The reality is that not all email marketing services are created equal when it comes to selecting the best email marketing software. Even though each email marketing provider varies slightly, the great majority provide the same fundamental functions to all customers.
If you wish to use Shopify for your email marketing, then you will be happy to know that it is FREE to use with a standard Shopify Plan.
You can send up to 10,000 emails each month for free using Shopify Email, and each additional 1,000 emails cost $1. You have access to all the features and there are no monthly obligations.
If you already have an online store with Shopify, then it makes sense to keep your email marketing and store in with the same provider.
With the aid of Shopify Email, you can communicate with subscribers and create enduring consumer relationships. For businesses who seek robust email capability with minimum effort, its simple and elegant interface eliminates the burden present in programmes like MailChimp or GetResponse.
Hopefully, this article has provided you with a starting point. It’s time to make the most of Shopify for Email and start experimenting so that you can start using email marketing for the benefit of your company. In the end, how well you use email marketing to expand your business will determine its success more than the product itself.
As a professional web development and design agency, we have many clients that come to us asking what is the best password manager software or app to use. This is a great question as there are many to choose from.
These are our pick of the best password manager software for Australia that will help you never forget a password again and maintain a secure collection of passwords.
OUR NUMBER 1 PICK FOR PASSWORD MANAGERS
Special offer – Get 50% off the Premium version
Sticky Password is a feature rich cross-browser and device password manager that will keep your passwords safe and readily available. Offering both a free and premium account with unlimited encrypted password and data storage, you will never forget another password again.
Security is taken care of by a superstrong password generator and 2-factor authentication is available to prevent unwanted account logins.
StickyPassword is the only password manager software to offer an exclusive once off lifetime purchase offer.
With a 30 day money back guarantee on the premium product, it’s definitely worth giving the free download a go and taking Sticky Password for a test drive.
The digital software company, Cyclonis, offers a free password management solution that aims to simplify the process of securely managing and keeping track of all of your passwords.
Available for both Windows and Mac devices, the data management software can be easily accessed and downloaded at no charge from the company website.
If you want to find out more about Cyclonis Password Manager check out our Cyclonis review or visit the website.
Dashlane is a simple yet powerful password manager with a quality user experience. With support for PC, Mac, Android and iOS and Two-Factor Authentication you can’t really fault Dashlane. With support for 7 languages, actionable password strength, secure sharing and advanced form filling it’s hard to find any reason NOT to use Dashlane. They truly have set the bar for other password manager software.
Dashlane is free to install and start saving passwords. If you want the full range of great features there is a Premium version available with discounts for yearly memberships.
For more info check out our Dashlane review or the Dashlane website
tPass provides several benefits over other password managers, including strong encryption, multi-device syncing, automatic filling of login credentials, password generation, and secure sharing of passwords.
With LastPass, you only need to remember one master password, while all your other passwords are stored in a secure vault that can be accessed from anywhere. This makes it more convenient than other password managers, while also offering greater security. LastPass also includes a password generator, which can create strong, unique passwords for you, reducing the risk of using weak passwords that can be easily hacked.
Additionally, you can securely share passwords with others, making it a great choice for families and teams.
RoboForm is a well-regarded password manager that offers several benefits over other password managers, including:
Ease of use: RoboForm has a user-friendly interface and simple navigation, making it easy to store, manage, and access your passwords.
Cross-device compatibility: RoboForm can sync your passwords across multiple devices, including computers, smartphones, and tablets, making it convenient to access your passwords no matter where you are.
Auto-fill: RoboForm can automatically fill in your login credentials on websites and apps, saving you time and reducing the risk of typing errors.
Secure sharing: RoboForm allows you to securely share passwords with others, making it a great choice for families and teams.
Password generator: RoboForm includes a password generator that can create strong, unique passwords for you, reducing the risk of using weak passwords that can be easily hacked.
Overall, RoboForm offers a combination of ease of use, cross-device compatibility, auto-fill, secure sharing, and password generation, making it a solid choice for anyone looking for a password manager.
When reviewing password managers there are a number of features we look for. These core review items include:
So hopefully our reviews will help you in choosing the best Password Managers for your needs.
Passwords – absolutely, increasingly necessary, yet insanely frustrating, especially for those of us without eidetic memories.
Today, as businesses, health care facilities, organizations, and even government entities move their dealings to the internet, the rest of us have to play ball. For the most tech-resistant of us, that still likely means at least a dozen profiles requiring unique (ideally) user names and passwords.
For the majority of folks, it’s dozens of profiles and passwords. And because of the increasing brilliance and pernicious nature of hackers and cyber criminals, these passwords are supposed to be long, unique, and random.
Oh, and don’t write them down, because that’s a security risk.
Nobody has time to create and memorize that many unique passwords!
Fortunately, with the password managers, you no longer have to.
Password managers are apps or software that provide a variety of password services, from generating unique, random, complex passwords for all of your accounts, to providing encrypted storage of said passwords and usernames as well as easy access to this information when we need to log in.
They essentially solve all that is frustrating about password creation and usage:
Password managers can go a long way to simplify yet secure your life and some of your most valuable assets (such as bank accounts, health information, etc.). They are becoming very popular along with other security software such as VPN services (see our best Australian VPN services)
But there is a variety to choose from, and depending on your unique situation and needs, one type may be better suited than another.
How password managers work depends to an extent on the type of manager in use. There are three main types of password managers that you can choose from, each with their own pros, cons and unique features:
A web-based manager is basically a software service that you (usually) pay a monthly or annual fee for. Your passwords will be generated and stored on the service’s own server.
When using a web-based manager, you will be able to access your passwords anytime from any device as long as you have internet access. You will not have to install any software to use it.
You will, of course, need to memorize one password: the one you use to open up your password “vault,” as the lingo goes. But other than that, these web-based managers take care of everything else for you.
Web-based services do tend to have various levels of membership that you can buy into, and some of them also offer free versions. However, the features that are available at these different levels will of course be different, so be aware that no two web-based managers will be quite the same, and even one service will offer quite different features depending on the level you buy.
We will discuss common features further in a moment.
A locally-installed software password manager means that you have installed the password database software on your personal computer or your smart device usually through an app.
You will not need the internet to access your passwords, in this instance, since the passwords will be stored on the device itself in an encrypted database.
That said, there are certain brands in this genre that use a cloud-based hosting for password storage, in which instance, you will need access to the internet as well as to your specific device with the software installed on it.
Finally, token-based hardware managers require an actual hardware device, such as a USB flash drive or smart card, that acts as a key to authenticate its user and give access to the password data.
As with the other two types of managers, the password information is encrypted on the device, protecting it from probing or unauthorized access. A detail to note about these is that some of them will still require companion software to be installed on your device as well to enable accurate decoding and reading.
To sum up, while each of the above types of password managers uses a different location or method for storing your password database, or vault, all of them essentially perform the same following functions:
Besides these three basic functions, however, many of these managers have other similar features to offer.
Most password managers have a plethora of features they make available to users, albeit for the right price. This is especially true for locally-installed and web-based managers.
Some of the features that you can expect to see:
For those who are looking for bare bones features – usually individuals just looking for a secure way to both create and store the passwords for a few accounts – you can find free or very affordable and reliable password managers.
But if you want any of the added features that really make these versatile, for sharing with a spouse or among a staff-team, auto-filling, browser integration, etc., be prepared to pay for what you get. However, with all of the managers, platforms, and plans out there, you should be able to find something in your price point that meets your needs.
What you look for in a password manager will depend on your specific needs, so first be sure to identify those.
Why are you looking for a password manager? How many profiles are you wanting to manage? Are you looking just for you, or are you needing something to share with a spouse, whole household, or maybe a work-team? Do you want/need to be able to switch between multiple devices, or do you just use one? What kind of budget do you have set aside for it?
Answering these and other questions will help you hone in on exactly what you need from a password manager. Once you’ve identified that, then you can start to shop.
That said, there are some basic things you probably should keep an eye out for if you really want to be sure that your password information will be secure and the manager will be worth it:
Furthermore, some do make the case that you should choose to keep the data encrypted and decrypted on your device, rather than stored somewhere else. This is just for added security, since those services that store the data for you will be obvious targets to hackers.
Overall, the benefits of password managers are easy to see:
However, there are some downsides that you should keep in mind. We still think they are worth having, but knowing the pitfalls can help you use your password manager as effectively and safely as possible:
So, the moral of the story is – you still need to make sure you create a strong master password, change it up, and keep it private, and perhaps lean towards the project managers that give you the option to keep the data on your local device to decrease your personal risk should there be a breach.
As a professional website development and design agency, we are always on the look out for quality web hosting for Australian companies.
There are quite a few to choose from, but also a number of services that aren’t actually in Australia but provide an equally good service if not better than local providers (and for cheaper).
These are our pick of the top web hosting companies for Australia that will keep your business online and running smoothly!
OUR NUMBER 1 PICK FOR WEB HOSTING
Voted #1
Speed: 9/10
Security: 9/10
Performance: 9/10
Value for money: 9/10
Siteground provides web hosting from a number of locations across the world, with the closest to Australia being Singapore. The service is fast, secure and also very cost effective compared to hosting locally in Australia. Tests conducted against 12 top hosting companies showed Siteground on top for Page loading speed (with cache enabled) and also Performance speed (cache enabled).
Support tests showed no wait time with a great resolution time of 5 minutes. Support tickets showed a response time of 8 minutes which is great if you are requiring a response quickly.
A must when dealing with any web hosting company is the level of security. Siteground takes security very seriously. The use of a Web Application Firewall allows for known vulnerabilities to be patched at the server level within 48 hours after vulnerabilities are made aware of.
For more info check out the Siteground website
Crucial Hosting is truely an Australian hosting company with servers located in Sydney at the Equinix SY3 datacentre. This by far makes crucial a stand out option if you are after Australian located servers. They provide a 99.9% uptime guarantee which is great peace of mind and also great support with a 24-hour tech team and Sydney based phone chat.
Another stand out feature is the no lock-in contacts. This is a great option along with the no set-up fees if you would like to test them out first hand. Resource limits are on the generous side and are optimised to run popular software such as WordPress, Joomla and Drupal straight out of the box.
For more info check out the Crucial website
A2 Hosting has a range of web hosting packages to choose from. They range from 1 simple site, up to Fully WordPress optimised and managed solutions. The top 2 packages have a TURBO feature providing speeds of up to 20 x faster than other hosting companies. The turbo feature provides additional resources and servers with less users resulting in great load times and better overall usability.
Free SSL comes standard with all packages as does the Solid State Drive Speed Boost which is referred to as a complete SSD Solution for your files, OS and databases).
A2 Hosting also offers a hassle-free anytime money back guarantee and 2/7/365 guru crew support which is comforting knowing support is readily available. With a 5 star average customer rating, it’s hard to look past A2 Hosting for your next hosting service.
If you want to find out more about A2 Hosting and their services visit the website.
As Australia’s first specialist WordPress host, you would expect WP Hosting to have a quality reliable product – and they sure do. They have been supporting WordPress since 2008 and have options for basic WordPress hosting through to enterprise solutions.
One handy feature is their Zero Click Install which will have WordPress installed automatically for you upon signing up for a hosting package.
To make it easy WP Hosting have 3 core packages billed monthly, or save by paying yearly. The resources offerings are fairly good on Australian standards, and all feature SSD storage, unlimited data transfer, daily backups and constant DDoS protection.
If you want to find out more about WP Hosting and their services visit the website.
Looking for a reliable Australian web hosting company to get your business online? If so, it’s important to understand the different types of web hosting and know the major features that a good web hosting company should provide for you.
The core review items such as:
With these items in mind, we review the best website hosting for Australia.
The first thing to do when shopping for web hosting services is to decide on the kind of website you need depending on your business needs. Here’s a look at the five types of web hosting:
Shared hosting is the cheapest web hosting option. As the name suggests, you get to share the same server with multiple other customers. It is ideal for small businesses with basic websites. Shared hosting typically comes with the tools you need such as website builders, email marketing software, and WordPress hosting.
The fact that you are sharing the server with other hundreds or thousands of users, surges in usage may undermine your website’s user experience.
Pros
Cons
Dedicated servers are usually the most expensive type of website hosting. They are best suited for large businesses with high-traffic websites. With dedicated server hosting, you have greater control over your site’s server. You have exclusively rented the server, and your website is the only thing stored on it. A high level of technical know-how is necessary for the installation and ongoing management of a dedicated server.
Pros
Cons
With virtual private server (VPS) hosting, your hosting provider divides a server into virtual services. That means every website is hosted like a dedicated server, but it still shares a server with other sites. VPS hosting is an ideal option if you need more control over your server but can’t afford a dedicated service.
It can also be a great option if you want dedicated hosting but don’t have the technical expertise needed. Unlike a dedicated server hosting, VPS hosting can’t handle high traffic levels or surges in usage. Website efficiency can also be affected by other websites on the server.
With cloud hosting, your website is hosted on several servers rather than a single server. It is a hosting solution that works via a computer network and allows businesses to utilise the computing resource like a utility. That means you can use the resource as much as you need without having to build or maintain your computing infrastructure in-house.
One of the best things about cloud-based web hosting is that it is scalable. Your website can grow over time, utilising as much resource as it needs and you only pay for what you use. The fact that the resources required to maintain your site are spread across several servers reduces the chance of downtime caused by server malfunction.
With managed hosting service, your web hosting Australia provider will handle all day-to-day management of the server hardware, operating systems, and standardised applications. It is unlike regular dedicated web hosting.
Most Australian web hosting providers offer managed WordPress hosting services. Many businesses prefer WordPress for its simplicity and ease of use. It is easy to set up and maintain.
There is numerous website hosting companies in Australia. However, not all of them offer the best web hosting services. Here are five things you should look for in a web hosting Australia provider:
Your website should be hosted as close to your target market as possible to ensure faster loading. However, you should also take into consideration the quality of the web host. For instance, you could be targeting an Australian audience, but if an American hosting provider can offer a more reliable service than an Australian provider, quality trumps distance.
Storage and bandwidth is another factor to consider when shopping for the best Australian hosting provider. The amount of storage and bandwidth you require depends mainly on the type of your website. If your site carries lots of high-resolution images or if you have a large inventory, you would need more storage.
Bandwidth determines the speed at which information travels to and from your website. For a high-traffic site, therefore, you would need a hosting service that provides plenty of bandwidth. You should include room for traffic surges and growth.
Some hosting providers claim to offer “unlimited” plans. However, unlimited never means infinite. These providers usually base their claims on the average client. Hence, if your website exceeds the average bandwidth by a significant margin, you may be required to pay more or asked to upgrade to another plan.
While most Australian web hosting providers promise up to 99.9 per cent server uptime, some providers are not truthful. Hence, it’s important to do your due diligence before you settle for a provider. Be sure to check online reviews and customer testimonials.
It is essential to consider website security, especially if you have an e-commerce website. A good website hosting service should have at least SSL encryption and SPAM protection. However, if you have an online store or need extra security, you should choose a hosting company that provides advanced encryption levels and other security features such as hack protection and DDoS protection. If you are interested in internet security, check out our best VPN reviews.
You want a Australian web hosting company that offers regular website backups and one-click restore. With regular backups, you are assured of getting back virtually all of your information easily in the event your website is compromised due to a security breach or a programming error. Backups can also help you avoid prolonged down times as you restore your site.
It is important to choose a hosting provider that offers reliable customer support. You want your issues addressed as quickly as possible and with the expertise they deserve. A good web host should offer multiple support options, such as email, telephone, and live chat, and knowledge base.
With this information, you can rest assured that you will get the best web hosting Australia provider for your business needs.
Please Note: M2media participates in various affiliate programs, and we sometimes get a commission through purchases made through our links.
Have you thought of installing a virtual private network (VPN) and then dumped the idea as an unnecessary expense? Well, this article will give you 5 reasons for changing your mind and installing the best VPN for your PC or laptop today!
Any user logs on to the internet using the internet protocol (IP) address of their device. This exposes the user to many risks as the IP address can reveal a lot of sensitive information about the person. A person’s location, language, and the internet service provider (ISP) currently being used, can all be known using the IP address. A user can mitigate these risks by using a VPN.
When a VPN is installed on your device, you will access any site on the internet through a virtual network. Therefore if you make a connection request to a site, it will look as if the request is coming from the VPN and not from your IP address. Thus it is the VPN’s IP address that will be visible and not yours!
Moreover, the information passed between your device and the VPN is encrypted. It ensures that your device is untraceable, and you are not left like a sitting duck for cybercriminals to pry upon.
As discussed, if you do not use a VPN, then you access the net through your device’s IP address. It can pose a problem as your ISP can access your browsing history.
Therefore if you search for information that is prohibited by the government, then it will surely raise a few red flags.
Also, online marketers exploit a user’s search history to bombard them with targeted ads. So if you have searched online for a waffle recipe in the past, you are most likely to get find advertisements related to finding the best place for buying tasty waffles near you in your news feeds.
Access to your browser history is a violation of your privacy. It can leave you vulnerable to eavesdropping and potentially harm your reputation. This can be avoided by using a VPN as the virtual network will cloak your IP address and thereby protect your browsing history.
The free Wifi in a coffee shop or a hotel that you are staying in may seem like attractive perks. But what one does not realize is that public WiFi is not very secure. A hacker can gain access to these networks and control your device without you even knowing it!
Using sniffer software, hackers can decipher sensitive information such as your login details and passwords and put you at risk. They can even read your emails, bank statements, and private messages on your social media. Your device can also be infected with malware. Hence, it is strongly recommended not to access banking websites or shop online when using public WiFi.
So how do you get out of this jam? Use a VPN!
If you connect to a hotspot using a VPN, you need not worry about the safety of the public WiFi network as all the traffic coming from your device will be encrypted. It will keep you and your data protected against cyber attacks.
We live in times where we deeply rely on streaming platforms for meeting our daily dose of entertainment. But did you know that there are different versions of the on-demand services in different countries? Put, you may not be able to watch your favorite series if you move out of your country. Also, there are countries where some of the on-demand platforms cannot be accessed.
To get around the problem of geo-blocked content, you need to install a VPN. It gives you the power to unblock tons of content from around the world by encrypting your traffic and make it appear as if you are logged in from an entirely different country.
Using a VPN also gives you the freedom to bypass certain restrictions. If the internet at your place has restrictive network controls, VPN can circumvent this by not only encrypting your IP address but also keep your browsing history private.
We all love Google and its free services. But it tends to get a bit creepy when it knows about everything you do and every place you go. If you browse the net casually without caring about your privacy settings, Google will store and track all your movements online. It will even search your Gmail to show you better-targeted advertisements.
This may put you in a difficult or embarrassing situation, depending on where you went and what you searched for.
A VPN provides the user with the power to stop Google and others to track their location and activities online.
While VPN is not something new, it has gained a lot of momentum in the recent past. People realize the importance of protecting their online privacy. So if you want to safeguard yourself in the virtual world, get a VPN to hide your IP and save yourself from any inconvenience.
The Gold Coast, a bustling city with sun, surf, and sand. The perfect place to run a business, and every business needs a website, and WordPress is the best platform to use for your new business website.
m2media has designed, developed and managed WordPress websites for a range of well established companies on the Gold Coast. Our Gold Coast WordPress sites are built to last, with quality designs and development to stand out from the crowd. m2 offers a wide range of services including web design, digital marketing and seo for all types of Gold Coast businesses.
Whether you are run a trade, hotel, resort, restaurant or accountancy, our team has the skills to design and develop a WordPress Gold Coast website to suit your brand.
Medical Vita Diet are a leading meal replacement shake with stockists across Australia. m2media was an integral part of their redevelopment, and carried out design and development for their new online store. A good Gold Coast wordpress example.
One of m2media’s first and original clients, Japanese Parts and Performance recently updated their old dated website to WordPress. The inclusion of a online shopping cart, blog, and social media has enhanced their site and the move to WordPress has allowed their business to grow and increase sales.
Developing a relationship with your clients when you may have such a large base can be difficult. SendinBlue is an email marketing software that companies can use to improve these relationships in an effective and engaging way.
Using one of Sendinblue’s email marketing automation plans, you can more effectively create email campaigns as well as automate your contact processes in a way that feels personal. In this buyer’s guide, we’ll explain what SendinBlue does, how it works, and the different marketing plans you can choose from.
Sendinblue makes getting in touch with clients around the world as simple as the press of a button with email and SMS services. Whether it’s a monthly newsletter, welcome email, or abandoned shopping cart reminder, the smart software automatically sends out professional and highly optimized messages.
The software is more than just a convenient tool – it also provides guidance to grow your business. SendinBlue does this by giving you analytics you can act on.
Rather than doing guesswork wondering if your email campaign is working, SendinBlue Email allows you to know for sure what is being seen and what isn’t. SendinBlue email marketing software uses complex data analysis to determine when recipients have opened an email. With this information, you can alter your email campaigns and marketing materials to get the highest CTR (click through rate) possible. You can also be more strategic about the ways in which you format =emails and the times that you send them.
Send time is particularly important in knowing whether or not the email will end up being read. SendinBlue Email knows this, which is why they have a “send time optimization” feature that sends emails at the perfect time based on gathered data.
SendinBlue Email has many tools that can be used to help companies achieve streamlined, efficient communication with their clients. The system features:
These tools and many more are top of the line and indicate the fact that SendinBlue Email is truly a system that makes use of innovative new tools and features to help companies improve client relations. Whether you are working on optimizing click-through rates or converting clients to buyers, these features can help you get the job done.
SendinBlue Email believes that their product users should be taken care of. Their pricing hierarchy allows you to pay for the services you need without paying for what you don’t.
The free version of the email marketing software may not meet all of your business’ needs, but it’s a great way to test out the service risk-free. Lite is recommended to small businesses that are just starting out and haven’t accumulated a large mailing list yet. Essential adds a touch of professionalism by removing the software logo.
For those who want a luxury experience that really takes their company to the next level, experts recommend the Premium or Enterprise plan. For this extra payment, users are entitled to the send time optimization tools, a lander page builder, and unlimited automation workflows. This is by far the most efficient plan when it comes to account optimization.
The final plan, Enterprise, is for large companies and priced based on your account manager, whose assistance is part of the package. So, for pricing information, you’ll need to reach out to SendinBlue by email. Those who purchase Enterprise are also given a services pack.
If you’re interested in utilizing this innovative marketing software to improve client relations, sign up for SendinBlue’s marketing automation services for free today. The free option allows you to decide if this product is right for your business – if it isn’t, no harm done. If you like it, you can easily upgrade at any time to one of the more advanced options available, giving you more tools to help grow your client base. You won’t know until you try, so sign up free now!
WordPress powers 30% of websites around the globe. A WordPress site can be anything from a minimalist promotional website to a complex eCommerce solution to a personal blog. No matter what website you need to create, you can do it with WordPress.
If you want to start your own website, manage an existing website, or just want a greater understanding of WordPress, we have courses that can help you.
Our WordPress courses offer a small and focused workshop experience where you will be a part of a small group getting direct tutoring from trainer and web developer Matt, with plenty of opportunities for individual questions and assistance.
Our courses are regularly hosted at our Wilston office nestled in Wilston Village, with a beginner course for those looking to grasp the basics, and an advanced course for those wanting to learn more and have more control over their websites.
Our trainer Cassie Selin has years of experience managing and developing custom wordpress websites, as well as experience training WordPress users from varying backgrounds.
Cassie has been a web design and development tutor and guest lecturer at QUT and has run WordPress workshops and focused training sessions at Council Libraries and for private businesses and individuals.
Cassie can help you get your head around the core concepts of wordpress, and also has the technical knowledge to answer the most advanced questions.
Our WordPress Training Courses are tailoured to both beginners and those more experienced users looking to improve their skills.
What you need: Your own laptop
Prior knowledge: None!
Grab a coffee from one of the local Wilston Village cafés and join a small group for a friendly and welcoming introduction to all things WordPress. Following this session, you’ll be able to launch your own free WordPress.com website. No background knowledge required.
This two hour workshop introduces the core concepts of WordPress. What is WordPress? Why would you choose it to build your website? You will come out of this workshop with the skills you need to build a new, free wordpress site, or with greater confidence to manage your existing site. Suited for those who have never used wordpress before, who have dipped their toe in, or anyone who would like a back-to-basics introduction of how it works.
What you need: Your own laptop
Prior knowledge: None required, but as this is an advanced workshop, more time will be spent with advanced concepts than with clarifying simple concepts. If you’re new to WordPress, we recommend WordPress Beginners.
This full day workshop starts at the beginning and dives deep into WordPress. What is WordPress, how does it work, and how can you get the most out of your WordPress site?
This workshop will empower you to build your own website or to take control of an existing one. We will cover managing your site’s content, choosing and customising your site’s appearance using themes, extending your site’s functionality using plugins, and how to make the most of your site’s SEO (search engine optimisation). There will also be time for you to ask questions pertaining to your personal site goals – want to build an online store, run your own blog, or showcase your artwork? Our trainer can answer questions and offer specific advice you might be seeking. This full-day workshop will have tea and lunch breaks and is hosted in the heart of Wilston Village.
Reviews have become an important factor in the world of e-commerce, and as such, they are important elements in modern life. People use reviews to express their opinion about various things, from products such as books, makeup, and sports equipment to the movies, cinemas, and restaurants. Reviews are also used in affiliate marketing where writers will review products and earn commissions if a visitor purchases the reviewed product.
Various surveys have been published regarding the reviewing and even 90% of the participants admitted that the vast majority of their buying decisions are based on the reviews left on the product sites. At the same, another survey has reported that people prefer trusting online reviews far more than a personal recommendation. [3]
With so many reviews available on the internet, you can easily make a lot of money if you can make the right use of them. Amazon can thank its amazing reviewing system that boosts the sales, as the customers can easily trust the verified reviews. Also, bloggers in-depth rely on reviews when they’re out of writing ideas.
In order to make your reviews look genuinely nice and professional, you will have to make them look functional. If your website runs on WordPress, there are five very useful WordPress reviewer plugins that can make your product and/or product review look very useful and helpful, enough to make someone purchase the product, and this article makes a compelling list of plugins and describes their most important features in the process.
This amazing reviewing plugin designed by EvoG is available on CodeCanyon for $25. Reviewer has an amazing design, followed with a sleek and user-friendly interface that is very intuitive in the process. It comes with a great variety of features that allow you to present your review as accurate as possible. The contemporary reviews are split into seven parts. This includes overall rating, user rating, a thumbnail, pros and cons and the summary of your review.
Just like most of the other plugins, the Reviewer is fully customizable. It comes with a user-friendly, handy rating system and offers an unlimited selection of colors. Reviewer also sports nine templates and, each one of them has a unique style and layout and additionally, customizable accordingly.
This is not the end of the Reviewer’s features. The Reviewer allows you to compare tables without a sweat. You can easily put review scores side by side allowing your readers to more thoroughly approach the given reviews. The plugin as well can take its pride in a large high functioning community. While the user reviews can be left through the comments, they’re also enabled to share their opinions through three options: Overall rating, criterion-by-criterion or either a star or slider rating function. There are also seven fully customizable widgets that make the sidebars very functional while making navigation between the reviews piece of cake.
WP Review Pro belongs to one of the top-rated reviewing plugins. You can easily get it on MyThemeShop for just $29. The price also includes proficient support for one year. If you’re looking for a way to make your reviews professional and as if they have some kind of attitude, this is the right plugin for you. The plugin includes great CSS animations that easily grab attention from the audience.
WP Review Pro offers customizable reviews that feel soft to the eye and allow the user to choose among the unlimited selection of colors, size of the boxes for reviewing and numbers of criteria.
There are various review systems available through the WP Review Pro: stars, points, circles or percentages. WP Review Pro enhances the navigation with additional tabbed review widget which is of great help to those who are not completely friendly with using computers. Moreover, readers can easily express their opinion through a single-click rating. Some people prefer leaving a professional and analytic review which includes more details and they can do that via the comments that are placed at the bottom of the post.
Rich snippets help the search engines enhance optimization. And in order to more boost the SEO, the plugin is agile and running lighting fast. To those who would like to perform a detailed plugin testing, there’s a free trial version but it doesn’t come in its full power.
Taqyem can be bought for just $17 from CodeCanyon. Together with the plugin, you get six months support. The plugin has a dark and light theme included. Additionally, both themes can be customized with an unlimited choice of colors. Along with this feature, you can customize the typing with 600 and more Google fonts. Also, you can choose between two sizes of summary boxes: full and half-width. You can choose between three review systems: star, percentages, and points, while the readers are also able to leave user ratings.
There are also an additional three widgets that make this plugin very functional. The best, recent and random reviews. In order to make your plugin more functional, the developers have released two extensions.
This review plugin will help everyone with a tight budget or people who have just started their business and need a reliable plugin that will introduce them to the system. Despite being free, this plugin has a lot to offer.
Aside from fantastic looking review boxes, the plugin contains a rating out of 10, pros and cons, thumbnail image and two affiliate links. Reviews can be fully customized with an offered choice of typography, positioning, and selection of colors. Ratings can depend on color. For instance, green color serves the good-quality review while the orange and red represent the lower quality of the review.
Aside from the free version, the plugin offers a couple of really useful add-ons but that means spending more money than you’d normally spend on a paid plugin.
All the review plugins we have listed allow you to create a unique, stylish review box that includes a significant rating system, pros and cons schema markup for rich snippets. They are very useful in the ever-growing world of e-commerce where the product and marketplace matter the most. Which plugin do you use? Which one is your favorite?
Let’s take a look at what could be influencing the term to be referenced more and more.
Mature design patterns, high-quality automation, templates, mobile technology, and AI, are probably showing signs for the end of web design. I personally feel that web design is dying of irrelevance. It seems that web pages are not the focus of the internet anymore, and that is the reason why web designers are moving to the next level challenges such as ecosystems and products if they wish to remain relevant. It is being heard since long that web design has no future. Being an experienced person in the Brisbane web design scene, I have researched about that, and in this article, I will be highlighting my findings regarding why the future of the web design is in risk and how an emerging blend of cultural and technological trends triggers the need of a wider approach.
The content seen today on the web is mostly handled by some service or framework, such as Blogger, WordPress, and Drupal etc. Frameworks give shortcuts and foundations that let you spend less of your time struggling with the development of a website, and more time and efforts for developing content.
As a result of the ubiquity of such frameworks, a huge world of templates both free of cost and paid, enables you having a professional web design in a matter of minutes. Why would one go for a web designer if he can get a fairly acceptable WordPress web design at a fraction of the price, using a template? In addition, some web designers that are available at a cheaper price, just take a premade template and do some minimal branding customization.
What is the most recent web design innovation we can recall? Parallax? That is useless eye candy. Responsive design? That belongs to quite old digital ages. The web now has all the user interface patterns and elements you may need now. And that is the reason behind less innovation seen in web patterns. Users find this maturity a great option. They are having consistency in their casual use of the web. Shopping carts, login pages, and checkout forms all work in a similar manner. Attempting to be creative at this moment might probably harmful or pointless.
There is a new form of automated web design, arguably initiated by The Grid. This is a service to develop basic websites that are able to make design decisions; semantic ones relied on artificial intelligence. It assesses the content to detect the best colors, layouts, fonts and additional imagery for the site. Using wisely selected design basics (developed by humans), it is hard to go wrong with it. The result is probably much better than an average web designer’s service.
The practice by businesses to purchase their .com’s, costly hosting plans and hire an experienced webmaster to have their web page is greatly being replaced with free of cost and powerfully embedded Facebook pages used for business.
Analyzing these trends, I wonder if there is a higher risk for the future of web design. If some really great innovations don’t happen soon, web design is going to be an old myth.
Be it clothes, medicines and books or furniture, vehicles and jewelry, everything is available online. This upward trend can be seen globally and will continue for a few more years. If you have an e-commerce store, you must be aware of how tough it is to get customers since competition is not just high but just a click of a button away. Below listed are some points, which will help to make your eCommerce website attractive to your potential customers.
Keeping the search bar handy and clearly defined within easy reach is very important because customers will be using it the most to search for things, they are looking for.
Using good quality and plenty of pictures is a sure way to attract people in online shopping. Here users cannot touch anything; their buying decision relies purely on what they see.
Ensure that your website design is responsive and mobile-friendly as a huge percentage of people search for products and shop on their mobiles only. The importance of making a website mobile-friendly cannot be stated enough.
The shopping basket along with the search bar should be available on each page on the website so that the user can continue shopping without any hassle and know what’s there in the cart from every page he is on. Also, ensure that Add to Cart button is prominent and clearly visible on every product page.
The possibility is that there are going to be a lot of categories on your website. So, it is important to keep all the categories suitably defined under a proper menu without making them look cluttered. Using breadcrumb method makes the process of navigation an easy and smooth one.
These play a key role in helping a visitor decide whether to buy a product or not. So don’t miss them.
As the competition is rapidly increasing in the online market, it has become very important to stay on top of search engines to ensure maximum visibility for your website. Having a good understanding of Search Engine Optimisation will help you build a website that complies with Googles best practices.
Social media links should be placed strategically on your website design, where they are not very prominently visible yet not hidden either. People should be able to access them, as and when required. You can use Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest links.
This has been stated again and again that the website design should not be clumsy and product details and price must be right there. The product page should be hassle-free to use.
To keep your customers happy and ensure a sale, be sure your website loads fast. The best way to achieve this is by first choosing a quality web hosting company. Look for a hosting company with servers located in your country, ideally as close to your target customers as possible.
On the checkout page, no products or deals should be promoted. Prefer to use single page checkouts instead of multiple pages ones. The order, price and quantity of the items purchased should be clearly visible on the checkout page so that the customer can do amendments if needed. Also, make sure to get a trust certificate like Hacker Safe or Verisign to gain the confidence and trust of your customers.
If these points are kept in mind and put to practice, then you can be sure of having a successful e-commerce website.
