with two accounts:  I schedule Facebook posts, find interesting articles related to the client’s content, and ensure posts are creative and engaging.  I am always researching and trying to come up with creative ways to give Epic Web’s social media more consistency. Something else that I have been recently working on is coming up with Snapchat geofilters for summer events in Erie.  

KL: It really depends. So far they I have been asked to do a lot of design work:  social media posts, a sitemap, a wireframe, a mockup, graphics, etc. Right now I am working mainly with one client’s site. We just finished the wireframes and we are on to creating the mockups.

SW: I’m still learning, but I am challenged every day by the Epic team to push myself to become a better developer. I also enjoy working with the other interns to learn outside of my specific field.

What did you expect from your internship? JC:  I honestly wasn’t really sure what to expect.  I knew that I would be learning in-depth how to control a client’s social media presence and keeping followers engaged.  Here at Epic Web there really is no limit as to what you can do.  Everyone is very open to hear new ideas so if you think you have a good one, you can propose it to someone and give it a shot!  

KL: They said in my interview that it would be pretty hands on, but I didn’t realize to what extent! I love that I get to do real work for a lot of different clients. The first week I made some graphics that went up on a site pretty much immediately. I was surprised that I would be working on actual client projects so quickly.

SW: The environment is exactly what I was looking for. The other interns and employees, who work so hard around me, help to continue to push my development limits. It’s so different than what I have experienced in my courses because I'm working hands-on with real development issues and problem solving. I can also ask the developers any questions and have them guide me as I find the solution.

What do you hope to gain from this internship experience? JC: Only being here for a short amount of time has opened my eyes as to what it would be like to do this every day.  Throughout college, I have gained a deeper interest and appreciation for all forms of social media so it was important for me to know if I could make a career out of it.  I think everyone looks for a real employment experience at an internship, and Epic Web aims to provide its interns with just that.  During my first week,  I was asked what other areas in the company I would want to explore -  which is cool because everyone works closely together.  I believe I will leave this internship with more knowledge and experience than I expected.

KL: I wanted a couple of things from my time here: First, to really experience what it is I think I want to do with my life. ( I got my answer for that one!) I love the work I’ve been doing in only three weeks - so far -  and it makes me even more excited for my future career. This summer, I also really want to gain knowledge in all the areas of web development. I am learning so much already and can’t wait to see what else I learn in the next couple months.

SW: I just want to use what I’ve learned in Mercyhurst in this environment and I want to learn while I am here. I hope to gain the knowledge of a well-rounded web developer and how to build a real website, both frontend and backend as well as how to maintain the website. I look forward to finishing a website from beginning to end.

[epicwebstudios]

5 Big Trends and Tips for Social Media Marketing

In the last five years, social networks have acquired about 1 billion new users. Over one third of the world’s population is now accessible via social media, and companies have gone from being skeptical about social media marketing to seriously investing in it.

In this social media dominated world, marketing is heavily reliant on technology, but that technology remains focused on people. This year’s trends will help marketers reach and engage their audience on a more personal level, over social media noise. Companies will be able to fine-target their niche communities, with increased support from software solutions.

Social Media Marketing Trends and Tips

The following is a list of trends and tips for social media marketers to leverage now.

1. Investment in Visual Marketing Will Increase

Most social networks have already launched their versions of live-streaming. Twitter has Periscope, Facebook’s Live, and other networks like Blab and DubSmash support live video sharing. Live-feeds are becoming the “in-thing”. Even the US Presidential election updates were broadcast live by BuzzFeed on Twitter.

You can use live video platforms to engage you audience will near-tangible experiences. If you don’t have a Facebook Live strategy, now is the best time to get one.

With social feeds growing crowded and viewer attention spans growing shorter by year,  you’ll need powerful graphics to captivate your audience. In the last five years, the graphic design software market has expanded, giving marketers extensive options to choose from. You can put together graphics on a drag-and-drop editor to simplify your content creation process.

2. Personalization Will Become Priority

Today’s social media users are faced with ads and commercial content on multiple fronts. The receive information from multiple sources, and breaking through that barrier is becoming a tough task for brands and marketers. Personalization will help marketers slice through the chaos and reach only the people who matter.

Tracking consumers’ behaviors on social platforms and targeting them based on interests will become an essential part of marketing. Some social media marketing tools and apps are already incorporating features to support personalization and targeting. More technology solutions will appear in the time to come. You can target your high-potential market by posting content that only they can relate to, or by targeting them using data pulled from tools.

3. Brand Advocacy Will Grow Popular Among Marketers

Ad saturation is driving brands to look for alternative means to reach their target markets. Investment in advocate marketing has seen a steep increase (by about 191 percent) in the recent times. Micro-influencers could be the key to increasing your brand’s reach on social media, because they are more influential and credible than your brand can be.

Employees, customers and social fans are among the micro-influencers that brands are activating. There a quite a few great employee advocacy guides and case-studies that you can look at for inspiration in building your brand advocate outreach programs. You can use an advocacy platform to build and run your brand advocacy program.

4. Native Content Promotion Will Expand

In Joe Pulizzi’s words, native advertising is content marketing’s “gateway drug”. The modern audience is wise to commercial ploys, and traditional advertising alone may not be a great option for branding your company. Native ads help you create awareness without disrupting users’ activities. Content delivered in this manner can help you connect with your audience without being too pushy. According to a study, native ads are set to to grow to $21 billion by 2018.

Content discovery tools, content distribution platforms and content amplification tools are interesting means to having your content shared organically on social media. You could use one of these solutions to have your content positioned where it can earn you some traction.

5. Marketing Automation Will Go Mainstream

Companies with constrained marketing budgets may have not used marketing automation until now, but according to a study, 92 percent of these companies are losing revenue because of that decision. 2017 may see business of all types and sizes adopt marketing automation. 91 percent marketers are convinced that automation is an indispensable part of marketing.

Each social network is unique in terms of demographic and use-cases. This may force businesses to be present on more than one of them to keep consumers and prospects engaged. Managing social pages can be a time intensive task, without the assistance of a supporting social management tool. The idea is to use the tool to automate tasks that don’t require personal attention – like posting created content to multiple accounts and catching mentions of your brand. You can also curate content with a tool and take the final call on what to share. It all comes down to the extra-time that you can save to better invest elsewhere. Managing content on a central platform can also help you maintain consistency across different pages.

Wrap

Social media marketing is set to evolve into a highly tech-focused and detail-oriented effort. To succeed  at reaching and engaging your target market, you need to explore and stay abreast of the latest developments and technologies offered for social. The areas mentioned on this post are good places to keep tabs on.

This article was originally published on January 19, 2017 by Jessica Davis on  smallbiztrends.com

If you would like to learn how social media and content marketing can improve your business, reach out to Epic Web Studios today. Epic Web Studios can be contacted any time at 814-746-6987 and on their website: www.EpicWebStudios.com/contact

[epicwebstudios]

[epicwebstudios]

Pinterest is the Top Choice Social Platform by Online Shoppers

Andrea Velez | June 22, 2016

Pinterest is an image-based platform that works well for selling products and services. The social platform is built upon the idea of sharing creative ideas and inspiring others to be imaginative, whether they’re planning a wedding or baby shower or getting ideas for new DIY home renovations. The platform operates by allowing users to pin images and videos to their own boards so they can be referenced later for a project or event.

Some of the other largest and most popular social media platforms are Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat; however, Pinterest takes the lead when it comes to online shopping. According to new data from Mary Meeker in the 2016 Internet Trends report, Pinterest was the first choice for 55% of U.S. internet users as a social media platform on which to shop. While many U.S. internet users are shopping on Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat, it’s far less than Pinterest, at only 12%.

The company’s president doesn’t consider Pinterest to be a social platform more than he considers it to be a focus on buying and sharing new ideas, products, and services. This unique focus is what allows Pinterest to stand apart most when compared to other social media sites.

If you plan to use Pinterest for commercial purposes, you must remember to pin-with-purpose and have a solid strategy behind your marketing campaign. To get the most from marking on Pinterest, brands must give the proper attention to the account. There should not be a number of pins and repins from other companies’ blogs and websites. Although the images might look great and make boards look very appealing, it will only send website traffic to everyone but you.

Instead, write original blogs on your website and include your own visually appealing imagery. When pinning your most recent blog or newest product, be sure to include a link to your website, a brief description that leaves readers wanting more, and a compelling call-to-action. If you do repin images to complete a new board, do so with purpose. For example, repin an image of a customer or client using your product or service (with permission, of course), and provide more information about a particular area of your business.

These are just a few tips to follow in setting your company up for a great start to a successful experience on Pinterest as an e-commerce business. Once your business is in good shape on the platform, paid advertising and boosted pins help you reach your target audience. 

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Andrea Velez is a Digital Media Strategist at Epic Web Studios, a web development & strategic planning firm in Erie, PA. Learn more about her, here. If you have questions about running a successful digital advertising campaign, contact Epic Web’s Social Media team today!

[epicwebstudios]

Social media: A Question Of When, Not Why.

This article was originally published on Business 2 Community by Darnelle O’Brien on May 23, 2016.  

With tight budgets and increasing competition, for small businesses, any investment is a considered one. But if you’re business isn’t currently leveraging the power of social media, you’re missing out on big opportunity.

While social media is not the golden ticket to unlimited sales (nor is any one marketing tactic), social offers a unique way to market your brand and engage and interact with your existing and potential customers:

INCREASED BRAND RECOGNITION

Every opportunity you have to showcase your offerings and increase your brands visibility is valuable. A strong social media presence makes you accessible to potential customers and more recognizable to existing customers.

IMPROVED BRAND LOYALTY

Brands who use social media report higher levels of loyalty amongst their customers.

HIGHER CONVERSION RATES

Social media marketing will result in higher conversion rates. Why? Because every piece of content you share provides a chance for someone to react, visit your site and convert.

HIGHER BRAND AUTHORITY

When people want to share a brand story (positive or negative) most turn to social media. The more positive word-of-mouth there is about your business, the more authority your brand attracts.

More>>>

If you would like to learn how social media and content marketing can improve your business, reach out to Epic Web Studios today. Epic Web Studios can be contacted any time at 814-746-6987 and on their website: www.EpicWebStudios.com/contact

[epicwebstudios]

Emoji ‘Reactions’ Joined the ‘Like’ Button on Facebook Today

Andrea Velez | February 24, 2016

In addition to Facebook’s traditional ‘Like’ button, Facebook introduced emoji ‘Reactions’. Facebook has been researching new emoji ‘Reactions’ for about a year- making sure that the emoticons were cross-culturally understood around the world. They began testing them out in other countries before launching in the US. Starting today, Facebook users all around the world can now engage with content by choosing between five emoji ‘Reactions’: like, love, haha, wow, sad, and angry. To add a reaction, hold down the ‘Like’ button on mobile or hover over the ‘Like’ button on desktop to see the reaction image options.

People said they wanted more ways to express themselves on Facebook, so Facebook made that possible. People share all different kinds of information on Facebook. Some posts are sad; some make people angry; and some content is funny. Facebook wanted to make it easier for people to appropriately express their feelings- such as on posts where empathy and sympathy are the appropriate reactions.

The emojis could encourage extra communication and feedback, creating greater numbers of engagement. This is perhaps the most exciting part of the new emoticon roll out for advertising firms like Epic Web. Facebook will be able to collect additional data to learn more about the habits and opinions of users, creating an even more in-depth digital profile. With this new data, social media strategists can learn new information about their clients’ audiences and more accurately create targeted advertisements for added effectiveness.  

Andrea Velez is a Digital Media Strategist at Epic Web Studios, a web development & strategic planning firm in Erie, PA. Learn more about her, here. If you have questions about running a successful digital advertising campaign, contact Epic Web’s Social Media team today!