Pradeep Singh

100+ Best Christmas & New Year 2026 Holidays Software Deals – Top Offers

Tue, 30 Dec 2025 20:15:31 GMT

Looking for the best Software deals and offers during the Christmas and New Year Holidays?

‘Tis the season for savings! Several SaaS companies offer the best deals on their products as holiday treats, and we bring you a comprehensive list of top discounts and offers for this holiday season.

Taking advantage of holiday deals on software can help you save money on tools and software that you’ll need for the upcoming year. If you missed the recent Black Friday software deals, don’t worry – Christmas and New Year Software Deals are here to give you another chance to save more!

We’re a reader-supported publisher. We may earn an affiliate commission when you buy through links on our site.

Top Christmas and Holidays Software Deals 2026

Here are our top picks for the best Christmas and holiday software deals, featuring the most popular SaaS tools and products to help you save the most on your purchases.

Christmas Holiday Deals	Discount Offers	Claim Deal
TikTok Ads Deal	Get over $6000 Free Credit	Get Deal
WP Engine Deal	3 Months Free	Get Deal
StartGround Deal	50% OFF Premium Plan	Get Deal
WordPress.com Deal	30% OFF Hosting Plans	Get Deal
Jungle Scout Deal	60% OFF Annual Plans	Get Deal
Bluehost Deal	75% OFF Plans + Free Domain	Get Deal
Keap Deal	25% OFF on Annual Plans.	Get Deal
Xero Deal	90% OFF For 6 Months	Get Deal
Semrush Deal	14 Days Free Offer	Get Deal
NordVPN Deal	68% OFF + 4 Months Free	Get Deal
Surfshark Deal	84% OFF + 2 Months Free	Get Deal
PureVPN Deal	87% OFF on a 5-Year Plan	Get Deal
NordPass Deal	50% OFF on a 2-year plan	Get Deal
Nextiva Deal	50% off all NextivaONE plans	Get Deal
Domain.com Deal	20% OFF the entire purchase	Get Deal
Spocket Deal	15% OFF for 12 months	Get Deal
LearnWorlds Deal	15% OFF for 12 months	Get Deal
Vecteezy Deal	15% OFF for 12 months	Get Deal
HostGator Deal	75% OFF hosting + Free Domain	Get Deal
Cloudways Deal	40% OFF for Four Months	Get Deal
Namecheap Deal	Up to 92% OFF Holiday Deals Sale	Get Deal
Envato Market Deal	50% OFF popular items	Get Deal
Envato Elements Deal	40% OFF Deal	Get Deal
Constant Contact Deal	40% OFF Deal	Get Deal
Leadpages Deal	50% OFF Plans	Get Deal
Blinkist Deal	40% OFF Deal	Get Deal
InVideo Deal	40% OFF All Plans	Get Deal
ClickFunnels Deal	44% OFF deals	Get Deal
TubeBuddy Deal	23% OFF Creator Licenses	Get Deal

The Christmas and New Year holiday week is the best season and probably the last chance to claim amazing bargains on software products and services.

To make it easier for you to find the best deals quickly, we have further organised and listed all the deals in major categories.

All Best Holidays Software Deals – SaaS Promotions

Here’s a comprehensive list of all the best software deals for Christmas and the holiday season, helping you get the most popular software tools and products at a fraction of the cost.

Looking for more details about the Christmas and holiday deals listed above? We have tried to highlight some of the most popular deals and their details in the sections below.

TikTok Ads Holidays Deal

TikTok Ads Holidays Coupon deal offers you up to $6000 CashBack on your Ads spend in the first thirty days of signing up. You can also claim up to $3000 Ad Credit on your first month’s Ad spend specifically on Lead Generation ads with this TikTok’s deal.

Deal: Up to 50% initial spend in Cashback
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Christmas + New Year

Get TikTok Ads Deal

NordVPN Christmas Holidays Deal

NordVPN is having its biggest sale this Christmas and New Year, offering 68% OFF and 3 Months free. This VPN comes with a 30-day money-back satisfaction guarantee, so it’s definitely worth checking out!

Deal: 68% OFF + 3 Months Free
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Christmas + New Year

Get NordVPN Deal

WordPress.com Christmas Holidays Deal

WordPress.com is the most popular hosting provider for WordPress websites. You can get 30% OFF on their hosting plans this New Year.

WordPress.com Coupon Details
Deal: 30% OFF all Plans
Coupon code: WP30XH9K
Offer valid: Christmas + New Year

Get WordPress.com Deal

Reply.io Holiday & New Year Deal

Reply.io is running a limited-time Holiday offer on its annual plans, helping sales teams close the year strong and start the New Year with better outreach results. Reply.io makes it easy to find qualified leads, personalise messages, and automate multichannel sales outreach from one platform.

Deal: 30% OFF Annual Reply Plans
Coupon code: FREEZE30
Offer valid: Holiday / New Year Period

Get Reply.io Deal

Jason AI Holiday & New Year Deal

Jason AI is offering a Holiday and New Year discount on its AI-powered SDR platform. Jason AI works as an autonomous sales agent that identifies potential buyers, creates personalised outreach messages, and runs full outbound campaigns across email and LinkedIn.

Deal: 20% OFF Annual Jason AI SDR Plans
Coupon code: FREEZE20
Offer valid: Holiday / New Year Period

Get Jason AI Deal

SurfShark Christmas Holidays Deal

SurfShark, another popular VPN provider, is offering the best Christmas and Holiday offer with an 84% discount and two months entirely free on its plans. You can also try out Surfshark for seven days absolutely free.

Deal: 84% OFF + 2 Months Free
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Christmas + New Year

Get SurfShark Deal

PureVPN Christmas Holidays Deal

PureVPN is another VPN provider offering the best Holiday season deal of 89% OFF on their five-year plans. PureVPN plans include ten multi-logins, Apps for all devices and a 31-day money-back guarantee!

Deal: 89% Off on 5 Year Plan
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Christmas + New Year Holidays

Get PureVPN Deal

NordPass Christmas Holidays Deal

NordPass, the next-generation password manager developed by the cybersecurity experts of NordVPN, is offering 50% OFF on their 2-year plan for their Holidays and Christmas season sale.

Deal: 50% OFF on a 2-year plan
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Christmas + New Year

Get NordPass Deal

Nextiva Christmas Holidays Deal

Nextiva, a highly rated simple and affordable VoIP Phone Service, is offering 50% off all NextivaONE plans with their Season of Savings promotion which brings the plans as low as $10!

Deal: 50% off all NextivaONE plans
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: through 12/15

Get Nextiva Deal

Namecheap Christmas Holidays Deal

Namecheap is celebrating the Holidays season with festive web treats across their range of products. You can get up to 92% OFF domains, 65% OFF hosting and email, 80% OFF web security, and 25% OFF business toolkit as their main offers during the sale.

Deal: Up to 92% OFF festive treats
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Until December 19

Get Namecheap Deal

Bluehost Christmas Holidays Deal

Looking to start a website or renew your hosting in the new year? Grab Bluehost’s deal for the new year offering over 75% OFF on your hosting plans, including a free domain name.

Deal: 75% OFF Plans + Free Domain
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Until New Year

Get Bluehost Deal

Domain.com New Year Holidays Deal

Looking to purchase a new domain? Domain.com is offering 20% OFF your entire purchases on their platform to celebrate the new year and holidays.

Deal: 20% OFF purchases
Coupon code: CELEBRATE
Offer valid: Until New Year

Get Domain.com Deal

Spocket Christmas Holidays Deal

Spocket is one of the most powerful automated dropshipping softwares designed to streamline your online store. You can claim up to 75% OFF on annual plans during the Christmas and New Year sale period.

Deal: 75% OFF On Annual Plan
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Until 8th January

Get Spocket Deal

invideo Holidays and New Year Deal

invideo’s latest generative AI tool, invideo AI v3.0, enables creators to turn any idea into full-length, publish-ready videos from simple text prompts. Get free gift of 50 additional AI minutes with a $30 value with this year’s Holidays deal.

Deal: Unlock 50 free AI minutes ($30 value)
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Until 5th January

Get Spocket Deal

LearnWorlds Christmas Holidays Deal

LearnWorlds is celebrating this holiday season with the biggest offer you can get to grow your online course business. You can get 15% OFF for 12 months on monthly Pro Trainer and Learning Center plans OR 15% OFF Combo: Learning Center + Mobile on monthly plans for 12 months.

Deal: 15% OFF for 12 months
Coupon code: HAPPYNY25
Offer valid: Until 8th January

Get LearnWorlds Deal

Vecteezy Christmas Holidays Deal

Vecteezy is a popular creative assets marketplace. On the occasion of the New Year, they are offering 50% off monthly subscription. You can purchase an annual subscription, for only $7/month with this offer.

Deal: 50% OFF monthly subscription
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Until 6th January

Get Vecteezy Deal

Skillshare Christmas Holidays Deal

Skillshare, a popular online learning community with thousands of courses in almost every field you can imagine, is offering 40% OFF membership plans. Use our exclusive coupon code and get an exclusive discount this new year to save on your learning plans.

Deal: 40% OFF Annual Subscription
Coupon code: AFF40dtp23
Offer valid: Until 9th January

Get Skillshare Deal

GetGenie AI Christmas Holidays Deal

GetGenie AI is one of the most advanced WordPress AI tools for SEO-optimized content and copywriting. This Holiday Season, claim a spine-tingling discount of up to 50% on GetGenie AI and avail of all its handy SEO and writing features to rank in the SERPs and convert visitors.

Deal: Up to 50% discount
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Until 10th January

Get GetGenie AI Deal

InVideo New Year Holidays Deal

InVideo, one of the popular technology skills platforms, is offering 33% off on Annual Standard and Premium subscriptions as part of their end-of-the-year sale.

Deal: 40% OFF on ALL InVideo plans
Coupon code: NY40
Offer valid: Until January 1st, 2024

Get InVideo Deal

TubeBuddy New Year Holidays Deal

TubeBuddy, a YouTube optimization and channel management is offering 23% off for 2023! Calling this promotion “The Year of You” now through January 1st, 2023, they are offering creators 23% off any individual creator license.

Deal: 23% OFF Creator Licenses
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Until 1st January 2024

Get TubeBuddy Deal

FAQS – Christmas Holidays Software Deals

Are you curious about when Christmas sales start and what sorts of deals there are? Here are answers to some popular questions you might have about holiday software deals.

What type of software deals are available during the holidays?

All kinds of software companies offer special discounts or promotional codes for their tools during the holiday season. You can find a wide selection of SaaS tools, services and products at discounted prices.
How long do Christmas and holiday software deals last?

The exact duration of the offers varies by product or company, but generally, the holiday deals are applicable during Christmas and the first few days of the New Year period.
What are the best software deals during holiday season?

Many SaaS companies offer special discounts and promotional offers on their products during Christmas and New Year Holidays. These may include discounts on annual plans, free upgrades or add-ons and more. You can see the best deals of this year in this post.
How can I get the most out of holiday software deals?

Planning and researching the different holiday software deals can help you save the most on your purchases. Compare different offers and make sure to use the free trial periods if applicable to make sure the software is right for your needs.

Start with Best Holidays Software Deals!

We hope this list of Christmas and New Year Holidays Software Deals helps you save more on the software tools and products that you need. If we missed any deals, please feel free to get in touch with us and let us know.

We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Have a great holiday season, and enjoy the savings!

You can also check out our other seasonal deals listings, including the best Halloween software deals and the best Black Friday software deals.

Disclosure: This post includes affiliate links, and I earn a tiny commission at no additional cost to you when you use these links. The commissions help compensate for my hard work and keep this site free for visitors. Read our full FTC disclosure.

Best WordPress.com Coupon Code 2026: 30% OFF Plans + Free Domain

Mon, 09 Dec 2024 16:33:46 GMT

When it comes to building a website or blog, WordPress.com is one of the best platforms available. With its seamless interface and robust hosting services, WordPress.com provides everything you need to get your site up and running quickly.

Exclusive WordPress.com Coupon: Direct Link

Get the best WordPress.com deal with my discounted partner link and an exclusive coupon code. The offer is exclusive to new users and is the best ever, available for a limited time.

30% OFF WordPress.com Pricing Plans
Free Domain Name
30-Days Full Refund Guarantee

Deal: 30% OFF Deal
Coupon Code: Direct Link

Start With Coupon Deal

WPism is a reader-supported publisher. We may earn an affiliate commission when you purchase through our links, which enables us to do our best work and offer our research for free.

WordPress.com is a trusted, managed WordPress hosting platform that takes the hassle out of setting up and maintaining a website. The platform offers flexible plans designed to meet your needs, whether you’re looking to start a blog, set up a portfolio, or launch an eCommerce store.

WordPress.com simplifies website creation by offering user-friendly tools, thousands of themes, and access to powerful plugins. With this platform, you don’t need any coding experience—everything is point-and-click, making it ideal for beginners and professionals alike.

Let’s dive into how you can take advantage of these incredible discounts, apply the coupon code, and make the most of WordPress.com’s features.

How to Apply WordPress.com Coupon Code?

Using a WordPress.com coupon code is a simple and effective way to reduce the cost of your hosting plan. Follow these steps to claim your discount:

Visit Dedicated WordPress.com Page: Use our partner link to visit the special landing page of WordPress.com website and select the hosting plan that fits your needs.

Choose Your Plan: After reviewing the various pricing options (more on that later), pick the plan that suits you best.

Enter the Coupon Code: At checkout, you will see that the coupon code has been applied automatically.

Apply and Confirm: Click “Apply” and watch as your total updates with the discounted amount. Proceed to complete your payment, and your savings will be locked in.

With this simple process, you can start building your website at a fraction of the regular price.

WordPress.com Discounted Pricing Plans

WordPress.com offers several pricing plans, all of which come with their own unique features. Here’s an overview of the most popular options, and the savings you can expect with the 30% discount:

Beginner Plan: Normally priced at $48 per year, this plan is perfect for personal blogs or simple websites. With the coupon code, your cost drops to just $33.60 for the year, and you’ll also get a free domain name for the first year.

Premium Plan: The Premium Plan, typically $96 annually, comes down to $67.20 after applying the coupon. It offers additional storage and access to premium themes.

Business Plan: For advanced users, this plan offers 50GB of storage, the ability to install plugins, and no limits on visitors. Originally $300 per year, the coupon reduces it to $210.

eCommerce Plan: Ideal for online stores, this plan includes WooCommerce integration. Normally priced at $540 per year, it’s discounted to $378 with the coupon.

By paying annually, you can save significantly compared to paying monthly. Opt for a two- or three-year plan for even greater savings!

WordPress.com Overview and Features

WordPress.com stands out for its simplicity and power. Whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned website owner, WordPress.com has a range of features that make it an excellent choice:

Customizable Themes: Choose from hundreds of professional themes to make your site look exactly the way you want.

Plugins and Extensions: Add functionality with plugins for SEO, marketing, social media integration, and more.

Security: WordPress.com handles all updates and security, so you don’t have to worry about managing your site’s backend.

Global Content Delivery Network (CDN): Ensures your site loads quickly no matter where your visitors are located.

24/7 Support: Access support through live chat or email whenever you need assistance.

These features, combined with the ease of use, make WordPress.com one of the top choices for hosting and website creation.

WordPress.com Deals and Promotions

Besides coupon codes, WordPress.com also offers several promotions throughout the year. Keep an eye out for seasonal sales during Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and New Year’s Holidays deals.

These events often come with significant discounts on hosting plans, premium themes, and plugin bundles.

Other WordPress.com Coupon Codes List

Here’s a quick roundup of the best WordPress.com coupon codes available:

Direct Link – Get 30% off all yearly hosting plans + a free domain name for the first year.
Direct Link – Save 40% on Business Plans during the summer sale (expired).
Direct Link – Take 20% off all WordPress.com plans during special promotional periods (expired).

These coupon codes offer substantial discounts, so make sure to use them before they expire!

WordPress.com Coupon Code FAQs

Here are some of the most frequently asked questions about applying WordPress.com coupon codes.

Does WordPress.com offer regular discounts?

Although rare, WordPress.com offers discounts, especially during festive seasons and promotional events. The 30% off coupon is one of the best deals currently available.
How much can I save with WordPress coupon code?

By using our exclusive WordPress discount code, you can save up to 30% on all hosting plans. You’ll also get a free domain name for the first year.
Can I pay monthly for WordPress.com Plans?

Yes, you can choose a monthly payment plan, but you’ll save more on WordPress.com plans by paying annually.
Does the coupon code work on WordPress.com Plan renewals?

The coupon code is valid for new purchases, not renewals. However, WordPress.com sometimes offers renewal discounts.

Start with WordPress.com Coupon Deal

Ready to launch your website? Now’s the perfect time to take advantage of the 30% discount and free domain offer from WordPress.com. This is the best offer you can ever get on WordPress plans.

Whether you’re a blogger, small business owner, or creative professional, WordPress.com has the tools you need to create and maintain a stunning, high-performance website.

WordPress.com

WordPress.com is the most popular website building and hosting platform for businesses.

Price: 3

Price Currency: USD

Application Category: BusinessApplication

Editor's Rating:
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Activate Coupon Deal

Use our dedicated coupon code to save the most on WordPress.com plans and start building your digital presence today!

Best WordPress.com Deal

Get exclusive 30% OFF on all WordPress.com plans using our coupon code and partner link.

Code: Direct Link

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10+ Best eCommerce Platforms 2026 – Complete Guide

Sun, 06 Oct 2024 21:01:19 GMT

See our curated list of best eCommerce platforms and learn how to select the right one for your business needs in this complete guide. These top platforms offer a range of e-Commerce features to help you sell your products and services online, manage orders and payments and market your store to potential customers.

Best Overall

Shopify

Shopify is the best overall all-in-one eCommerce platform with everything you need to start an online store and run a business.

Go to site

Best For Beginners

Wix

Wix is the best beginner-friendly platform to create an eCommerce website with 500+ free online store templates.

Go to site

Best For Digital Sellers

SquareSpace

SquareSpace is the best platform for small and service-based businesses and those selling downloads and digital files.

Go to site

Best For Small Businesses

WooCommerce

WooCommerce by Bluehost is the most affordable eCommerce platform and is suitable for small businesses with its easy drag-and-drop features.

Go to site

We’re a reader-supported publisher. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

eCommerce platforms offer software solutions to enable you to create online stores and shops to sell your products and services. They provide a place to host your online store, give you tools to manage it, and process payments from your customers.

With so many different eCommerce platforms available on the market, choosing the best one for your business can certainly be challenging.

To help you with your research and decision process, we’ve compiled a list of the best eCommerce platforms suitable for most online brands and businesses.

What are the Best eCommerce Platforms?

We will look at some of the best eCommerce platforms in detail, but here’s a listing and quick overview of the best platforms we cover in this detailed guide.

eCommerce Platforms	Best Offer	Pricing
Shopify	14 Days Free Trial	Check Pricing
Wix eCommerce	14 Days Full Refund	Check Pricing
Squarespace	Free 14-day Trial	Check Pricing
WooCommerce by Bluehost	30-Day Money-Back	Check Pricing
Square	Free Plan Available	Check Pricing
BigCommerce	15 Days Free Trial	Check Pricing
Weebly	Free Plan Available	Check Pricing
Web.com	Discount for new users	Check Pricing
StoreBuilder by Nexcess	Free for 30 days	Check Pricing
Sellfy	Forever Free Plan	Check Pricing

As you can see from our listings overview, there are a number of eCommerce platforms that are available on the market. And as most of these platforms provide similar features, it can be further challenging to find the best eCommerce platform suitable for your business needs.

We will look at each of the platforms in detail and list their pros and cons to help you decide which eCommerce platform is right for your business needs.

Besides, we will also look at some of the key considerations when choosing an eCommerce platform, including the level of customizability that the software provides, its ease of use, payment processing options, and customer support.

In our best eCommerce platforms rankings, we have also considered aspects of software such as pricing and integrations with other tools and services that ensure users get the most value from your platform.

We look at all such features and more in our top picks of the best eCommerce platforms in the sections below.

Shopify

Shopify is our top recommended eCommerce platform as it’s suitable for businesses of all kinds. The platform is one of the most popular eCommerce software with over one million active stores using it to power their online businesses.

Best Overall for all Businesses

Ultimate eCommerce software
Top recommended by experts
Get paid on time after order completion

Start Shopify Free Trial

Shopify offers a complete hosted SaaS software that allows merchants to create an online store without having to worry about hosting infrastructure or the traffic that your store will receive.

With its fully managed software solution, Shopify takes care of all server updates, backups, SSL certificates, security patches etc so that you can solely focus on your core business of selling online.

Why Shopify?

Here are some of the main reasons why Shopify is one of the first choices of most e-commerce store owners and why it can be yours, too.

With Shopify, you get access to an extremely easy-to-use managed SaaS solution that allows you to create your store in minutes without any technical expertise.
You get access to over 100+ premium and free Shopify themes to help you create a professional-looking store and customise it to fit your business.
Shopify offers 24/7 support via phone, live chat, and email to help you with any issues that you may encounter with your online store.
You can use Shopify’s POS software to seamlessly sell in-person in addition to selling on your online channels.
You will benefit from a wide range of features such as unlimited products and bandwidth, abandoned cart recovery, etc, to help you run your eCommerce store efficiently.
You can make use of the built-in blogging platform, which lets you write articles and create content to attract new customers and drive traffic to your store.
You can integrate your online store with a wide range of integrations available for popular tools and services such as accounting software, shipping carriers, marketing tools, etc, to help you run your online business smoothly.
Best of all, you can get started with a Free Shopify trial of 14 days and try out the platform before committing to a paid plan.

Shopify Pricing

Shopify has three main plans that you can sign up for – Basic Shopify, Shopify, and Advanced Shopify. The prices start at $29/month and go up to $299/month.

They also have an enterprise solution called Shopify Plus which has custom prices accommodating your specific needs as your store grows and needs other advanced features not included in the predefined plans.

Shopify eCommerce Plans	Pricing
Basic Shopify	$29 USD/month
Shopify	$79 USD/month
Advanced Shopify	$299 USD/month
Shopify Plus	Custom pricing

Check Shopify Pricing

Besides the monthly pricing, you will incur credit card processing costs for your store. You can make use of Shopify payments to process payments on your store and they have 2.4 – 2.9% online credit card rates for processing payments. There are also 3rd party transaction fees if not using Shopify Payments – 2.0% for the Basic plan, 1.0% for the Shopify plan, and 0.5% for the Advanced plan.

Shopify also has a very simple Starter plan that allows you to sell products through social and messaging apps for only $5 USD per month.

You can explore all the plans by signing up for a free Shopify trial without even having to enter your payment details.

Shopify – Get Free with 14 Days Trial Now

Start Free Trial

Wix eCommerce

Wix is another beginner-friendly eCommerce platform that enables businesses to create an online store within minutes. It offers a complete eCommerce solution with all features in one platform, including the ability to create and manage products, set up payment methods, track orders, and connect with customers.

Best Platform for Beginners

Easiest eCommerce platform
Simple drag-and-drop features
Mobile management app

Start Wix Free Trial

In addition, Wix eCommerce integrates with a number of third-party apps, making it a versatile tool for businesses of all sizes.

Compared to other eCommerce platforms on the market, Wix eCommerce stands out for its ease of use, comprehensive feature set, and integration capabilities.

With Wix eCommerce, businesses can build a professional online store quickly and easily, without the need for expensive web development services.

Why Wix eCommerce?

Here are some of the main reasons why you should Wix as your eCommerce platform.

You can choose from 100s of free professional online store templates suitable for stores of all sizes with large product catalogues or a single product.
You can finely customize your store’s design template to fit your brand identity by changing colours, fonts, photos, and designing layouts.
You have the ability to upload multiple products at once by formatting your inventory in a CSV file
You can accept payments using a wide network of supported payment providers by Wix eCommerce
You can get 24/7 customer support available for all sorts of queries and issues to make the store the way you want

Wix eCommerce Pricing

Wix has dedicated ‘Business and eCommerce plans’ suitable for their eCommerce customers. There are three main plans that you can sign up for to build and manage your online store – Business VIP, Business Unlimited, and Business Basic.

Wix also has enterprise plans that can be custom-tailored to your specific brand if you scale beyond their existing plans.

Wix eCommerce Plans	Pricing
Business Basic	$16 USD/month
Business Unlimited	$22 USD/month
Business VIP	$45 USD/month

Check Wix Pricing

All plans come with unlimited bandwidth for your online store and you get limited storage space depending on the plan you choose.

The ‘Business Basic’ plan is the starter plan for an eCommerce store offering you the ability to accept online payments by using Wix selling features.

The ‘Business Unlimited’ is their most popular plan that allows for additional eCommerce features such as their support for dropshipping integration and automated sales tax.

If you want to benefit from the complete eCommerce solutions by Wix, go for their ‘Business VIP’ plan which comes with all features Wix has to offer for eCommerce clients in addition to their priority customer care.

You can refer to our listing of the best Wix websites examples here to get inspired when building your own eCommerce store.

Wix – Start for free with no limited trial.

Start For Free

BigCommerce

BigCommerce is another powerful eCommerce platform that enables businesses of all sizes– from small to enterprise-sized businesses to create an online store. The platform provides businesses with everything they need to operate online stores, including a customizable storefront, shopping cart, order management, and payment solutions.

Best for Big Brands and Enterprises

Suitable for Essentials to Enterprise plans
Best SEO-friendly platform
Inventory management tools

Start BigCommerce Free Trial

BigCommerce might have a slightly longer learning curve compared to others initially but its drag-and-drop interface makes it easy for anyone looking to spend some time mastering the platform. Additionally, the platform offers built-in SEO tools and marketing features to help businesses drive traffic to their website and convert visitors into customers.

With all of these features, it’s no wonder that BigCommerce is one of the most popular eCommerce platforms on the market today.

Why BigCommerce?

Some of the main reasons BigCommerce makes a compelling eCommerce platform for your business include;

BigCommerce provides a single platform for your eCommerce business, meaning you don’t have to juggle multiple vendors or integrations. This results in a streamlined back-end operation which can save you time and money.
BigCommerce offers a customizable shopping experience for your customers. You can create a unique look and feel for your store with free themes, and take advantage of powerful features like product personalization and abandoned cart recovery.
BigCommerce is a scalable platform, so as your business grows, you can continue to use BigCommerce without needing to switch to a new platform. This can save you a lot of time and money in the long run.
BigCommerce is integrated with leading marketplaces and sales channels, so you can reach more customers and sell more products.
BigCommerce offers powerful tools to help you run your eCommerce business, including an easy-to-use order management system, built-in payments, and robust shipping options.

If you’re looking for a comprehensive eCommerce platform that can grow with your business, BigCommerce is a great option to consider.

BigCommerce Pricing

BigCommerce offers a variety of pricing plans to fit the needs of any business. You can sign up for a free trial for 15 days and then pick one of the plans.

Their Standard plan is ideal for small businesses just getting started with eCommerce, while their Plus and Pro plans offer more features for larger businesses.

BigCommerce Plans	Pricing
Standard Plan	$29.95 USD/month
Plus Plan	$71.95 USD/month
Pro Plan	$269.96 USD/month

Check BigCommerce Pricing

BigCommerce also offers Enterprise plans for businesses with high-volume sales. All plans come with a free trial, and no long-term contract is required. There are no additional transactional fees for all of the plans. This makes BigCommerce an affordable option for businesses of all sizes.

BigCommerce Essentials – Start a Free trial.

Start Free Trial

WooCommerce by Bluehost

WooCommerce is another popular eCommerce platform that allows businesses to create online stores. It is known for its ease of use and flexibility, as well as its wide range of features. WooCommerce is built on WordPress, which means it benefits from the many plugins and themes that are available for WordPress.

Best Platform for WordPress

Easiest eCommerce platform
Simple drag and drop features
Mobile management app

Start with WooCommerce

As WooCommerce is open-source software, there are several hosting providers that let you easily install WordPress together with WooCommerce. We highly recommend Bluehost, which has the most affordable plans for WooCommerce installations.

The popularity of WooCommerce comes from the fact that it is built on top of WordPress, a content management system that is used by millions of websites around the world.

This makes it easy to install on your WordPress website and customize your store to match your brand. In addition, WooCommerce is compatible with most payment processors, making it a good option for businesses that want to accept online payments.

Why WooCommerce?

Some of the main reasons why you should choose WooCommerce for your online store include:

As WooCommerce is an open-source eCommerce plugin, you can install it for free to sell anything, beautifully.
Developers can customise WooCommerce for each client, adding functionality and extending the code as per need.
It’s easy to get started with WooCommerce. You can install the plugin and have a fully functioning eCommerce store up and running in minutes.
Like other platforms, WooCommerce is regularly updated by introducing new features to make selling online even easier.

However, there are a few things you should be aware of before deciding if WooCommerce is the right eCommerce platform for you:

Although WooCommerce is free, you will need to pay for hosting, a domain name, and other necessary extensions and themes that can add up quickly.
WooCommerce exists as a WordPress plugin, so you will need a self-hosted WordPress site to install and build your eCommerce store on top of it.
Unlike other managed SaaS platforms, you will need to manage your own WooCommerce software updates. This includes tasks like keeping your WooCommerce software and plugins up to date, as well as backing up your store regularly.

If you’re looking for an eCommerce platform that is easy to use, customizable, and scalable, then WooCommerce is a great option.

WooCommerce by Bluehost Pricing

As we recommend installing WooCommerce using the Bluehost hosting provider, we are listing the pricing and plans of Bluehost. If you decide to go with another hosting provider, you will find the prices different and there are several other WooCommerce hosting providers depending on your needs.

Bluehost has two main plans for their WooCommerce hosting services that offer dedicated eCommerce functionality. The first is the Starter plan (Online Store plan), which is great for small businesses or those just getting started with their online store. The second is the Professional plan (Online Store Premium), which is designed for larger businesses with more traffic and sales.

WooCommerce by Bluehost Plans	Pricing
Online Store Plan	$12.95 USD/month
Online Store Premium Plan	$24.95 USD/month

Check WooCommerce Pricing

The Bluehost’s main pricing page mentions the eCommerce store plans as ‘Online Store’ and ‘Online Store Premium’.

You can use our exclusive Bluehost coupon link to get over 48-70% OFF on the standard prices as a new user. You can also claim a free domain name from Bluehost for your first year.

The promotional prices are only for your first term and so make sure to sign up for the longest term plan for the most discount possible.

Overall, WooCommerce is a powerful eCommerce platform that can be used to create a professional online store.

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Square eCommerce

Square’s eCommerce solution is another popular tool that allows you to build a free online store quickly and start selling online right away. The platform mostly dedicated to small businesses includes all the tools you need to launch your store, from website builder to payment processing.

Best for Small Businesses

Easiest eCommerce platform
Simple drag and drop features
Mobile management app

Start with Square

With Square online, you can customize your store to match your brand, add product photos and descriptions, set up shipping and tax rates, and accept payments from customers around the world. Plus, their easy-to-use Dashboard makes it easy to manage your store with other integrated solutions such as POS systems and related hardware.

Why Square eCommerce?

Here are some of the main reasons why you should choose Square eCommerce for your online store;

Square is simple to use and easy to set up, making it perfect for small businesses just starting out their online stores
With Square, you get access to a suite of powerful tools to help you run and grow your business, including inventory management, marketing campaigns, and analytics.
Your store will benefit from the reasonable transaction fees of Square which differ based on location.
You get excellent customer support to help you with issues in your store and benefit from Square’s strong reputation for security and reliability.

With all these features, Square eCommerce is the perfect solution for businesses that want to take their business to the next level.

Square eCommerce Pricing

Although Square lets you get started for free, you will need to opt for their paid plans for more advanced features.

Make sure you compare all the features of Square eCommerce pricing plans before you choose the right one to meet your online store needs.

Square eCommerce Plans	Pricing
Free Plan	$0.00 USD/month
Professional Plan	$12.00 USD/month
Performance Plan	$26.00 USD/month
Premium Plan	$72.00 USD/month

Check Square Pricing

The important thing to note about their free plan is that they don’t allow custom domains and have limited bandwidth and storage, which won’t look very professional for your eCommerce brand.

Also, if you are planning to process a reasonable volume, go with their Premium plan which allows you a reduced processing rate for UK and EEA card transactions.

The best thing about Square eCommerce for small businesses is that it is fully integrated with Square’s Point of Sale system, allowing businesses to seamlessly accept both online and offline payments.

Whether you’re just getting started with online selling or you’re looking for a more robust platform for an existing business, Square eCommerce has everything you need to succeed.

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Squarespace

Squarespace is another all-in-one platform that makes it easy to create beautiful and expressive eCommerce stores. The eCommerce platform makes it easy to build beautiful, professional websites without any prior experience or design expertise.

Best for Service Businesses

Easy platform for getting started
Simple drag and drop builder
Powerful SEO features

Start with Squarespace

And once your eCommerce store is up and running on Squarespace, you get access to all the tools you need to run your business online, from managing inventory and processing payments to creating blogs and email newsletters.

Squarespace has several unique features compared to other eCommerce platforms. For instance, it can be useful for service-based businesses to offer online scheduling appointments and solutions specific to different industries such as the restaurants and hospitality industry.

The platform is constantly introducing new tools, helping merchants with a range of brand-building tasks such as video making, social media, and SEO.

Besides, Squarespace offers 24/7 customer support via live chat, help portal, and webinars, so you’re never left stranded if you run into any problems with your online store.

Why Squarespace?

Some of the main reasons why you should choose Squarespace for your online store include:

Squarespace offers a powerful all-in-one platform with several eCommerce tools and features that make it ideal for running an online business store.
You get access to very well-designed templates by professional designers that are crafted to create visually appealing and professional-looking online stores.
Squarespace allows multiple ways to sell including the ability to offer built-in subscriptions, sell in person, or sell digital content.
With several Squarespace integrations, you are able to manage all online store tasks such as shipping and fulfilment, taxes, payments and more, all in one place.
Your online store will benefit from unlimited hosting, top security features, and dedicated Squarespace eCommerce resources required to succeed.

Squarespace Pricing

Squarespace has dedicated pricing plans for eCommerce stores; Business, Basic Commerce, and Advanced Commerce plans.

There is a 3% transaction charge on the Business plan but the Commerce plans don’t have any transaction charges. We would definitely recommend upgrading to their Commerce plans to avoid the charge as that could add up to more than the subscription fees.

Squarespace Plans	Pricing
Free Plan	$0.00 USD/month
Professional Plan	$12.00 USD/month
Performance Plan	$26.00 USD/month
Premium Plan	$72.00 USD/month

Check Squarespace Pricing

Whether you’re just getting started with eCommerce or looking for a more streamlined platform for your business, Squarespace is definitely worth considering.

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Weebly

Weebly is another popular eCommerce Website Builder that allows users to create a website, online store, or blog. The platform is very easy to learn, making it a popular choice for small business owners and entrepreneurs.

Best for Small Businesses

Tracking inventory made easy
Powerful filtered product search
Easy to sell digital goods

Start with Weebly

Weebly is more popular as a website builder, and its eCommerce features are powered by Square. As Weebly is part of the Square product suite, you get to access all other products from Square itself.

Weebly Pricing

Weebly offers a completely free plan with basic features but comes with a storage limitation, allowing up to 500MB of storage. Also, you can’t remove the Weebly Branding with the Basic plan, which doesn’t look professional for your brand presence.

There are three main paid plans that Weebly offers, and the names can be different depending on the country where you sign up. For UK-based stores, the plans are Connect, Pro, and Business and for US-based stores, the plans are Personal, Professional, and Performance.

Weebly Plans	Pricing
Personal Plan	$6.00 USD/month
Professional Plan	$12.00 USD/month
Performance Plan	$26.00 USD/month

Check Weebly Pricing

The above-mentioned pricing applies when billed annually and is slightly higher if you pay on a monthly basis.

Whether you’re a small business owner, artist, or blogger, Weebly can be the perfect eCommerce platform for your business needs.

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Web.com

Web.com’s latest eCommerce platform with online store features is a great way to get your business online and start selling your products. Their easy-to-use platform makes it simple to create a professional-looking website, and our large selection of templates and tools make it easy to customize your site to fit your needs.

Best for Marketplace Businesses

Marketplace selling features
Comprehensive digital marketing hub
Appointment scheduling tools

Start with Web.com

Why Web.com?

Top features of Web.com’s eCommerce platform include:

Marketplace selling: Sell your products online through Web.com’s marketplace and reach a larger audience than you could on your own.
Appointment scheduling: Let your customers book appointments directly through your website.
Shipping: Ship products to customers all over the world with ease.
Tax management: Keep track of your taxes and file them correctly with ease.

Web.com Pricing

Although Web.com has cheaper website-only plans, you will need to sign up for plans that allow both website and eCommerce.

The starter plan for eCommerce sites that covers the basics is the Essentials plan and their Premium plan includes everything they have to offer for eCommerce websites.

Web.com eCommerce Plans	Pricing
Essentials Plan	$13.95 USD/month
Premium Plan	$19.95 USD/month

Check Web.com Pricing

The prices for both Web.com eCommerce plans are heavily discounted for the first year and they renew at higher prices. You might want to sign up for an extended period to get the most discount from Web.com promotional pricing.

Web.com’s eCommerce platform is a great way to start selling online. With robust features including marketplace selling, appointment scheduling, shipping, and more, you can create a website that works for you.

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StoreBuilder by Nexcess

StoreBuilder is a best-value online store creator that is powered by the super-fast hosting and infrastructure of Nexcess.

Best for Digital Stores

Fully own your store
No transaction fees
Super-fast hosting by Nexcess

Start with StoreBuilder by Nexcess

StoreBuilder is a customised version of the open source WordPress/WooCommerce software by Nexcess, a popular hosting company in the space.

If you are looking to build your online store on a platform that you can fully own, StoreBuilder by Nexcess might be for you. Unlike other proprietary platforms, StoreBuilder allows you to own your content and take it with you when you find the need for it.

You can also fully transfer your content related to your products to any other platform of your choice in the future.

The best part of StoreBuilder by Nexcess is that you don’t have to pay any transaction fees for your sales on their platform. You just need to pay for the upfront monthly pricing which allows for no transaction fees and no expensive add-ons.

Why StoreBuilder by Nexcess?

Offering a high-performing online store with all the goodness of WordPress/WooCommerce, StoreBuilder by Nexcess makes it plain simple to start selling online.

Some of the outstanding features of StoreBuilder by Nexcess include;

Bundled Addons for Free: You don’t need to pay additional for add-ons or plugins to enable certain features on your store. StoreBuilder comes with all bundled selling tools included for free.
Free Custom Templates: All custom templates well designed to suit all kinds of stores are included at no additional cost.

One of the best features of StoreBuilder includes a custom dashboard with full of helpful insights to help you grow your business.

Besides, you can always reach out to the StoreBuilder eCommerce experts by email, phone, or chat – 24/7/365 for all sorts of help with your online store.

StoreBuilder by Nexcess Pricing

StoreBuilder has very simple pricing with just one plan for your online store. You can try the platform for free for 30 days, after which you will need to pay just $19/month.

Unlike other popular eCommerce platforms like Shopify, Squarespace, and Wix, there are no transaction fees with StoreBuilder – helping you keep more of what you sell using their platform.

See StoreBuilder by Nexcess Pricing

All add-ons and everything you need to operate an online store is already built-in within the pricing plan of StoreBuilder by Nexcess.

Try StoreBuilder Risk-free for 30 days.

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10.

Sellfy

Sellfy makes our best list as another eCommerce platform that is suitable for creators. It is affordable, easy to use, and has a wide variety of features to enable selling merchandise or digital products.

Best for Creators

Start easily in a few clicks
Built-in marketing features
Sell anywhere on social media

Start with Sellfy

Sellfy is perfect for creators and entrepreneurs who want to sell their products online and manage everything from one place.

As Sellfy integrates with a number of other platforms, it makes it easy to connect with your customers irrespective of the platforms they use and have a holistic view in one place.

Why Sellfy?

Here are some of the top features of Sellfy that make it an excellent choice for creators and entrepreneurs.

Embed Products Anywhere: With the ‘buy now‘ feature, you can embed the products from your eCommerce site on any website and sell them anywhere.
Digital products of all types: Besides physical products, Sellfy has made it easier to sell digital products of all types including ebooks, videos, music, and design files.
Powerful Marketing Features: Sellfy has several built-in features for marketing purposes including the ability to add tracking pixels, offer email marketing services, discount coupon codes, and upselling features.

Sellfy Pricing

Sellfy has attractive pricing plans for eCommerce owners as they don’t charge any transaction fees. However, their plans are based on the sales figure of your store and you might have to upgrade to a higher plan accordingly.

Sellfy has three main plans – Starter, Business, and Premium based on the sales of your stores $10k – $200k. While Sellfy also has a totally free plan, it comes with only a few features and is limited to 10 products.

Sellfy Plans	Pricing
Starter Plan	$22 USD/month
Business Plan	$59 USD/month
Premium Plan	$119 USD/month

Check Sellfy Pricing

The prices mentioned above apply to yearly plans and you get a further discount if you sign up for two-year plans.

You can try Sellfy features with a free trial or by getting a free account that you can later upgrade. You can start the free trial without having to enter your credit card details.

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11.

Hostinger eCommerce Builder

Hostinger eCommerce Builder is the most affordable and one of the easiest ecommerce platforms to set up a store and start selling online. The platform boasts several latest AI-powered features for a very reasonable price.

Best Affordable Selling Solution

Easiest eCommerce platform
Designer-made store templates
Secure and mobile friendly

Start with Hostinger

Besides the easy setup process, it’s also very easy to customise your Zyro online store with hundreds of professionally designed templates that are free to apply to your eCommerce site.

Why Hostinger eCommerce Builder?

Hostinger has several outstanding features that make it one of the best eCommerce platforms for online businesses.

Featured AI Tools: Zyro has AI-powered tools such as a business name generator, logo generator and store layout improver that can be useful to businesses just starting out.
100+ professionally designed templates: You can choose from several high-quality templates to suit your business.

Hostinger eCommerce Builder Pricing

As Hostinger is also a popular website builder, you will see the pricing plans starting with the website builder plan.

You will, however, need to sign up for the Business plan for the eCommerce features.

Zyro Plans	Pricing
Website Plan	$2.99 USD/month
Business Plan	$71.10 USD/month

Check Hostinger Pricing

The Business Plan is the only one that comes with eCommerce essentials and allows you to start selling instantly. The plan allows for 500 products on your online store and has 1% of the application fees for every sale you make.

You can start using Zyro with a free plan to get a feel for it, but I would recommend starting with their Business plan as that’s the only plan with eCommerce features, and in case you don’t like it, you are covered by their 30-day money-back guarantee.

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12.

Magento – Adobe Commerce

Adobe Commerce offers the fully hosted version of Magento which is another popular open source eCommerce software.

Best for Multi-Channel Commerce

Best for large and enterprise stores
Completely scalable and extensible
Intelligent commerce by Adobe Sensei AI

Start with Adobe Commerce

Magento is a very advanced and powerful eCommerce software that has been around for a long time. After being acquired by Adobe, a new proprietary solution known as Adobe Commerce brings the best of Magento in a completely hosted solution with advanced capabilities from Adobe.

Magento Adobe Commerce is a powerful eCommerce platform that helps businesses create online stores that are highly customizable and completely scalable.

Why Magento Adobe Commerce?

Built on top of the Adobe Experience Manager (AEM), Magento Adobe Commerce provides a robust set of tools for managing product catalogues, order management, customer accounts, and much more.

In addition, Magento Adobe Commerce integrates with Adobe Creative Cloud, making it easy to design and manage your store’s visuals.

Personalize: you can personalize your site content for specific customer segments
Intelligent commerce: Your online store will benefit from Intelligent commerce features, powered by Adobe Sensei AI

If you don’t want the fully hosted solution of Adobe Commerce, you can still opt for Magento as an open-source solution. Although the software is advanced, you can find plenty of developers that specialise in offering Magento solutions on top freelance websites.

With so many powerful features, it’s no wonder that Magento Adobe Commerce is one of the most advanced eCommerce platforms.

Magento – Adobe Commerce Pricing

You will need to request the pricing package of Adobe Commerce (Magento) based on your eCommerce store needs.

The pricing plans are based on the annual Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) and Average Order Value (AOV) of your online store needs.

Get Adobe Commerce Pricing

The Adobe Commerce Pro plans offer an all-in-one package for merchants of any size or business model.

Get a demo of the Magento by Adobe Commerce

Request a Demo

13.

Volusion

Volusion is another comprehensive eCommerce platform that offers everything you need to create and manage your online store. With a wide range of features and add-ons, Volusion lets you build a store that is uniquely you, with custom layouts, branding, and content.

Best for Small Businesses

Easiest eCommerce platform
Simple drag and drop features
Mobile management app

Start with Volusion

Volusion’s themes are mobile-friendly and responsive, so your customers can shop on any device. And with their easy-to-use tools, you’ll have a store up and running in no time.

Why Volusion?

Here are some of the top features of Volusion that make it an outstanding eCommerce platform:

Extensive Product Display Options: You have several options to display the product in the best way for your store.
Access to HTML and CSS editor: You have access to change the code of your store.
Sell Subscriptions: You can use Volusion’s recurring pricing tool to offer subscriptions on your store.
In-House Design Services: You can use the Studio service of Volusion to get help with design and marketing.

Volusion Pricing

Volusion has a unique approach to its pricing in that you will need to select a plan based on the GMV (Gross Merchandise Volume) of your store.

Volusion has three main plans that you can sign up for on their website suitable for stores doing $50K – $400K of GMV.

Volusion Plans	Pricing
Personal Plan	$31.50 USD/month
Professional Plan	$71.10 USD/month
Business Plan	$269.10 USD/month

Check Volusion Pricing

The monthly prices mentioned above apply when you pay annually. For stores doing over $400k GMV, you will need to get a custom plan.

You can try using Volusion for free for 14 days without having to enter your credit card details. Start creating your perfect store today with Volusion.

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14.

Webflow

Webflow is a popular website builder but is quickly becoming a choice of eCommerce platform for many online sellers.

Best for Unique Stores

Highly customisable to suit your store
No transaction fees on higher plans
Built-in integrations for essential tools

Start with Webflow

If you are looking to build a unique online store with complete design and customisation control, Webflow might be a better option.

You can customise your store, product pages, cart and checkout processes to better suit your brand and products. Webflow allows for complete layout control without having to fiddle with code.

Webflow has been a popular choice as a CMS, but many merchants are increasingly using it to power their online stores, too.

Why Webflow?

Offering built-in eCommerce features on top of a powerful website builder and CMS, Webflow brings the best of both worlds into its platform.

Some of the remarkable features of Webflow for eCommerce include;

Better SEO Capabilities: Webflow has advanced SEO features compared to many other platforms.
Custom CMS for Blog: For online stores that find blogs as an essential component, Webflow offers a powerful CMS option.

Webflow also allows you to easily create custom landing pages for your new product launches or any campaigns.

Besides, your eCommerce store can benefit from their world-class hosting with the super-fast page loading speed, enhanced security and scaling needs in the future.

Webflow eCommerce Pricing

Webflow offers three main dedicated eCommerce plans based on the number of items that you can list on your eCommerce store.

There are also 2% transaction fees on their Standard plan in addition to the payment processing fees incurred by processors such as PayPal or Stripe.

Webflow Plans	Pricing
Standard Plan	$29 USD/month
Plus Plan	$74 USD/month
Advanced Plan	$212 USD/month

If you decide to go with Webflow make sure to sign up for yearly plans as you can get 30% OFF with their annual eCommerce plans billing.

See Webflow Pricing

There’s no trial option with Webflow as you can get started for free and pay only when you have to launch your store. You can take as long as you need to craft your perfect store before you have to select the paid plans to launch your store.

Start for Free until you are ready to Launch

Get Started for Free

Features of Best eCommerce Platforms

With multiple providers offering similar features and prices, you might be wondering what to look for in selecting the best eCommerce Platforms.

Having to choose an eCommerce website builder from so many out there can definitely be challenging. However, based on your business needs and taking into consideration of plans and pricing available, you should be able to make the right choice.

Essentially, the best platforms should enable you to quickly setup up your eCommerce website and sell online. While you want to be able to start selling your items online as fast as possible, you also need flexible tools that can scale along with your business.

Here are some of the top factors to consider for small businesses when choosing an eCommerce platform:

Integrations – You should look for whether the platform offers integrations with popular business apps like accounting software, CRM software, and sales apps.

Customization – You want a platform that caters to your business needs and allows you to change features or add new ones. For example, if you’re selling cross-border, you might consider a platform with currency conversion tools.

Security – No one wants their site hacked, and for e-commerce sites, security is of prime importance. So make sure your platform offers secure web hosting, regular updates and security patches. You should also look for PCI compliance in the eCommerce platforms.

Shipping Options – The platforms should enable you to add and integrate multiple shipping options. If you can’t offer free shipping or same-day shipping, you should look for a platform that integrates with big-name carriers.

Site Performance – Your desired platform should offer fast websites. If your site is slow, customers will leave and never come back. Make sure your own online store loads quickly and looks good on mobile devices too.

Once you’ve narrowed down your list of platforms, do some further research by checking out the demo sites and talking to other users, if possible.

Essentially, the best eCommerce platform should provide a fast, easy-to-use experience for both you and your customers.

Best eCommerce Platforms FAQs

Here are some of the most frequently asked questions about choosing the best eCommerce platforms:

What is an eCommerce platform?

An eCommerce platform is a software solution that enables businesses to create and manage an online store. It provides the necessary infrastructure and features for businesses to build and operate their online stores.
Which eCommerce platform is best for my business?

The best eCommerce platform for your business depends on your specific needs and requirements. If you’re just starting out, you may want to consider a basic platform that’s easy to use and doesn’t require a lot of customization. As your business grows, you can upgrade to a more robust platform that offers more features and flexibility.
How much does an eCommerce platform cost?

The cost of an eCommerce platform varies depending on the features and functionality you need. Basic platforms can start with promotional pricing as low as $3 per month, while more comprehensive solutions can cost hundreds or even thousands of dollars per month. You should expect to spend a reasonable amount of around $25 per month for good-sized businesses.
Do I need to be technical to use an eCommerce platform?

No, you don’t need to be a technical expert to use an eCommerce platform. Most platforms offer easy building tools designed to be user-friendly and easy to use, even for those with little or no technical experience.
Which is best eCommerce platform for beginners?

There are a number of eCommerce platforms that are well suited for beginners. Some of the more popular options include Shopify, BigCommerce, and WooCommerce. These platforms offer a user-friendly interface, a wide range of features and functionality, and are relatively easy to use.
How do I choose an eCommerce platform?

When choosing an eCommerce platform, there are a number of factors you need to consider, including your budget, the type of products you sell, your technical expertise, and your business needs. By taking the time to consider all of these factors, you can choose the platform that’s right for your business.
What is the fastest eCommerce platform?

There is no one “fastest” eCommerce platform. However, some platforms are designed to be more lightweight and fast-loading than others. If speed is a priority for your business, you may want to consider a platform like Shopify or BigCommerce that lets you edit the backend code and optimise it further with fast loading practices.
What is the cheapest eCommerce platform?

Although you cannot pick a single cheapest eCommerce platform, some platforms are more affordable than others. If cost is a major consideration for your business, you may want to consider an all-in-one type of platform that has the most features available in the core software.

Choose the Best eCommerce Platform

As you can see there are a lot of eCommerce platforms to choose from, but deciding the best one for your business will need some careful consideration. Depending on the nature of your business and products, you will need to decide whether you should go with an all-in-one hosted solution or a more customizable platform.

To sum up, here are our top ten recommended best eCommerce platforms that you can choose from.

Shopify – overall best eCommerce platform
Wix eCommerce – best platform for beginners
WooCommerce by Bluehost – best for WordPress users
Squarespace – best platform for service businesses
Square – best platform for small businesses
BigCommerce – best platform for enterprises
Weebly – best platform for creatives
Web.com – best online store builder platform
Sellfy – best platform for selling digital products
Zyro Online Stores – easiest and most affordable platform

All of the eCommerce platforms listed above have powerful commerce features and are easy enough to setup and start selling online.

Make sure you go through the list of features to see if they have what you are specifically looking for. You can also try and compare multiple platforms to decide the right one for your business needs.

eCommerce Synonyms – Best Alternative Words used in 2026

Sun, 06 Oct 2024 17:47:08 GMT

Looking for eCommerce synonyms? Let us help you find the best words that you can use instead of eCommerce.

eCommerce can mean a lot of different things, and as a relatively new word, there are many synonyms used to refer to eCommerce.

eCommerce, also written as ‘e-Commerce’, is short for electronic commerce, which refers to the buying and selling of goods or services using electronic methods such as the internet.

Top eCommerce Synonyms

Here are the top eCommerce synonyms that you can use instead of or as an alternative to the word eCommerce.

eCommerce synonyms
Online shopping
Electronic commerce
Internet shopping
Web shopping
Web-based commerce
Purchasing online
Buying online
Digital commerce
Cyber commerce
e-business
Online retailing

While eCommerce synonyms can be used exactly as replacements, there are several other related terms or nearby words that can be used to refer to the process of buying and selling goods or services online.

Some of the top eCommerce-related words include;

online marketplaces
online retailers
online storefronts
eCommerce platforms

You can also refer to dictionaries and thesaurus to find more related words but make sure that it fits in your context.

When to use eCommerce Synonyms?

When writing about eCommerce, it is important to be as specific as possible. The word eCommerce can refer to a lot of different things, and using synonyms can help to clarify the meaning.

For example, if you are writing about online shopping, you could use the phrase ‘purchasing online’ instead of just saying ‘eCommerce’.

When using eCommerce synonyms, it is important to choose the word that best fits the context of your sentence. Some words may have different connotations that could change the meaning of your sentence.

It is also important to be aware of the different spellings of eCommerce (e-commerce, eCommerce, e commerce etc.) and to use the spelling that is most commonly used in your region or your textbooks.

Do all eCommerce Synonyms mean the same thing?

You might be asking whether you can use all the synonyms listed above to mean eCommerce exactly.

While the above eCommerce synonyms can be used in many different situations when referring to eCommerce, it is important to note that some of these terms may have slightly different meanings depending on the context in which they are used.

For example, the word ‘online shopping’ is often used to refer to the process of buying goods or services online, whereas ‘digital commerce’ may be used to refer to the broader concept of using digital technologies for all aspects of commerce, including marketing, customer service, and more.

When in doubt, it is always best to consult a dictionary for the exact related words for eCommerce or other reference materials in the context to ensure that you are using the correct term.

eCommerce Sentence Examples

Learn how to use eCommerce in a sentence with the examples below;

The significant rise of eCommerce has rapidly changed the way that we shop for goods and services.
eCommerce differs from traditional shopping as it allows customers to shop online without having to visit a physical store.
I was able to find what I was looking for easily on the eCommerce website.
The company has seen a significant increase in sales due to the growth of eCommerce.
There are several top eCommerce platforms and tools that make it easy to create online stores.
The eCommerce market is projected to grow significantly in the next few years.

eCommerce Synonyms FAQs

Here are some frequently asked questions about eCommerce synonyms.

What is another word for eCommerce?

You can use other common words such as Online shopping, internet shopping, web shopping, e-tailing, online retailing, web-based commerce, electronic commerce, and digital commerce.

What is e-commerce One word?

You can write e-Commerce as ‘eCommerce’ or Electronic commerce.

How do you spell eCommerce correctly?

eCommerce is spelt e-commerce, with a hyphen or simply without hyphen – eCommerce or Ecommerce.

Are e-commerce and e-business synonymous?

In many contexts, e-business can mean more than e-commerce. While e-commerce is the buying and selling of goods and services electronically, e-business encompasses all business activities that are conducted electronically, including but not limited to marketing, customer service and human resources.

Summary

When writing about eCommerce, it is important to be as specific as possible and to use the word that best fits the context of your work.

While you can use the above-listed eCommerce synonyms to mean the same thing, it is important to note that some of these words may have slightly different connotations depending on the context in which you are trying to use them.

What is an eCommerce Platform? – Complete Guide 2026

Sun, 06 Oct 2024 17:39:26 GMT

If you are looking to start an online store or an online business of any sort, you might be researching – what is an eCommerce platform and how to select the best eCommerce platform for your business needs.

Starting an online store for your business can be daunting, but an eCommerce platform can make the process much easier by providing the necessary tools and features to create and manage an online store.

An eCommerce platform is a software that enables businesses to sell their products or services online. Such platforms usually provide a suite of tools within a single platform to help businesses and brands to create and manage an eCommerce or online business.

In this guide, I will provide you with a detailed overview of what an eCommerce platform is, the different types of eCommerce platforms available, and the key features to look for when choosing the best solution for your online business.

I will also discuss the process of selecting, setting up, and managing an eCommerce platform, along with providing some major insights into the future of eCommerce platforms.

Definition – What is an eCommerce platform?

So, what exactly is an eCommerce platform, and how does it differ from an eCommerce store or website?

An eCommerce platform is an actual software application that allows businesses to sell products or services online. It provides the necessary tools and features to create and manage an online store, including the ability to create an eCommerce website, list products, process orders, and handle payment and shipping logistics.

In general, eCommerce platforms can be self-hosted, which means they are installed on a web server and require the business owner to handle hosting and maintenance, or they can be hosted, which means the platform provider handles hosting and maintenance.

There are several eCommerce platforms suitable for businesses of all sizes, from small startups to large enterprises. They offer a variety of features and functionality to suit the needs of different types of businesses, such as international trade with support for multiple languages and currencies, customizable design options, and integrations with third-party tools and services.

The idea behind modern eCommerce platforms is to provide businesses with a single platform to build their online stores and manage the entire process of selling their products or services online.

Shopify – A popular example of an eCommerce platform

With eCommerce features built-in or with connections to existing systems, these platforms reduce the need for multiple disparate systems and provide a unified interface to manage everything in one place.

Overall, an eCommerce platform mainly serves as the foundation for online business and plays a crucial role in enabling business owners to sell products and services online effectively and efficiently.

Types of eCommerce Platforms

There are several types of eCommerce platforms that businesses can choose from, each with its own unique features and functionality.

Essentially, most of the eCommerce platforms can be classified as self-hosted or hosted, but you will come across several other classifications.

eCommerce Platform Types	Examples
Self-hosted eCommerce platforms	WooCommerce, Magento, OpenCart
Hosted eCommerce platforms	Shopify, BigCommerce, Wix eCommerce
Open source eCommerce platforms	WooCommerce, Magento
SaaS eCommerce platforms	Shopify, BigCommerce, Squarespace, Zyro
PaaS eCommerce platforms	Salesforce Commerce Cloud, Oracle Commerce
Headless eCommerce platforms	Shopify Plus, Contentful, Commercetools
On-premises eCommerce platforms	Custom built platforms

Let’s first take a look at the two main types of eCommerce platforms, and we can then look at different variations.

Self-hosted eCommerce platforms

Self-hosted eCommerce platforms are software applications that are installed on a web server and require the business to handle hosting and maintenance.

Examples of self-hosted eCommerce platforms include WooCommerce, Magento, and OpenCart.

These self-hosted platforms offer a high level of customization and control but also require a greater level of technical expertise to set up and maintain.

Hosted eCommerce platforms

Hosted eCommerce platforms are platforms that are hosted and maintained by the platform provider. The business does not need to handle hosting or maintenance, and the platform is typically accessed through a subscription-based model.

Some of the main hosted eCommerce platforms include Shopify, BigCommerce, and Wix eCommerce.

Such fully hosted platforms offer a more streamlined and user-friendly experience but may have more limited customization options.

Which one should you choose then? Well, both self-hosted and hosted eCommerce platforms have their own pros and cons, and the right choice for an eCommerce business will depend on the needs and goals of the business, as well as the size and complexity of the business. We will look at the more deciding factors in the later section.

Few other types of eCommerce platforms that you will come across include;

Open source eCommerce platforms

An open source eCommerce platform is primarily developed and maintained by a community of users and developers. Such platforms are typically free to use and offer a high level of customization and control.

Please note that although the core software of such platforms is free, you might incur additional costs for hosting and other plugins and apps that you might need to use.

WooCommerce is a prime example of a popular open-source eCommerce platform which is entirely free to download and install. However, you need to find a hosting solution and buy additional plugins for a fully functioning store.

Check out these main open-source eCommerce platforms;

WooCommerce
Magento
OpenCart

SaaS (software-as-a-service) eCommerce platforms

SaaS eCommerce platforms are platforms that are hosted and maintained by the platform provider. This is often the easiest eCommerce solution to take your business online as you don’t need to handle hosting or maintenance, and the platform is typically accessed through a subscription-based model.

A few examples of SaaS eCommerce platforms include;

Shopify
BigCommerce
Wix Commerce

PaaS (platform-as-a-service) eCommerce platforms

PaaS eCommerce platforms are platforms that provide a complete eCommerce solution, including hosting, maintenance, and support. The business does not need to handle any technical aspects of the platform, and the platform is typically accessed through a subscription-based model.

Some of the main PaaS eCommerce solutions include Salesforce Commerce Cloud and Oracle Commerce.

Headless eCommerce platforms

Headless eCommerce platforms are platforms that allow businesses to separate the front-end user experience (i.e. the eCommerce website) from the back-end eCommerce functionality (i.e. the platform).

Such platforms allow businesses to use any front-end technology (such as a mobile app or a voice assistant) to access the eCommerce functionality.

Check out these examples of headless eCommerce platforms – Contentful and Commercetools.

On-premises eCommerce platforms

On-premises eCommerce platforms are platforms that are installed and run on the business’s own servers or infrastructure.

Such on premises platforms offer a high level of control and customization but also require the business to handle hosting and maintenance.

Deciding what kind of platform might be suitable for your business should be fairly easy. Most businesses find all they need in the latest and best SaaS eCommerce platforms, but you might want to check out the features to see if they have everything that you need for your business.

Main Features of an Ecommerce Platform

Most eCommerce platforms are very feature-rich to accommodate all functions of an online business.

Here is a more detailed overview of the main features of an eCommerce platform:

Product management Features

This includes features for adding, organizing, and managing products in the online store, such as the ability to add product descriptions, images, and pricing information, as well as options for grouping products into categories and tags.

Most of the platforms also offer features for managing variations of products, such as different sizes or colours.

Order and inventory management Features

This includes features for tracking and fulfilling orders, such as the ability to process orders, calculate shipping and tax, and other inventory management features, such as updating inventory levels.

Some platforms also offer features for managing returns and exchanges, as well as tools for creating invoices and receipts.

Payment processing Features

Most platforms include support for several payment processors and make it easy to implement third-party payment solutions if necessary.

Generally, the payment features include solutions for accepting and processing payments from customers, such as support for various payment gateways and options for handling recurring payments or subscriptions.

Some platforms also offer advanced features for managing payment disputes or fraud prevention with the latest AI/ML implementations.

Shipping and tax calculation Tools

This includes features for calculating and charging shipping fees based on the destination and weight of the order, as well as options for handling tax calculations based on the location of the business and the customer.

Some platforms also offer integrations with shipping carriers or support for real-time shipping rates, which can be really helpful for both your business and your customers.

Marketing and Analytics Tools

Many eCommerce platforms offer built-in tools and integrations for marketing and promoting the store, such as email marketing, social media integration, and search engine optimization (SEO) tools.

Most of them also include additional advanced analytics and reporting features to help businesses track and understand their sales and performance, such as data on site traffic, conversion rates, and customer demographics.

However, you can always look for dedicated third-party tools when it comes to analytics (such as Google Analytics) and marketing applications.

If you are looking to opt for a specific platform, it’s important that you check out the complete features of the platform to ensure it has everything you are looking for.

You need to evaluate further the features, tools, integrations, and functionality of your selected platforms, which we will look at next in even more detail.

How to choose the right eCommerce platform?

Choosing the right eCommerce platform is an important decision for any eCommerce business looking to sell products or services online. Here are some key considerations to keep in mind when evaluating different platforms:

Determine the needs and goals of your business

Consider what you want to achieve with your online stores, such as the types of products you want to sell, the size and complexity of your business, and any specific features or functionality you need.

Besides, who will you serve with your platform? Are you catering to business to consumer needs or business to business needs?

A detailed thought process will help you narrow down the options and choose a platform that is the best fit for your business.

Consider the size and complexity of your business

If you have a small, simple business, a hosted eCommerce platform may be a good fit. These platforms offer a more streamlined and user-friendly experience but may have more limited customization options.

However, if you have a larger, more complex business with complex inventory management needs, you might want to look into self-hosted platforms.

Such platforms might offer a higher level of customization and control for your need but also require a greater level of technical expertise to set up and maintain.

Evaluate the cost and resources required to maintain the platform

Consider the ongoing costs of using the platform, such as subscription fees, transaction fees, and any additional costs for plugins or extensions.

Also, consider the time and resources required to set up and maintain the platform, including any technical expertise or support needed. Evaluate the developer ecosystem and availability of themes (see themes for Shopify, for example) and plugins around the platform in case you need to extend the capabilities in the future.

Calculating the realistic cost of running an online store goes beyond simply choosing and implementing an eCommerce platform.

Research and compare different platforms

Take the time to research and compare different eCommerce platforms to determine which one is the best fit for your eCommerce business.

Read reviews of the best eCommerce platforms and case studies, and consider reaching out to other businesses or experts for guidance.

By carefully evaluating your business needs and goals and researching and comparing different platforms, you can eventually choose the right eCommerce platform for your business.

How to setup an eCommerce platform?

Setting up an eCommerce platform involves several steps, including buying a domain name, setting up hosting, installing and configuring the platform and customizing the design and layout of your final eCommerce website.

Let’s look at some of the major steps and what’s involved in detail;

Registering a domain name and setting up hosting

The first step in setting up an eCommerce platform is to register a domain name for your website and set up hosting.

A domain name is the web address for your online business, a URL that customers will use to access your store (e.g. “www.pradeepsingh.com“).

Hosting is the service that stores and serves the files and content for your eCommerce website.

If you are using a self-hosted platform, you will need to purchase hosting for your eCommerce store from a web hosting provider.

This is the case with open source platforms like WooCommerce – you can choose from multiple hosting providers dedicated to WooCommerce or set one up yourself using cloud servers.

For example, Bluehost, one of the top web hosting provider powering millions of websites, offers WooCommerce-focused hosting services that you can use to start your store. (You can always use our exclusive Bluehost coupon to get the best deal and free domain name when getting started.)

Bluehost Offering WooCommerce Hosting

For hosted platforms, you don’t need to worry about setting up hosting, as the eCommerce software provider will fully manage it for you in the background.

Installing and configuring the platform

Once you have a domain name and hosting set up, you can install and configure the eCommerce platform.

For self-hosted platforms, this typically involves downloading and uploading the platform files to the web server and then following the platform’s installation instructions.

For hosted platforms such as software as a service, the process is typically more streamlined, with the platform provider handling the installation and setup.

Adding products and setting up payment processing

Once the platform is installed and configured, you can start adding products to your store.

This involves creating product listings, adding product descriptions and images, and setting pricing and other details.

You will also need to set up payment processing, which involves selecting a payment gateway and configuring the payment options for your store.

Customizing the design and layout of the website

Many eCommerce platforms offer a variety of customization options for the design and layout of the website, including themes, templates, and the ability to add custom CSS or HTML.

Take the time to customize the look and feel of your store to reflect your brand and provide a good user experience for your customers.

Testing and launching the store

Before launching your store and taking your business online, it’s important to test everything to ensure that everything is working correctly.

This includes testing the payment processing, shipping calculations, and any other features or functionality of the platform. Once you are confident that everything is working correctly, you can launch your store and start selling products online.

Setting up an eCommerce platform can be a complex process, but with careful planning and attention to detail, you can create a successful online store.

How to Manage and maintain an eCommerce platform?

Managing and maintaining an eCommerce platform involves a variety of tasks and responsibilities to ensure that the platform is running smoothly and effectively.

Here are some key considerations for managing and maintaining an eCommerce platform:

Updating the platform and plugins

It’s important to keep the platform and any plugins or extensions up to date to ensure that the store is running smoothly and securely.

This may involve installing updates or patches or upgrading to a newer version of the platform. For hosted and SaaS platforms, this is already taken care of by the eCommerce solution provider itself.

Handling orders and customer inquiries

Managing orders and customer inquiries is an important part of running an online store that needs to be taken care of on a daily basis.

This may involve processing orders, handling returns and exchanges, and answering customer questions or concerns via phone, email, or chat.

Analyzing and optimizing sales and performance

With the analytics and reporting tools offered by most eCommerce platforms, you can track and understand their sales and performance.

By analyzing this data, businesses can identify trends and patterns and make adjustments to optimize the store’s performance.

Marketing and promoting the store

Marketing and promoting the store is an important part of driving sales and attracting new customers. This may involve activities such as email marketing, social media marketing, search engine optimization (SEO), and paid advertising.

Overall, managing and maintaining an eCommerce platform requires ongoing attention and effort to ensure that the store is running smoothly and effectively.

By staying up to date with updates and performance data and actively marketing and promoting the store, businesses can maximize their success with an eCommerce platform.

How do I find out what eCommerce platform a site is using?

If you’re looking for a quick and easy way to check out what eCommerce platform any website is using, BuiltWith is your go-to solution. It works for most online stores that use a standard eCommerce platform software.

However, when you are investigating an online store that uses custom CMS or proprietary software, BuiltWith or other tools might not be able to detect it, and you might want to try other options.

There are several ways to find out what eCommerce platform a website is using:

Check the eCommerce website’s source code

One way to determine the eCommerce platform a website is using is to view the source code of the website.

To do this, you can right-click on the webpage and select “View Page Source” (in most web browsers).

In the source code, you may be able to find references to the platform or specific plugins or extensions being used.

As you can see in the example above, the eCommerce website is using Shopify, as seen in the references to the URL for its CDN.

Use online tools to identify platforms

There are several online tools that can scan a website and identify the eCommerce platform being used.

One example that we mentioned earlier is BuiltWith, which allows you to enter a website’s URL and provides a detailed report on the technologies and platforms being used on the site.

Navigate to BuiltWith tool and simply enter the website URL of the eCommerce store that you want to investigate further.

Scroll to the eCommerce section, and you will see all the tools and platforms used by the eCommerce website.

The above screenshot from BuiltWith shows that the website is primarily using Shopify Plus as its core eCommerce hosting platform.

Contact the website owner or developer

If you are unable to determine the eCommerce platform being used by the website using the methods above, you can try contacting the website author or developer directly and ask them what platform they are using. They could share this information with you if you ask them nicely!

Keep in mind that some websites may use custom or proprietary platforms or may have modified or customized a commercial platform, so it may not always be possible to determine the exact platform being used.

However, using the methods above should give you a good idea of what platform a website is using.

Basics of eCommerce Platform FAQs

Here are some of the most frequently asked questions to understand the basics of an eCommerce platform.

What is an eCommerce platform provider?

An eCommerce platform provider is a company or organization that provides the technology and tools necessary for businesses to create, manage, and run an online store.
What is an eCommerce platform ecosystem?

An eCommerce platform ecosystem is a suite of products, services, and integrations that are designed to work together and provide a comprehensive solution for businesses to build, manage, and scale their online store.
What are the benefits of using an eCommerce platform?

An eCommerce platform provides businesses with a range of benefits, including cost savings, scalability, flexibility, access to cutting-edge technology, data security and analytics, and more.
What are the different types of eCommerce platforms?

There are several types of eCommerce platforms, including hosted solutions, open-source platforms, subscription-based software, and custom solutions.
What are the costs associated with eCommerce platforms?

The cost of an eCommerce platform depends on the type of platform you choose. Hosted solutions tend to be more expensive than open-source or subscription-based software, while custom platforms can vary in cost depending on the scope and complexity of the project.
What is an eCommerce platform developer?

An eCommerce platform developer is a programmer or software engineer who specializes in developing custom eCommerce platforms. They are responsible for coding and implementing the features and functionality of an eCommerce store, as well as providing ongoing maintenance and support.

Future of eCommerce Platforms

With the significant growth of eCommerce and several developments and trends on the horizon, the future looks bright and exciting.

Some of the key trends and predictions for the future of eCommerce platforms include:

Increased use of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning: Many eCommerce platforms are already using AI and machine learning to enhance their capabilities and improve the shopping experience for customers. This trend is expected to continue in the future, with more advanced AI and machine learning algorithms being used to personalize recommendations, optimize pricing and inventory management, and improve the overall online shopping experience.

Greater focus on omnichannel experiences: As consumers continue to shop across multiple channels, eCommerce platforms will need to provide a seamless and consistent experience across all channels. This may involve advanced eCommerce features such as integrating with physical retail locations, incorporating social media and messaging platforms, and offering flexible fulfilment options.

The continued growth of subscription-based models: Subscription-based models, in which customers pay a recurring fee for access to a product or service, are already popular in some industries, such as software and media. This trend is expected to continue in the eCommerce space, with more platforms offering subscription options for products and services.

Increased use of blockchain technology: Blockchain technology, which allows for secure and transparent record-keeping, has the potential to revolutionize the way eCommerce platforms operate. It could be used to create immutable records of transactions, reduce fraud and counterfeiting, and enable new business models.

Overall, the future of eCommerce platforms looks bright, with many exciting developments and trends on the horizon. Online businesses can stay ahead of the curve and succeed in the fast-changing world of eCommerce by staying up to date with these trends and adapting to new technologies.

Continue learning the basics of eCommerce in this guide and once you are ready to start implementing, find the best eCommerce platforms to choose from here.

100+ Best Shopify Themes For eCommerce Stores in 2026

Sun, 06 Oct 2024 17:32:35 GMT

Find the best Shopify Themes suitable for your eCommerce store from this curated listing of 100+ free and paid themes.

Shopify is one of the best eCommerce platforms, and one of its top features is the ability to customise your store by using themes.

Shopify themes are a great way to give your shop a unique look and feel. With more and more merchants choosing Shopify to build their eCommerce stores, several companies and freelance web developers are investing their time to build amazing Shopify themes suitable for different niches.

With the growing ecosystem, there are hundreds of Shopify themes to choose from and finding the best one suitable for your business can take some time and research.

If you are looking for the best Shopify themes for your online store, this article is for you. We have hand-picked some of the best themes from different categories that you can use to build a beautiful and conversion-optimized eCommerce store.

Overall Best Shopify Themes 2025

Many merchants and brands choose to take their business to the next level by choosing a Shopify theme that perfectly suits their brand identity and resonates with their target audience.

There are several Shopify themes available, each offering its own unique set of features and design elements. Some of the most popular themes include clean and minimalist designs, bold and colourful styles, and minimalist photo galleries that showcase products in a beautiful way.

Ultimately, the best Shopify themes help eCommerce brands to connect with their customers in a meaningful way, driving conversions and growth for years to come.

Here’s a curated listing of some of the best Shopify themes with their best features that can be helpful in deciding if the theme is right for you.

Superstore Shopify Theme

The Superstore Shopify Theme by Out of the Sandbox is the ultimate Shopify theme for wholesalers and large-scale stores.

Theme Type: Premium Theme – $280
Theme Developer: Out of the Sandbox
Styles: Beauty | Fashion | Interior | Tech

Main Features:

– Built for large catalogs
– Wholesale pricing functionality
– Multiple designs and layout options

Get Superstore Theme

Flex Shopify Theme

Get Flex Theme

Turbo Shopify Theme

Turbo is a very popular premium Shopify theme among experienced store owners and is built by the Out of the Sandbox theme store. The theme has very useful performance settings and the ability to add CSS within settings to customise further to meet your online store needs.

Theme Type: Premium Theme – $400
Theme Developer: Out of the Sandbox
Styles: Chicago | Dubai | Florence | Portland | Seoul | Tennessee

Main Features:

– Super fast and focused on performance
– Favourites of many experts and eCommerce agencies
– Wide range of features to suit both small and large catalog stores

Get Turbo Theme

Booster Shopify Theme

Booster is one of the most popular Shopify themes, with dozens of presets to cover all kinds of niches and eCommerce stores. Combined with their 40+ conversion-optimized marketing tools and apps bundled in the theme, Booster is one of the most versatile and complete Shopify themes for any eCommerce store.

Theme Type: Premium Theme – $298
Theme Developer: Booster Theme / True Scalable
Styles: Multiple Niches – Pets | Baby| Beauty | Toys | Services

Main Features:

– Bundled Marketing Tools and Apps
– Save over $281/month in APP fees with bundled Apps
– Fastest loading, quickest, and sleekest WordPress theme
– Hundreds of options and a large customer base with 46k+ stores using the theme

Discount Coupon: Use our exclusive Booster coupon code ‘WEBGUIDED‘ to get $20 OFF towards your purchase.

Get Booster Theme

Debutify Shopify Theme

The Debutify Shopify Theme is targeted at smart eCommerce owners offering a fast loading theme with features that matter for conversion.

Theme Type: Freemium – $0 to $48.5/mo
Theme Developer: Debutify
Styles: Default Debutify

Main Features:

– Unlimited configurations and options
– Flexible layouts and custom CSS
– Product sliders and customizable slideshows

Get Debutify Theme

Drop Shopify Theme

The Drop Shopify Theme is a premium theme on the Shopify marketplace and is targeted at stores that are looking to release products with optimized audience anticipation and hype.

Theme Type: Premium Theme – $280
Theme Developer: We are Underground
Styles: Launch | Flash

Main Features:

– Flash sales – time-based promotions
– Countdown for product launches
– Suitable for high-volume stores and physical stores

Get Drop Theme

Kalles Shopify Theme

The Kalles Shopify Theme is a premium theme from The4 Studio and is ideal for an array of different online retailers. The theme ensures a smooth and seamless shopping experience.

Theme Type: Premium Theme – $89
Theme Developer: The4 Studio
Styles: Kalles Default

Main Features:

– 45+ Homepage Layouts for unique designs
– Multiple shop page and product page layouts
– High performance and fast loading within 3 seconds

Get Kalles Theme

Craft Shopify Theme

Craft is a free Shopify theme officially available from the Shopify themes store and is ideal for home and garden stores. The theme is very minimal and allows for visual storytelling.

Theme Type: Free Theme – $0
Theme Developer: Shopify
Styles: Default

Main Features:

– Sections and templates designed for storytelling
– Minimal, generous spacing and elegant typography
– Quick setup with minimal steps for a faster launch

Get Craft Theme

Crave Shopify Theme

Crave is one of the best free Shopify themes officially built by Shopify that comes with a vibrant and playful design. The theme is primarily targeted at food and drink stores.

Theme Type: Free Theme – $0
Theme Developer: Shopify
Styles: Default

Main Features:

– Showcase imagery for visual brand storytelling
– Advanced design and customization settings
– Mobile-optimized layouts and dynamic checkout options

Get Crave Theme

Sense Shopify Theme

Sense is a free Shopify theme built by Shopify itself and is targeted at health and beauty eCommerce stores. The theme comes with a fresh and bright design, energizing your customers.

Theme Type: Free Theme – $0
Theme Developer: Shopify
Styles: Default

Main Features:

– Fresh colour palette and soft gradients
– Detailed product descriptions sections
– Flexible design and customization settings

Get Sense Theme

Tailor Shopify Theme

Tailor is one of the latest premium Shopify themes built by Pixel Union and is primarily tailored to apparel brands. The theme is available directly from the Shopify marketplace.

Theme Type: Premium Theme – $310
Theme Developer: Pixel Union
Styles: Cotton | Lycra

Main Features:

– Built for fashion eCommerce stores
– Live search and customizable collections
– Makes browsing your catalogue easy and enjoyable

Get Tailor Theme

Warehouse Shopify Theme

Warehouse is another premium Shopify theme tailored specifically for stores with a large number of products. The theme is designed specifically for dropshipping multiple products.

Theme Type: Premium Theme – $300
Theme Developer: Maestrooo
Styles: Metal | Fabric | Wood

Main Features:

– International selling features and design
– Suitable for stores running time-based promotions
– Optimised for speed and performance with high-quality code

Get Warehouse Theme

Venture Shopify Theme

Venture is a free Shopify theme built for stores with large catalogs. The theme comes with a ton of features, including a multi-column menu, slideshow banners, promotional and discount banners and product filtering options.

Theme Type: Free Shopify Theme – $0
Theme Developer: Shopify
Styles: Boxing | Outdoors | Snowboards

Main Features:

– Great theme for stores with large product catalogs
– Display a single featured product on homepage
– Latest promotions and discounts on top of homepage

Get Venture Theme

Pipeline Shopify Theme

Pipeline is a well-built premium Shopify theme ideal for stores with a high number of transactions. The theme is also designed to accommodate selling in-person selling capabilities, making it suitable for physical stores.

Theme Type: Premium Theme – $280
Theme Developer: Groupthought
Styles: Dark | Light | Bright

Main Features:

– In-store pickups and cart notes options
– Suitable for stores selling across regional boundaries
– Ideal for niches including clothing and accessories, health and beauty, sports and recreation

Get Pipeline Theme

Ira Shopify Theme

Ira is another premium Shopify theme primarily designed to support visual brand storytelling. The theme has longer-form text sections and features to showcase brand imagery, making it suitable for storytelling along with your products.

Theme Type: Premium Theme – $250
Theme Developer: Fluorescent Design Inc
Styles: Active | Modern | Sport

Main Features:

– Suitable for high-volume stores
– Combination of minimalist and grid-based system
– Designed for stores with editorial content and visual storytelling

Get Ira Theme

Palo Alto Shopify Theme

Palo Alto is another premium Shopify theme from Presidio Creative designed to showcase high-resolution product imagery on your store.

Theme Type: Premium Theme – $250
Theme Developer: Presidio Creative
Styles: Stanford | SoMa | Palo Alto

Main Features:

– Optimised for mobile and speed
– Quick buy features to let customers shop easily
– Can replace apps with features like out-of-stock notifications, product upsells, and multiple popups.

Get Palo Alto Theme

Boundless Shopify Theme

Boundless is one of the best free Shopify themes designed and supported by Shopify itself. It is a very minimal theme that allows you to showcase high-resolution imagery of your products.

Theme Type: Free Theme – $0
Theme Developer: Shopify
Styles: Vibrant | Black & white

Main Features:

– Highlight your products photos boldly
– Quick buy features to let customers shop easily
– Can replace apps with features like out-of-stock notifications, product upsells, and multiple popups.

Get Boundless Theme

Focal Shopify Theme

Focal is another premium Shopify theme designed for visual brand storytelling. The theme can be highly configured with its custom colour sections, adaptable elements, elegant animations, and several other settings.

Theme Type: Premium Theme – $300
Theme Developer: Maestrooo
Styles: Ivory | Carbon | Quartz

Main Features:

– 20 built-in sections to create unique landing pages
– Suitable for High-volume stores in the apparel and electronics niche
– Well-built product recommendations feature and sticky Add to cart feature

Get Focal Theme

Brooklyn Shopify Theme

Brooklyn is one of the highly popular free Shopify themes designed by Shopify, specifically with modern apparel stores in mind.

Theme Type: Free Shopify Theme – $0
Theme Developer: Shopify
Styles: Playful | Classic

Main Features:

– Dynamic product grid adapting to the products displayed
– Slide-out cart feature for an easy checkout process
– Tailored to contemporary apparel stores that want to highlight products imagery

Get Brooklyn Theme

Oworganic Shopify Theme

Oworganic is a Shopify theme that comes with 8+ pre-designed homepage demos, making it perfect for a wide range of businesses.

Theme Type: Premium Theme – $59
Theme Developer: Shopifytemplate/Envato
Styles: Fashion | Beauty & Spa | Art & Culture | Furniture & Home Decor

Main Features:

– Includes technologies that improve page loading speed and customer experience.
– Simple admin panel and friendly technical service
– Built on the latest versions of Shopify (OS 2.0) and Bootstrap, making it both powerful and fast.

Get Oworganic Theme

Best Paid Shopify Themes

While we have included both paid and free Shopify themes in our listing, there are certain premium themes that are highly recommended.

Most paid Shopify themes are high-quality themes with premium features and lots of customisation options.

Shopify theme developers put a lot of time and effort into creating themes that are not only visually appealing but also conversion-optimized and packed with powerful features. You can buy these paid themes for a one-off price and use them for your online stores.

Here are some of the trending best paid Shopify themes that can uplift your store’s design in 2024;

Turbo Theme – Turbo is one of the most popular paid themes available for Shopify stores. It offers a wide range of features and customization options to help you create a unique, conversion-optimized online store. It’s the best theme that can be customised to work for all kinds of online shops.
Flex Theme – Flex is another popular paid theme that offers a wide range of features, including 12+ layouts and style options, to help you create a unique online store.
Booster Theme – Booster is a premium theme that offers a wide range of features to help you increase conversions and sales. It includes powerful features that can replace multiple Shopify apps, product recommendations, social proof, and more.
Superstore Theme – Superstore is a very well-designed premium Shopify theme that is suitable for stores with large catalogues and wholesale shops.
Debutify Theme – Debutify is another premium Shopify theme that has a clean and modular design to help you create a simple yet stylish online store.
Oworganic Theme – Oworganic is a paid Shopify theme that is highly focused on increasing conversions with a long list of options and a focus on page loading time.
Pipeline Theme – Pipeline is a popular paid Shopify theme that offers a wide range of customization options to help you create a unique online store.
Warehouse Theme – Warehouse is another popular premium Shopify theme that offers several customisable features to help you create a unique and visually appealing online store.
Shoptimized Theme – Shoptimized is another trending paid theme that is designed to help you increase conversions and sales. The theme includes features such as a built-in sales timer, product bundling, upsells and cross-sells, and more.
Fresh Theme – Fresh is another versatile Shopify theme primarily targeted at food and drink stores and comes with three main presets and unlimited possibilities.

Why use Paid Shopify Themes?

Paid Shopify themes might account for an additional expense to your online business, but they can instantly provide you with a professional storefront design. Also, buying the right theme can save you a lot further down the line in your business journey.

Importantly, when you purchase a paid Shopify theme, you’ll get access to the following:

Regular updates – Most paid themes include regular updates to ensure compatibility with the latest version of Shopify, and you will see new features being added regularly.
Premium support – When you buy a paid theme, you’ll usually get access to premium support from the theme developer. This can be helpful if you run into any problems while using the theme or setting up your store.
Documentation – Most paid themes come with detailed documentation that can help you get the most out of the theme. You will be able to configure most of the features in a theme by going through the documentation.
Customization options – Paid Shopify themes usually offer a wide range of customization options to help you create a unique online store. You can use the options to customise to match your branding needs.
Built-in features – Paid themes often include lots of built-in features that can help you increase conversions and sales. Established Shopify theme shops make multiple changes and updates to improve their themes and introduce the latest shopping trends continuously.

Besides, using a well-built paid Shopify theme reduces the need to install a lot of apps for simple functionalities, which might even slow down your store.

Installing too many apps on your Shopify store can have a negative impact on your store’s performance, so it’s important to choose a theme that has most of the features you need built-in already.

A good Shopify theme will help you create a beautiful and conversion-optimized online store with minimal effort. So it’s important to explore the different options and find the best Shopify themes that will work for you.

Please note that most paid Shopify themes are available for single-site use, but some developers do offer multiple-site licenses at a discount. If you plan on using a theme on more than one Shopify store, be sure to check the license agreement before making your purchase.

Now that you know the benefits of using paid Shopify themes let’s filter the premium themes further to help you find the best theme for online stores in different niches.

Best Shopify Themes for Clothing Stores

Best Shopify Themes FAQs

We have tried to answer all frequently asked questions about the best Shopify themes below.

What are some of the best Shopify themes available?

Superstore, Flex, and Turbo themes are some of the best Shopify themes, with several templates suitable for most eCommerce stores.
What should I look for in selecting the best Shopify themes?

There are a few factors to consider when choosing the right Shopify theme for your store, including design, usability, features, and support.
What are the benefits of using premium best Shopify themes?

Using a Shopify theme has many benefits, including an improved design, increased functionality, and easier customization.

What should you look for in Best Shopify Themes?

You should consider a few things when choosing the best Shopify themes for your online store.

While all of the Shopify themes listed above have some great features and aspects you will find useful, not all of them are suitable for every kind of eCommerce business. In this guide, we have looked at what makes an ideal theme, regardless of its category or style, and we have reviewed some of the best themes in various categories to help you find the right one for your business.

To summarise, some key factors to consider when choosing a Shopify theme are its design, speed, usability, features, security, and support.

A great theme should not only look beautiful and professional, but it should also be easy to use and customise, with a wealth of useful features to enhance your online store.

The themes should also be fast loading and secure, and the theme developers should provide reliable support in case you need help or have questions about how to utilize all the features of your theme in the best possible way.

Finally, watch this official video from Shopify discussing options for some of the best Shopify themes.

With so many options for the best Shopify themes we have listed in this comprehensive guide, there is sure to be one that will fit your business and help you achieve your goals for building and growing your online store.

So take some time to explore and try different themes and find the best Shopify themes that will work for your eCommerce business.

What is eCommerce? – Definition, Types, and Trends

Sun, 06 Oct 2024 15:54:26 GMT

eCommerce, also known as electronic commerce or e-Commerce, is the process of buying and selling goods or services over the Internet.

As eCommerce has become more prevalent and complex in recent years, there are many varying definitions which generally support the idea that it can be simply called Commerce, and there shouldn’t be any distinction.

However, the most common definition is that eCommerce is the buying and selling of goods and services, or the transmitting of funds or data, over an electronic network, primarily using the Web.

Besides, eCommerce traditionally refers to buying and selling physical goods, but as Commerce has evolved, it encompasses all transactions carried over the internet.

Today, there are all kinds of eCommerce platforms catering to different needs of businesses looking to buy and sell on the web.

Continue learning more about what eCommerce is, its benefits for businesses, and the different types of eCommerce models that exist today.

eCommerce Definition

eCommerce, or electronic commerce can be simply defined as buying and selling products through the Internet.

In today’s digital age, eCommerce has become a crucial part of the overall business world. These days, eCommerce also entails selling and buying nonphysical goods, including digital products and services.

eCommerce, thus refers to trading of goods and services, and other commercial actitivies using electronic medium such as the internet.

With the rapid growth of the internet and the web, eCommerce has revolutionized how businesses and customers engage with each other.

From selling their products to managing customer accounts and processing payments, businesses can now conduct virtually all of their operations online.

Additionally, eCommerce has opened up new opportunities for businesses by allowing them to expand into global markets instantly and seamlessly. As such, eCommerce is not just a growing trend in the world of business; it has become a standard practice.

And with eCommerce activities taking over other sales from other offline channels such as retail, it’s not surprising that eCommerce is simply ‘Commerce’.

Don’t get confused with variations of how eCommerce is mentioned all over the web such as e-Commerce, e-commerce, or eCom. You will see it written in all forms;

e-commerce or E-commerce
eCommerce or Ecommerce
e commerce or E commerce

Irrespective of how a publication mentions it, all the terms have the same meaning. If you are including the term in your work, just make sure you stay consistent throughout.

For your reference, the ‘e’ in ‘eCommerce’ refers to ‘electronic’. You can go through the eCommerce synonyms to see other similar terms that are often used to define and discuss eCommerce.

Types of eCommerce Business Models

Broadly speaking, there are four types of eCommerce business models that exist today:

Business to Consumer (B2C)
Business to Business (B2B)
Consumer to Consumer (C2C)
Consumer to Business (C2B)

Each type of eCommerce business model entails different types of activities and, consequently, the distinct nature of transactions.

Business to Consumer (B2C): A business-to-consumer transaction is one where a business sells products or services to consumers through an online platform. The most common type of B2C eCommerce is online retail, where businesses sell their products directly to consumers through their eCommerce websites or mobile apps.
Business to Business (B2B): A business-to-business transaction is one where businesses sell their products or services to other businesses. The most common type of B2B eCommerce is online wholesale, where businesses sell their products in bulk to other businesses, often at a lower price.
Consumer to Consumer (C2C): A consumer-to-consumer transaction is one where consumers sell their products or services directly to other consumers through an online platform. The most common type of C2C eCommerce is online auctions, where consumers can sell their products to the highest bidder.
Consumer to Business (C2B): A consumer-to-business transaction is one where consumers sell their products or services to businesses. The most common type of C2B eCommerce is online freelancing, where businesses can hire workers from freelance websites for specific projects.

Further, if we were to include eCommerce activities between business, consumers, and government or administrative agencies, we would see these kinds of eCommerce business models.

B2G – Businesses sell to governments or administrative agencies.
C2G – Consumers sell to governments or administrative agencies.
G2B – Governments or administrative agencies sell to businesses.
G2C – Governments or administrative agencies sell to consumers.

Benefits and Challenges of eCommerce

With its evolving business models discussed above, eCommerce has become an increasingly important part of today’s modern business landscape.

As more and more consumers adopt the web and turn to online stores for their shopping needs, businesses are beginning to shift their marketing efforts and operations to take advantage of this growing trend.

Despite its many benefits, e-commerce also presents a number of challenges that businesses must overcome in order to succeed in this increasingly competitive marketplace.

The main advantage of eCommerce is that it provides a convenient and often cheaper alternative to shopping at brick-and-mortar stores. Online shopping is available to consumers to shop 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, without having to leave their homes or spend hours navigating crowded shopping centres.

Additionally, the use of online deals and coupons, online sales offers, and other promotions can help customers save money on their purchases. This is particularly beneficial for businesses looking for ways to reach budget-conscious customers in an increasingly competitive economy.

However, along with these many benefits comes a host of challenges that businesses must address in order to succeed with e-commerce.

One major challenge is the threat of cybercrime, which occurs when hackers obtain sensitive data such as credit card numbers through systems vulnerabilities or by manipulating users into giving out personal information on eCommerce websites.

In addition, greater reliance on e-commerce means that companies must ensure that their supply chains are properly integrated and managed in order to deliver goods quickly and accurately to customers’ doorsteps.

Besides, since much of digital commerce takes place on mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets, companies must constantly update their eCommerce platforms or websites and apps to adapt to frequently changing technology standards.

Despite these challenges, however, the future looks bright for eCommerce as it continues to present new opportunities for growth and innovation for businesses.

What are the benefits of eCommerce?

There are many benefits of eCommerce for businesses, including:

Increased reach: With eCommerce, businesses can instantly target a global audience and expand their reach. All they need is a website or mobile app, and they can start selling their products to anyone in the world with an internet connection.
Lower costs: Setting up and maintaining an eCommerce store is generally much cheaper than setting up and maintaining a brick-and-mortar store. Additionally, businesses can save on costs such as rent, utilities, and staff salaries by selling their products online.
Increased efficiency: An eCommerce platform enables businesses to automate many of their operations, from managing customer accounts to processing payments. This can free up time and resources that can be better used to grow the business.
Improved customer service: With eCommerce, businesses can offer their customers a more convenient and personalized shopping experience. For example, they can recommend products to customers based on their purchase history or provide live chat support to answer any questions they may have.

What are the challenges of eCommerce?

There are also some challenges that businesses need to be aware of when selling their products online, including:

Competition: With millions of businesses already selling their products online, it can be challenging for new businesses to stand out from the crowd. eCommerce businesses need to ensure their products are competitively priced and offer unique features or benefits that will appeal to customers.
Fraud: Unfortunately, there is a high incidence of fraud in the eCommerce industry. eCommerce businesses should be vigilant in protecting their customers’ personal and financial information from criminals who may try to steal it.
Returns: Since customers cannot physically inspect products before they purchase them online, there is always the risk that they will need to return them. This can be costly for businesses, as they will need to account for the shipping and handling fees.

Examples of eCommerce

So, what can be considered eCommerce? Let’s look at different examples of commercial activities that happen over the internet to help you understand how broad eCommerce can be.

Online Marketplaces

The most popular examples of eCommerce are online marketplaces. Amazon, eBay, and Etsy are all leading and well-known online marketplaces where businesses can sell their products to a global audience.

Social media platforms such as Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram have been integrating eCommerce features and quickly becoming popular places for businesses to sell their products. Businesses have the ability to add their products and created their own online stores that are accessible from their social media pages.

Digital Downloads

Another popular type of eCommerce is digital downloads. This can include anything from music and movies to software and games. iTunes, Spotify, and Steam are all examples of companies that offer digital downloads.

SaaS Businesses

SaaS businesses provide their customers with access to software that can be used online. Some popular examples of SaaS businesses include Dropbox, Slack, and Zoom.

Online Services Businesses

Finally, there are companies that sell services online. This can include anything from consulting services to design services to dating services. Upwork, Fiverr, and Tinder are all examples of companies that sell services online.

Dropshipping

Dropshipping is a type of eCommerce business model in which businesses sell products without having to carry any inventory. When a customer places an order on a dropshipping website, the business will then purchase the product from a supplier and have it shipped directly to the customer’s door. Dropshipping businesses don’t need to invest in any inventory, which makes it a low-risk way to start selling online.

Subscription Boxes

Subscription boxes are another type of eCommerce business. Businesses curate boxes of products that are sent to customers on a monthly or quarterly basis. Some popular examples of subscription boxes include Birchbox, Blue Apron, and Dollar Shave Club.

Digital Subscription Services

Many companies offer their digital products on a subscription basis. This means that customers can pay a recurring fee to have access to the product or service. Some popular examples of subscription services include Netflix, Spotify, and Amazon Prime.

DTC Online Stores

DTC businesses are companies that sell their products directly to consumers through an online store. These businesses cut out the middleman and sell their products at a higher price point. Some popular examples of DTC businesses include Warby Parker, Bonobos, and Everlane.

As you can see, eCommerce today encompasses a wide range of businesses and online business activities for products and services.

What is an eCommerce Platform?

In eCommerce, platforms refer to tools and resources that enable businesses to build and operate their online stores.

eCommerce Platforms provide businesses with the foundation they need to sell their products online and can include everything from website builders and shopping cart software to payment processors and customer relationship management (CRM) tools.

We have a complete guide to help you learn more about what an eCommerce platform is and how to select the best one for your business.

There are many different types of eCommerce platforms available, and the best platform for your business will depend on your specific needs, such as what you want to sell, where you want to sell, types of payment methods you can accept and so on.

Some of the most popular eCommerce platforms include:

Shopify: Shopify is one of the most popular eCommerce platforms on the market. It offers everything businesses need to create and operate their online stores, including a website builder, shopping cart software, payment processing, and customer support.

WooCommerce: WooCommerce is a WordPress plugin that turns any WordPress website into a fully-functional online store. WooCommerce is free to use, but businesses will need to invest in their own hosting, domain name (get free domain from Bluehost with affordable hosting), and other required extensions.

Magento – Adobe Commerce: Magento is a powerful eCommerce platform that offers businesses a lot of flexibility and customization options. However, it can be difficult to use, particularly for businesses that are just getting started with Magento hosting for eCommerce.

BigCommerce: BigCommerce is another popular eCommerce platform that offers businesses everything they need to create and operate their online stores. It is very easy to use and comes with a lot of built-in features, making the platform a good choice for businesses that are just getting started with eCommerce.

Wix eCommerce: Wix is another popular eCommerce software platform. It’s a good choice for businesses that are on a budget and don’t mind investing some time into learning how to use the platform.

You can check out our complete listing of the best eCommerce platforms in this detailed guide.

In addition to the tools and software, eCommerce platforms can sometimes refer to the online marketplaces that facilitate eCommerce activity.

What is the eCommerce industry?

The eCommerce industry is an umbrella term that includes all kinds of eCommerce businesses, including online retailers, subscription services, and digital product stores. The industry also includes the platforms and tools that businesses use to build and operate their online stores.

The eCommerce industry is proliferating, with more and more businesses adopting the online channel and the rise in complementary products to serve the demand.

Graphics | Report

The Shopify Future of Commerce report predicts that the eCommerce industry will grow by $11 trillion between 2021 and 2025.

What’s Next for eCommerce? – Latest Trends

Now that we’ve looked at different types of eCommerce businesses, let’s take a look at some of the latest trends in the industry.

The eCommerce industry is constantly evolving and growing. New technologies are emerging that are changing the way businesses operate and customers shop.

Some of the latest trends in eCommerce include:

Augmented reality: This technology allows customers to see what a product would look like in their own homes before they purchase it. This is particularly helpful for products like furniture and home decor.

Personalization: Thanks to data collected from customers, businesses are now able to personalize the shopping experience by recommending products that they think the customer will like.

Chatbots: Chatbots are computer programs that can simulate a conversation with a human. They are often used to provide customer support and can be found on many eCommerce websites.

Blockchain: Blockchain is a distributed database that allows for secure, transparent, and tamper-proof transactions. This technology is being used more and more in the eCommerce industry as it offers a high level of security for businesses and customers alike.

Mobile commerce: With the increasing use of mobile devices, it’s no surprise that mobile commerce is on the rise. Businesses are now investing in developing mobile apps and optimizing their websites for mobile devices.

Social Commerce: As social media platforms continue to integrate eCommerce features, we expect to see more businesses selling their products on social media. This will be a great way for businesses to reach a wider audience and make it easy for customers to purchase their products.

Subscription Boxes: We expect to see more businesses offering subscription boxes in the future. This type of eCommerce business is convenient for customers and can be a great way for businesses to build loyalty and repeat customers.

Direct to Consumer: We expect to see more businesses selling their products through DTC online stores. This type of eCommerce business allows businesses to own first-party data, control the pricing of their products and build a direct relationship with their customers.

What does the future hold for eCommerce? Only time will tell, but one thing is for sure, eCommerce is going to be the dominant channel for buying and selling.

Understanding eCommerce Basics – FAQs

Let’s look at some commonly asked questions about eCommerce to improve your understanding of the topic quickly.

What is the meaning of e-commerce?

E-commerce essentially is the buying and selling of goods and services on the web using internet technologies.
What is an eCommerce business?

An eCommerce business refers to any business that operates online and sells products or services to customers over the internet.
What is the full meaning of e-commerce?

The full meaning of eCommerce or the full form is “electronic commerce.” The “e” in the term refers to electronic.
What is eCommerce website?

An eCommerce website is a website that allows businesses to sell products and services online. Customers can browse the eCommerce website and purchase products that they are interested in.
What is meant by e-commerce technology?

E-commerce technology refers to the internet technologies and tools that are used to build and operate an eCommerce website.

Want to learn more about eCommerce?

If you are interested in learning more about eCommerce, explore our detailed guides and tutorials here at WebGuided.

We cover everything about eCommerce, from getting started with an online store to marketing your products and succeeding with your eCommerce journey!

eCommerce NAICS Code 2026: Updated for Online Retailers

Sun, 06 Oct 2024 15:50:08 GMT

Looking for the latest eCommerce NAICS code as per the 2026 classification? Let us help you find the best suitable NAICS code that you can use for your eCommerce business.

The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) is a common industry classification system used by Federal statistical agencies in North American countries, including the US, Canada, and Mexico.

NAICS codes for eCommerce businesses were revised in the latest 2022 update, eliminating the distinction between physical and online stores.

What is the NAICS code for eCommerce Business?

The correct NAICS code for eCommerce businesses depends on the nature of your overall business and what you are primarily selling online.

Before 2022, the correct NAICS code for all eCommerce businesses was 454110 under the 2017 classification.

Lately, as per the official 2022 NAICS revision of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the industry covered under NAICS 454110 is being updated to eliminate the distinction between physical stores and online stores.

With the rise of internet usage and changes in how goods and services are delivered, this industry is adapting to blur the lines between physical stores and online stores. Instead, retailers will be distinguished by their specialized product lines.

Depending on what your eCommerce business is related to, find the right NAICS code from this updated classification table of 2022 NAICS.

eCommerce NAICS Code	Type of Online Retailers
459920	Art Dealers
441330	Automotive Parts & Accessories Retailers
445320	Beer, Wine, & Liquor Retailers
459210	Book Retailers & News Dealers
458110	Clothing & Clothing Accessories Retailers
445131	Convenience Retailers
456120	Cosmetics, Beauty Supplies, & Perfume Retailers
455110	Department Stores
449210	Electronics & Appliance Retailers
445250	Fish & Seafood Retailers
449121	Floor Covering Retailers
459310	Florists
456191	Food (Health) Supplement Retailers
449110	Furniture Retailers
459420	Gift, Novelty, & Souvenir Retailers
444140	Hardware Retailers
459120	Hobby, Toy, & Game Retailers
458310	Jewelry Retailers
458320	Luggage & Leather Goods Retailers
445240	Meat Retailers
441227	Motorcycle, ATV, & All Other Motor Vehicle Dealers
459140	Musical Instrument & Supplies Retailers
444240	Nursery, Garden Center, & Farm Supply Retailers
459410	Office Supplies & Stationery Retailers
456130	Optical Goods Retailers
444180	Other Building Material Dealers
444230	Outdoor Power Equipment Retailers
459910	Pet & Pet Supplies Retailers
456110	Pharmacies & Drug Retailers
459130	Sewing, Needlework, & Piece Goods Retailers
458210	Shoe Retailers
459110	Sporting Goods Retailers
441340	Tire Dealers
459991	Tobacco, Electronic Cigarette, & Other Smoking Supplies Retailers
459510	Used Merchandise Retailers
455211	Warehouse Clubs & Supercenters
449122	Window Treatment Retailers
455219	All Other General Merchandise Retailers
456199	All Other Health & Personal Care Retailers
449129	All Other Home Furnishings Retailers
459999	All Other Miscellaneous Retailers
445298	All Other Specialty Food Retailers

To determine the eCommerce NAICS Code for your business, look at which retail activity you fall under and use the correct code accordingly.

As the previous eCommerce NAICS code, 454110 is now being revised (see screenshot below), you might want to use the right updated code starting in 2022.

Most online stores, whether they are powered by Shopify or any other top eCommerce platforms, will likely fall under the retail activity of one of the categories above.

Looking to advertise your eCommerce business? Don’t forget to use our TikTok ads promo code to get started with $1000 free credits.

You can download the complete 2022 NAICS manual here from the official U.S. Census Bureau website.

NAICS code 454110 for eCommerce Business?

As we mentioned earlier, under the year 2017 classification, the correct NAICS code for all eCommerce businesses was 454110.

This common NAICS code 454110 primarily included businesses under the online retail industry classification, such as web retailers, internet retail sale sites and auctions.

These types of industries are focused on selling products through non-retail methods, such as catalogues, phone calls, or electronic materials like interactive TV or the internet.

If you’re involved in any aspect of eCommerce, from setting up an online store to selling online by any means, this is the code you’ll need to use.

Types of eCommerce Businesses under NAICS Code 454110

If we were to pull out the index entries for NAICS Code 454110 under the 2017 classification, you could see these categories as the major entries;

Catalog (i.e., order-taking) offices of mail-order houses
Collectors’ items, mail-order houses
Computer software, mail-order houses
Home shopping television orders
Internet auction sites, retail
Mail-order book clubs (not publishing)
Mail-order houses
Web retailers

Everything under NAICS Code 454110 – 2007, 2012, and 2017

Let’s dive deeper into the NAICS code 454110 to help you gain a clearer picture of all kinds of businesses that the classification encompassed in the years 2007, 2012, and 2017.

Here’s a complete table of index entries with the NAICS code 454110 outlining all possible businesses that you can enter under the classification of 2017 NAICS.

2007 NAICS	2012 NAICS	2017 NAICS	Index Entries for 454110
454112	454112	454110	Auctions, Internet retail
454111	454111	454110	Audio and video content downloading retail sales sites
454113	454113	454110	Book clubs, not publishing, mail-order
454111	454111	454110	Business to Consumer retail sales Internet sites
454113	454113	454110	Catalog (i.e., order-taking) offices of mail-order houses
454113	454113	454110	Collectors’ items, mail-order houses
454113	454113	454110	Computer software, mail-order houses
454113	454113	454110	Direct mailers (i.e., selling own merchandise)
454111	454111	454110	E-tailers
454112	454112	454110	Electronic auctions, retail
454111	454111	454110	Institutional pharmacies, off-site, exclusively on Internet
454113	454113	454110	Institutional pharmacies, off-site, mail-order
454112	454112	454110	Internet auctions, retail
454111	454111	454110	Internet retail sales sites
454113	454113	454110	Mail-order houses
454113	454113	454110	Order-taking offices of mail-order houses
454113	454113	454110	Prerecorded tape, compact disc, and record mail-order houses
454113	454113	454110	Television order, home shopping
454111	454111	454110	Web retailers

Real Examples of Businesses using eCommerce NAICS Code

Here are some real-world examples of businesses that use the eCommerce-related NAICS codes;

Amazon.com, Inc. – Amazon is the world’s largest online retailer and one of the most well-known eCommerce businesses. They sell a variety of goods, including books, music, electronics, apparel, furniture, food, toys, and more.

eBay Inc. – eBay is an online auction site where people can buy and sell a wide variety of goods and services.

Overstock.com, Inc. – Overstock is an online retailer that specializes in selling closeout merchandise from manufacturers at discounts. They sell a variety of items, including furniture, home decor, bedding, and more.

Wayfair Inc. – Wayfair is an online retailer that specializes in selling home goods. They offer a wide range of products, including furniture, décor, appliances, and more.

Woot LLC – Woot is an online retailer that specializes in selling closeout merchandise from manufacturers at discounts. They sell a variety of items, including electronics, home goods, and more.

Chinos Holdings Inc – Chinos Holdings, the parent company of J.Crew Group, Inc, is an online retailer that specializes in selling clothes and accessories for men, women, and children.

As you can see, the businesses that come under this NAICS code are quite diverse. If you’re involved in any type of eCommerce business, chances are this is the code you’ll need to use.

eCommerce NAICS Codes FAQs

Here are some of the most frequently asked questions related to eCommerce NAICS codes.

What are NAICS codes?

NAICS stands for “The North American Industry Classification System”. It is a standard and common industry classification system used by Federal statistical agencies in North American countries, including the US, Canada, and Mexico.
How do I find NAICS for my Business?

You can find your company’s or industry’s related NAICS code by going to the Census Bureau’s North American Industry Classification System page.
What are the latest NAICS Codes?

The NAICS codes are revised every five years, and the latest codes are from the year 2022.
What is the difference between NAICS and SIC codes?

The Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) system was the standard classification system for businesses until 1997, when it was replaced by the NAICS system. SIC codes are still used in the private sector.
Can there be multiple NAICS codes for eCommerce businesses?

Well, depending on the nature of your business, there can be multiple NAICS codes that can be applied related to your eCommerce activities.
What is NAICS code for Shopify store?

You can find the NAICS code for your Shopify store by identifying the type of your online business in the latest 2022 NAICS table above.

Get your eCommerce Business NAICS Right

Hopefully, this guide has given you a clear understanding of what the eCommerce NAICS code is and how to find the right code to use for your business.

You can find the most suitable NAICS code for your business from our latest updated table of index entries, with the NAICS code outlining all possible businesses that can be entered under the classification.

20+ Best LearnDash Examples: Websites Inspiration 2026

Thu, 26 Sep 2024 18:43:01 GMT

Check out this curated list of the best LearnDash examples to get inspired for implementing membership websites, online courses, and selling digital products.

LearnDash is one of the most popular learning management systems used by websites to sell online courses and create membership sites.

The tool exists as a Cloud platform and LMS plugin for WordPress, making it really easy for WordPress-powered websites to offer e-learning with online courses on their sites.

LearnDash is known for its ease of use, vast learning management features, and high levels of customizability, thus suiting any WordPress website looking to create a unique learning experience for its users.

The solution is popular among WordPress users, ranging from solo creators to big academic institutes. You will see several websites, such as those of entrepreneurs, small and large businesses, academic organisations, universities, and training institutes, using LearnDash to power their online courses.

Below, we have compiled a list of the best LearnDash examples showing you websites that are using the platform to create an awesome online learning environment for their users.

Curated List of Best LearnDash Examples

As LearnDash serves multiple purposes, we have tried to highlight the main use case of the websites in the following examples.

1. OptinMonster: Courses for Customers Example

OptinMonster University

OptinMonster is leveraging LearnDash to offer a series of courses to their customers to help them maximize their platform’s potential.

With over hundreds of learners enrolled in the courses offered using LearnDash, OptinMonster University has been a successful addition to their platform. The intuitive drag-and-drop design of LearnDash makes it easy for OptinMonster to create quizzes, training programs, and other learning materials for their courses.

The LearnDash-powered OptinMonster University is free for all OptinMonster users and is a valuable resource for anyone looking to maximize their lead generation potential.

Start with LearnDash

2. Yoast Academy: SEO Courses Example

Yoast SEO Academy

Yoast Academy, a featured LearnDash example on the official success stories, is the online learning platform of Yoast, a popular SEO WordPress plugin. Powered by LearnDash, Yoast Academy offers free and premium courses on SEO best practices for WordPress users.

As a WordPress user, you might know Yoast already, and if you have a membership, try exploring their courses to see a real-life implementation of the LearnDash plugin.

Yoast Academy uses LearnDash’s Course access Settings feature to require registration for free courses and the Recurring Course Access feature for premium courses.

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3. Schedulicity: Product tutorials and Training Example

Schedulicity Study Hall

Schedulicity is a booking platform that connects small service-based businesses and their clients. The company uses LearnDash to provide free training for its software through the open course access setting and focus mode features.

The well-designed homepage highlights the product’s top features, customer testimonials, and calls to action. The footer menu includes a Tutorials page featuring a grid of short courses built with LearnDash.

Schedulicity’s use of open courses eliminates the friction of registering or logging in to access course content, making it one of the unique LearnDash examples on this list. The focus mode feature removes distractions, streamlining the user’s learning experience, which increases learning retention and completion rates.

Schedulicity is an excellent example of how to use LearnDash to create a powerful scheduling platform and easy-to-use product tutorials.

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4. Bitesize Bio: Community Learning Platform Example

Bitesize Bio Courses

Bitesize Bio is a community platform for bioscientists. LearnDash is used to create courses to help scientists improve their technical skills, scientific fundamentals, personal development, careers, and funding. Bitesize Bio provides information through articles, webinars, podcasts, and courses powered by the LearnDash LMS.

LearnDash’s Course Access Setting is used to allow users to register and gain access to courses without payment. Focus Mode is used to keep learners engaged in the coursework, and course navigation is always visible in a sidebar tray.

Bitesize Bio has created a vibrant community of knowledge using LearnDash, which you can do too by using LearnDash on your website.

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5. Gretchen Rubin: Creator Courses Example

Gretchen Rubin Creator Courses

Gretchen Rubin is a writer, podcaster, and motivational influencer who founded The Happiness Project. She offers courses built with LearnDash on her website, which features an engaging homepage with multiple calls-to-action and enticing course offerings.

Gretchen’s website uses one of the popular eCommerce platforms – WooCommerce shopping cart, to offer automatic discounts to customers and take advantage of the LearnDash WooCommerce integration.

She monetizes her expertise with LearnDash and encourages others to do the same. As you can see with this LearnDash example, the plugin offers a powerful solution to help achieve educational goals for students, companies, or products.

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6. Carey Nieuwhof: Courses Bundling Example

Carey Nieuwhof Courses

Carey Nieuwhof is an author, entrepreneur, leader, and coach who uses LearnDash to deliver online courses to train better community leaders, church leaders, and entrepreneurs.

Carey’s Art of Leadership Academy is a premiere course offering, showcasing thoughtful course bundling at its best. The academy landing page is comprehensive, giving the learner insight into how the courses operate and how they’ll help.

Carey’s Academy makes use of LearnDash features such as Course Grid, Achievements, and Profile Block/Shortcode to keep learners informed and engaged. Additionally, Carey’s academy is a great example of how you can monetize your expertise using LearnDash.

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7. Maria Killam: LearnDash with WooCommerce Example

Maria Killam Website

Maria Killam’s website is another excellent LearnDash example showing how to sell courses and other digital products using the LMS. Maria’s site is designed to showcase her expertise in colour and design, and she uses LearnDash to deliver her courses and manage her online store.

Maria’s website makes great use of the LearnDash WooCommerce add-on. By integrating WooCommerce into her site, Maria can sell her courses and other digital products alongside physical items in her online store. This approach provides a seamless shopping experience for her customers, making it easier for them to purchase her courses and other products.

On the checkout page, Maria provides a detailed explanation of what customers will receive when they sign up for one of her courses.

Maria Killam’s website is one of the best LearnDash examples that can inspire you to create a successful online learning environment.

Start with LearnDash

8. Showit: Course Grid Example

Showit Courses

Showit is a drag-and-drop website platform that offers creative freedom over the layout and design of your website. The platform utilizes LearnDash to provide free training for its users.

The Tutorials page on Showit’s website displays a grid of short courses built with LearnDash. Showit utilizes the LearnDash Course Grid add-on to create a course library that can be inserted on any page or post of the site, displaying an overview of multiple training courses at once.

The use of LearnDash Topics feature in Showit’s courses is another notable feature that creates hierarchy and keeps content focused. Topics help learners not feel overwhelmed with all there is to learn. Showit also utilizes LearnDash’s video progression feature to require users to watch the entirety of a video before they can mark content as complete.

Showit’s use of LearnDash is a great example of how to provide comprehensive, engaging education in website building. With Course Grids, Topics features, and video progression options of LearnDash, Showit’s example can inspire you on how to create a learning platform that encourages exploration and learning for your own audience.

Start with LearnDash

9. Bionic Turtle: Training Program Example

Bionic Turtle Courses

Bionic Turtle, a financial risk management training program, leverages LearnDash as their primary LMS to offer an interactive learning experience.

With LearnDash, Bionic Turtle offers a custom study planner for their subscribers, resulting in an incredibly user-friendly platform. Their LearnDash-powered program offers two FRM programs at three membership levels. BadgeOS and WooCommerce are also utilized by the platform to offer badges and points as well as a shopping cart for selling digital products.

Bionic Turtle’s experience with LearnDash showcases how this LMS can help create a tailored learning experience for users.

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10. Agency Mavericks: Agency Courses Example

Agency Mavericks Courses

Agency Mavericks has also been featured on the LeadDash platform’s website as a successful user that has generated over $1 million in course revenue using the LMS plugin.

Agency Mavericks (formerly WPElevation) is a successful agency that offers premium courses using LearnDash on their learning platform. The platform’s dozens of course modules are used to train thousands of their course students.

With LearnDash, Agency Mavericks has transformed into a premium course provider and has exceeded its goal of becoming a high-end training incubator. The platform’s ease of use and flexibility have allowed them to create engaging courses that continue to attract students and generate revenue.

You can see the LearnDash case study here featuring Agency Mavericks and how they use the plugin to power their courses.

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11. Fit Father Project: Online Training Program Example

Fit Father Project Membership Website

Fit Father Project is another successful example of LearnDash implementation. The project uses LearnDash to create an effective and engaging online training program for men over 40 who are looking to lose weight.

LearnDash is used on the platform to structure Fit Father Project’s content in a way that is easy to understand and apply.

Fit Father Project is able to create courses that are customizable and offer a personalized learning experience to each user using LearnDash capabilities. This allows them to deliver their proven fitness system in a way that is tailored to each individual’s needs.

Start with LearnDash

12. Keap: Business Learning Academy Example

Keap Academy

Keap, formerly known as Infusionsoft, uses LearnDash to create courses and develop learning management solutions. According to Keap, this has helped them with the goal of reducing training overhead and decreasing new customer cancellations.

Using LearnDash, Keap has been able to systematically position training courses when learners need them and ensure that they are delivered in the way Keap needs them to be. The LearnDash LMS has given them the ability to deliver training courses in a structured way, resulting in customers showing up more prepared and informed than previously.

Keap and LearnDash were featured in a webinar where they discussed how Keap uses LearnDash combined with a few other tools to power two separate learning platforms.

Start with LearnDash

13. Drone Academy: Niche Academy Example

Yoast SEO Academy

Drone Academy is a perfect example of how LearnDash can be used to create an online learning platform for niche topics like drone training. The academy is dedicated to providing comprehensive training, news, and reviews for drone enthusiasts.

The Drone Academy uses LearnDash’s LMS quiz and forum features to offer quizzes, exams, and a social learning network to its users. With LearnDash, the academy can easily create and manage courses, quizzes, and forums, all within the WordPress platform.

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14. PerfectMyMusic: Music Courses Example

PerfectMyMusic Learning Website

PerfectMyMusic is an excellent example of how LearnDash can be used to create a platform for music teachers to provide active practice and learning to their students. The website offers courses for all levels and is mobile-friendly, allowing students to learn on-the-go.

LearnDash’s LMS management functionality provides PerfectMyMusic with the tools they need to create and manage their courses effectively. The quizzes included in each lesson allow teachers to assess their students’ progress and adjust their teaching methods accordingly.

Start with LearnDash

15. Smart Insights: Digital Marketing Courses Example

Smart Insights Membership Website

If you’re looking to create an e-learning platform for digital marketing skills, Smart Insights is an excellent LearnDash example that can inspire you to create a comprehensive and personalized learning experience for your members.

Smart Insights uses LearnDash to offer a comprehensive e-learning platform for digital marketing skills. The LearnDash LMS provides Smart Insights with the tools they need to offer their courses and manage their members’ progress.

The Capability Grader, showcased on the LearnDash LMS, helps members assess their skills and knowledge, providing personalized recommendations for further learning.

Start with LearnDash

16. Johns Hopkins University / TCI University: Project Courses Example

TCI University Project

Johns Hopkins University is an excellent example of a higher education institution that uses LearnDash to power their online course content. The university uses LearnDash to deliver course content for their TCI University project, which is a major urban health initiative supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Institute for Population and Reproductive Health.

In addition to using LearnDash to deliver content, TCI University also has its own smartphone app powered by AppPresser. This app allows users to access LearnDash content via their smartphones, making it even more convenient for students to access course materials on-the-go.

The use of LearnDash and mobile app integration makes TCI University an excellent example of how higher education institutions can use e-learning platforms to provide innovative and convenient learning experiences for their students.

Start with LearnDash

17. Clearinghouse Academy: Free Study Courses Example

Clearinghouse Academy Free Courses

The Clearinghouse Academy is another popular LearnDash examples website that offers a one-stop resource for Clearinghouse training and events.

They have dozens of courses available in their academy. Course takers can sign up for a basic account for free and get access to all the course content.

Start with LearnDash

18. ProBlogger Courses: Free and Pro Courses Example

ProBlogger Courses

ProBlogger, one of the most renowned blogging websites, uses LearnDash to power its online courses aimed at helping learners create better blogs.

The website’s courses, which are available for free and at a cost, provide learners with comprehensive information on how to create compelling content, enhance their website’s usability, and grow their blog’s readership.

The courses powered by LearnDash are designed to help bloggers of all skill levels, from beginners to experienced bloggers looking to improve their websites.

Start with LearnDash

19. Ideapod Academy: Masterclasses Example

Ideapod Academy

Ideapod is a technology company that produces different kinds of media. Their academy section powered by LearnDash offers Masterclasses and other courses.

You will need to register for the platform to watch available Masterclasses and see how they have implemented the learning solution.

Start with LearnDash

What is LearnDash?

If you are looking for inspiration with LearnDash examples, you might know most of the things about LearnDash already.

LearnDash Website

For beginners, LearnDash is a powerful LMS platform for those looking to build courses on WordPress-powered websites.

It’s especially useful if you are looking to create and sell online courses as one of the following;

Entrepreneurs and solo creators
Designers and Developers
Educational Institutions
Training Organizations

You can learn more about the platform and its features in our detailed LearnDash review.

Best Niches for LearnDash Websites

As you can see in the LearnDash examples above, the tool is used in different online learning contexts.

From corporate training and online universities to niche academies, LearnDash powers a variety of websites.

While it can be used on the WordPress websites of any business, there are certain businesses that can highly benefit from using LearnDash for their websites.

In particular, LearnDash is best used for:

Corporate Training & eLearning Solutions: Corporations can use this platform to quickly develop courses and deliver them efficiently to their employees via the WordPress dashboard.

Online Universities & Colleges: LearnDash is an excellent tool for creating comprehensive and dynamic courses that can be used in any educational institution.

Niche Academies & Training Centers: The platform is ideal for setting up a niche academy where students can learn valuable skills related to their interests.

Selling Online Courses: If you are looking to maximize the potential of selling online courses, LearnDash offers a robust set of features that can help you create, manage, and deliver your courses.

Aside from these, LearnDash is also great for businesses related to health and wellness, language academies, music schools, and other niches that can offer online learning to their audience or customers.

LearnDash can essentially come in handy if you are looking to offer any sort of online courses on your websites.

If your main website isn’t powered by WordPress and uses different CMS such as Wix (see Wix website examples), Shopify or something else, you can still offer courses on subdomains such as courses.example.com and use WordPress and LearnDash to implement such solution.

Start with LearnDash

LearnDash Examples FAQs

Here are some of the most frequently asked questions related to using LearnDash:

What is LearnDash used for?

LearnDash is a powerful learning management system (LMS) platform that is used to create and manage online courses on WordPress-powered websites.
Are there examples of successful LearnDash courses?

Yes, there are lots of great examples of successful LearnDash courses out there offered by successful solo entrepreneurs to big SaaS companies.
Is LearnDash a good LMS?

Yes, LearnDash is an excellent LMS for creating and managing online courses. It’s user-friendly, packed with features, and it offers a variety of integrations to make course creation and delivery easier.
What types of courses can be created with LearnDash?

LearnDash is a powerful platform that allows you to create and publish all kinds of courses. It also offers integrated payment options and automated enrollment processes, making it easy to monetize your courses.

Use LearnDash to Create Your Online Courses

If you are inspired by our LearnDash website examples curated above, you might want to look into integrating the solution for your websites.

Using LearnDash to implement online courses on your websites is extremely easy, as the tool covers a wide range of features suitable for most learning environments.

You can also choose from our collection of LearnDash WordPress themes which are designed to help you create online learning courses with ease.

We hope that our LearnDash examples have inspired you to explore this powerful LMS platform and create similar amazing online learning experiences for your users.

Have we missed any best LearnDash website examples in our listing? Get in touch and let us know.

10Web AI Assistant: AI Writer for WordPress Review 2026

Thu, 26 Sep 2024 18:31:15 GMT

Looking for an AI writer that works natively within your WordPress website? The 10Web AI Assistant might be the perfect solution for you.

10Web has already been providing different AI-related capabilities with its website builder, and the native AI assistant within the WordPress editor takes it to the next level.

While most AI writers make you install their Chrome extensions, 10Web’s solution to make it available using Gutenberg blocks feels very native and integrated with the default WordPress editor.

In this detailed web guide, we will look at some of the main features of 10Web AI Assistant and help you decide if it’s the right solution for you.

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What is 10Web AI Assistant?

10Web AI Assistant is an AI writing solution for WordPress-powered websites. The tool lets you create and edit your content within the WordPress editor with the power of AI, making it much faster and easier.

10Web AI Homepage

The AI assistant tool uses leading large language models, such as GPT-3 Model of Open AI, to help you generate AI-powered content that you can then further edit within your editor.

While there’s no shortage of AI writing tools and software in the market, 10Web AI Assistant has a very niche focus of helping WordPress users and being native to WordPress default editor. And that’s where it shines and differentiates itself from the Jasper of the world.

The AI assistant offers you multiple templates and blocks to start creating specific types of content such as introduction, paragraphs, conclusion and so on. It also offers blocks for different frameworks of content, such as the AIDA framework and PAS framework, among others.

You can check out the list of all content templates below that make the process of generating relevant text easier and faster.

10Web AI Assistant Pricing

With 10Web AI Assistant being a freemium product, it is available for WordPress users to download and install for free.

With a free 10Web AI Assistant account, you will have access to all of its features, but the content generation is limited to 2000 words per month.

The AI Assistant Pro has three main plans – Personal, Premium, and Agency plans based on the number of words that you can generate under each plan.

10Web AI Pricing Details

You can click on get started for free to use the free version of the plugin. However, if you are looking to upgrade and use the pro version, it might be better to use “buy now” while signing up.

You can also use our exclusive 10Web coupon code – wpism to get an additional 20% OFF on all of their plans.

10Web AI Assistant Plans and Pricing Overview

Here’s a quick overview of the plans and pricing of 10Web AI Assistant, with the main basis of the number of words included in each plan.

10Web AI Assistant Plans	Number of Words	Pricing	Annual Pricing
Personal Plan	10,000 words	$20/mo	$10/mo
Premium Plan	30,000 words	$60/mo	$30/mo
Agency Plan	100,000 words	$200/mo	$100/mo

See AI Assistant Pricing

Calculating AI Words Generation

To determine word usage, 10Web calculates both input and output words, which is a common practice among generative AI models.

The word count is based on the assumption that every 5 characters constitute a word. For instance, if you generate a sentence by providing another sentence as input, the character count of both the input and output sentences will be summed up and divided by five, which will be counted toward your usage.

Main Features of 10Web AI Assistant

The 10Web AI Assistant has a lot of features similar to other popular AI writers in the market. It comes with several built-in templates to generate specific types of content within your articles and blog posts.

Here are some of the main features that you can use the 10Web AI Assistant for;

Content Generator with Blocks

One of the key features of 10Web AI Assistant is its Content Generator, which offers an efficient and effective way to generate content with the ease of your default editor.

Content creation can be a time-consuming and resource-intensive process, requiring a great deal of effort and expertise to produce unique, high-quality content that resonates with your audience.

However, with the Content Generator feature of 10Web AI Assistant, you can generate content in a fraction of the time it would take to do it manually.

With over 20 templates available, each with tailored prompts for different use cases, the Content Generator feature makes it easy to generate content that is relevant and engaging for your audience.

Whether you need to create blog posts, social media updates, product descriptions, or any other type of content, 10Web AI Assistant can help you do it faster and better than before.

This feature can reduce the amount of time and financial resources spent on content creation while providing instant results.

WordPress Specific Addons and Integrations

One of the most exciting features of 10Web AI Assistant is its integration with other tools in the WordPress space, such as Yoast SEO.

The tool promises to help you fix SEO and readability errors directly based on the SEO plugin’s suggestions.

The AI Assistant SEO pack, for example, enables you to fix several content-related SEO elements highlighted by the Yoast SEO plugin.

You can use the SEO pack (Yoast SEO) separately for the tool, which is also available to install on the WordPress repository.

Outline Generator for WordPress

Another noteworthy feature of 10Web AI Assistant is its Outline Generator, which is designed to help users generate new ideas quickly and easily.

Creating outlines for articles, blogs, descriptions, ads, landing pages, and other content can be a time-consuming and challenging task that requires a high level of creativity, research, and effort.

However, with the AI-powered Outline Generator, you can generate multiple outlines and ideas within seconds, saving you valuable time and energy.

All you need to do is provide a few simple keywords or a sentence describing your article, and the AI algorithms will produce relevant outlines and ideas for you to explore.

The generated outlines will provide you with a clear structure and direction for your content, making the writing process more straightforward and efficient.

This feature is especially helpful for those who are working on multiple projects at once and need to generate outlines and ideas quickly.

Paragraph Generator for WordPress

The Paragraph Generator feature of 10Web AI Assistant is another powerful tool that can help users increase their productivity and overcome writer’s block.

Sometimes, despite our best efforts, we get stuck and unable to create content that flows and resonates with our audience.

This is where the Paragraph Generator feature comes in handy, helping users create high-quality content without worrying about sounding repetitive or struggling to come up with new ideas.

With the help of AI model, the Paragraph Generator can assist users in creating content that is unique, creative, SEO-optimized, and relevant.

The generated paragraphs are well-written and well-structured, making it easier for users to put together their content quickly and with less effort.

Introduction Generator Block

The Introduction Generator is designed to save users valuable time and resources by automatically generating an introduction paragraph for their content.

By using the post or page title, or another content piece as a prompt, the AI algorithms can quickly create a well-written and engaging introduction that captures the reader’s attention and sets the tone for the rest of the content.

With this template, you can skip the time-consuming and often frustrating process of brainstorming and writing an introduction, ultimately saving hours of work and effort.

The AI-generated introduction is tailored to the user’s content, ensuring that it is relevant and engaging to their target audience.

Conclusion Generator Block

With 10Web AI Assistant’s Conclusion Generator feature, creating a well-written and impactful concluding paragraph has never been easier.

This feature allows you to save valuable time and resources by automatically generating a conclusion paragraph that is relevant, powerful, and seamlessly integrates with the rest of your content.

Many content creators struggle with writing a compelling conclusion, but with the help of AI algorithms, you can ensure that their concluding paragraph is just as strong as the rest of their content.

With this, you can eliminate the frustration and time-consuming process of writing and editing a conclusion, allowing you to focus on other essential aspects of your content creation strategy.

Content Templates included in 10Web AI Assistant

10Web AI Assistant comes with 20+ Content Templates for different use cases and is catered to cover the main elements in websites, e-commerce stores, and blogs.

You get access to a range of templates to choose from, each tailored to specific use cases and frameworks.

Depending on whether you need to create product descriptions for an e-commerce store, blog posts for your website, or other types of content, 10Web’s AI algorithms will generate high-quality text that matches your specific needs.

How to install and use 10Web AI Assistant?

You can download and install 10Web AI Assistant directly from the WordPress repository. As a freemium product, you can also use it for free with limitations on the number of words you can generate.

Here’s a step-by-step process to download and install the tool.

Step 1: Search and install 10Web from within your WordPress dashboard. Plugins > Add New.

Step 2: Search for “10Web AI Assistant” and click on the Install Now button from the search results for the plugin.

Step 3: Activate the plugin, and now you will see the AI Assistant sidebar menu, where you will have to go and configure the 10Web account settings.

Step 4: If you don’t have an account already, you can click on the Sign Up and Connect button to get started with the freemium version of the tool.

You will be guided to create an account and connect with your WordPress website.

If you have an account already, click on the login to 10Web and Connect button link, and you will be guided to connect with your account.

Using 10Web AI Assistant

In the WordPress admin, the AI Assistant by 10Web plugin generates SEO-optimized content directly within the WordPress block editor (Gutenberg) and classic editor, making content generation and optimization a seamless process.

You can also install the AI Assistant by 10Web – SEO pack plugin to fix SEO errors and suggestions through AI. With this plugin, the AI generates meta descriptions, fixes titles, and content of pages/posts according to suggestions by Yoast SEO.

Outside of WordPress, the 10Web dashboard provides SEO-optimized content generation through content templates. You can choose from a variety of templates and generate high-quality, unique content tailored to your specific needs.

10Web AI Assistant FAQs

Have a query about 10Web AI Assistant and how it works? Perhaps these quick answers can help you clarify them.

What type of content can be created with 10Web AI Assistant?

Based on different content templates, 10Web AI Assistant helps you to create high-quality, SEO-friendly and reader-friendly texts for your website, e-commerce store, or blog.
How is the usage of words calculated in 10Web AI Assistant?

The character count of both the input and output sentences will be summed up and divided by five, which will be counted toward your usage (based on the assumption that every five characters constitute a word).
Why upgrade to the 10Web AI Assistant Pro version?

With the AI Assistant Pro version, you can connect to unlimited websites and enjoy access to more extended writing and input lengths, extensive content templates, and generate more than 10,000 words per month, based on your selected plan.
What does 10Web AI Assistant use to generate text?

10Web AI Assistant makes use of large text generation models such as GPT-3 of Open AI to power the AI text generation.

Start using 10Web AI Assistant for Free

If you do most of your writing and publishing work within the WordPress editor and it makes sense to your workflow, I would definitely suggest using 10Web AI Assistant.

Start using the tool and see how it can improve or speed up your workflow of working within WordPress. This would increase your familiarity with the tool and also help you decide if you actually need to upgrade to their premium version.

10Web AI Assistant

10Web AI Assistant is a complete AI writing software solution for WordPress-powered websites.

Price Currency: USD

Operating System: Web

Application Category: DeveloperApplication

Editor's Rating:
4.5

Pros

Integrated Natively with WordPress Editor
Easy to use with Blocks in Gutenberg
Varitety of Content Templates

Cons

Limited to 2,000 Words in Free Plan
Could be Faster with Generation
Limited Add-ons Support

See AI Assistant Pricing

Please note that it’s still early days for 10Web AI Assistant, and it has several upcoming features, such as add-ons and integrations with other WordPress-specific tools, which can make the tool even more potent for WordPress users.

Notion AI Overview: Complete Guide to AI Writer 2026

Thu, 26 Sep 2024 18:22:32 GMT

Notion, the popular notetaking app, has introduced Notion AI to help users generate content with AI capabilities.

Notion AI makes it super easy to generate all types of content within your Notion documents using AI capabilities based on your simple prompts.

You can, for example, simply instruct it to write a blog post on a certain topic, and Notion AI will generate a full working draft for you to edit further and polish to make it ready for your blog.

Notion AI isn’t simply limited to generating new AI content. You can also use Notion AI features to improve your existing content with its spelling and grammar features and translate your content into multiple languages from within your Notion page.

The features are currently in private alpha, and you can join the waitlist here to gain access to Notion AI.

Let’s look into what you can create with Notion AI and all the AI features available to improve your content in this complete guide.

What can you write with Notion AI?

Notion AI allows you to create all types of content on any Notion page. It is suitable for all kinds of writing, whether you are doing any creative work, such as writing blog posts or repetitive work, such as writing job descriptions.

Here are some of the most important types of content Notion AI is optimised for;

Find Action Items
Blog Posts
Pros and Cons Lists
Social Media Posts
Outlines
Creative Stories
Poems
Essays
Meeting Agendas
Press Releases
Job Descriptions
Sales Emails
Recruiting Emails

Let’s look into some of the AI content blocks with sample outputs generated by Notion AI.

Writing Blog Posts with Notion AI

Creating blog posts is one of the main highlights of using Notion AI. You can create your first draft using Notion AI by simply entering the title of your blog post.

Step 1: To start creating a blog post, pull up the AI Assist Feature and select Blog post from the list.

It’s the same as trying to insert any other Notion block. You can use / on your keyboard or CMD + J shortcut on your Mac to pull up the AI Assist feature.

Step 2: Now, you will be asked about what you want the blog post to be about. You can enter any topic or blog title that you want it to write about.

You can create blog posts or web guides and docs about anything that you want to write about, and Notion AI isn’t just limited to the content you have in your Notion Workspaces.

Sample Output: Here’s what Notion AI came up with when asked to write “Write a detailed blog post about using Notion and its best features”

If you don’t like the output, you can click on “Try again” and ask Notion to generate another output. You can see the second output for the same blog post topic above when asked to ‘Try again’.

Similar to the blog post, you can select the block for other kinds of content and ask Notion AI to generate the content for you.

Let’s look at some more content blocks that you can work towards using Notion AI.

Creating social media posts is probably the most worthy use case of Notion AI.

Writing Tweets and Facebook posts, and other social media content in a creative way with AI trained with similar high-performing content can do wonders for boosting your engagement on social media pages.

See the sample output below when asked to create a social media post about “tips and tricks about using Notion“

Notion AI allows you to generate multiple options on any topic, and you can select the best one suitable for your audience and social media pages.

You can then Keep or Try again to generate new outputs by changing the command.

Sales emails

If you are in sales, then you can use Notion AI to help you quickly write your sales emails.

You can create various email templates for different types of products and services that you offer and use Notion AI to fill in the blanks.

Here’s the sample output from Notion AI when asked to generate an “email for head of operations about using Notion in their organisation”

This will help you save a lot of time as all you need to do is enter the product details, and your recipient’s name and Notion AI will do the rest.

Writing emails

Writing similar emails can often be repetitive and boring, but with the help of Notion AI, you can write emails in a fraction of the time.

If you are writing emails for outreach purposes or for your job, then you can use Notion AI to generate a full email draft quickly.

You can also use the spell check and grammar features to improve your email writing skills.

Job descriptions

Writing job descriptions is another repetitive task that can be easily automated with the help of Notion AI.

You can simply enter the job title and some basic information about the job role, and Notion AI will generate a full job description for you.

This is especially useful if you are running a recruitment agency or a job board, as you can quickly generate job descriptions for different types of jobs.

Press releases

If you are in PR or want to write an announcement of your new product or service, you can use Notion AI to help you write your press releases.

You can enter the basic information about your new product, and Notion AI will generate a full draft for you that you can further edit and make the statement ready to publish.

You don’t have to be an expert in PR anymore to generate Press releases with Notion AI.

Meeting agendas

If you often have to organise meetings, then you can use Notion AI to help you write the agendas for your meeting.

You can simply enter the topic of the meeting and who is attending the meeting, and Notion AI will generate a full agenda for you in a required format with all the important points that need to be discussed in the meeting.

This is especially useful if you are in a management position, as it will help you save a lot of time in preparing for your meetings.

Poems

Notion AI can also tackle writing creative tasks such as poems. You can enter the topic of the poem and a few lines about what you want to write about, and Notion AI will generate a full poem for you.

You can also select the style of the poem that you want to generate, such as Haiku, Limerick, Sonnet, Blank Verse, etc.

Pros and cons lists

Writing a review about any product and want to generate a pros and cons list? No problem, Notion AI has got you covered.

You can simply enter the topic of the review, and Notion AI will generate a full pros and cons list for you that you can further edit and add your own comments.

Here’s what Notion AI generated when asked to create a pros and cons list about “using Notion for note taking“

This is especially useful if you are writing product reviews or want to quickly generate a list of pros and cons for any topic.

Outlines

Writing something long? Creating an outline with Notion AI can help you plan and structure your writing in a much better way.

This is especially useful for students who are writing essays or research papers.

You can enter the topic of your essay, and Notion AI will generate a full outline for you with all the important points that need to be included in your essay.

This will help you save a lot of time in planning and writing your essay, as all you need to do is fill in the blanks.

Main Features of Notion AI

Besides allowing you to create all kinds of content that we discussed above, Notion AI also has other powerful features that can make your content and writing for the web experience better.

Powerful editing features such as checking spelling and grammar
Translation features to translate text inline
Summary features to summarize long texts

1. Summary Features

You can use Notion AI to write a summary based on the content you have created on any Notion page.

The summarize feature will extract all key ideas from your content on the page and generate a summary for you that you can further edit and add your own comments.

This is especially useful if you want to quickly generate an executive summary or want to create a concise version of any document.

You can also use the Summary feature to write concluding paragraphs for your blog posts or other types of long-form content.

2. Spelling and Grammar Editor

Notion AI also has a built-in spelling and grammar editor that can help you fix all the mistakes in your content.

This is especially useful if you want to quickly proofread your content and don’t want to use any external spell checkers or grammar editors.

Think this could replace Grammarly? You decide!

3. Translation Features

Notion AI also has translation features that can help you quickly translate any text on the page.

This is especially useful if you are collaborating with people from different parts of the world or want to translate your content into another language quickly.

To sum up, Notion AI is a powerful feature within your notetaking app that can help you create content faster with AI capabilities.

The main features include content generation, summarization, translation, and spelling & grammar correction. Try it out today and see how it can help you with your writing tasks!

4. Q&A Chat – Ask Notion AI

Notion AI have recently released a new Q&A feature that lets you chat and get instant answers to questions using your workspace-specific information.

The Q&A feature goes beyond traditional chatbots and helps you by offering accurate and relevant answers. This prevents any kind of hallucination seen in the LLM models.

You can use the Q&A feature as an assistant that can help you quickly find and locate anything within your Notion Workspace.

Notion AI Pricing

Notion AI is offered as an add-on with a subscription-based pricing model, both for free and paid members.

Here’s the Notion AI pricing overview;

Users	Notion AI Pricing
Paid Users Annual Plan	$8 per member / month
Paid Users Monthly Plan	$10 per member / month
Free Plan Users	$10 per member / month

Paid users of Notion refer to those who are already on the Plus or Business version of Notion.

Notion AI Pricing

Notion AI was free to use while it was in the current Alpha phase, but all users have been asked to upgrade now.

You can check out the pricing page of Notion AI for complete details and add it to your plan.

Notion AI Competitors

There have been so many stand-alone products that help users generate content with AI.

Some of the popular AI writers include tools such as Jasper AI, Copy AI, Surfer SEO, 10web AI Assistant, and Rytr, among others.

The existing tools have also been recently trying to bring AI writing capabilities anywhere online where people spend time writing with add-ons such as Chrome extensions. See the recently released Jasper AI Chrome extension that can work on top of any website.

The way Notion AI differs from other AI writers is that it exists as a feature within Notion that could probably enhance your workflow if you are already using the tool. You can think of it as Google docs with built-in AI content-generating features.

Notion is immensely popular for note-taking and other content-writing tasks already, and these AI features integrated within the tool make it an even more compelling choice.

How to Use Notion AI?

If you have access to the Notion AI features, you can start using it on any Notion page.

To use Notion AI, you need first to enable the feature and then start using it by selecting AI-assisted blocks on any of your Notion pages.

Once you have access and enabled the Notion AI feature, you will see a new option to choose AI Assisted Blocks under the ‘Draft with AI Assist’ heading.

You can see options to choose blocks such as ‘Blog Post’, ‘Brainstorm ideas’, ‘Pros and cons list’ and many others mentioned above.

You will get more options depending on the content block that you choose.

Creating Blog Posts with Notion AI

Click on the “Blog Post” option, and you will be asked to provide some input, such as the overall topic or context of your blog post, that will help Notion AI generate the content.

You can enter the topic of your blog post and click on the Generate Post button to see the magic of Notion AI in action.

You will be presented with a first working draft of your blog post, which you can now further edit and polish to make it ready to publish.

Waitlist to Access Notion AI

If you are impressed by what you can create with Notion AI and its features, you might be looking to give Notion AI a try.

Notion AI is currently only available in the Alpha mode, and there’s a waitlist to get access to the feature.

To join the waitlist, navigate to the Notion AI page and click on the Join Waitlist page. You will be asked to sign up if you don’t have a Notion account already.

The waitlist system allows Notion to test the features and get feedback from its early users. It also allows them to ensure the output quality of Notion AI is high before they allow more and more users to access it.

Once it’s your turn on the waitlist, you will receive an invitation both in your email and Notion dashboard asking you to activate the feature.

How to activate Notion AI Features?

If you have been granted access to Notion AI, you will have the option to enable it and start using it immediately on any Notion page.

You can activate the Notion AI features from your Notion AI Workspace settings, which are available at Settings > Feature Settings > Notion AI.

Besides, you should get a popup asking you to enable the Notion AI features for writing and editing on your boards.

You can click on the “Turn on AI” feature (see screenshot), and you should be good to go.

You can also continue to get a quick tour of how Notion AI works and its features. Click Next, and you will be shown the three main features of Notion AI.

Enable Notion AI for Workspace Members

If you use Notion as part of your company account, your workspace owner will need to enable this feature for all the Workspace members.

You can check with your Workspace owner to see if the Notion AI feature is available and if they can grant access to all the members.

Notion AI FAQs

Here are some of the basics of Notion AI in the form of quick answers to any queries you might have.

What is Notion AI?

Notion AI is a new feature within the Notion product that brings AI capabilities to generate all kinds of content, such as blog posts, social media posts, and more.
What can I create with Notion AI?

Notion AI allows you to generate any type of content. Some of the most popular content types include blog posts, press releases, sales emails, and social media posts, among others.
When can I access Notion AI?

Once you join the Notion AI waitlist, you will see your position in the waiting list to access the AI features.
How long is the Notion AI waitlist?

Notion AI waitlist already includes thousands of users that are waiting to get access to the AI features.
Is Notion AI Free?

Notion AI is included for free while it is in the Alpha phase, but that could change in the future.

Getting Started with Notion AI

If you are one of the lucky ones, you might already have access to Notion AI.

For those still waiting for the feature, your best bet is to join the waiting list and wait for your turn.

Here’s a short preview video of Notion AI, which was officially released by the Notion team.

If you are a Notion Workspace member, you might also have to ask your owner to enable the feature, but you still need to wait for your turn on the waitlist to get access.

Please note that the content-type features mentioned above are currently in the private alpha version and are just some examples of how you can use Notion AI to automate your writing tasks.

Notion AI is still in its early stages, and it will be interesting to see how it develops over time.

If you are looking for a tool to help you automate your writing tasks, then Notion AI is definitely worth checking out.

TikTok Ads Deal: Get $6000 Free Cash Back Coupon 2026

Sun, 22 Sep 2024 00:18:08 GMT

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How to Redirect Domain using Cloudflare? – Complete Guide

Thu, 12 Sep 2024 18:29:20 GMT

Learn how to redirect domain using Cloudflare in this complete beginner’s guide to Cloudflare redirects.

Are you looking to redirect the domain that you have added to your Cloudflare account? Or have you purchased a domain name with Cloudflare and want to redirect the domain to another website?

Cloudflare offers fast and powerful redirection features, including everything from simple redirect features to complex bulk and dynamic redirects.

Whether you are looking to move to an entirely new domain or want to redirect a few URLs on your existing site, the Cloudflare redirects feature or Cloudflare domain forwarding can be really useful.

You can easily set up domain redirects using Cloudflare by following the steps in this quick and easy guide.

To use the Cloudflare redirection feature, first, you need to ensure the domain name is already added to your websites under the Cloudflare account.

For domains registered using other domain registrars, you can click on the ‘+Add a site‘ button and start the process to point your domain to Cloudflare servers.

If you have registered the domain on Cloudflare, it’s automatically added to the list of your websites.

Also, if you don’t have any DNS records for the domain, you will also need to add two proxied records for the redirection to work. I recommend creating two A records (@) and (www) pointing to 129.0.2.1 – see detailed instructions in the below section.

Steps to Redirect Domain Using Cloudflare

Once the domain is on your Cloudflare account, you will need to use the Page Rules feature of Cloudflare to implement page redirections.

Follow the steps below to setup domain redirects using Cloudflare Page Rules:

Step 1: Login to your Cloudflare account and select the domain name that you want to redirect.

Step 2: Scroll to the “Rules” tab on the sidebar for the domain and select the “Page Rules” option.

Step 3: On the Page Rules page, create a new Page Rule by selecting the “Create Page Rule” button.

Step 4: Configure the following settings for redirecting your domain;

1. In the first step, enter the URL of the domain that you want to redirect. For a complete domain redirect, enter your domain name here;

guidesandinfo.com/*

I have entered my domain name, “guidesandinfo.com”, in the example above.

If you are looking to redirect a specific page, enter the URL of the page that you want to redirect in the “If the URL matches” field. For example, if you want to redirect the about page URL, you would enter “/about”.

2. Select the “Forwarding URL” option from the “Then the settings are:” dropdown menu.

3. Select the “Status Code” option from the “Choose Status Code” dropdown. The status code determines how the browser will handle the redirect. For most cases, you will want to choose the “301 – Permanent Redirect” option.

4. Enter the URL of the new domain that you want to redirect to in the “Enter destination URL” field as follows;

https://webguided.com/$1

I have used my website domain name “https://webguided.com” in the example above.

Step 5. Save the Page Rule by selecting the “Save and Deploy Page Rule” button.

Now, whenever someone visits the domain name that you specified in the “If the URL matches” field, they will be redirected to the new domain that you specified in the “Redirect URL” field.

Summary: If you just want a single screenshot for reference on how to enter the URLs for all possible redirections of different versions of your old domain URL to a new domain, see this;

This redirects all versions of your old website (with or without www or with https or http) to the new domain.

*guidesandinfo.com/* – Set forwarding URL to – https://webguided.com/$2

For the above redirection example in the screenshot, all these redirections will work after you save and implement the rule.

guidesandinfo.com/ 301 redirects to https://webguided.com
www.guidesandinfo.com/ 301 redirects to https://webguided.com
guidesandinfo.com/example 301 redirects to https://webguided.com/example
www.guidesandinfo.com/example 301 redirects to https://webguided.com/example

If you want to further understand the use of (*) character and $X in the above example, see the notes below.

Wildcard matching and referencing

You can use wildcard matching and referencing to create powerful redirection rules in Cloudflare.

To match every page on a domain that you are redirecting, you need to enter as follows.

example.com/*

In the example above, I have used an asterisk (*) character to create a dynamic pattern that matches all URLs in the domain that I am looking to redirect.

guidesandinfo.com/*

Referencing wildcard matches

You can later reference a matched wildcard using the $X syntax, where X stands for the index of a glob pattern. In other words, $1 represents the first wildcard match, $2 represents the second one, and so forth.

In our example above, the /$1 at the end of the new domain URL enables the wildcard redirection to the corresponding URLs of the new domain.

https://webguided.com/$1

The above single redirection rule example will help you achieve all the following redirects;

http://guidesandinfo.com/ 301 redirects to https://webguided.com
https://guidesandinfo.com/ 301 redirects to https://webguided.com
http://guidesandinfo.com/* 301 redirects to https://webguided.com/*
https://guidesandinfo.com/* 301 redirects to https://webguided.com/*

If you use *example.com/* , note that the URL path should be referenced by the second wildcard match ($2) as the first one is referencing different versions of your old domain (with or without www or with https or http).

*example.com/* – Set forwarding URL to – https://yournewdomain.com/$2

Please note that you can create only a limited number of Page Rules as per your Cloudflare plan and the Free plan allows for only three Page Rules. But as you can see in the examples above, you can create dynamic patterns for multiple redirects with a single-page rule.

If you need to redirect multiple pages, you will need to create a separate Page Rule for each page or create dynamic pattern redirects within your limit.

Cloudflare’s Page Rules feature is a powerful tool that can be used to do much more than just redirect domains.

To learn more about all the different things that you can do with Page Rules, check out the Cloudflare Page Rules documentation.

Adding Proxied DNS Records for Redirection

For the domain that you want to redirect, you will need to make sure there are proxied records for the root domain for the redirect to work.

I recommend creating two A records (@) and (www), both pointing to a dummy IP address. Don’t worry about the value, as the forwarding page rule will execute before the target IP.

You just need to make sure these DNS records are proxied through Cloudflare – “Orange cloud” enabled.

Type	Name	Value	TTL	Proxy status
A	@	192.0.2.1	Automatic	Proxied (Orange cloud)
A	www	192.0.2.1	Automatic	Proxied (Orange cloud)

Go to the DNS tab for the domain that you want to redirect and add the records under the DNS management section. You can delete all other records in this section.

Make sure both the records are proxied (orange cloud icon). The “@” will change to your root domain name once you save the changes.

Other Domain Redirects Settings using Cloudflare

While the above configuration will redirect all your traffic from one domain to another domain, there might be specific cases of redirection that you might be looking to achieve.

Let’s look at the redirection settings for other specific use cases.

Redirect non-www to www version

If you are looking to redirect the non-www to www version of a domain, you will need to enter the details in the below format;

URL Required:

example.com/*

Destination URL:

https://www.example.com/$1

I have used the domain name ‘example.com’ in the example above.

Redirect www to non-www version

Similarly, if you are looking to redirect the www version of a domain to a non-www version, you will need to enter the domain details in the below format;

URL Required:

www.example.com/*

Destination URL:

https://example.com/$1

I have used the same domain name, ‘example.com’ in the example above.

Redirect Specific URL on your Domain to another URL

What if you want to redirect a specific URL or a path on your domain to another specific URL? Let’s say you want to redirect a specific URL, such as /google on your domain, to Google’s website.

This is what you would enter in the redirection settings.

URL Required:

example.com/google

Destination URL:

https://www.google.com/

In the example above, ‘example.com’ would be your site ‘/google’ is the specific path that you want to redirect.

Redirect Domain Registered on Cloudflare?

Cloudflare also acts as a domain registrar and allows you to register domain names. The process to redirect the domain names purchased on Cloudflare is still the same.

The website for the domain registered on Cloudflare is already added to your account. You don’t have to take any additional steps pointing and adding the domain to your Cloudflare account.

For redirecting the domain, navigate to your Domain Setting and implement the Page Rules as described in the steps above.

Make sure you also add the proxied DNS records with dummy IP addresses as suggested in the above section (there are no records created by default when you just register the domain).

As Cloudflare has recently started offering domain registration services, you can directly purchase the domain name on Cloudflare and save the hassle of pointing it out from another registrar. The domain gets directly added to the list of your websites.

Redirections using Cloudflare Workers?

Cloudflare Workers is another powerful feature that you can use to implement redirections for your domain.

Adding redirections using Cloudflare workers is an advanced option, and you will need to be comfortable writing code to implement redirections.

You can create Cloudflare workers by navigating to the Workers tab → Manage Workers → Create a Worker.

Cloudflare Workers is actually useful if you have complex cases of redirection, and for most cases, the Page rules feature should be adequate.

We hope this guide helped you learn how to redirect your domain with Cloudflare. Check out our other website guides and tutorials.

Send Mail as Gmail for Custom Domain Using Cloudflare: Guide

Thu, 12 Sep 2024 18:00:13 GMT

Cloudflare has simplified the process of receiving emails for your custom domains with its email routing feature, but how do you send emails from your custom domain for free?

You can’t send emails using Cloudflare yet, but you can send mail as Gmail for your custom domain for free. You will need to configure the feature ‘send mail as’ in your free Gmail account to send emails using your professional domain name.

Well, if you need a dedicated solution that includes extensive features, you definitely need to find professional solutions such as Google Workspace (use our coupon to save on your plans if you decide to do so) and Microsoft Outlook, among others.

However, if you don’t mind a few limitations and if it’s not a big project, you can perfectly use Gmail’s “Send mail as” feature with your custom domain and Cloudflare email routing.

And if you haven’t yet added all of your domains to Cloudflare, I would definitely recommend doing so. Even for domains that you redirect somewhere else (see our Cloudflare domain redirects guide here)!

In this complete web guide, we will look at how you can configure the settings in the best possible way to send emails using Gmail for your custom Cloudflare domain.

Send mail as Gmail Settings for Cloudflare Domain

This guide assumes that you have already configured Cloudflare for your domain name and hence refers to your custom domain as Cloudflare domain.

If you are searching for send mail as a Gmail settings feature, I would also assume you have already configured your incoming email settings using the Cloudflare Email Routing feature.

You can see our detailed guide on how to receive emails using the Cloudflare email routing feature for free.

While Cloudflare helps with receiving the email part, it doesn’t support sending the email as your custom domain part, so we can use Gmail for the sending part to configure those settings for free.

Let’s dive into how you can send emails using Gmail SMTP from a Cloudflare-routed email address.

Essentially, we are using a free Gmail account for an outbound mail server for our custom domain hosted on Cloudflare.

Step 1: Make sure you have 2FA enabled for your Gmail

Before you start with this process, it is important to note that you should have two-factor authentification enabled for your Google account.

Go to 2FA settings for your Google Account to configure the settings. Follow these steps to locate the settings.

1: Go to your Google Account Settings by clicking on Manage your Google Account.
2: Click on the Security tab on your left.
3: Under the heading “Signing in to Google,” 2-Step Verification settings, click on Get started.

Follow the instructions and make sure your 2-step Verification is now turned on before you can proceed to the next step.

Step 2: Create an App Password for Mail

Once you have configured your two-factor authentication settings, create an App password to use for your Gmail settings in the next steps.

Go to the App Passwords settings available under the same section where you configure the 2-step verification.

Select Mail under the ‘select APP‘ option and the Other option under the ‘Select device‘ option (give it any name), and click on Generate for the password to appear.

Copy and save the password; we will need it in the settings later.

Step 3: Go to Settings in your Gmail account

Once you login to your Gmail account, click on the gear icon at the top right corner and select “See all Settings“. You should be redirected to a new page where you will find many tabs on the top.

Step 4: Go to Accounts and the Import tab

Now, go to the “Accounts and Import” tab and scroll down until you find the “Send mail as” section. Click on “Add another email address“.

You can now enter your name and the custom domain email address that you want to send emails from.

Step 5: Select “Send through Gmail SMTP server”

Since we are using our Gmail account as an outbound mail server, enter Gmail’s SMTP email server settings – “smtp.gmail.com”. This will use the settings of your current Gmail account to send emails from your custom domain address.

See the complete settings in the next step if you can’t figure it out from the screenshot above.

Step 6: Enter the Gmail SMTP Settings and verification code

Now you will have to enter the SMTP settings of your Gmail account and select the port as follows.

SMPT Settings	Options
SMTP Server	smtp.gmail.com
Port	587
Username	enter your Gmail address here (example@gmail.com)
Password	Paste the app-specific password you generated above
TLS	enabled

Once you have entered the above details correctly, continue by clicking on the Add Account button.

You will receive a verification code in your Gmail inbox that you need to enter and verify the ownership of your email.

Go to the Inbox of your Gmail email address and enter the verification code here.

And that’s it! You are done setting up the send mail as Gmail feature for your custom domain hosted at Cloudflare.

You can now select your new custom domain email address to send new emails or reply to any emails.

When you are composing a new message, just select the new email address using the drop down icon to select the email you want to use.

As you can see in the screenshot, I am able to select both Gmail and custom domain email addresses to send a new email.

Step 7: Update your SPF TXT Record on Cloudflare

One more important step you need to do in order to ensure the deliverability of your emails is to update your SPF TXT Record on Cloudflare DNS settings for your custom domain.

Head over to the DNS settings for your domain in Cloudflare and find the TXT record that exists already for ‘_spf.mx.cloudflare.net‘

and update it to include ‘_spf.google.com‘

Edit the record and enter the following record;

v=spf1 include:_spf.mx.cloudflare.net include:_spf.google.com ~all

Save the settings, and you are all ready to send emails using your Cloudflare-routed email address.

Basic FAQs of Using Gmail for Cloudflare Domains

Here are quick answers to some of the basic FAQs related to using Gmail for Cloudflare domains to send emails.

Can I use Gmail to send emails from my domain using Cloudflare?

Yes, you can use Gmail’s “Send through Gmail SMTP server” feature to send emails for Cloudflare-configured domains.
How to ensure deliverability of custom domain emails using Gmail and Cloudflare?

You need to make sure to add the correct SPF DNS record in Cloudflare DNS settings so that Google can send emails on behalf of your domain.
Does Cloudflare offer email forwarding and sending?

Yes, Cloudflare offers email forwarding, which can easily be configured with its Email routing option. However, Cloudflare doesn’t offer a full mailbox yet, and you will need to use third-party solutions such as Gmail or others to send emails using your domain email address.
How to hide the original Gmail address shown in the email header?

You cannot hide the original Gmail address; it will definitely be revealed in the email headers as you are using Gmail to send emails.

Compose Emails and Reply using Custom Email Address

You can now use your custom domain email address to compose new emails and reply to emails using your Gmail Inbox.

To compose new emails using the custom domain email address, just select it from the From field at the top or bottom of your compose window.

You can also configure Gmail filters to send certain emails directly to your custom domain email address.

Using Gmail’s “Send mail as” feature with Cloudflare-routed email is a great way to send emails for free using your own domain name. All you have to do is make sure you configure the settings properly and follow all the steps mentioned above.

With this setup, you can easily save money compared to using paid professional solutions like Google Workspace and Microsoft Outlook.

So, if you are looking for a great way to send emails from your custom domain without breaking the bank, then using Cloudflare and Gmail (send mail as) is the perfect solution!

100+ Best Black Friday Software Deals 2025: Top SaaS Offers

Wed, 11 Sep 2024 12:32:39 GMT

Find the best Black Friday software deals and offers for some of the top categories, including SaaS, Apps, and other web tools.

Black Friday is the best time to get your favourite software products for heavily discounted prices. Besides, you have several companies offering additional deals, bundles, and offers included with the Black Friday and Cyber Monday promotions, which makes it the best time of the year to go Software shopping!

We have listed all the latest available BFCM discounts and promotions covering websites, software, and other tech offers in this guide. We will keep adding new deals as they become available, so bookmark the page and keep visiting to find our latest and best available offers.

We’re a reader-supported publisher. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Featured Black Friday Software Deals 2025

Here’s our top list of featured Black Friday Software deals featuring the most popular tools and products to help you save the most.

Black Friday Deals	Discount Offer	Get Deal
TikTok Ads Deal	Get up to $6000 Free Ad Credits	Get Deal
Semrush Deal	14 Days Free Offer	Get Deal
WordPress.com Deal	50% OFF Hosting + Free $499 Website Build	Get Deal
Bluehost Deal	75% OFF Plans + Free Domain	Get Deal
Xero Deal	90% OFF For 4 Months	Get Deal
Teachable Deal	3 months for the price of 1	Get Deal
WP Engine Deal	3 Months Free Hosting Plans	Get Deal
Cloudways Deal	50% OFF for Three Months	Get Deal
StartGround Deal	50% OFF Premium Plan	Get Deal
Pixpa Deal	55% OFF on Annual Plans	Get Deal
ElevenLabs Deal	80% OFF Plans	Get Deal
WooCommerce Deal	40% OFF Marketplace Extensions	Get Deal
WP Rocket Deal	20% OFF all Plans	Get Deal
LearnWorlds Deal	Up to 39% OFF	Get Deal
HostGator Deal	75% OFF hosting + Free Domain	Get Deal
GetResponse Deal	40% OFF Annual Plans	Get Deal
InMotion Deal	67% OFF Shared Hosting	Get Deal
Namecheap Deal	99% OFF Domains + 80% OFF Hosting	Get Deal
Hostinger Deal	85% OFF Hosting Plans	Get Deal
Envato Market Deal	50% OFF popular items	Get Deal
Envato Elements Deal	25% OFF Annual Plan	Get Deal
Udemy Deal	80% OFF Courses	Get Deal
Udacity Deal	40% OFF Sale	Get Deal
Constant Contact Deal	40% OFF Deal	Get Deal
ClickFunnels Deal	44% OFF deals	Get Deal

As Black Friday is one of the most popular shopping holidays, many SaaS companies offer significant discounts on their products.

We have further listed all the offers and organised the best Black Friday software deals into some of the major categories.

Best Software Black Friday Deals – SaaS Promotions

There are a lot of Software deals specifically offered by SaaS companies during the Black Friday and Cyber Monday period. We have tried to list some of the best out of the best deals here.

Looking for more details about the Black Friday deals listed above? We have tried to highlight some of the most popular deals along with their details in the sections below.

We will start updating this list as soon as Black Friday Software deals are available for this year. If you are a software vendor and want to be listed on this page, please get in touch with us as early as possible.

WordPress.com Black Friday Deal

WordPress.com is running a special Black Friday promotion with savings on its popular Business plan, making it a great time for anyone looking to upgrade their website with premium features. The Business plan includes advanced design tools, plugin support, custom themes, priority support, and powerful performance features.

As part of this WordPress.com offer, customers also receive a free $499 Done-For-Me website build when they purchase the Business plan — a valuable bonus for anyone who wants a fast, professional start without doing the setup themselves.

Deal: 10% OFF the Business Plan + Free $499 Website Build
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Until 1st December

Get WordPress.com Deal

Cloudways Black Friday Deal

Cloudways, a popular cloud hosting service provider, is offering a discount of 50% OFF for the next three months on all of their hosting plans. You can also get 50% OFF on Add-ons for 3 months on all app-level add-ons (Malware, Cloudflare, Rackspace, Elastic, DNS Made Easy) and the Advanced Support add-on.

With 24/7/365 expert support, flexible plans, feature-rich platform, all topped by a massive discount, it’s the best deal they offer in the entire year.

Deal: 50% OFF 3 months + 50 free migrations
Coupon code: BFCM5050
Offer valid: Until 5th December

Get Cloudways Deal

Circle Black Friday Deal

Circle is running its only sale of the year, offering a rare discount on its Business and Enterprise plans. As the #1 community platform on G2, Circle gives creators, brands, and membership businesses everything they need to run discussions, events, chat, courses, and gated content — all under one unified, beautifully designed platform.

With tools for payments, automations, analytics, newsletters, and CRM-style member management, Circle makes it easier to build, grow, and scale a thriving community from one place.

Deal: 25% OFF Circle Business or Enterprise plans
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Until December 2

Get Circle Deal

WooCommerce Black Friday Deal

WooCommerce is running one of its biggest Marketplace promotions of the year, giving store owners a chance to upgrade their online shops with premium extensions and themes at a reduced price.

Take advantage of discounts across a wide range of official Marketplace products and expand your store’s capabilities with trusted extensions built to scale.

Deal: Save up to 40% on extensions and themes
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Until 2nd December

Get WooCommerce Deal

NitroPack Black Friday Deal

NitroPack is offering up to 30% OFF its annual plans this Black Friday. The all-in-one optimization service helps WordPress websites load faster, improve Core Web Vitals, and deliver a smoother browsing experience.

This limited-time offer applies to Plus, Pro, and Agency annual plans, making it a strong upgrade for site owners focused on speed and stability.

Deal: Up to 30% OFF NitroPack annual plans
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Until 5 December

Get NitroPack Deal

ElevenLabs Black Friday Deal

ElevenLabs is offering one of its most exciting promotions of the year, giving creators access to the full Starter plan for just $1 for the first month. Whether you’re producing voiceovers, podcasts, training content, or AI-generated audio at scale, this limited-time offer makes it easy to explore ElevenLabs’ industry-leading voice technology at a fraction of the usual price.

With no promo code required, you can jump in instantly and start creating high-quality AI audio without limits or interruptions.

Deal: Starter Plan for $1 (80% OFF first month)
Coupon code: Direct Link (auto-applied)
Offer valid: Until December 1, 2025 at 11:59 PM EST

Get ElevenLabs Deal

LearnWorlds Black Friday Deal

LearnWorlds has launched one of its strongest annual offers, giving course creators, coaches, and educators a chance to upgrade their online school with significant savings.

This year’s Black Friday bundle delivers major discounts across its most popular annual plans, making it the ideal moment to lock in premium features at a reduced price. The offer is auto-applied, and the savings vary by plan tier.

Deal: Up to 39% OFF annual plans
Coupon code: Direct Link (auto-applied)
Offer valid: Until 29 November

Get LearnWorlds Deal

Neo Black Friday Deal

Neo is offering its biggest sale of the year, giving small businesses an easy, affordable way to get a professional business email, AI-powered website, and domain — all in one place. Trusted by over 130,000+ businesses, Neo makes it simple to launch your online presence with no technical skills needed.

This year’s Black Friday sale brings a powerful discount across all plans, making it the perfect moment to start or upgrade your business setup with Neo’s all-in-one toolkit.

Deal: 50% OFF all plans
Coupon code: BLACKFRIDAY50
Offer valid: Until 2nd December

Get Neo Deal

Tagshop AI Black Friday Deal

Tagshop AI lets you create realistic AI-generated UGC videos in minutes. You can produce high-quality ads that look authentic, speak your script, match your brand style, and are ready to publish on Meta, TikTok, and YouTube. No creators needed, no delays, and no reshoots. It is a fast way to launch UGC-style campaigns that convert.
This Black Friday, Tagshop AI is offering a strong discount on its video creation plans.

Deal: 60% OFF AI UGC video creation
Coupon code: Direct Link (Auto-applied)
Offer valid: Black Friday period

Get Tagshop Deal

NordVPN Black Friday Deal

NordVPN, one of the most popular VPNs, is offering 68% OFF along with 3 Months free with their biggest ever sale this Black Friday. It’s one of the best VPN deals and comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee for your complete satisfaction.

Deal: 68% OFF + 3 Months Free
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Black Friday + Cyber Monday

Get NordVPN Deal

WP Engine Black Friday Deal

WP Engine is offering the largest-ever discount on a range of its products as part of the Cyber Weekend savings. Claim 4 Months free on all of its annual plans or 20% OFF the first month this Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

Deal: 4 Months Free on all annual plans
Coupon code: WPE4FREE
Offer valid: Cyber Weekend

Get WP Engine Deal

WP Rocket Black Friday Deal

WP Rocket is a popular WordPress speed optimisation plugin. This year, they are offering 30% OFF on all new licenses as part of their Black Friday and Cyber Monday deal. This is WP Rocket’s biggest sale of the year.

Deal: 30% OFF for new WP Rocket licenses
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Until November 30th

Get WP Rocket Deal

Teachable Black Friday Deal

Teachable is a popular online course platform with a focus on empowering creators. Get 3 months on Teachable for the price of 1 on all their plans this Black Friday. You can also get bonuses, including 30 days of ManyChat Pro and exclusive onboarding resources and more if you join early.

Deal: 3 months for the price of 1
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Until 1st December

Get Teachable Deal

KrispCall Black Friday Deal

KrispCall is kicking off its Black Friday sale with one of its strongest promotions of the year, offering major savings for teams looking to upgrade their communication systems. As a leading VoIP platform, KrispCall helps businesses manage calls, messages, numbers, and teams from one unified dashboard — ideal for startups, support teams, and fast-growing companies.

With both monthly and annual discounts available, this year’s offer gives customers the flexibility to choose the plan and savings that fit their needs. It’s a great opportunity for anyone planning to switch tools or enhance their tech stack heading into the new year.

Deal: Up to 40% OFF Plans
Coupon codes:
• Monthly Plan: KRISPBFLTD25 (25% OFF)
• Annual Plan: KRISPBFLTD40 (40% OFF)
Offer valid: Until 5th December

Get KrispCall Deal

WPDeveloper Black Friday Deals

WPDeveloper BFCM deals are live. Grab up to 75% OFF on 10+ premium WordPress plugins and SaaS solutions, including Essential Addons for Elementor, Essential Blocks for Gutenberg, Templately, BetterDocs, NotificationX, EmbedPress, BetterLinks, SchedulePress, easy.jobs, Better Payment, xCloud.

Deal: Up to 75% OFF Products
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Until 4th December

Get WPDeveloper Deals

Pixpa Black Friday Deal

Pixpa is an all-in-one no-code website builder made for creatives and small businesses. Build portfolios, client galleries, blogs, and online stores with ease.

Deal: Up to 55% OFF annual plans
Coupon code: BLFPIXPA55
Offer valid: Until December 31st

Get Pixpa Deal

Kittl Black Friday Deal

Kittl brings one of its strongest offers of the year for designers, creators, and small business owners. If you want to upgrade your branding, product visuals, or social content, this is the best time to secure premium design tools at a discounted rate.

The annual discount applies across all plans and is ideal for Etsy sellers, solopreneurs, and creative professionals preparing their Q4 and holiday content.

Deal: 25% OFF annual plans (or 3 months free)
Coupon code: Direct Link (auto-applied)
Offer valid: Until 2nd December

Get Kittl Deal

GetResponse Black Friday Deal

GetResponse is a well-known email marketing platform packed with tools that help you manage and grow your online audience. It includes everything from newsletters and landing pages to webinars, automation workflows, CRM features, and unlimited autoresponders, giving you a complete setup for running effective campaigns.

This Black Friday, you can get up to 30% OFF when you choose an annual plan.

Deal: 30% OFF when paired with a 1-year plan discount + FREE custom domain
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Until 4th December

Get GetResponse Deal

WowRevenue Black Friday Deal

WowRevenue is a powerful product bundles plugin for WordPress that helps you boost sales and increase average order value. Create bundle campaigns, mix-and-match offers, frequently bought together deals, and storewide discounts with ease.

Deal: Up to 65% OFF Plans
Coupon code: Auto-applied
Offer valid: Until 10th December

Get WowRevenue Deal

HostGator Black Friday Deal

HostGator is offering a 65% discount on its hosting services and a free domain to all new users during the super savings time sale this Black Friday and Cyber Monday period.

Deal: 65% OFF hosting + Free Domain Name
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: BFCM Period

Get HostGator Deal

10Web Black Friday Deal

10Web is offering a 30% OFF discount with their special pricing offer only this Black Friday. This is the best 10Web deal in the entire year.

Deal: 30% OFF lifetime discount offer
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Black Friday period

Get 10Web Deal

Bluehost Black Friday Deal

Bluehost is offering the best deal of $2.95/month on its shared hosting plans and a free domain name for new users during the Black Friday offer period. Check out our exclusive Bluehost coupon to get the best deal at other times.

Deal: $2.95/month hosting plans + Free Domain
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Black Friday period

Get Bluehost Deal

Leadpages Black Friday Deal

Leadpages is a popular no-code website and a landing page builder. With the Leadpages’ Black Friday sale, you can get any annual subscription for 50% OFF.

Deal: 50% OFF plans + Free Trial
Coupon code: Direct auto-apply Link
Offer valid: 14th November – 27th November

Get Leadpages Deal

Trupeer AI Black Friday Deal

Trupeer AI is transforming how teams create product demos, training videos, and onboarding content. Instead of spending hours recording screens, fixing mistakes, editing audio, or stitching clips, Trupeer automates the entire workflow with AI. It generates polished videos, removes silences, cleans audio, and even creates written walkthroughs for documentation — all in minutes.

Deal: 40% OFF all annual plans
Coupon code: BFCM40
Offer valid: Until 5 December 2025

Get Trupeer AI Deal

WriteWell Black Friday Deal

WriteWell is an AI-powered writing tool that makes AI text sound natural, human, and true to your voice. It helps you remove robotic tones, improve flow, and create authentic content that connects with readers. Perfect for bloggers, marketers, and creators who want real, readable writing that passes AI detection.

Deal: 59% OFF Annual Plan
Coupon code: Direct auto-apply Link
Offer valid: Until 5th December

Get WriteWell Deal

Agent.so Black Friday Deal

Agent.so helps you grow your business with the world’s most powerful all-in-one AI Agents network for round-the-clock productivity. Automate tasks, boost productivity, and start for free.

Deal: 50% OFF Yearly Plan
Coupon code: BLACKFRIDAY25
Offer valid: Until 3rd December

Get Agent.so Deal

StoreApps Black Friday Deal

StoreApps is offering 50% off on annual licenses, and 35% off on lifetime licenses Coupon code this Black Friday on all of their Enterprise quality WooCommerce plugins that cater to your marketing, coupons, store management, offers and checkout optimization needs.

Deal: 50% OFF site-wide
Coupon code: Direct auto-apply Link
Offer valid: 24th November – 1st December

Get StoreApps Deal

HostArmada Black Friday Deal

HostArmada is offering heavily discounted Black Friday and Cyber Monday promotions! You can claim up to an 80% discount for all of their shared hosting plans and a 30% discount for their VPS and Reseller solutions.

Deal: Up to 75% OFF on Hosting Plans
Coupon codes: Direct auto-apply Link
Offer valid: Black Friday + Cyber Monday

Get HostArmada Deal

Tutor LMS Black Friday Deal

Tutor LMS helps your Create, Manage, and Sell eLearning Courses on WordPress. It’s a powerful WordPress LMS plugin from Themeum. Claim 40% OFF on all of Tutor LMS pricing plans this Black Friday sale.

Deal: 40% OFF on all pricing plans
Coupon code: Direct auto-apply Link
Offer valid: Black Friday and Cyber Monday

Get Tutor LMS Deal

Saleshandy Black Friday Deal

Saleshandy is offering a flat 50% OFF on all annual Outreach Plans during its BFCM sale. The platform helps sales teams, agencies, founders, and recruiters scale their cold email outreach with AI-powered personalization, strong deliverability, and automated workflows.

The discount applies to all Outreach Plans for a limited time, making this one of the best moments to upgrade your outreach stack.

Deal: 50% OFF all annual Outreach Plans
Coupon code: BFCM50
Offer valid: Until 1 December 2025

Get Saleshandy Deal

Qandle Black Friday Deal

Qandle is offering up to 25 percent off on its all-in-one HR software this Black Friday. The platform covers HR management, payroll automation, attendance tracking, and leave management in one simple system designed to improve efficiency and accuracy.
This discount gives you access to a complete HR suite that helps modern businesses streamline daily operations and stay compliant.

Deal: Up to 25 percent off Qandle plans
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Limited-time Black Friday deal

Get Qandle Deal

99designs Cyber Sale

99designs has launched its November Cyber Sale with a special offer for anyone planning new branding, visuals, or end-of-year creative work. Customers can get 50 dollars off any design contest, making it a great time to start a fresh logo, website design, packaging concept, or any custom creative project.

The discount applies across all contest types during the sale window, giving you an easy way to secure professional design work at a reduced price.

Deal: 50 dollars off any design contest
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Until 3rd December

Get 99designs Deal

Astrill VPN Black Friday Deal

Astrill VPN is offering one of its biggest savings of the year, giving users a secure and fast way to browse the internet across all major devices. With easy-to-use apps for Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, and routers, Astrill makes it simple to protect your privacy with features like website and device filters, App Guard, and Smart Mode for seamless, high-speed browsing.

This Black Friday, you can lock in a massive discount on your subscription and upgrade your online security for a fraction of the regular price.

Deal: 75% OFF Astrill VPN Subscription
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Black Friday period

Get Astrill VPN Deal

GoodsFox Black Friday Deal

GoodsFox is a powerful ad intelligence platform trusted by brands, marketers, agencies, and growth teams who want to understand competitors and uncover winning creatives. With coverage across 14 industries and 12 content segments, GoodsFox gives you the insights you need to analyze trends, track advertising strategies, and make smarter campaign decisions.

This year’s Black Friday & Cyber Monday promotion is one of their strongest offers, giving new users a permanent discount — the price you secure now will carry forward for all future renewals as long as your subscription stays active.

Deal: 50% OFF all plans
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Until 26 December

Get GoodsFox Deal

CartFlows Black Friday Deal

CartFlows is a popular Sales Funnel builder plugin for WordPress. Get up to 40%OFF on all of their pricing plans during this Black Friday and Cyber Monday sale period. The 30-Day Money Back Guarantee still applies to the offer.

Deal: Up to 40% OFF plans
Coupon code: Direct auto-apply Link
Offer valid: Until 5th December

Get CartFlows Deal

Software Black Friday Deals – FAQs

Wondering if there are better deals on Cyber Monday and if you should wait until then? Or what’s the difference between Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals?

Here are some other top queries related to Black Friday deals and offers.

Where Can I Find Best Black Friday Software Deals?

You can find all the best Software deals listed on this page during the Black Friday period. We try to update the deals from our partners as soon as they become available.
Is Cyber Monday better than Black Friday for Deals?

As both Black Friday and Cyber Monday are only a few days apart, most companies offer deals that last for the entire period, so the deals are almost the same.
Are there good Black Friday deals for Software?

Yes, there are plenty of Software and SaaS tools that are heavily discounted during the Black Friday period. Check out the best software offers in this listing.
How much do prices drop on Black Friday?

As most consumers expect the biggest discount during the Black Friday period, most products have more than 30% discounts on top of their regular offers.

Get Early Access to Black Friday Software Deals!

For most products and services, you don’t have to wait exactly for the Friday, 25 November date. The majority of companies start their Black Friday offers much earlier in November.

So, it might be a good idea to bookmark this software deals page and check back frequently. This way, you can find and take advantage of the best Black Friday software deals as soon as they become available!

Also, check out the dates of the live Black Friday offers. While most of them last until the end of November, there are deals that end earlier or are available only for a limited time. So, if you see something that you like from our Software deals listings, make sure to grab it while you can!

Have I missed including any Black Friday deals for your favourite software products or services? Get in touch with us and let us know.

You can also check out our other seasonal deals listings, including the best Halloween software deals, and the best Christmas and New Year Software deals.

Best Halloween Deals 2026 – Software, Tech, & Web Promotions

Mon, 09 Sep 2024 23:21:30 GMT

Find the best Halloween deals the web has to offer this year! We’ve got the latest discounts and promotions covering websites, software and other tech offers.

It’s that time of the year again! Halloween is just around the corner, and that means it’s time to start thinking about costumes, candy, and…deals!

If you’re like me, you love a good deal. And what better time to snag a few bargains than during the Halloween season?

I’ve curated this extensive list of websites and software offering the best Halloween deals, covering everything from leading web tools to your daily niche tech needs.

We’re a reader-supported publisher. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

What are the Best Halloween Deals in 2026?

Here’s a featured list of the trending tools and websites to save the most during the Halloween sale period.

Halloween Deals	Discount Offer	Coupon
TikTok Ads Deal	Get up to $6000 Free Credit	Get Deal
WordPress.com Deal	50% OFF Hosting Plans	Get Deal
Semrush Deal	14 Days Free Offer	Get Deal
Xero Deal	90% OFF For 4 Months	Get Deal
Teachable Deal	3 months for the price of 1	Get Deal
Bluehost Deal	75% OFF Plans + Free Domain	Get Deal
WP Engine Deal	4 Months Free Hosting Plans	Get Deal
StartGround Deal	50% OFF Premium Plan	Get Deal
WP Rocket Deal	20% OFF all Plans	Get Deal
Surfshark Deal	82% OFF + 2 Months Free	Get Deal
HostGator Deal	75% OFF hosting + Free Domain	Get Deal
Cloudways Deal	30% OFF for Three Months	Get Deal
InMotion Deal	67% OFF Shared Hosting	Get Deal
Namecheap Deal	97% OFF Domain Names Deals	Get Deal
Hostinger Deal	85% OFF Hosting Plans	Get Deal
Envato Market Deal	50% OFF popular items	Get Deal
Envato Elements Deal	40% OFF Deal	Get Deal
Social Champ Deal	30% OFF Annual Plans	Get Deal
Udemy Deal	80% OFF Courses	Get Deal
Udacity Deal	40% OFF Sale	Get Deal
Constant Contact Deal	40% OFF Deal	Get Deal
ClickFunnels Deal	44% OFF deals	Get Deal

We have further looked at some of the best Halloween deals of the season in detail;

It’s time to score some serious savings on some wicked cool websites, software, and tech products. Just in time for Halloween, these deals won’t last long so make sure to jump on them before they disappear! Scythe away, my fellow spooky surfers!

You might now want to look at the best Black Friday Software deals and promotions here.

Best Software Halloween Deals – SaaS Promotions

There are a lot of Software deals, specifically offered by SaaS companies during the Halloween period.

WP Engine Halloween Deal

WP Engine is offering four Months free on its annual shared plans this Halloween as part of its early cyber weekend savings sale.

Deal: 4 Months Free on all annual plans
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Halloween period / Early Cyber Weekend

Get WP Engine Deal

SurfShark Halloween Deal

SurfShark is offering the best Halloween deal with an 82% discount on its plans. Surfshark will cost you $2.49/mo (Save 82% + get 2 months free on annual plans). You can also try out Surfshark for 7 days absolutely free.

Deal: 82% OFF + 2 Months Free
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Halloween period

Get SurfShark Deal

Cloudways Halloween Deal

Cloudways, a popular cloud hosting service provider is offering a discount of 30% OFF for the next three months on all of their hosting plans. With 24/7/365 expert support, flexible plans, feature-rich platform, all topped by a massive discount, it’s an exclusive candy-wrapped offer from Cloudways this Halloween.

Deal: 30% OFF for 3 Months on all hosting plans
Coupon code: TREAT22
Offer valid: Until 3rd November

Get Cloudways Deal

WP Rocket Halloween Deal

WP Rocket is a popular WordPress speed optimisation plugin. This year, they are offering 20% off on all new licenses with their Spooky Halloween offer.

Deal: 20% OFF for new WP Rocket licenses
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: October 25th – November 2nd

Get WP Rocket Deal

HostGator Halloween Deal

HostGator is offering a 65% discount on its hosting services and a free domain to all new users during the super savings time sale this Halloween period.

Deal: 65% OFF hosting + Free Domain Name
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Halloween Period

Get HostGator Deal

Bluehost Halloween Deal

Bluehost is offering the best deal of $2.95/month on its shared hosting plans and a free domain name for new users during the Halloween period. Check out our exclusive Bluehost coupon to get the best deal at other times.

Deal: $2.95/month hosting plans + Free Domain
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid: Halloween period

Get Bluehost Deal

MemberPress Halloween Deal

MemberPress is a complete WordPress Membership Plugin
with powerful features to build a perfect membership site, sell online courses and digital downloads, and more. Use Halloween celebrations coupon code BRAINS22 now thru 10/31 to save up to 60% OFF on their plans.

Deal: 60% OFF on all plans
Coupon code: BRAINS22
Offer valid: End of Halloween Period: Until 31 October

Get MemberPress Deal

Halloween Special from Social Champ- Get 30% OFF Annual Plans or 20% OFF Monthly Plans. Save time and stay ahead with AI-powered social media management — schedule, analyze, and collaborate effortlessly with your team.

Deal: 30% OFF Annual plans
Coupon code: CHAMPWEEN25
Offer valid: End of Halloween Period

Get Social Champ Deal

StoreApps Halloween Deal

StoreApps is offering 20% OFF sitewide this Halloween on all of their Enterprise quality WooCommerce plugins that cater to your marketing, coupons, store management, offers and checkout optimization needs.

Deal: 20% OFF site-wide
Coupon code: Direct auto-apply Link
Offer valid: 29th October – 2nd November

Get StoreApps Deal

FastComet Halloween Deal

FastComet is celebrating spooky Halloween by offering 75% OFF on their web hosting services. Also, get a free migration for your sites as part of their Halloween deal.

Deal: 75% OFF Web Hosting + Free Migration
Coupon code: TREATS75
Offer valid: End of Halloween Period

Get FastComet Deal

Master Addons Extension Halloween Deal

Master Addons is an Elementor add-on that provides you with more control along with your Elementor Page Editor. It comes with 70+ handy Elements and Extensions to help you design any kind of landing page you want.

Deal: 50% OFF on all plans
Coupon code: Direct auto-apply Link
Offer valid: Halloween Period: 27th October – 1 November

Get Master Addons Deal

WPPOOL Halloween Deal

WPPOOL is celebrating Halloween with a massive 80% OFF on all of their products including WP Dark Mode, WP Table Live Sync, Stock Sync with Google Sheet, Jitsi Meet, and Easy Video Reviews among others.

Deal: Up to 80% OFF on all WPPOOL products
Coupon code: Direct auto-apply Link
Offer valid: Halloween Period: Oct 25 – Nov 4

Get WPPOOL Deal

HostArmada Halloween Deal

HostArmada is offering a scary good promotion for Halloween! You can claim a 75% discount for all of their shared hosting plans and a 30% discount for their VPS and Reseller solutions.

Deal: Up to 75% OFF on Hosting Plans
Coupon codes: Direct auto-apply Link
Shared: HALLOWEEN75 | Reseller: HALLOWEEN30RES | VPS/DS: HALLOWEEN30
Offer valid: Halloween Period: October 28 – November 4

Get HostArmada Deal

CartFlows Halloween Deal

CartFlows is a popular Sales Funnel builder plugin for WordPress. Get their Spook-Tacular offerings this Halloween and save up to 45% on all of their pricing plans. The 30-Day Money Back Guarantee still applies for the Halloween retreat.

Deal: Up to 45% OFF plans
Coupon code: Direct auto-apply Link
Offer valid: Halloween Period: October 28 – November 2

Get CartFlows Deal

WP Adminify Plugin Halloween Deal

WP Adminify is a powerful WordPress dashboard customisation plugin that lets you remove all the unnecessary elements from your WordPress Dashboard. Save 50% OFF with their exclusive Halloween deal this year.

Deal: 50% OFF on all pricing plans
Coupon code: Direct auto-apply Link
Offer valid: 27th October – 1 November

Get WP Adminify Deal

Best Shopping Websites for Halloween Deals

If you are looking for more general deals on everyday items, tech, and electronics, most online retailers and eCommerce websites offer some kind of Halloween deals during the period.

Here are the best websites offering Halloween deals and promotions this season.

Amazon Halloween Deals + Prime Early Access Sale

As always, Amazon is a great place to start your search for Halloween deals. While Amazon doesn’t specifically offer site-wide sales, there are several tech products that are discounted during the Halloween period.

Besides, the Prime Early Access Sale is the latest promotion from the eCommerce giant, and it’s almost near the Halloween sale period.

You can find the best Holiday deals during the Early Access sale and even after the sale period is over.

Catered primarily to Amazon’s Prime members, it’s a great sale opportunity to get discounts during the Halloween month.

You can also find discounts on everything from costumes to candy if you are specifically looking for deals on Halloween shopping.

There are some great discounts on costumes, party supplies, and more during the Halloween period. Amazon also has a handy ” Prime” feature that allows members to get free next-day shipping or same-day on select items. So if you’re looking for some last-minute Halloween goodies, Amazon is definitely the place to check first.

See Top Amazon Deals

eBay for Halloween Deals

eBay, in particular, is a great place to find Halloween deals on both costumes and decorations. The online marketplace is full of sellers offering deep discounts on everything from wigs and makeup to props and accessories.

So, if you’re looking to save some money on your Halloween-related purchases, check out the Halloween deals category on eBay.

See Top eBay Deals

If you’re looking for some great bargains on everything from costumes to tech gadgets, be sure to check out the websites listed above.

Amazon, Best Buy, and Target are all great places to find discounts on popular items this time of year. So start browsing and happy deal hunting!

Get a Head Start With Spooky Halloween Deals!

Halloween is certainly the time to start planning your costume and stocking up on candy! But why stop there? This year, take your Halloween celebration to the next level with all the above spooky deals on websites, software, and tech products.

From VPNs to eCommerce platforms to WordPress plugins, there’s something for everyone on this list. Get started on your Halloween shopping today!

You can also check out our other seasonal deals and offers listings, including Black Friday / Cyber Monday Software deals and Christmas and New Year Holidays Software deals.

Have I missed including your favourite deal? Get in touch with us and let us know.

ClickFunnels Coupon Discount 2026: Best Deals

Wed, 28 Aug 2024 22:53:06 GMT

ClickFunnels is one of the top funnel builders software used by entrepreneurs and businesses to create funnels and manage their leads and sales. You can use the top ClickFunnels coupon deal highlighted on this page to get the best offer if you sign up as a new user.

Exclusive ClickFunnels Offer: Direct Deal Link

Get ClickFunnels Funnel Builder Secrets Bundle

Get started with the One Funnel Away Challenge and get 3 Months of ClickFunnels included for a small fee. This is currently the best offer from ClickFunnels.

Over $7,748 worth of ClickFunnels Bundle gift
90 days of ClickFunnels for just $100 today!
Your First Funnel Bundle Gift Offer
ClickFunnels 30-Day Free Trial Offer
FREE BONUS! Access to ‘Fill Your Funnel Challenge’ ($100 Value)

Deal: Get it only for $100
Coupon Code: Discounted Link

Start With Coupon Deal

We may earn an affiliate commission when you purchase through our links, which enables us to do our best work and offer our research for free.

If you are in a rush and don’t want to explore the entire deals and discounts, these are the current best offers from ClickFunnels.

ClickFunnels Deals	Details	Get Deal
ClickFunnels Funnel Builder Secrets Bundle	– ClickFunnels 2.0 “Funnel Hacker Annual Plan” – Includes ClickFunnels Classic for 12 months – Lifetime access to Funnel Scripts Software – Money Back Guarantee: For 30 days after trial ends	Direct Deal Link
Your First Funnel Bundle Gift Offer	– Over $7,748 worth of ClickFunnels Bundle gift – New to building sales funnels using ClickFunnels – 99.99% “Done-For-You” Sales Funnel Free – Everything to build & launch your first sales funnel – FREE 30-DAY Trial of ClickFunnels Included	Direct Deal Link
ClickFunnels 30-Day Free Trial Offer	– FREE extended 30-DAY ClickFunnels trial – “30 Days” book (physical copy) + Recordings Free – FREE List Building Secrets Course – 30 Day “Behind-The-Scenes” Recordings Included	Direct Deal Link

Best ClickFunnels Deal 2024 – Funnel Builder Secrets Offer

So, what’s the best ClickFunnels deal available currently? We have done the research on all available offers, and the ClickFunnels Funnel Builder Secrets Offer is undoubtedly the one with the most savings.

You can get over 58% Discount with the Funnel Builder Secrets Bundle of ClickFunnels. See the details;

Included in Funnel Builder Secrets Offer	Pricing
ClickFunnels Funnel Builder Secrets Bundle	$1997.00
ClickFunnels 2.0 (FunnelHacker Plan)	$~~5,964~~ value
ClickFunnels Classic For 12 Months!	$~~3,564~~ value
Funnel Builder Secrets Course	$~~1,997~~ value
Funnel Scripts Account	$~~2,997~~ value
Geru Account	$~~1,997~~ value
10X Secrets Masterclass	$~~1,997~~ value

Get Funnel Builder + Clickfunnels Bundle

While ClickFunnels does not publish any coupon codes, they have discounted offers which are only available through specific landing pages.

Basically, you will not need to enter any coupon codes to claim the actual offers. In any case, if the product has coupon codes, they will be listed on the landing page for you to claim.

Let’s look at some other discounts and promotions that you can find at ClickFunnels.

ClickFunnels 2.0 Trial Offer – Best Deal

If you are not ready to commit to ClickFunnels yearly plans with bundled offers yet, you can get started with the trial offer that includes everything you can try and see for yourself.

While ClickFunnels usually offers a free trial for 14 days period, you can use our offer to get an extended trial for 30 days on all of their plans.

Top ClickFunnels Discounts and Offers

In addition to the top ClickFunnels deals listed above, we have listed all the available discounts and offers from ClickFunnels here.

Depending on your use case, and familiarity with the software, you might want to see which ClickFunnels deal is the best offering for you.

How to Apply ClickFunnels Discount?

Follow these straightforward steps to see the complete process of signing up for a ClickFunnels account and applying the best discount possible.

Step 1: Start by heading to the ClickFunnels official site through our special link. Once there, navigate to and select the ‘Pricing‘ option.

Go to the pricing page by clicking on the Pricing menu link at the top of the page.

Step 2: On this pricing page, opt for the yearly subscription. From there, pick the plan that best aligns with your requirements.

Click on the Start Free Trial button under any plan you want to start with.

Step 3: Progress to the sign-up phase. Here, input your name and email to set up your account. Once filled, click on ‘Continue’.

Step 4: You’ll then be guided to the payment page. Input your billing details and finalize by clicking ‘Start My Free Trial’.

Enter Payment Info on this page and complete the remaining details.

Congratulations! You’ve just unlocked a special discount on ClickFunnels.

ClickFunnels Discounted Pricing and Plans

Now, let’s quickly look at the ClickFunnels pricing to help you decide on choosing the best plans. You will also be able to figure out what’s included in each plan without straight forward comparison and highlights of the most important features.

ClickFunnels offers a range of pricing plans tailored to fit different business needs. So, whether you’re a solo entrepreneur, just starting out, or a large organization in need of comprehensive sales funnel management, there’s a ClickFunnels plan designed for you.

Here’s a detailed breakdown of all ClickFunnels pricing plans.

Basic ClickFunnels Plan

Regular Monthly Price: $147
Discounted Price (Annually): $127/mo (Save $240/year)
Key Features:
- 1 Website
- 20 Funnels
- 3 Users
- 1 Domain
- 10,000 Contacts
- Unlimited Courses
- Unlimited Workflows
- Unlimited Pages
- Unlimited Products
- Unlimited Email Sequences
- ShareFunnels
- Analytics
- CF1 Maintenance Mode Plan

Pro ClickFunnels Plan

Regular Monthly Price: $197
Discounted Price (Annually): $157/mo (Save $480/year)
Key Features:
- 1 Website
- 100 Funnels
- 5 Users
- 3 Domains
- 25,000 Contacts
- Unlimited Courses
- Unlimited Workflows
- Unlimited Pages
- Unlimited Products
- Unlimited Email Sequences
- ShareFunnels
- Analytics
- CF1 Maintenance Mode Plan
- API Access

Funnel Hacker ClickFunnels Plan

Regular Monthly Price: $497
Discounted Price (Annually): $208/mo (Save $3,468/year)
Key Features:
- 3 Websites
- Unlimited Funnels
- 15 Users
- 9 Domains
- 100,000 to 200,000 Contacts
- Unlimited Courses
- Unlimited Workflows
- Unlimited Pages
- Unlimited Products
- Unlimited Email Sequences
- ShareFunnels
- Analytics
- CF1 Maintenance Mode Plan
- API Access

ClickFunnels Pricing Summary

Plan	Regular Price	Annual Price	Savings (Annually)	Websites	Funnels	Users	Domains	Contacts
Basic	$147/mo	$127/mo	$240	1	20	3	1	10,000
Pro	$197/mo	$157/mo	$480	1	100	5	3	25,000
Funnel Hacker	$497/mo	$208/mo	$3,468	3	Unlimited	15	9	100,000-200,000

Each of the plans also offers a Start Free Trial option for users interested in testing out ClickFunnels’ capabilities before making a commitment. This gives you a great opportunity to explore its features and see if it aligns with your business needs.

ClickFunnels Coupons

You might have seen several websites listing ClickFunnels coupons and even tried using them only to figure out they don’t work.

Well, ClickFunnels does not offer any coupon codes officially, and all such codes listed on those websites aren’t genuine. You might have already tried to figure out that the codes do not work at all.

The only way to claim ClickFunnels discounts is by using the partner links that lead you to exclusive landing pages.

Most of these offer pages list exclusive bundles that present the best available ClickGunnels deals.

For some recent ClickFunnels products that have coupons, you will see the coupon codes listed on the landing pages.

ClickFunnels 2.0 Lifetime Deal?

Another important query most prospective users have is the availability of the ClickFunnels lifetime deal.

Unfortunately, ClickFunnels has never offered any lifetime deals. The software receives frequent updates, and it wouldn’t be possible to build a sustainable business if they offered any lifetime deal.

ClickFunnels 2.0 Lifetime Deal Alternatives

So, what other offers can you claim that are as good as the ClickFunnels lifetime deal?

My recommendation would be to get the best deal highlighted at the top of this page, depending on when you are signing up.

When you combine these offers with yearly subscription plans, you get the best offer possible in the first year of your ClickFunnels usage.

Why ClickFunnels? – Top Features

If you are still deciding if ClickFunnels is right for your needs, here’s a basic overview of the main reasons and some of the prominent features of the software.

ClickFunnels has recently released the 2.0 version of the software, which comes with even more advanced features.

Here are some of the most prominent features of ClickFunnels that should convince you to choose them over their competitors.

Website with FunnelHubs: ClickFunnels’ FunnelHubs lets you create a website quickly. It offers fast page loading and an easy-to-use page builder. You can choose from many templates to make it look as you wish. There’s no need for other website-building platforms like Squarespace or Wix.

Online Store with Cart Funnels: ClickFunnels makes selling easy. You can set up products and checkouts quickly. It offers features like 1-click upsells, among many other powerful eCommerce features. Platforms like Shopify and CartHook are no longer necessary when you have Cart Funnels.

Membership Sites: ClickFunnels also helps you set up membership sites. You can add videos and content easily for your members. It’s a good way to earn regular income. You won’t need platforms like Kajabi or Thinkific.

CRM with ClickFunnels CRM: ClickFunnels’ CRM helps you keep track of customers. It shows customer behaviour and helps you respond. It’s better than other tools like Keap and Hubspot.

Email Marketing with ClickFunnels Email Marketing: ClickFunnels lets you send emails easily. You can make and test email campaigns. Your emails will reach your audience. You won’t need tools like ActiveCampaign or MailChimp.

Analytics with ClickFunnels Analytics: ClickFunnels provides clear data on your funnels. You can see how your strategies are working. It’s more integrated than tools like ProfitWell or Google Analytics.

Get Started with the Best ClickFunnels Deals

If you are just exploring the software, we recommend starting with the extended trial version, which is a big deal in itself.

And if you are already familiar with ClickFunnels, we recommend signing up for the bundle deals that are most cost-efficient if you are going to use ClickFunnels for the long term.

Start with ClickFunnels Trial

Best ClickFunnels Deal

Get 3 Months of ClickFunnels included for a small fee using our exclusive coupon code and partner link.

Coupon Code: direct link

Activate Coupon Deal

Bluehost Free Domain Name Deal

Sun, 25 Aug 2024 13:38:03 GMT

Learn how to claim a Bluehost free domain name along with the cheapest web hosting deal in this guide.

If you are just getting started with a website, getting a free domain name from Bluehost, along with their affordable hosting service, can make it significantly easier to get your site up and running.

While Bluehost has a very well-established reputation as a web hosting provider, very few know that they also offer domain registrar services. And if you are just getting started, claiming a Bluehost free domain name for the first year, along with their complementary hosting services, can be a great deal.

You can get a Bluehost credit for a free domain name by signing up using our exclusive partner link. We have made it even easier to check your domain name availability and claim it for free using the widget below.

Search for Bluehost Free Domain Name

Just enter the domain name below that you wish to register for your business or website in general and get it for free when you proceed to sign up for a Bluehost account.

Get started by using the Bluehost Free Domain Name widget below.

Don’t worry if you cannot find the domain name that you want to register for immediately.

You can sign up for Bluehost using their temporary domain and still get a free domain credit applied to your account. You can then claim the free domain name once you have found your perfect name and want to register it as a primary domain for your website.

If you need complete instructions on getting the free domain credit and creating a Bluehost web hosting account, continue with the detailed guide below.

How to get a free domain from Bluehost?

Claiming a free domain name from Bluehost is as easy as following our special partner link, and you don’t need any coupon codes or promo codes to claim the credit.

Here are the steps to claim a free domain name when signing up for the cheapest web hosting plan from Bluehost.

Use our special partner link to visit Bluehost services or use the domain search widget on this page.
You can click on get started with the discounted offer presented on the page.
Select a plan to sign up from the web hosting plans presented on this page. You will get a free domain name credit for all of the plans.
On the page where you enter your billing details, you will see the free credit applied.
Continue signing up, and you will get the domain included in your Bluehost account for free.

You can always get in touch with the Bluehost customer service team if you don’t see the free domain credit added to your account. The customer support representatives can manually add the credit to your account if necessary.

You can see more Bluehost coupons and deals, including the latest seasonal offers, in this detailed guide. You can often get more than a free domain during some offers, such as during Halloween deals, Black Friday software deals, and New Year software deals.

Bluehost Choose Domain Later – Free Offer

If you are struggling to find the best domain name immediately while signing up for Bluehost web hosting, you can opt for the option to ‘choose a free domain later’.

You might see this free offer pop-up when signing up directly for a Bluehost account. This appears when you struggle to find an available domain name to register, and choosing the latter option allows you to proceed with the web hosting sign-up process with a temporary domain.

If you see that the domain name you want to register is not currently available, you can check the WHOIS information to find the owner or publisher of the website and other details, such as when the existing domain registration expires.

The domain name can be available to register at a later date if the current owner doesn’t renew the domain and lets it expire.

Why Should you get Bluehost Free Domain?

Getting a free domain from Bluehost can save you more than ten dollars for the first year. This cost can then go towards your hosting, which is also heavily discounted when you sign up using an exclusive partner link available for new customers.

Bluehost is an affordable web host that offers reliable hosting services, excellent customer support, and a free domain name for new accounts. You can start building your website today using our exclusive Bluehost coupon code link and get the best deal.

Bluehost is especially popular for its WordPress hosting services, as it’s officially recommended by the WordPress.org platform. It is considered the easiest and cheapest hosting provider to start a WordPress website, as the WordPress software is pre-installed when you sign up for a new Bluehost account.

Bluehost also offers dedicated and affordable hosting services for WooCommerce, one of the most popular eCommerce platforms to start your online store.

For beginners who are thinking about why a domain name is necessary, you can watch this official video from Bluehost explaining the domain topic.

If you’re looking for a reliable web host that offers great support and top-notch features for a very affordable rate, then Bluehost is definitely the right choice for you. And with their free domain name offer, there’s no reason not to give them a try!

Bluehost offers a free domain name to new customers who sign up for an account. This offer is only available for a limited time, so be sure to claim it before it expires!

To get your free domain name from Bluehost, simply sign up for a new account using our link, and you can see the free promo applied on the checkout page. You will receive one year of free domain registration with your purchase and continue to renew thereafter.

Bluehost Domain Pricing

While you can get a free domain from Bluehost for your first year of web hosting services with them, you will need to pay for renewal costs for the domain in subsequent years.

Knowing Bluehost domain pricing can help you be prepared for renewal prices and know what to expect for future costs. It can also help you make the initial decision of which domain extension you should choose for your free domain name offer.

Domain pricing varies based on the domain names’ extensions. The most popular domain name extension is .com, and if you are lucky to find your desired website name with .com extension, you should definitely grab it.

Please note that not all domain name extensions are included in the free Bluehost domain offer.

The basic domain pricing for Bluehost’s .com domain extension is around $13 for your first year and increases to $18.99 in renewal periods. If you haven’t decided on the extension yet, see our guides for choosing domain extensions such .com vs .net domain extensions and others.

You can see the domain prices for the featured Bluehost domain name extensions in the screenshot below.

Here’re the Bluehost domain prices for some of the popular top-level domain name extensions.

Bluehost Top Level Domains	Registration Prices	Renewal Prices
.com Domain Extension	$12.99	$18.99
.net Domain Extension	$14.99	$18.99
.biz Domain Extension	$9.99	$16.99
.info Domain Extension	$11.99	$15.99
.org Domain Extension	$9.99	$17.99

If you decide to register multiple domains from your Bluehost account, you will still be eligible for promotional prices in the first year of your registration.

Whether you need a personal blog or a business site, Bluehost has the perfect web hosting solution for every need and budget. Sign up now to get your free domain name along with your hosting plan.

Bluehost Free Domain for Life?

You might have seen some websites promoting the Bluehost free domain for life offer.

This offer for life was available for Bluehost customers that signed up prior to 22 February 2011 (2-22-2011).

Bluehost has stopped offering free domain names for life, and the best offer you can claim currently is only for the first year of Bluehost services.

Either way, a free domain name is still a great freebie from Bluehost that you get on top of the heavily discounted web hosting prices for the first year.

Bluehost Free Domain Deal FAQs

Here are some of the most frequently asked questions about the Bluehost free domain name offer.

What is the Bluehost free domain offer?

The Bluehost free domain offer is a promotional deal that gives you one year of free domain registration with your purchase of web hosting services from them. This means that you will receive one year of free domain registration when you sign up for an account, but after that, you will need to pay for renewal costs each year.
Who is the free Bluehost domain name offer available for?

The free domain name from Bluehost is only available for new customers that sign up for an account. This means that if you are an existing Bluehost customer, you will not be able to claim the free domain name.
Is the Bluehost free domain offer available lifetime?

No, the Bluehost free domain offer is currently only valid for one year of registration. You will need to pay for the renewal costs of your domain name after this first year expires.
Is there a catch to the Bluehost free domain offer?

There is no catch to the Bluehost free domain offer, but it does not include certain types of domain name extensions. Additionally, you will need to pay renewal costs for your free domain in subsequent years.
How much do Bluehost domain registrations typically cost?

Domain registration prices vary depending on the extension but most commonly range from around $15 to $30 per year. You can find special promotional pricing for the first year of your domain name registration.
Is Bluehost a good web hosting provider?

Yes, Bluehost is a popular and well-regarded web hosting provider with a wide range of options for different website needs. Whether you need a personal blog or an eCommerce store, Bluehost has the perfect solution for you at an affordable price.

Start with Free Bluehost Domain and Hosting

Bluehost is an ideal web hosting provider, especially for beginners who are just starting out with their first websites.

With features such as automatic WordPress installation, free SSL, and an easy website builder, all available from one platform, Bluehost makes the website-building process super easy.

And with a free domain name that is already pointed to your hosting plan as you sign up with the same platform, you can easily set up your business website in less than an hour.

Don’t miss out on this great opportunity to get a free domain name from Bluehost. Sign up for an account today using our exclusive discounted link and checkout to claim your freebie!

Bluehost Coupon Code 2026 Deal: 75% OFF + Free Domain

Sat, 24 Aug 2024 23:13:10 GMT

Bluehost is an officially recommended WordPress hosting provider. Use our exclusive discount link to get the best Bluehost coupon deal offering up to 70% OFF on hosting for WordPress websites and online stores.

Use our discounted Bluehost partner link to get the best coupon deal available for new users. No code is necessary, and the discount is applied automatically on the page.

Deal: 75% OFF Best Deal
Coupon Code: Discounted Link

Activate Coupon Deal

If you are looking to get started, Bluehost can be the best beginner-friendly option to build your website or blog. And with our exclusive discount, you will receive the best offer Bluehost provides for all new users.

Get started with our exclusive partner link now to claim the best available Bluehost deal on the web.

If you are looking for a reliable WordPress hosting provider for reasonable costs, Bluehost is probably your best option. Not only is Bluehost an officially recommended WordPress host, but it also provides exclusive discounts for all new users.

With our Bluehost coupon code link, you will receive a free domain name, a free site builder (or WordPress pre-installed), a $100 Google Ads credit, and more. Plus, all of this is available for only $2.95 per month with the deal!

Get started with Bluehost today!

Start with Free Bluehost Domain Name

In addition to the best deal on hosting plans, you get a free Bluehost domain name included with your hosting purchase.

Use this handy domain search tool below to see if your domain name is available, and continue registering to get it for free.

Don’t worry if you don’t find a domain name that is available immediately. You can still get credit for a free domain added to your account.

Use our exclusive partner link now to get started with Bluehost and receive a free domain name.

How to Apply Bluehost Coupon Code?

Using the Bluehost coupon code link to get started with a new account is really easy. Simply follow these steps to create a new web hosting account using our exclusive discount.

Step 1. Click our exclusive discount link to get started, and you will see the discounted pricing applied on the Bluehost homepage.

Step 2. Click on the Get Started Now button to see all the plans and discounted pricing available.

Step 3. Decide on your hosting plan based on your requirements and click on the Select button below the features.

Step 4. You will now have to set up your domain name. You can either start with a new free domain or use your existing domain.

Don’t worry if you can’t find a domain name that is instantly available. You can continue to use a default temporary domain during the checkout process, and your free domain will be automatically applied to your account.

Click on the ‘I will create my domain name later‘ link if you want to decide on this later.

Step 5. You will now need to fill in the required information to create a Bluehost account.

Step 6. Select Package Information and Package extras, if necessary, in the next step.

You will see the discount applied in the Savings line of this section. Make sure you choose the Account Plan (12 Months, 24 Months, or 36 Months) that allows you the most discount.

Step 7. Finally, enter your payment information (you can pay by credit card or use PayPal) and click submit.

Step 8. That’s it! You’ve claimed the best deal and are now ready to get started with Bluehost.

If you’re not sure which website hosting plan is best for you, Bluehost has a variety of options to choose from, which you can explore further in the pricing and plans section below.

Bluehost Pricing – Discounted Plans

Bluehost has a variety of hosting plans to choose from, depending on your needs. Their shared hosting plans are the cheapest plan suitable for beginners and small websites.

For businesses and larger websites, Bluehost offers VPS hosting and dedicated servers, which are more expensive but provide more power and resources.

See the table below for all Bluehost pricing options and the discounted plans for different hosting services.

Bluehost Products Coupons	Discount	Get Deal
Shared Hosting Bluehost Coupon	70% OFF	Claim Deal
VPS Hosting Bluehost Coupon	50% OFF	Claim Deal
Dedicated Hosting Bluehost Coupon	42% OFF	Claim Deal
Managed WordPress Hosting Coupon	33% OFF	Claim Deal
WooCommerce Hosting Bluehost Coupon	72% OFF	Claim Deal

Here’s a quick overview of Bluehost pricing plans that you can sign up for and claim the best discount as a new user.

No matter which plans you choose, Bluehost always provides a free domain name, free site builder, and unlimited storage space and bandwidth (except for the basic plan), among several other features.

Besides, all new customers receive a 30-day money-back guarantee so that you can try their services without any risk.

Bluehost Overview

Bluehost has been in business since 1996 and is one of the oldest and most popular web hosting companies. They are a part of Endurance International Group, which owns several other web hosting companies such as HostGator, iPage, and JustHost.

Bluehost is one of the largest web hosts, with over 2 million websites and web properties hosted on their platform.

They offer various hosting plans, from shared hosting to VPS and dedicated servers, so that you can choose the best plan for your needs.

If you are still thinking about whether or not to choose Bluehost, here’s a quick overview of some of its best features.

Officially Recommended by WordPress

Bluehost is an officially recommended WordPress host. It’s one of the very few hosting providers officially approved by WordPress.org as a reliable provider of web hosting services for WordPress websites.

Besides, Bluehost also offers plans dedicated to WooCommerce, one of the best eCommerce platforms for WordPress users looking to start an online store.

Free Domain Names

Bluehost is also one of the few hosting providers that offer a free domain name for your website. This saves a lot of hassle for beginners having to use a separate domain registrar and point it to the Bluehost hosting account.

As you can get a free domain under the Bluehost account itself, it’s easy to configure and point the domain to their hosting services.

Free Bluehost Website Builder

Bluehost includes its Website Builder in all of the plans for Free. The website Builder is a handy Drag and Drop tool that makes it easy to create a website without any technical knowledge.

It’s beneficial for creating simple websites, such as personal blogs or small business websites. The Bluehost Website Builder comes with pre-designed templates and an easy-to-use interface to easily build websites with the right architecture.

You can easily add pages, change layouts, add content, and change the overall design of your website.

Unlimited Storage and Bandwidth

Most of Bluehost’s hosting plans come with unlimited storage space and the ability to install unlimited websites. This is a huge plus, as you don’t have to worry about running out of space or bandwidth on your website.

This can be really helpful for small businesses or bloggers who are expecting a lot of traffic and want to ensure their website doesn’t go offline or incur additional hosting costs.

Bluehost Marketing Offers

All new customers receive several promotional offers from Bluehost partners, such as free Ad credits and discounted SEO-related services, among others, which can save a lot of money, especially for small businesses.

Their Google Ad credits offer can be worth up to $100 in free advertising, while their Bing/Microsoft credits offer can also be worth up to $100 in free advertising.

Bluehost also offers a few other marketing deals available for new users on its dashboard.

Bluehost Customer Service

If you ever have any questions or problems with your account, Bluehost has a team of customer service representatives available at all times to help you.

Bluehost is known for its speedy customer support. They have a 24/7 live chat support team that is always available to help you with any questions or issues you may have.

30-Days Money Back Guarantee

Bluehost offers a generous 30-Days refund guarantee so that you can try their services without any risk.

If you’re not happy with their services for any reason, you can get a full refund within the first 30 days by contacting their support team. This gives you a full month to try out their services and decide if it’s the right provider for you.

To sum it up, Bluehost is a reliable provider of web hosting services with a wide range of features and plans to choose from.

They are an officially recommended WordPress host, offer a free domain name and website builder, and include unlimited storage space and bandwidth in most of their plans.

And with all that, they offer a 30-day money-back guarantee so that you can try their services without any risk.

Other Bluehost Deals

Bluehost offers several other deals and promotional offers for new customers around the year. You can find some of the best Bluehost offers during Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals, Halloween deals, Christmas and New Year offers, and Birthday celebration deals, among others.

Bluehost Exclusive Discount 2024

So you’re looking for a coupon code to get a discount on Bluehost in 2024? Look no further! Our exclusive discounted link provides the best deal available from Bluehost for all of its products.

Besides the coupon deal on hosting, you’ll also receive a free domain name, a free site builder, and a $100 Google Ads credit.

Get started today with our exclusive offer.

We will try to include all the latest deals and offers from Bluehost on this page. Don’t forget to use our exclusive Bluehost coupon code link to claim the best discount on your purchase all around the year.

You can also check out more deals and Bluehost coupons on our partner site, WPism.

Bluehost Coupon Code FAQs

Here are quick answers to some of the common questions about the Bluehost coupon code offer:

How do I use Bluehost Coupon?

Using Bluehost coupon code is as simple as clicking on the exclusive partner link. The discount is applied immediately, and you do not need to enter any codes.
Does Bluehost have a free plan?

Bluehost doesn’t offer any free plans. As their initial prices are really low, it doesn’t make sense for them to offer any free plans.
How much is Bluehost per month?

Bluehost’s prices start at only $2.95 per month. And with our exclusive coupon code, you get the best discount available anywhere on the web.
How to use Bluehost promo code for discount?

Bluehost doesn’t issue any promo codes, and the only way to get a discount is to follow exclusive partner links.
Is Bluehost good for WordPress?

Yes, Bluehost is a great option for WordPress hosting as they are an officially recommended host, and they provide a wide range of features specifically for WordPress websites.

Start with Bluehost Coupon Code

So, you’re looking for a coupon code to get a discount on Bluehost? Look no further! Our exclusive link provides the best deal available from Bluehost, exclusive to our users.

As one of the most popular choices for WordPress hosting, Bluehost is an excellent option for those looking for reliability and affordability. Our exclusive Bluehost coupon code link provides the best deal available for all new users.

Bluehost Coupon

Bluehost is one of the most popular web hosting companies known for its shared and managed WordPress hosting plans.

Price: 2.95

Price Currency: USD

Operating System: Web

Application Category: BusinessApplication

Editor's Rating:
5

Start with exclusive Deal

Bluehost offers a wide variety of features, such as unlimited storage space and bandwidth, a free SSL certificate, a free website builder, and more. You can see a complete list of features included with each plan on their website.

Overall, Bluehost is an excellent option for those looking for an affordable and reliable web hosting provider. They offer a wide variety of features and excellent customer support and are officially recommended by WordPress.org.

10Web Coupon Code 2026: Get 20% OFF Deal + 50% Annual Discount

Sun, 14 Jul 2024 00:49:25 GMT

10Web offers an innovative WordPress hosting and builder platform powered by AI capabilities. Use our exclusive 10Web coupon code to get the best available deal when you sign up as a new user.

Exclusive 10Web Coupon Code: wpism

Get 20% OFF All 10Web Plans plus an Annual plan for an EXTRA 50% OFF. This is the best available deal anywhere on the web.

Claim 20% OFF on all 10Web Plans
Apply in addition to 50% OFF annual plans
No hidden or additional fees + 30 days Money Back Guarantee

Deal: 50% OFF Deal
Coupon Code: wpism

Start With Coupon Deal

WPism is a reader-supported publisher. We may earn an affiliate commission when you purchase through our links, which enables us to do our best work and offer our research for free.

Apply our exclusive 10Web Coupon code to claim the best deal available on the web. You get 20% OFF all plans in addition to the annual 50% discount.

Learn how to apply the 10Web coupon code and an overview of some of the best features of the platform in this quick guide.

Exclusive 10Web Coupon Code: wpism

Get an Annual plan for EXTRA 50% OFF

Get Annual Plans for up to 50% OFF extra
Click ‘Buy now’ to apply the offer instantly
Apply in addition to the coupon code deal
Money back guarantee applies

Deal: 50% OFF Deal
Coupon Code: wpism

Start With Coupon Deal

How to claim 10Web Coupon deal?

10Web has made it really easy to claim the coupon deal. You can simply copy our code and apply it when you are on your checkout page.

Here’s a step-by-step process with screenshots guiding you through claiming the best possible deal from 10Web.

Step 1: Visit 10Web’s pricing and plans page using our exclusive partner link.

Step 2: Choose the plan that suits you and click on ‘or Buy Now‘ to apply the coupon code and get the discount immediately.

Click on the ‘or Buy Now Link‘

Step 3: You will now see the secure checkout page. Select the Annually option to get an additional 50% OFF along with our discounted coupon 20% OFF.

Click on the ‘Have a Promo Code?’ link, and you will see a box to enter our exclusive coupon code. Enter the 10Web coupon code ‘wpism‘ and click on apply.

Click on the link for the Coupon box to appear.

Step 4: You will see the 20% discount applied to the total amount for the 10Web plan you have chosen.

See the screenshot for the original price and discount applied after entering the coupon code.

Discount Applied Proof

Step 5: Continue to fill in other details of the Account Info on this page and click on the Secure Checkout button to complete the checkout process.

Now that you know how to apply the coupon code, take a look at some of the top features that make 10Web a great platform for hosting and building with WordPress.

10Web Pricing – Discounted Plans

10Web has a simple pricing structure primarily based on the number of WordPress websites you’re looking to use it for.

let’s look at the 10Web pricing plans and how much you can save using our discounted coupon offer.

10Web has three main plans – Personal, Premium, and Agency. The plans have different allowances for the number of website visits and the storage allowed for your websites.

Discounted Annual Plans

Here’s a quick overview of the 10Web Pricing, along with the discount you can claim by using our exclusive coupon code.

10Web Plans	Pricing	Annual Discounted	Coupon Deal
Personal Plan	$20/mo	$10/mo	20% OFF
Premium Plan	$48/mo	$24/mo	20% OFF
Agency Plan	$85/mo	$60/mo	20% OFF

You can check out the details of each plan and what’s included on the 10Web Pricing page.

See 10Web Pricing Page

Save Additional 50% OFF on Annual Plans

Besides using our coupon code, if you decide to pay annually, you will save over 50% immediately. This makes choosing the Annual 10Web plans a no-brainer.

Instead of getting started for free, you can select the “or Buy Now” link below the prices and apply the coupon code and claim an additional 20% OFF instantly.

50% OFF Discount: Best Deal 2024

Claim 20% OFF in addition to the 50% discount offered on the annual hosting plans of 10Web with our exclusive coupon deal.

🔥 20% OFF Deal

Deal: Get 20%OFF + 50% OFF Annual deal
Coupon Code: wpism

Activate Coupon Deal

Why 10Web? Best Features

So, why should you select 10Web? It certainly helps to understand some of their features to see if they have what you’re looking for from a WordPress hosting platform.

I will try and highlight some of the main features of 10Web to make the decision process really easy for you.

Automated WordPress Hosting Platform

Automated WordPress hosting is one of the key features of the 10Web platform that sets it apart from other WordPress hosting services. The hosting platform is designed to provide a reliable website performance that will ensure that your website is up and running with the best uptime possible for hosting services.

With 99.9% uptime and elastic scaling, you can be confident that your website will always be available to your visitors. This means that you don’t have to worry about hosting downtimes and technical maintenance again.

The 10Web team truly takes care of all the technical details so that you can focus on other essential tasks related to your website or your business.

Real-time Website Backups

Real-time Website backups is another essential hosting feature that 10Web offers to its users. The platform allows you to set and schedule real-time backups for all your websites with just a few clicks. With their backup service, you don’t have to worry about losing any of your website’s data at all.

10Web’s backup service ensures that your website’s data is safe and secure at all times. By setting up regular backups, you can be confident that you will never experience any data loss, even if your website encounters any technical issues or data breaches.

The real-time backup feature is particularly important if you rely on your website and use it for professional reasons.

Free 1-click Website Migrations

Another excellent feature offered by 10Web is the 1-click website migration service. This service is designed to make the process of migrating your website to 10Web as quick and easy as possible so you can save time and avoid dealing with technical issues.

Once the migration is complete, you will immediately get an optimized copy of your website hosted on 10Web with a 90+ PageSpeed Score. This means that your website will load faster, resulting in a better user experience for your visitors.

With 10Web’s optimization, you don’t have to worry about optimizing your website for speed manually, as the platform takes care of this for you.

Range of Website Security Features

Security is a top priority for 10Web, and the platform offers a range of features to ensure that your website is safe and secure.

10Web takes a proactive approach to security, monitoring all websites hosted on the platform for security breaches, malware detection, DDoS attacks, and other potential security threats.

The platform uses advanced security measures to protect your website from attacks. This includes preventing brute force attacks, which can be a common way for hackers to gain unauthorized access to websites. By detecting and blocking these attacks, 10Web ensures that your WordPress website is protected from potential security breaches.

Besides, 10Web offers you SSL encryption for free to protect your website’s data and ensure that your visitors’ information is safe and secure. SSL encryption is a must-have for any website that collects sensitive information, such as credit card numbers or personal data.

Cloudflare Enterprise CDN for Performance

10Web also offers Cloudflare Enterprise CDN to improve website performance by reducing latency and load times.

With Cloudflare’s full page caching, DDoS and bot protection, web application firewall, and free SSL certificate, your website will be both faster and more secure.

Additionally, Cloudflare’s Mirage helps with mobile optimization, providing a better experience for users on mobile devices.

Live Chat and Slack Channel for Priority support

10Web offers priority support to ensure that you always have access to the help you need when you need it. This includes 24/7 live chat support, which allows you to reach out to the 10Web team at any time and get quick answers to any WordPress-related questions you may have.

In addition to the superior live chat support, 10Web also provides a dedicated Slack channel where you can connect directly with the platform’s engineers. This allows you to work with them one-on-one to resolve any issues as quickly as possible.

With direct access to the experts, 10Web helps ensure that any issues you encounter are resolved quickly and efficiently, minimizing any impact on your website’s performance or functionality.

Highly Ranked with Amazing Reviews

If you need any further persuasion to sign up for 10Web, you can check out their reviews on third-party platforms, such as Trustpilot.

Hundreds of customers highly rate the platform with excellent things to say about the platform.

Such glowing reviews should definitely add that additional vote of confidence in your choice of 10Web as your hosting solution.

Feature Rich WordPress Hosting Platform

10Web is a powerful platform to host and build WordPress websites that come with a range of excellent features. Here are some of the top benefits you can enjoy from 10Web.

Easy-to-use website builder, powered by AI capabilities
Automatic backups and updates to keep your site secure
High-performance hosting with optimized speed and 99.9% uptime
Advanced security to protect your data from cyber threats
24/7 Live chat Support for any technical issues you may encounter
One-click staging sites to quickly test out new features or updates

By signing up for 10Web hosting plans, you can enjoy all these amazing features with additional discounts when you apply the 10Web coupon code.

Remember that you can now get the best possible savings for your hosting plans when you sign up using our exclusive 10Web coupon code.

Claim our exclusive deal

10Web Offers and Promotions

We make sure to list all the Software offers and promotions available from 10Web all around the year.

Besides the evergreen 10Web coupon, exclusive to our users, there are promotional offers from 10Web during main sale occasions such as the Black Friday Software deals and Christmas and New Year Software deals.

10Web Black Friday Deal

For this Black Friday, 10Web is offering a 30% OFF lifetime discount for all new users on their hosting plans.

10Web Black Friday Deal Details

Deal: 30% OFF lifetime discount deal
Coupon code: Direct Link
Offer valid until: 28th November

Get Black Friday Deal

We ensure to highlight any ongoing promotions at the top of this 10Web offers page.

10Web Coupon Code FAQs

Any questions related to the 10Web coupon code? Check out these popular FAQs to find quick answers to your queries.

Where can I get a valid 10Web Coupon Code?

You can see the 10Web coupon code listed on this page. Our exclusive coupon code is totally valid for claiming discounts and is officially offered by 10Web for our users.
Can I claim the 10Web Lifetime deal?

Yes, you can claim the 10Web lifetime deal using our coupon offer. You are locked with discounted pricing deal for your lifetime with 10Web.
What is the best discount available from 10Web?

The best discount available from 10Web is a 20% discount on all of their WordPress hosting and AI builder plans.

Start with Best 10Web Coupon Offer

If you want to get the best hosting with value for your money, then the 10Web coupon offer applied to their hosting plans is the way to go.

With our exclusive deal, our users can save 20% OFF in addition to the 50% discount offered on their annual hosting plans.

10Web Platform

10Web is an innovative AI-Powered hosting platform for WordPress that offers website builder, hosting, and an automated Website Builder.

Price: 10

Price Currency: USD

Operating System: Web

Application Category: DeveloperApplication

Editor's Rating:
5

Pros

New Innovate Features Platform
Integrated AI Building Features
Automated PageSpeed Booster

Cons

Relatively new hosting platform
Limited Plans for Beginners

Claim our exclusive deal

Get started with 10Web today and save on the hosting plans for your website.

Best 10Web Deal

With this exclusive deal, you save 20% OFF in addition to the 50% discount offered on their annual hosting plans.

🔥 Deal: 20% OFF Plans

Activate Best Deal →

WP Engine Coupon 2026: Get 50% OFF – 6 Months Free Deal

Mon, 08 Jul 2024 23:20:49 GMT

WP Engine offers one of the best-managed WordPress hosting services. Use our exclusive WP Engine coupon code to get the best deal and save up to 50% OFF on hosting plans.

6 Months FREE: WP Engine Deal 2026

Transform your WordPress website in 2024 with WP Engine’s best offer yet! Claim 6 Months FREE with all annual pricing plans for a limited time only!

🔥 6 Months FREE Deal

Deal: 6 Months Free
Coupon Code: Direct Link

Activate Coupon Deal

Exclusive WP Engine Deal

Use our coupon code or discounted WP Engine partner link to get the best deal available for new users. Apply the code on the checkout page, or follow the link to have the code applied automatically on our exclusive partner page.

Deal: 4 Months Free Deal
Coupon Code: WPISM20

Activate Coupon Deal

This website is supported by readers like you. When you buy products through links on this site, I may earn an affiliate commission at no additional cost to you.

WP Engine is known for its managed hosting services in the WordPress community, providing managed hosting with superior performance and security features.

Besides, WP Engine offers a wide range of features like automated daily backups, staging environment, one-click restore points and more, making it one of the best software platforms for WordPress hosting.

To ensure you don’t miss out on any savings when you sign up as a new user, we’ve brought an exclusive deal for you!

Use our exclusive WP Engine coupon code – “WPISM20” to get 20% OFF on any hosting plan plus two extra months free.

(Please note that this coupon is exclusively created for my brand -WPism. You can find more WP Engine discounts on WPism’s detailed coupon post.)

WP Engine Coupon Codes	Coupon Code	Deal
Exclusive WPism Coupon	WPISM20	4 Months Free
WP Engine Promotion Coupon	WPE4FREE	4 Months Free

This deal is available for a limited time only, so make sure to grab it before it’s gone! Please note that the WP Engine deal is only applicable if you are signing up for a new user account.

With this WP Engine coupon code, you can save up to $300 or more, depending on your chosen plan. Get started today!

How to Apply WP Engine Coupon Code?

Applying the WP Engine coupon code to your checkout is really easy. You can either copy and paste our exclusive code on the checkout page or simply follow our coupon link, which will ensure the code is applied automatically.

Follow these simple steps for detailed instructions on how to apply the coupon and claim your discount.

Step 1: Follow our dedicated partner link to visit the discounted page on WP Engine.

You will see the pricing plans with our exclusive coupon code applied, and the discount will be reflected immediately.

Step 2: Select the hosting plan that best suits your needs from the pricing page and proceed to checkout.

Step 3: When you reach the payment page, enter our exclusive WP Engine coupon code in the box provided and click apply.

If the code is applied immediately, you can simply proceed with the checkout process.

Congratulations! That’s all that is required to claim your exclusive WP Engine discount!

WP Engine Pricing – Discounted Plans

Understanding WP Engine’s pricing and plans will help you choose the best plan for your needs and save the most in the process.

Let’s look at some of the main plans of WP Engine and how much of a discount you can get using our exclusive coupon code.

WP Engine Plan | Discounted Pricing | Orginal Pricing | Total Savings | Coupon code

See the table below for all WP Engine pricing options and the discounted plans for different hosting services.

WP Engine Discounted Plans	Discount	Get Deal
WordPress Hosting Plans	$120 Discount	Claim Deal
eCommerce Solutions Plans	$300 Discount	Claim Deal
Advanced Solutions	Get in touch	Claim Deal

Some of the main aspects that you should consider when choosing WP Engine plans include the number of websites that you are looking to host, disk space, bandwidth, and estimated traffic to your site.

Startup Plan:

The startup plan suits a single website with less than 25,000 visits. If you are looking for your first hosting or a small business, this plan should be more than enough.

The Startup plan, starting at £16 per month, is ideal for small websites and blogs. It includes hosting for a single site and can support up to 25,000 visits.

And, of course, you can upgrade to other plans if you start getting to the traffic and bandwidth limit in the Startup plan.

Professional Plan:

The Professional Plan is tailor-made for those looking to establish their brand and is available from £31 per month.

This plan includes support for three sites and offers up to 75,000 visits, 15 GB of local storage, and 125 GB of bandwidth.

Growth Plan:

Designed for growing businesses, the Growth Plan starts at £60 per month. This plan can handle up to 10 sites, 100,000 visits, offers 20 GB of local storage, and 200 GB of bandwidth.

You get 24/7 chat option and phone-based WordPress customer support to address any queries or issues promptly.

Scale Plan:

If you are looking for more powerful hosting with extra features, then this plan is the best option. The Scale plan offers up to 40 websites, 300 GB bandwidth and 50GB disk space.

If you need hosting for more than 30 websites, you can sign up for the highest tier plan and get in touch with the WP Engine sales team requesting an upgrade to a custom plan, depending on your needs.

WP Engine Overview – Why choose WP Engine?

WP Engine makes WordPress hosting a breeze by providing lightning-fast performance, reliable security and an array of essential hosting features.

Here are some of the main benefits that you get with WP Engine hosting:

Blazing-Fast Performance – WP Engine offers powerful server configurations and caching for optimum speed and responsiveness.
Enhanced Security – Your website is protected from DDoS attacks, malware and other security threats using advanced security protocols like automated daily backups and two-step authentication.
Support & Guidance – You can get 24/7 support and guidance from WP Engine’s team of WordPress experts to help you with any issue or queries.
Essential Features – Get access to essential features like staging site, one-click SSL installation and other useful tools to make your website run smoothly

Other WP Engine Deals and Promotions

We will make sure to list all available deals and promotions from WP Engine around the year. You can find some of their best promotions around Black Friday period and Christmas/New Year deals.

However, our exclusive partnership deal allows you to benefit from one of the best deals all around the year.

The best deal is always highlighted at the top of this page. Any other deals listed here are for reference only and might have expired.

Best WP Engine Coupon

Get up to 4 months free on 12 months of hosting with our exclusive coupon code promo + additional annual discount.

Use Coupon Code: wpism20

Activate Exclusive Deal

6 Months FREE: WP Engine New Year Deal

Claim 6 Months FREE with all annual pricing plans for a limited time only with this New Year offer from WP Engine.

🔥 6 Months FREE Deal

Deal: New Year 2024 Sale
Valid Until: 31st January
Coupon Code: Direct Link

Activate Coupon Deal

WP Engine Coupon Code FAQs

If you have any queries about using WP Engine coupon codes, please see these FAQs before you get in touch with us.

What is the best WP Engine Coupon Code?

Our exclusive coupon code is the best offer available that gives you 20% OFF on any hosting plan plus two extra months free of charge.
How do I apply the WP Engine Coupon Code?

Applying our coupon code is really easy! All you have to do is follow our coupon link, which will ensure the code is applied automatically. You can also manually copy and apply our coupon code on the checkout page.
What Plans can I apply the discount code to?

The discount is applicable on all WP Engine plans – Startup Plan, Professional Plan, Growth Plan and Scale Plan.
Are there any other deals from WP Engine?

WP Engine often offers special discounts and promotional codes around Black Friday and Christmas/New Year period.
Does the money-back guarantee apply with discounted plans?

Yes, the money-back guarantee remains intact, and you get the 60-day to decide if their services are best for your hosting needs.

Start with WP Engine Coupon Code

Are you searching for a coupon code to get a discount on WP Engine? Look no further! Our exclusive coupon code provides the best deal available from WP Engine, exclusive to this blog readers.

WP Engine’s deal is one of our most popular software deals and coupons featured on my website, and many of my visitors seem to benefit from it.

As one of the most popular choices for managed WordPress hosting, WP Engine is a great option for those looking for reliability and affordability.

WP Engine Coupon

WP Engine is one of the most popular managed WordPress hosting providers that powers more than 1.5 million WordPress websites.

Price: BusinessApplication

Price Currency: 20

Operating System: Web

Application Category: BusinessApplication

Editor's Rating:
5

Pros

Popular Managed WordPress Hosting
Proactive threat blocking & security
1-click staging & backup options

Cons

Limited visits per month
No Free Additional Sites

Start with exclusive Deal

Best WP Engine Deal

Get the best deal WP Engine offers, exclusive to my readers. I have partnered with them to bring you the best coupon deal.

🔥 Deal: 6 Months OFF

Activate Best Deal →

Weglot Coupon 2026: Save 15% OFF Deal + Free Trial

Sat, 06 Jul 2024 21:53:02 GMT

Weglot is a popular solution for website translation and building multilingual websites. Use this exclusive Weglot coupon code to get the best deal when you sign up for premium plans.

The exclusive Weglot coupon offer (available on WPism website) allows you to get 15% OFF on all pricing plans.

Deal: 15% OFF All Plans
Coupon Code: Find on WPism

Activate Coupon Deal

To get started, you will need to sign up for a free Weglot account, go to billing details to choose a premium plan, and apply the coupon code (see screenshots below) for the best discount possible.

This website is supported by readers like you. When you buy products through links on this site, I may earn an affiliate commission at no additional cost to you.

You can only claim the coupon discount if you are a new user who has just signed up for Weglot or an existing user on a free plan.

How to Apply Weglot Coupon Discount?

You can sign up for a free Weglot account to get started and add our coupon code to your billing page when you choose a premium plan.

Follow these steps to see the complete process of signing up for an account and applying the Weglot coupon code.

Step 1: Follow our link to the Weglot website. Click on Get Started for free.

You can get started for free, but if you are looking for coupons and discounts, you might be looking to apply them on premium plans.

Step 2: Enter your Email address and Password and click on the Sign up button to create an account for a free Weglot account.

You will need to validate your free Weglot account by confirming your email address. Head over to your email account and click on the link sent to you. Don’t forget to check your spam mailbox.

Step 3: Once you have validated your account, go to the Billing tab on top of the page. Click on the Change Plan button.

This will create a fee Weglot account for you, and you can proceed with the upgrade.

Step 4: Select the required plans on your right and click on the ‘click here to enter your code’ link on the right below the Pay button.

See the link followed by Have a coupon?

Step 5: Enter the coupon code in the pop up box and click on Apply for the code to be applied.

Step 6: The coupon code will be applied and your total plan pricing will be adjusted.

As you can see in the screenshot, the coupon code has been applied, and you have received a discount of 15% on your selected plan.

Hopefully, you should be able to claim the Weglot discount following the above steps. If you are still deciding if Weglot is the right choice for your needs or looking for additional promotions, continue reading.

Weglot Overview: Why Choose Weglot?

Weglot is a powerful and easy-to-use translation platform that can help you translate your website into any language. It is a great choice for businesses of all sizes, and it offers a variety of features that can help you improve your website’s multilingual experience.

Weglot is essentially a multilingual plugin that allows you to translate your website into multiple languages without any coding. It offers a variety of features, including:

Effortless no-code setup: You can set up Weglot in minutes without any coding skills.
Automated translation: Weglot automatically translates new content on your website as it is added.
Machine translation: Weglot uses advanced machine translation technology to provide quick and accurate translations.
Human translation: You can also have your translations edited by human translators for a more accurate and natural translation.
Multilingual website: You can have a single website that is translated into multiple languages.
Real-time visual editing: You can view and edit translations directly on your website.
SEO-friendly multilingual support: Weglot follows Google’s best practices for multilingual SEO.
All-in-one dashboard: You can manage all of your translations from a single dashboard.
Consistency with a custom glossary: You can define key terms, phrases, and names in a multilingual glossary to maintain brand consistency.
Auto-redirect for better user experience: Weglot automatically redirects visitors to their preferred language version.
Localize the customer journey: All essential conversion elements, like lead generation forms and pop-ups, are translated to offer a fully localized user experience.
Top-notch customer support: Weglot provides excellent customer support to help you with any issues.

With all such outstanding features, Weglot stands out as a comprehensive, user-friendly, and efficient way to translate your website into multiple languages.

You might also want to familiarise yourself with their trial period and refund policy to get full satisfaction with choosing Weglot.

Weglot Free Trial

Weglot offers a free trial for 10 days, and you can test the software within that period to see if it’s right for your needs. The only limitation during the trial period is that you can translate up to 10,000 words on your website.

15-Day Money Back Guarantee

Weglot offers a 15-day money-back guarantee period following your subscription period. You can make a refund request and send it to the email address support@weglot.com.

Weglot Coupon Deal FAQs

Any immediate queries related to Weglot coupon? Here, you will find answers to the most frequently asked questions about using our coupon code and claiming a discount.

What is Weglot?

Weglot is a translation software that helps you translate your website into any language and go multilingual.

Does Weglot allow coupon codes?

Yes, Weglot does allow coupon codes. You can find the latest coupon codes on this page.

What is the best Weglot coupon code?

The best Weglot coupon code that gives you the biggest discount is our exclusive code ‘wpism’. You can find our latest coupon codes on our website.

Does Weglot offer a free trial?

Yes, you can try Weglot for free for up to 10 days with a limitation of 10,000 translated words.

Do I get Weglot money-back guarantee?

Yes, Weglot offers a 15-day money-back guarantee. You can cancel your subscription at any time within 15 days of purchase and receive a full refund.

If you have a question that is not answered here, please feel free to contact us.

Start with the Best Weglot Coupon Offer

Our exclusive Weglot deal is the best available offer on the entire web to help you save when you sign up for a new account or upgrade to a premium account.

Weglot Translation Solution

Weglot is a leading translation solution that both translates and displays the content of your website into multiple languages.

Price: 17

Price Currency: USD

Operating System: Web

Application Category: BusinessApplication

Editor's Rating:
5

Pros

Easy and Automatic translations across several languages
Several Integrations with other Tools
Excellent customer service

Cons

Complex Pricing model
Can be Expensive
Considerable learning curve

Use our exclusive partner discount code and claim your savings on the Weglot checkout page when you are signing up for their premium plans.

Best Weglot Deal

Save 15% OFF along with 2 Months Free with our exclusive coupon code.

🔥 Deal: 15% OFF Plans
Coupon Code: Get on WPism

Activate Best Deal →

Generate AI Content in Bulk for SEO Topical Authority

Mon, 13 Feb 2023 02:19:08 GMT

In this guide, we will look at creating AI content in bulk with a popular AI Text Generator model for gaining topical authority in SEO, covering the entire map of semantically related topics.

If you are looking to gain SEO topical authority around a topic, using AI text generators to create base content can be really productive and help you speed up the process.

For some SEO testing purposes, I recently started playing with the Open AI’s text generator model – “text-davinci” and wanted to experiment and see if it is helpful when you have to generate text for thousands of basic topics.

The alternative is to hire cheap writers on freelancing websites like Fiverr or UpWork but even that would end up becoming costly at this scale.

While we still have to fully understand how AI-generated content is going to be treated by search engines, this is certainly a cheap and dirty method to generate content in bulk that you can then edit and expand on to make it useful for publishing.

What is Topical Authority in SEO?

First, what is topical authority in SEO?

The subject of gaining topical authority is another big chapter on its own, but the essence is that you cover almost everything related to a certain topic so that you appear as an authority on that topic in the eyes of search engines.

While the method on its own has been disputed by SEOs, there are many examples of websites that rank better for related terms when they have covered everything related to it.

One suggestion, if you are still deciding on the topic, is to consider a tiny niche within broader niches.

Building another PAA Website?

A word of caution before we proceed – please don’t build another spammy People Also Ask (PAA) website with this method.

You don’t want to take this method too far to then simply create content and publish everything as it can be viewed by Google as spam.

This is the approach that most spammy PAA sites have recently taken, and we have started seeing Google updates affecting those sites already. The algorithm updates will take some time to catch up, but sooner or later, these sites will be punished from Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs).

Most of such websites are capitalizing on the rank and tank model and benefitting fully while it works. So, this certainly isn’t the route you want to take if you are thinking of anything long-term.

With that caution out of the way, let’s get started with our approach with detailed steps.

Steps to Generate AI Content in Bulk

Follow this step-by-step guide, where I cover all the tools (including Python script) and the process of generating AI content in bulk using the popular AI text generator model from start to finish.

Step 1: Export or Scrape Topics using Keyword Research Tools

The first step is to come up with semantically related topics that you want to cover. If you use any keyword research tools, this might be easy to search and export all the topics related to a specific keyword.

If you have access to Semrush or Ahrefs, search for a keyword and find the list of all the related keywords or questions related to that keyword.

For those looking for a free solution, you can consider using a scraping solution such as SEO Minion.

Start by connecting to a VPN in your target region (recommend using NordVPN) and use the SEO Minion Chrome extension to scrape topics from PAA questions.

PAA questions are excellent for finding semantically related topics, and Google easily shows them for all search terms making it easier to scrape from the results page.

There are so many tutorials that you can watch to find out how to scrape for PAA questions using SEO Minion if you haven’t used it in the past.

Step 2: Refine the Keywords and Questions

From step 1, you can export the keywords or your scraped questions to any CSV file. I recommend using Google Sheets but feel free to use Excel or Numbers.

You will now need to clean the topics or keywords extracted to ensure nothing is off-topic. Of course, you will need to spend some time doing this step manually.

Look out for topics that do not make sense or that you think would be already covered by another keyword. It’s better to have them related and as unique as possible.

If you scraped using SEO Minion, only keep the content with headings PAA Title and Text in the final file.

You can rename the PAA title to ‘topic‘ or anything else. We will be using the text as context for generating content in the process.

Name the final CSV file as input.csv that we will need in the next step.

Step 3: Configure OpenAI API with Python Script

This is where the actual text generation starts. Use the CSV file you prepared in the step above and configure Open AI’s API in the script below to start generating the required text in bulk.

import openai
import pandas as pd

df = pd.read_csv("input.csv")

# Set OpenAI API key
openai.api_key = "MY_API_KEY"

results = []

for index, row in df.iterrows():
  
    prompt = f"Please write a complete article about {row['topic']}. Use this information as background information to write the article: {row['context']}"
    response = openai.Completion.create(engine="text-davinci-003", prompt=prompt, temperature=0.7,max_tokens=2048,top_p=0.5)
    results.append([row['topic'], response.choices[0].text])

output_df = pd.DataFrame(results, columns = ['Topic', 'Generated Text'])

output_df.to_csv('output.csv', index=False)

You need to change two important things in the code below:

MY_API_KEY: Replace this with your API key, which you can get from your OpenAI account.

# Set OpenAI API key
openai.api_key = "MY_API_KEY"

Prompt: I have included a sample prompt in the code below, but you want to change this to make it more detailed and specific.

Using the right prompt is essential to get high-quality and lengthy content. Don’t run the script without changing the prompt, as it will generate very basic and short content.

Without getting too technical, you only need to change the text that you see in the f string (this is the text that starts after f”)

prompt = f"Please write a complete article about {row['topic']}. Use this information as background information to write the article: {row['context']}"

The variables used in the code for topic is {row[‘topic’]} and the context is {row[‘context’]}. You only need to change these if you have named the headings in your CSV file to something else.

After you run the script, your output content will be saved in the output.csv file with your topic title and the AI-generated text.

That should be all for generating content in bulk. You should now invest time in editing and refining the content before you publish it on your website.

Step 4: Publishing to WordPress in Bulk

Please note that I don’t recommend publishing the output directly, as this is precisely what is considered Spam by Google.

However, if you want to publish the content after editing in bulk directly from the CSV file, you can use the WP All Import plugin.

You can download and install the plugin for free from the official WordPress repository here.

The plugin takes care of creating posts in bulk, but you might then want to manually go and do other basic things, such as adding internal links, featured images and more over the course of time.

How to Buy a Domain Name? – Domains Guide 2026

Tue, 25 Oct 2022 17:24:16 GMT

In this detailed guide, you will learn everything about domain names, including how to buy a domain name and configure it in your website-building process.

Registering or buying a domain name is one of the first steps in building a website. You will need an address on the internet for your website. This is the address that you tell other users, asking them to visit your website.

Although finding and registering a domain name sounds very technical, the process is relatively straightforward. Many domain registrars – companies that help you buy domain names, have made this process very simple and intuitive.

Nevertheless, it helps to understand the basics of domain names so that you are confident in choosing the right one for your website.

This guide explains everything you need to know about domain names and buying one for your needs.

We will start with the overall steps of buying domain names and help you understand how to search for the right one, ensure it’s available to register, and go through the registration process to own the domain name.

Overall Steps to Buy a Domain Name

Buying a domain name is a very straightforward process and has been made very easy by the number of domain registrars available today.

However, the overall process can be intimidating for beginners, with multiple options to choose from, such as domain name extensions and different pricing for each extension.

In this complete guide, we will present you with a detailed process that you can follow to help you with your domain purchase decision.

Overall, the main steps involved in buying a domain name include;

Searching for the right keywords related to your desired domain name
Using domain name generators and tools to find a suitable name
Choosing a domain registrar and making sure the domain name is available
Registering and configuring the domain name

We have explained the steps with examples and recommended tools and services in more detail below.

Search for the Right Keywords

The first part is to decide on the name that you want to register, specifically the second-level domain part (see the domain basics later in this guide). This is often referred to as the keyword that you will search for and be allowed to register.

Coming up with a good name that is available to register usually takes a lot of time and effort. As most good names for popular TLDs are often taken already, it might help if you decide to be creative with the name that you want to register.

You can also opt for ccTLDs or other custom extensions if they are relevant to your business or website.

You can refer to our top tips article, which suggests how to come up with a good domain name. One important tip I would highlight is to avoid certain characters, such as (-) or numbers, in the domain name, if possible.

Use Domain Name Generators

One surprisingly easy way to find a good available domain name is to use domain name generators. You might also see some of these tools referred to as business name generators.

Domain name generators essentially help you brainstorm available domain names by entering a few keywords.

Please follow our separate article in this series of domain registration guides to see a list of the best domain name generators.

Choose a Domain Registrar

There are plenty of domain registrars, and we have a separate comprehensive list to help you choose the right one. If you are in a hurry, NameCheap and Domain.com are the top domain registrars we personally use and recommend from a list of dozens that we have reviewed on our website.

Domain registrars help you search for your intended domain name and let you register it, depending on availability. Most of them usually list all TLDs available for your intended keyword, along with the corresponding cost of those TLDs.

Some domain registrars themselves suggest alternatives that might be available when you search for domains. The available suggestions are, however, mostly about alternative domain extensions (TLDs).

So, for example, if you are searching for a domain name from the UK and looking for a .com domain name, you might be suggested available .co.uk or .uk domain names for the keyword as top available choices (in cases where your primary TLD is not available).

Register and Configure the Domain Name

Once you have found the right domain name, the process is as easy as adding to the cart and completing the checkout steps. Make sure to double-check you have the right characters in the domain name, as most domain registrations are non-refundable.

Also, many domain registrars will suggest additional products during your checkout process, so you will need to keep an eye on the final things added to your shopping cart.

Following the registration process on any registrar, you will immediately receive a final confirmation once your domain registration has been processed successfully.

You can then start configuring the domain name as you wish. You will most likely need to configure your domain to connect with your hosting account and email service providers.

The hosting providers will provide their specific guides and tutorials to help you configure your domain name to point to their hosting servers. The process mostly involves changing the DNS records of your domain – either the A records or the CName records.

You can also get in touch with your hosting or email service provider asking for specific details if you get stuck in the process.

What is a Domain Name?

A domain name is generally the name of a website and, more specifically, the URL that you use to visit a certain website. For example, ‘google.com’ is a domain name that you use to visit Google’s website.

Understanding a few technical details will make it easier for you to understand domain names. All domain names are associated with a physical Internet Protocol (IP) address on the internet which is like a unique set of numbers to identify a particular domain.

The IP address, for example, can look like ‘198.123.342.7’, which can be really difficult to remember for humans. That’s where the Domain Name System (DNS) comes in and helps us translate those unique sets of numbers into readable names.

The DNS essentially translates IP addresses into domain names that are usually simple and easy to remember.

Additionally, there are certain parts in a domain name and understanding them will further enhance your knowledge of domains in general. A domain usually has two main parts – a domain name and a top-level domain (also referred to as an extension).

In our example of the ‘google.com’ domain, ‘google’ is the domain name, and ‘.com’ is the top-level domain or the extension.

Many domain names will also have a subdomain, which is another part of the domain. For example, if a domain name is ‘www.google.com’ or ‘store.google.com’, the ‘www’ or the ‘store’ part in the domain names are referred to as subdomains.

Previously most domain names used subdomains such as ‘www’, but that is now becoming rare as users can directly type the domain name and extension (two major parts mentioned above). Using the ‘www’ subdomain is still the case with big websites, but most of the time, using ‘www’ or not using ‘www’ leads users to the same page.

However, you will see several websites using subdomains to separate different parts of their website, such as shop.example.com for their shop section or blog.example.com for their blog section.

We will look at how to register domain names in this guide later, but the important thing to note is that domain names need to be registered with the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), a not-for-profit body that oversees the domain name system.

The process of registering and managing domain names is, however, facilitated by several domain registrars that act as intermediaries between the domain registrants (those that register domain names) and the ICANN.

We have further defined other common domain-related terms towards the end of this guide if you are confused by any of the terms above.

Now that you understand what domain names are and the types of domain names, you are ready to start buying the right domain for your website.

How to get a Free Domain Name?

Is there a thing such as a free domain name?

Well, because domain names need to be renewed every year, there are many domain registrars willing to offer you a substantially discounted rate for the first year of your registration.

That’s the primary reason you see some registrars highlighting their very low promotional prices of a few dollars for the first year.

Domain registrars themselves bear the cost to acquire you as a customer and take it as an acquisition cost for their businesses.

Besides, some hosting providers offer the domain name for free when you buy their hosting services. As the prices of domain names are usually very low compared to the hosting prices, most hosting providers offer a free domain for the first year as a promotional offer to sign you up as a customer.

However, you need to be careful about the renewal costs of the domain name. Some registrars charge very high renewal rates for the domain names, and the initial discount might not be worth it in the long term.

Also, as domain names need to be renewed every year, you will need to account for the renewal costs while making your initial purchase decisions.

Having said that, there are few domain registrars, such as Namecheap, that genuinely offer a discounted price for the first year of your registration.

If you are looking for a free domain name, here are some of the best offers that we recommend signing up for.

Bluehost Free Domain

Bluehost is one of the most popular web hosting providers, with millions of users hosting their websites on the platform. They offer a free domain name when you sign up for their hosting plans.

If you are in the market looking for both domain name and hosting, I recommend signing up for their cheapest shared web hosting offer and claiming a free domain name in the process.

You can refer to the complete Bluehost guide to claiming a free domain name here.

Which domain name type should you choose to buy?

With the rise of custom TLDs, the concept of choosing domain names based on traditional classification has changed lately, and it’s not uncommon to see businesses being creative with their domain name choices.

You can learn more about the different types of domain names in another article in this series of Domain names guides.

While .com is by far the most preferable for most businesses and websites, it’s very difficult to get the domain name available for popular keywords. Most domain names with popular extensions are registered already and sold as premium domain names.

There are also plenty of platforms that help you buy and sell domain names and several registrars offering domain brokerage services. An entire group of companies exist around the domain names ecosystem in facilitating the buying and selling of domain names.

If you are just getting started, it might be wise to just go with a name that’s available for a fair price and not fall into the trap of buying expensive premium domain names.

While popular domain names with .com extensions will continue to demand premium pricing in secondary markets, the availability of more and more custom domain name extensions makes it easier for businesses to get started with multiple available choices.

How to buy a domain name that is taken already?

If your desired domain name is registered already, there might still be few possibilities to acquire the name. In the process, you are essentially trying to contact the current domain owner and see if they are willing to sell the domain name to you.

Here are a few ways to go about acquiring the already registered domain name.

Marketplace Listing:

Some domain names are simply parked and available on the domain marketplaces to purchase for additional prices. Depending on the quality of the domain and several other factors, such premium domains are listed for more than 10-100 times their original prices.

They are also often listed as premium domains on domain registrars. And once you buy the domains for premium pricing, most often, you can renew the domain for standard prices.

Domain Brokers:

Many registrars also offer a brokerage service where they will contact the owner of the domain name you are interested in and negotiate on your behalf.

Such service usually comes at an additional cost (brokerage fees) on top of the premium prices that you will negotiate to buy the domain name.

Contact Domain Owners:

If you are able to find the contact information of the domain name owner, you can try directly getting in touch with them.

Most domain names that are pre-registered and available for sale also include a way to get in touch with them and start negotiations.

Please note that your email will be simply ignored if you don’t make a reasonable offer that the domain owners might be expecting. You could also be presented with the domain price range as a counteroffer.

FAQs about Buying Domain Names

The entire domain name system and process of registering domain names can definitely be overwhelming for beginners. Unsurprisingly, we see several frequently asked questions related to different aspects of domain names.

Here are some of the main questions that are repeatedly asked regarding domain names. See my brief answers to quickly improve your understanding of domain names.

Can I buy an already registered domain name?

Yes, you can buy an already registered domain name from its owners, mostly at a premium price. Once purchased, they can transfer the domain name to your account.
How can I get a domain name for free?

You can get a domain name for free from promotional offers from registrars or when purchasing additional services such as web hosting from the hosting providers.
Can I buy a domain name for life?

No, you cannot buy a domain name for life. Domain names need to be renewed every year, and you will be charged a renewal fee by the registrar.
How long can I keep a domain name?

You can keep a domain name as long as you want. However, most registrars will let you register a domain name for a maximum period of 10 years.
What is the minimum and maximum length for domain name registration?

The minimum length for a domain name is 1 character, while the maximum length is 63 characters.
Can I use hyphens in my domain name?

Yes, you can use hyphens in your domain name, but it is usually not recommended as it is difficult to mention it to others and can be easily confused with other words.
What are the most popular domain name extensions?

The most popular domain extensions are .com, .net and .org. However, there are many other domains that you can choose from, such as .biz, .info, .name and more.
Should I register for multiple domain names?

You should try to register your business names for multiple extensions. It can also be useful to have different variations of your main domain name to protect your brand online.

Hopefully, these quick answers have helped to clear up some of the confusion that you may have had about domain names. If you have any other questions, feel free to contact me, and I will be happy to help.

How to get verified on Google Knowledge Panel: 2026 Guide

Fri, 10 Aug 2018 23:58:23 GMT

Want to be verified on Google Knowledge Panel and take control of the information that appears there? Getting verified on the search knowledge graph panel is crucial for an authoritative online presence.

Google is undoubtedly the leading place where people search for you, your brand, or your business, and getting accurate details displayed in the knowledge panel can be extremely valuable.

Google is letting brands verify their presence and, importantly, take control of the information that is displayed about them on the Google Knowledge Panel.

The verification process allows brands and organisations that have a presence on the Google Knowledge panel to claim and provide authoritative feedback on the information and images presented about them.

Just so that it is clear, if you are a local business, you can take control of the information displayed in the Google knowledge panel by claiming your business through the Google My Business tool. This verification is mostly for brands and public figures that are distinct from local businesses.

Google mainly displays information about them from different sources, such as Wikipedia. The official documentation of Google suggests that the process is mainly for a person, organization, or other known entity looking to get verified on Google.

Although Google has significantly improved the information displayed in the knowledge panel, it can be helpful to have control over the official information about your brand.

I recently verified Google Knowledge Panel information for one of the brands, and in this article, I will walk you through the steps involved in the process. I hope the screenshots are useful to you along the way.

Steps to get Verified on Google Knowledge Panel

Step 1: Search for your brand on Google and check for the knowledge panel information on the right sidebar of the Google SERP.

Step 2: Below the information about your brand, you should see a link with a question – do you manage the online presence for…? (See the screenshot below).

Step 3: Once you click on the link, it should take you to the Get Verified pages of Google. Click on Get Verified.

You will need to be logged in with a Google account. The account that you are logged in with will be used for verification and to manage the verified presence on Google.

Step 4: You will need to confirm whether you are the entity that wants to get verified on Google or represent the entity, person or organisation that wants to be verified.

Select the appropriate option, and additional form fields will appear on the page. If you select that you represent the entity that you are looking to verify, you will be asked to confirm if you officially represent the entity.

Officially representing the entity means that you are responsible for the online presence management, including posting on social media and other online platforms. You might need to submit documentary evidence of the entity explicitly mentioning the delegation of the online presence to you.

Step 5: Once you select the relevant option, you will be presented with additional form fields asking you to submit details of your online presence.

Step 6: Provide your Name and the legal Name of the entity that you want to verify on Google.

Step 7: Find and provide a link to your knowledge panel on Google Search.

When you search for the name of the entity on Google, you should see a share icon beside the name in the knowledge panel. Click on the Share icon and copy-paste the link provided in the dialog box. Select country and language settings for the Google search results.

Step 8: Another major section now requires you to prove you can log in to 2 to 5 of your different official sites/profiles.

You will need to submit screenshots of your logged in online profiles and websites. These profiles should appear on the same Search results page as your knowledge panel on Google Search. You need to provide the URL of the official site or profile and attach a screenshot showing you have admin rights to the profile or site.

Step 9: You will also need to submit a self-portrait photograph (“selfie”) of yourself holding government-approved photo identification.

Make sure the photo is high quality and that your entire face and photo identification are in focus. All text on the identification document should be legible.

Step 10: Finally, you need to mention why you think the entity should be verified and submit the form.

You should see a success message thanking you for submitting the form. Google will now review your application and get back to you.

Here’s an official video from Google discussing the feature and the process of claiming your knowledge panel in detail.

Google Verification for Popular Brands

For popular brands and well-known people, Google might let you verify just by asking you to login into one of your official social media profiles.

Instead of you having to fill in the form, you can simply login into one of four sites “to verify that you’re an authorized representative of an entity on Google”. YouTube, Google+, Search Console, and Twitter are provided as options if you see this while trying to verify your entity.

See the screenshot below showing the verification process for one of the popular brands.

Changing Information in Google Knowledge Panel

Getting verified in Google will allow you to control certain elements and information presented in the Google Knowledge panel. Google has, however, limited the editing to suggest official information and suggesting a featured image.

Other information, such as Wikipedia snippets and images, except the featured image, cannot be changed even after getting verified.

Changes You Can Suggest in Google Knowledge Panel

Google allows you to suggest changes to certain content in the knowledge panel, including,

Featured image in the Knowledge panel
Specific stats for categories of an entity

Changes You Cannot Suggest in Google Knowledge Panel

Google has listed that the following parts of the knowledge panel cannot be changed;

Subtitle
Wikipedia snippet
Images other than the main image
Section – “People also search for”

Besides, you won’t be able to re-order or hide any content if it’s accurate and publicly known information.

Suggesting Featured Image for Verified Google Knowledge Panel

The featured image takes a prominent place in the Google Knowledge panel, and so this might be the first thing verified entities might be looking to change.

As a verified entity for the topic, you can suggest a featured image, which, if approved, will be prioritised over other images in the Google knowledge panel.

There are two ways in which you can suggest changes to your featured image.

1. Using the Google Authoring Tool

You can access the Google authoring tool at posts.google.com/author. You will see an option to update your featured image section. There are a few guidelines Google recommends while uploading your photo.

The image should be at least 1,0000 pixels and should have an aspect ratio of 3:4.
If the verified entity is a person, the photo should show the person’s face clearly.
Google knowledge panel supports .png and .svg formats for logos.

2. Using Google Knowledge panel

You can locate your Google Knowledge panel by searching for your verified entity. Click suggest a change below the knowledge panel and provide a direct URL of your image. There are also a few official guidelines for the image that you submit this way.

The image URL that you submit should end in .jpg or .png (supported formats direct URL).
Don’t suggest the website URL – the URL should link directly to the image.

Have you managed to verify any brands or yourself in Google Knowledge Panel? Let me know in the comments below.

Google Marketing Platform Partners Program: Overview

Fri, 13 Jul 2018 22:59:18 GMT

With the recent introduction of Google Marketing Platform, Google has announced a partner program for its platform – Google Marketing Platform Partner.

As Google has combined several of their analytics and Ads offerings into a single marketing platform, there’s a need for recommended partners that advertisers can trust and choose for the expertise and required services.

Google Marketing Platform consolidates DoubleClick advertising products and the Google Analytics 360 Suite into a single solution. Thus the partner’s program for the platform combines Google Analytics Certified Partners and DoubleClick Certified Marketing Partners.

Google’s other partner program, simply called “Google Partner” or “Google Premier Partner”, has been around since 2013 and is mostly related to partners specialising in their search advertising product Google AdWords (now Google Ads). The program was introduced back then by replacing the original Google Certification Program.

How do Google Marketing Platform Partners Help?

Google Marketing Platform Partners make it easier for advertisers to make the most of the new robust platform and their investment in the platform. The platform partners page mentions that the listed partners have the resources and expertise advertisers need to help them achieve more with their marketing.

Similar to the existing Google Partner program, advertisers will be able to find certified individuals, agencies, and other specialised companies on the recommended partners list.

The listing for Google Marketing Platform Partners already has hundreds of companies, including leading interactive agencies, system integrators, and top technology, data and media companies.

The marketing platform partners listing also includes sales partners that are officially authorised to sell Google’s offerings.

Certified Partners
Sales Partners

Google Marketing Platform Partners badge

All partner agencies and companies listed on the marketing platform partners page can display Google Marketing Platform badges on their websites.

This is what the marketing platform partner badges look like. There’s a separate badge for the Sales Partner of the program.

You should soon see the listed partners including these badges on their websites. Always check the official listing to ensure the agencies/companies that display the badge on their websites are listed on the page.

Google Measurement Partners

Besides the marketing platform partners, Google has also introduced Google Measurement Partners, which started with a list of 20+ verified partners that integrate well with Google advertising products and the Google Marketing Platform.

This is solely for marketers that prefer to use third-party measurement solutions to measure their advertising media and want to integrate with Google solutions.

Unlike Google Marketing Platform partners, measurement partners are other advertising media platforms’ technology solutions.

Google Marketing Platform Tools for Small Businesses

Thu, 12 Jul 2018 22:58:48 GMT

Google has unveiled a new platform called Google Marketing Platform, unifying its several popular tools and services under a single platform.

With the constantly changing technology landscape, Google wants to make it easier for digital marketers to keep up with the changes with its array of updated tools and services.

There’s been significant growth in marketing channels, formats and data in the last few decades, and such changes have constantly impacted how digital marketing is done.

Besides, in the wake of recent privacy issues such as Facebook’s Cambridge Analytica scandal, technology companies are trying really hard to restore the trust of consumers.

Considering such changes and recent privacy issues, Google believes marketers need a new platform to drive better results with a privacy-first approach that values meet consumers’ high expectations for privacy, transparency and control.

What is Google Marketing Platform?

Google Marketing Platform unifies its several popular tools and services under a single platform.

Announcing the platform, Google mentioned that the goal of the marketing platform is to help marketers deliver more relevant and effective marketing while keeping customers’ privacy in mind.

With a range of new products and a central marketing platform, Google wants to provide marketers with a more straightforward experience and better results and enable stronger collaboration.

Watch the introductory video for the Google Marketing Platform below.

Google Marketing Platform combines products and services DoubleClick Digital Marketing and the Google Analytics 360 Suite.

In addition to the Google Marketing Platform, Google has integrated other offerings to form two other brands – Google Ads and Google Ad Manager.

Google has simplified their portfolio of analytics and advertising products into three primary brands;

Google Marketing Platform – previously DoubleClick advertiser products and Google Analytics 360 Suite
Google Ads – previously, Google AdWords
Google Ad Manager – previously DoubleClick for Publishers and DoubleClick Ad Exchange

Let’s look at some of the tools and services integrated into a single Google Marketing platform.

You might have used these Google services separately, but the added integrations between these tools bring them into a single platform.

Although most of the Google Marketing Platform tools are free for small and medium businesses, they also have paid enterprise versions with advanced and powerful features.

Google Analytics

Google Analytics is probably the best free tool available for small and medium businesses under the marketing platform suite. Useful for measuring and analyzing the performance of websites and apps, Google Analytics is a must-use tool for all businesses with a digital presence.

Google Analytics also integrates with Google Ads to provide you with additional insights into users acquired through the paid channel engaging with your site. This can help you keep optimizing your Google Ads campaigns to achieve your important business goals.

Analytics has an enterprise solution called Analytics 360 which provides large enterprises with advanced tools and deeper insights.

Visit Google Analytics

Google Tag Manager

These days you need to add tags for almost every marketing service that you want to implement on your website, and adding tags is usually a complex process.

Tag Manager can simplify adding tags to your business websites without the need for a developer. Built with marketers in mind, the Tag Manager is a single hub to manage several tags required for modern marketing needs, including conversion, tracking and more.

Google Tag Manager is a versatile tool that supports and integrates with several Google and third-party tags.

Simplifies and streamlines the tag implementation process
Works with popular Google services such as Analytics (which most businesses use) and several third-party tools.
Debugging, error checking and security features to find out if your tags have been implemented properly.
Collaborative features to make it easier for marketing and IT to work together.

Visit Google Tag Manager

Google Optimize

Google Optimize makes it really simple to test variations of your website or app. You can run tests for free using the platform so that you can keep optimizing your products to achieve your goal.

Few ways Google Optimize can be helpful for small businesses;

Integration with Google Analytics can provide you with data to help you make improvements.
Carrying out several tests on your website, including A/B tests, multivariate, and redirect tests, to see what resonates with your users.
Combining with Google Ads (formerly Google Adwords) to create higher-converting custom landing pages

Besides native integration with Google Ads and Google Analytics, Optimize can be integrated with other solutions such as Firebase and BigQuery.

Visit Google Optimize

Google Surveys

For businesses launching a new product or looking for customer insights, Google Surveys is one of the most cost-effective ways to reach out to the targeted audience.

Google Surveys can help you make better business decisions by enabling you to carry out market research in a fraction of time and money it used to cost traditionally.

Ways in which this market research platform can be useful for small businesses include;

Makes it easier to design and implement surveys
Results for the surveys start rolling in within a fraction of the time

Visit Google Surveys

Google Data Studio

In the digital age, data is the most important property of your business, but even more important is what you do with the data.

Google Data Studio lets you bring in raw data from several sources and help businesses gain insights from the data.

Google Data Studio can be useful for small businesses in several ways, including;

Bring data from several sources, including spreadsheets, Analytics, Google Ads, Google BigQuery and more, into one platform.
Generate reports and dashboards from the raw data without having to write any code
Create and share engaging reports to tell the story of a brand or business

Visit Google Data Studio

Which solutions from the Google Marketing platform do you use the most? Are you glad to see them in a single unified Google Marketing platform?

Let me know what you think in the comments below.

Google Sans Font: Download Product Sans Font from Google

Wed, 30 May 2018 18:47:49 GMT

If you use Google products on a daily basis and have a keen eye for design, the new Google Sans Font shouldn’t have gone unnoticed.

Besides, I wouldn’t be surprised if you were extra curious and proceeded to research the new font. It looks really impressive and goes along with Google’s recent redesign of its logo and other products.

I researched further to see if the font was available to download and use for free as Google maintains a huge Font library called Google Fonts, providing hundreds of fonts to use on the web for free.

Follow along to learn more about the Product Sans font and see how you can download and use it.

What is Google Sans Font?

Google Sans Font or Product Sans font is a custom and geometric sans serif font developed along with the new Google Logo and identity system.

The font was created from scratch to match the new Google identity and logo in a variety of contexts and product lockups.

Google Sans Font is thus the primary branding typeface of Google, differentiating itself from the interface text elements used in the Material Design of most of its products.

See the official Google Product Sans specimen document available here to learn more about the font.

How to download Google Sans Font?

Although Google hasn’t made the Product Sans font available to download as open source, it’s possible to download the Google Sans Font and use it for testing purposes.

You can download all the variations of the Google Sans Font from its official Google Fonts API.

Download Google Sans Font API

Download Desktop Fonts

Fonts Included in Google Sans Font

Here’s the list of all fonts included in the Product Sans font from Google.

GoogleSans-Bold
GoogleSans-BoldItalic
GoogleSans-Italic
GoogleSans-Medium
GoogleSans-MediumItalic
GoogleSans-Regular

Preview of Google Sans Font for desktop use.

Using Google Sans Font

You should be able to install the Google Sans Font by downloading or using the Google Fonts API.

Please note that the font is under a Google Restricted licence, which means it’s not available to use for everyone.

The restricted licence page of Google fonts mentions,

“Google offers many fonts under open source licenses. This is not one of them. Please see fonts.google.com for options you can use.”

The Google Design website also has a Type & Typography section where you can learn and see several features curated by the Google Fonts team.

Do you like the Google Sans Font? let me know in the comments below, and keep exploring excellent Typography!

10+ Best Domain Name Generators: Top Tools 2026

Tue, 24 Apr 2018 12:20:51 GMT

Choosing and buying a domain name is one of the first steps in building your online presence. You might be looking to find a new domain name for your business, product, or your blog.

Getting started with the right domain name is really important, especially when you are about to start something new.

But finding a good domain name available for your blog or a new project can be challenging.

Luckily there are several tools that you can use to find the best domain names available to register for your blog or website.

I suggest you spend some time exploring different options and come up with a brand or business name that you are comfortable with before you buy a domain name.

You can always change the name later but getting the domain name right when starting out saves a lot of hassle along the way.

It is always worth spending additional time during the starting phase to find a name that you like and would be comfortable using for the long term.

List of Best Domain Name Generators 2026

In this post, I have listed some of the popular domain name generators that can help you make the process easier.

Use these unique domain name generator platforms and see what domain name you can come up with!

Domain Name Generator	Main Feature	Use Generator
Bust A Name	Unique Words Combiner	Visit Website
Lean Domain Search	Combines Popular words	Visit Website
Instant Domain Search	Super Fast Tool	Visit Website
Shopify Name Generator	Generate Business Names	Visit Website
Domainr	Finds Domain Hacks	Visit Website
Name Mesh	Combines Different Ways	Visit Website
Cool Name Ideas	Targeted Brand Name Ideas	Visit Website
Wordlab	Unique Brand Name Ideas	Visit Website
Freshbooks Generator	Industry Relevant Names	Visit Website
BizNameWiz	Brand Name Ideas	Visit Website
Dot-o-mator	Combines Name Lists	Visit Website
Naming.net	Company Name Ideas	Visit Website
Namerific	Premium Brand Names	Visit Website
Name Find	Quality Available Brand Names	Visit Website
Naminum	One Word Domains	Visit Website
One Click Name	Premium Domain Brands	Visit Website
Brand Bucket	Brand Name Generator	Visit Website
Wordoid	Name Generator with Filters	Visit Website
Domain Puzzler	Name With Popular Words	Visit Website
Name Station	Brand Name Ideas	Visit Website
Softwarefindr	Instant name suggestions	Visit Website
Crazy Namer	Business Name Generator	Visit Website
Hipster Business Name	Creative Brand Names	Visit Website

Continue reading if you want to learn more about some of the top domain name generators listed above.

1. Bust A Name

Bust A Name is one of the most powerful tools available to find memorable domain names that are still available to register.

You will need to enter a list of words, and Bust A Name will use its unique word combiner to generate all the possible domain names for your words.

The website has a simple four-step process that you can follow along.

Start by typing a few words, then press enter.
Your list of words will be recorded in the second box. You can find similar words by hovering over the blue arrow.
You are presented with a list of all available domains.
You can then register the available domains with the registrar of your choice or temporarily save the domains on the platform for review.

Pro Tip: Use the prefix and suffix feature available towards the bottom to generate unique available domain names.

The only limitation is that the platform only searches for limited major domain extensions, including .com, .net, .org, .info and .biz.

Visit Bust A Name

2. Lean Domain Search

Lean Domain Search is the quickest way to search domain names with a combination of popular words on the web.

Like its name, Lean Domain search makes the process easy by instantly listing all the domain names available. The names are formed by combining your keyword with other popular domain keywords on the internet.

The names can then be sorted out by using different filters such as Popularity, Length and Alphabetical. You might also find it useful to filter your results either by starting with the search term or ending with the search term.

I find Lean Domain search remarkably fast and efficient compared to other domain name generators. The tool is definitely built with speed in mind.

Pro Tip: Check the popularity index of the word on your left sidebar to see the competition for the keyword. The tool lets you know where your keyword ranks among the most popular topic on the internet by domain count.

Worth mentioning on this WordPress blog is that Lean Domain search is powered by Automattic (recently acquired from founder Matt Mazur), and you can easily register the available domain and create a blog on WordPress.com.

The service provides additional registration options with popular registrars such as Bluehost, GoDaddy, Network Solutions, and Namecheap.

Visit Lean Domain Search

3. Instant Domain Search

Instant Domain Search is another super-fast tool for searching domain names. True to its name, the tool starts searching the names instantly as you keep on typing your keywords.

The real-time search results powered by modern web technologies make Instant Domain Search one of the best tools to find your available brand and domain names.

Along with the generic top-level domain names, Instant Domain Search supports hundreds of new gTLDs such as .io, .xyz etc.

Pro Tip: Instant Domain Search also lists domains available for auction or sale in the aftermarket section. You might be able to find suitable domain names by sorting through the list by Rank, Length, or Price.

Worth mentioning is that the tool is also available in several other languages and thus can be useful for a wider audience.

Visit Instant Domain Search

4. Business Name Generator

The Business Name Generator tool is a brand-new tool from Shopify that searches for available domains by combining your keywords with other popular words.

Shopify makes it simple to start an e-commerce store, and this tool is beneficial for their users as it integrates the process of finding domain names and creating a store.

Even if you don’t plan on starting an e-commerce store, you can use the tool to generate unique brand names and available domain names instantly. Shopify boasts of helping you find a domain name within ten seconds.

Pro Tip: You can simply proceed to reserve the domain name along with your Shopify store or register the available domain name on other popular registrars.

One shortcoming of the tool as of now is that the tool only generates .com domain names. Many users might be looking to open local stores with their country domain names, such as .co.uk or .in.

Visit Business Name Generator

5. Domainr

Heard of a domain hack? You might remember the popular domain del.icio.us from the early internet days or have seen popular bit.ly and goo.gl short links.

Yes, there’s a term for such domains, and it’s called domain hack. Domainr makes it easy to find such domains.

Domainr tracks a massive list of 1731 top-level domains, including 161 IDN, non-Latin TLDs making it easy to generate all possible domain hacks for a keyword.

I like the clean and instant search interface of Domainr and have used it for a long time. The tool can be handy for finding a shortlink URL for your domain or a short domain to start in the first place.

Pro Tip: Domainr is also available as an APP on all ios, Android, and Windows platforms, making it easier for you to search domains on your go. Keep brainstorming and instantly check the domain on your go.

Visit Domainr

6. Name Mesh

This is one of my favourite go-to tools for domain name research. Name Mesh uses a variety of name generator techniques to come up with a list of different sections.

Name Mesh has actually combined several other domain name generator methods to bring an extensive list of 20+ domain name generators on a single platform.

I find the suggestions under similar domain names intelligent as it uses dictionary words with a massive database, including Thesaurus, Synonyms, and Antonyms, to suggest common alternatives for your keyword.

You can also choose the registrar you want to register the available domain names with.

Pro Tip: Use two keywords separated by space to come up with a variety of options. Also, Keep an eye on the Mix column for available single-word domains mixed with popular suffixes like ly, ify, er, ish, ism and more.

Make sure you read the instructions and tips under different columns to find cool ways to help your search process.

Visit NameMesh

Start with Best Domain Name Generator

There’re several other domain name generators that can help you with domain name ideas. Most registrars also suggest variations of a domain name when you search for a keyword available to register.

Google Domains, for example, shows several other popular domains related to the keyword you are searching for and suggests names available to register.

Which is your best domain name generator? Were you able to find your dream domain name using the tools above? Let me know in the comments below.

How to Create Free Website with Google Business Profile

Mon, 19 Jun 2017 20:03:43 GMT

Creating a website for small businesses is still a huge challenge. Most small businesses don’t have the technical expertise or time to create and maintain their websites.

While social media platforms such as Facebook, Google Business Profile, Twitter etc., have made it easier for businesses to create their online presence, Google’s study suggests that people are still looking to visit the websites of businesses from those social listings.

And with 60% of small businesses without any official website, as suggested by Google research, it clearly seems to be a big problem for small businesses. Google is extending its business services to help solve this problem for small businesses.

Google has now included a new website builder tool as part of its Google Business Profile, previously called Google My Business platform, that lets small businesses easily create and maintain their websites.

The website builder tool is simply called Website and is now available directly on the Google My Business dashboard.

The website builder lets small businesses easily create a simple one-page business website using their existing business details from their Google listing.

Although the customisation options for the website are very limited as of now, it’s one of the easiest ways to get a website for local businesses.

The best part is that the website is synced with the Google My Business listing allowing businesses to keep their website updated with any changes to their listing.

Let’s learn how to create a free website for your business using the tool and explore some of the important features of the website builder tool by Google.

Steps to Create Free Website with Google Business Profile

As the tool is part of Google My Business, it’s essential that you have added your business to the platform. Adding your business is really easy and only takes a few simple steps.

If you have your business listed on Google already, you can also claim the business to have rights to manage it on the Google My Business platform. Check out this FAQ Resources page of Google My Business if you don’t have access to your business listing already.

Website and Insights are some of the major features of Google My Business platform. Insights about how your Google listing brings you business have been available for a while, and now the platform offers another useful tool for small businesses.

Here’s a step-by-step guide to creating a free website using the Google My Business website tool.

Step 1: Sign in to Google My business and go to the dashboard of your business listing on the platform. You can also follow the Start Now link directly from this Google page.

If you have multiple locations added to Google My Business, click on the Dashboard Icon for the business that you need to create a website.

This is what the dashboard of your Google My Business listing should look like.

Step 2. Click on the Website menu item in your right sidebar of the Google My Business account.

Step 3: You will see an introduction screen with brief information about My Business Website. Click on Get Started to begin the process.

Step 4: Google will start creating your website and you will see the animated progress bar for the process. Wait for the process to finish.

Step 5: Once the process is complete, Google will show you a welcome screen for your site. Click on the tick icon to get started. – Information regarding the sync of your website with the Google My Business platform is also displayed.

Step 6: Google will now walk you through the customisation process of your website. The first suggestion is to select the theme for your website. Click on the Pick a Theme icon.

Step 7: You can now select a theme that you like for your website. Theme decides the general design such as colours and fonts for your website. – Google lets you choose from the selection of 10 different themes with different colour styles and fonts to match your business.

Step 8: You will now be prompted to upload Photos for your Business. Your existing photos on Google My Business will also be used.

Step 9: Google will now show you the Publish button so that you can publish your website when you are ready.

Step 10: You will need to configure a few settings such as your Site Address and Site language before you can publish your website.

Step 11: Click on Publish Now and you will be asked to select the Website address for your free website. The address will be in the format of yourbusinessname.business.site.

Click Next once you are happy with the name. – You will also see an option to select and confirm that this will be your website address on Google Maps and Google Search.

Step 12: Once your domain address is confirmed, you will see a success notification for your website. Click on View Site to see your new Website.

Congratulations on your new free website from Google My Business!

Now that you have your free website, learn more about how to edit and optimise the website.

Optimise Your Free Website with Google Business Profile

Although limited, Google Business Profile provides you with the necessary basic options to optimise your free website.

You should have seen most of the options while going through the initial setup process but feel free to click on Edit Website and go back to these options that you can edit to further optimise your website.

Edit your Business Website

Go to Website from the menu of your business dashboard on Google Business Profile. You can see the icon elements on the left side panel that can be edited as per your business needs.

Few edits that you can make to your free Google website include;

Make changes to design by selecting a theme
Choose the right primary button for your business
Edit the text on your website
Upload more business photos
Change settings such as Site address and site language
Add links to other sites, such as for ordering, reservations, or other social media presence

Change your Design with Suitable Theme

The theme changes the design and looks of your website. Make sure to choose a theme that closely matches your business branding, such as colours.

The theme also changes the fonts on your website, so make sure you like the fonts that you see in the Headline and Description sections.

Upload High-Quality Business Photos

Make sure you upload high-quality, relevant photos of your business on the page. You can click on Add Photos under the photos section to upload more photos in the section.

The cover photo on the website is especially important as it will be shown to your customers on Google listings. Click on Change Cover Photo under your website preview to select a cover photo that represents your business.

You can add other photos in the photos and menu section to show more about your business.

Choose Appropriate Call to Action – Primary Button

When you click edit, you have an option to choose from a list of primary buttons. Choose the appropriate button that makes sense for your business.

For example, if your business provides services, you can choose the “Get Quote” button which will let your website visitors fill in their name, phone number, email, and message in a contact form, which is then emailed to you or other listing owners and managers. (See the preview of the primary button for digit Agency Digital above).

There’re several primary buttons you can choose from the list to match your business. Here’s a list of the main action buttons and what they do.

Get directions: To show directions to your business location on Google Maps.
Call now: Lets your visitors call your business
View menu: Assign any link for the button
Find table: Useful for restaurants that can link to their table booking service
Place order: Add links to your store or ordering pages
Make appointment: Add a link to your appointment booking page
Message us (SMS): Allows users to send you a SMS message to your phone number. Make sure that the number is a mobile phone that can receive SMS messages.
Message us (WhatsApp): Allows users to send WhatsApp message to your mobile phone number. You will need WhatsApp activated for the mobile number.
Get quote: Opens up a contact form with details that will be forwarded to your email.

You can choose a button and see how it looks in the preview panel of your site.

Use a Custom Domain for Free Google Site

If you don’t like the sub-domain .business.site, you can easily buy a custom domain name for your Google site.

If you have purchased a custom domain name on other domain registrars such as GoDaddy or NameCheap, you can easily redirect your custom domains to the Google My Business site you just created.

Google My Business help guide has examples for few domain registrars to help you redirect your existing domain name.

For GoDaddy

When logged in, Click Manage under Domains Section.
Choose “Add Website” and select “Connect to an Existing Site”.
Choose “Forward to Any Site” and enter the URL of your Google My Business website (yourwebsite.business.site).

For eNom

When logged in, click “Domains” from the Menu, and then click “My Domains”.
Click on the domain that you want to redirect.
Click on the “Host Records” or select “Host Records” from the drop-down list.
Choose “URL redirect” and forward the hostname to your Google My Business website.

You can always contact your domain registrar to ask them to redirect your domain to your Google My Business website URL. They should help you or at least provide you with instructions on how to redirect your domain name.

More Features in Website Tool of Google Business Profile?

The Website tool with Google My Business is a new product, and I am sure Google will keep updating with more new features.

The website feature closely aligns with Google’s strategy of helping small businesses succeed on the web, and we should soon see more updates as more small businesses make use of it.

I will continue listing more features of the Website by Google My Business on this page once they become available.

What is your favourite feature, and what do you like most about the free website? What new features would you like to see in future updates?

Let me know if this tutorial was helpful or if you have any questions about the Website Builder tool in the comments below.

How to Take Best Photos With iPhone – Apple’s Official Secrets

Sat, 13 May 2017 02:17:00 GMT

Love those magnificent photos that you see around on billboards that say “Shot on iPhone” but can’t figure out why you can’t take similar photos with your iPhone?

Well, Apple is now officially trying to help its users take the best photos with their iPhones. The company has released an official guide to iPhone photography explaining several techniques to make the most out of the iPhone camera.

The official guide has several how-to videos providing different tips and tricks to help you get the best photos out of your iPhone.

The videos are mostly catered for their current flagship phone – iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 plus, but most of the techniques can also be applied to the previous iPhones provided that they support the particular feature.

The bite-sized videos are only around 30-40 seconds long, and they make it easy to follow and remember the tips with few how-to steps. Most of them explain the basic concepts of iPhone photography such as using portrait mode and shooting panoramas.

See how many of them you know already and if there’s anything new you can learn from these Apple’s official tips.

Here’re some of the top tips that I found interesting to learn from the official videos. All these videos were uploaded to the official YouTube account of Apple.

Shooting stills while filming on iPhone

Missing this feature is easy. If you don’t know already, you can also take still photos while capturing videos with your iPhone.

While you are shooting in Video mode, just tap on the white Shutter icon that appears on the screen to take still photos.

Steps to take stills with iPhone while in Video mode

Start shooting in video mode
Tap the shutter icon to take a photo while recording

Shooting a selfie with the timer on iPhone

Taking selfies might easily be one of the most used features of the iPhone camera, but so many people miss that timer feature that can be useful to take a hands-free selfie.

Steps to shoot a selfie with the Timer on iPhone

Switch to the front selfie camera
Make your iPhone steady
Tap the timer icon and set the timer to 3 seconds
Tap the shutter button and pose for the selfie.

Capturing a unique angle on iPhone

This tip is more about experimenting with your subject and scene to find a unique angle. You will basically need to move around, step closer or face your camera in different ways framing the subject to find a unique angle.

Steps to capture a unique angle on iPhone

Choose your subject
Start Experimenting
Tilt your camera, try looking straight up, try getting down low, step closer
Keep Experimenting to find a unique angle

Shoot during golden hour on iPhone

Your photos will look much better if you can follow this simple tip for getting the best light just before sunset.

Steps to shoot during Golden Hour on iPhone

Get the timing right – before sunset
Use the sunlight to light your subject from the front
Lower your exposure. You will see a slider beside the rectangle box when you tap on the screen.
Capture your photo with the right amount of golden light from the Sun.

Shoot a great portrait on iPhone

This tip is only applicable if you have an iPhone above 7 Plus that has an additional zoom lens (dual-lens camera). Use the portrait mode to get the depth effect for your great portraits.

Steps to shoot a great Portrait using iPhone

Use the Portrait mode
Look for depth effect box and make sure you have enough light.
And capture your portrait.

Shoot a Close-up on iPhone

Close-up photos stand out as they show us a different perspective and a unique angle on the subject. You will need to get really close to your subject for the best results.

Steps to shoot a Close-up Photo on iPhone

Get closer, around 10 cm away from your subject
Tap to bring the focus icon and use the slider to increase the exposure
Capture your close-up photo.

Shoot a Vertical Pano on iPhone

I had never tried this technique of shooting a vertical panoramic photo before. Follow this tip to produce an impressive photo.

Steps to shoot a vertical panoramic photo on iPhone

Start with the Landscape mode of your iPhone
Switch to Pano mode of your camera
Start from the bottom along the suggested path on screen
Keep it slow and steady to get the best results.

Shoot Without a Flash on iPhone

I don’t like using Flash to lighten up my scene and subject unless it’s absolutely necessary. Learning to make use of other available light sources can produce impressive photos.

Steps to shoot without Flash on iPhone

Find any light source around you
Turn off the Flash
Tap on your subject to get the right exposure
And capture your photo.

Shoot Action Shots with iPhone

The iPhone camera is capable of taking great action shots feature but most people aren’t simply aware of this option. With burst mode enabled, your iPhone can take several shots within seconds to capture the most moment that you can select from.

Steps to shoot Action Shots with iPhone

Keep holding the shutter button to use the burst mode
Access your photos
Select your favourite photo in action.

For more videos, check out the recently released official iPhone photography website of Apple.

Apple is slowly adding more helpful guides on its official YouTube channel. Such how-to videos can definitely serve their millions of YouTube followers better than their Ad videos geared towards making more sales.

Did you learn anything new from Apple’s official how-to videos on taking the best photos with your iPhone? Let me know in the comments below.

YouTube Monetization Limited For Channels Over 10K Views

Sat, 08 Apr 2017 17:49:18 GMT

YouTube has announced a few updates to its partner program, including changes to the monetization and application process.

The YouTube Partner Program enables creators on the platform to monetize their videos and earn revenue by displaying ads from Google programs.

In its latest changes, YouTube monetization has now been limited to channels with over 10K lifetime views. YouTube channels with less than 10,000-lifetime views won’t be able to serve any ads on their videos.

2018 January Update: YouTube has again made additional changes, further limiting its Partner program. To be eligible for monetization, channels will need to have 4,000 hours of watch time within the past 12 months and 1,000 subscribers.

YouTube wants to ensure that the revenue is only generated by the creators that play by the rules of the platform. The new changes make it difficult for those who abuse the platform and earn revenue by uploading others’ work.

YouTube already has strict guidelines in place for such abuse and terminates several YouTube channels that do not comply with the rules. The new rules make it even more difficult for new spammy channels that used to benefit from instantly getting approved for ad revenue.

YouTube Partner Program was introduced back in 2007, and initially, only a few elite creators were accepted into the program. Eventually, it became fairly easy to be accepted into the YouTube partner program as long as the channel had a good standing on copyright policies and community guidelines.

YouTube introduced a few requirements for other features such as a custom YouTube URL, but monetization as part of the partner program was a relatively easy process as of now.

YouTube Partner Program Changes

This new policy aims to protect creators and importantly provide more time and context to YouTube to see if a channel is following the guidelines of the platform.

In addition to protecting creators, YouTube also saw the need to introduce requirements to moderate the channels after the recent criticism that lead several advertisers to boycott the video platform.

YouTube wants to ensure that such requirements to maintain compliance with community guidelines and advertiser policies are entirely in favour of protecting creators and their work. While it might look discouraging to the new creators on the platform, it eventually works out in their favour.

Here’s the outline of the recent YouTube monetization changes and how it impacts the new and existing YouTube program partners.

New YouTube Program Partners

For new YouTube channels, there will be a new application process for the partner program.

YouTube creators can apply to the program once they have reached the minimum threshold of 10k views for their channel. YouTube will then review the application and see if their videos comply with the policies to be accepted into the program.

New applicants will be able to check the status of their application in the Channel tab in Creator Studio, under Monetization.

Existing YouTube Program Partners

For those that are part of the YouTube Partner program already, ads will no longer be served on the videos until their channels meet the minimum threshold of views.

The new changes, however, do not impact any revenue earned by the videos of existing YouTube partners with channels under 10k views.

Besides, all existing videos will also continue to appear monetized within the video Manager of the creator’s studio.

Once the channel has crossed the 10k views threshold, YouTube will automatically consider the channel for review and reinstate the ads against the content.

YouTube recommends new creators visit their YouTube Creator Academy to explore its resources for creating original content and growing audiences on the channels.

You can learn more about YouTube monetization and how to associate your YouTube account with Google AdSense in our detailed guide.

Need a hand growing your YouTube channel? Try TubeBuddy for free today!

WordCamp London 2017 Images Gallery

Tue, 04 Apr 2017 06:51:28 GMT

WordCamp London 2017 took place on 17th – 19th March 2017 at the London Metropolitan University in London.

WordCamp is a WordPress conference where the platform users, contributors, professionals, and developers come together for a week full of learning and sharing ideas.

WordCamps are community-organized events and are held in several cities around the world. WordCamp US and WordCamp Europe are some of the biggest WordCamps inviting over 2000 WordPress community members.

The event is open to all levels of WordPress users, from beginners to developers and professionals. The WordPress community is so inviting that it won’t take you more than a single day of WordCamp to feel part of it.

You can read more about WordCamp London 2017 and see a selection of photos on my WordPress blog – WPism here.

Here’re all the photos from the two main days, Saturday and Sunday of WordCamp London 2017. Please refer to another post on WPism for contributor day photos.

Please note that these are high-resolution photos and with more than 700 photos on this page, it can take a while to fully load. Enjoy the photos and feel free to share them.

Saturday – WordCamp London 2017 Photos

Please continue on the next page for photos from Sunday.

Sunday – WordCamp London 2017 Photos

You can also see all of these photos from WordCamp London 2017 on my Facebook Page album.

Custom YouTube URL For Your Channel – Complete Guide

Wed, 18 Jan 2017 04:15:04 GMT

Learn how to claim a custom YouTube URL for your YouTube Channel in this detailed guide.

Google associating YouTube with Google+ profile and disconnecting it again has made it difficult to fully understand the options for changing name and custom URL for YouTube channels.

Also, YouTube adopting different custom URL structures (as you will see in the later parts) over the past few years can be easily confusing for YouTube creators.

Custom URLs provide an easy-to-remember and unique YouTube username that can be handy to navigate to your channel or spread the word about it to your audience. Your custom URL for the YouTube channel makes it easy to link to your channel and easy for your subscribers to visit your channel.

It’s like having a unique username, similar to a Twitter handle or a Facebook username that makes it easy to connect with other users. Your subscribers can remember the custom YouTube URL and find your channel easily.

In this detailed guide, we will discuss i) why custom URLs are necessary, ii) look at the possible custom URLs structure for YouTube and then finally iii) guide you to claim the custom URL of your choice for your YouTube channel.

I will also make an effort to clarify the YouTube association with Google+ and how it can affect your channel presence. Feel free to skip to the section of claiming YouTube custom URL directly.

Why need a Custom YouTube URL

I am sure you wouldn’t be reading this article if a custom YouTube URL wasn’t necessary to you but here’re few reasons why you should make an extra effort to secure the custom Youtube URL of your choice.

Easy to remember for your YouTube Channel subscribers
Easy to share on websites/email/business cards for your prospective audience
Branding Purposes – Having a consistent presence across several platforms

Structure of Custom YouTube URL

YouTube custom URL was previously easy to claim, and you just had to choose the username when you signed up for the platform. Your custom URL then would have been simply youtube.com/username.

YouTube allowed selecting usernames on the basis of first-come, first-serve back then. But as the YouTube platform was associated with other Google products, mainly Google+, there was a need to make the usernames on both platforms consistent.

Making the usernames consistent with Google+ became challenging as there were already millions and millions of existing users with their previous usernames when they signed up for YouTube.

Additionally, after YouTube channels became inactive or deleted, those usernames weren’t released for new channels making it difficult to have useful usernames for channels to reflect their brand names.

After several iterations of custom URLs and with dissociation with Google+ (discussed in the later section), YouTube has now adopted a simple structure for custom URLs.

Basically, you are now limited to either ID-based default URL or Customised URL. The previous short usernames with just the youtube.com link are now called legacy username URLs.

Your YouTube channel can now have the following possible different URLs;

Legacy YouTube username Custom URL

If you signed up for YouTube in the past, you might have been simply assigned custom URLs in the following formats.

youtube.com/username

youtube.com/user/username

These are now legacy usernames for your YouTube channel. The URL will still remain the primary channel URL if you have one already and will redirect to your channel. Such legacy Youtube custom URLs can no longer be changed.

YouTube ID-based URL

This is the standard URL of your YouTube channel that you get by default when you sign up for the platform. The ID-based URL uses a unique channel ID that is added to the end of the URL along with the channel.

youtube.com/channel/UC7XZDOTrXEIyBt-IGHeC-Dw

Current Custom YouTube URL Format

As you become eligible for a custom URL (more on that later) for the YouTube channel, you can grab an easy to remember URL in the latest structure provided by YouTube. The most recent custom YouTube URL is in the format of;

youtube.com/c/Pradeepsingh

If you just use youtube.com/username after claiming the custom URL in the above format, you will be redirected to your channel reflecting the ID-based URL or a legacy YouTube username, if you have one.

Requirements for Custom YouTube URL

Custom URLs for YouTube are based on several factors including your channel and Google identity, your associated website, your channel branding and your description among others. YouTube let you easily choose your username on First-come, first-serve basis in the past. But there are certain requirements you need to fulfil now to be eligible for a custom URL for YouTube.

The YouTube custom URL requirements include;

Minimum of 100 subscribers of the YouTube channel
More than 30 days old YouTube Channel
YouTube Channel must have uploaded Photo as Channel Icon
Has photo uploaded for YouTube channel art

Steps to Claim Custom YouTube URL for YouTube Channel

Once you fulfil the requirements, you are eligible to claim a custom URL for the YouTube channel.

Follow the steps below to claim a custom YouTube URL for your channel.

Step 1: Log into your YouTube account. You will need your Google account details to log in.

Step 2: Click on your profile icon on top right and click on the YouTube settings icon (that looks like a gear).

Step 3: You will be in the overview section of your Account Settings page for YouTube Channel.

Step 4: Click on the Advanced link just below your Name and Icon.

Step 5: Under “Channel Settings” you should see a confirmation that you are eligible for a custom YouTube URL. Click on the “Claim it here” link. (You will only see this link if your channel is eligible, see the requirements above.)

Step 6: You will be presented with a “Get a custom URL” box with options of custom URLs available to you. This is usually a username name decided by YouTube and an option that allows you to add a suffix of your choosing to that username.

Step 7: Select the option and click to select the box that you have read and agree to the custom URL Terms of Use and click Change URL.

Step 8: You cannot change the custom URL later, so please make sure it’s final before you confirm the choice.

That’s all. Your YouTube channel should now have a custom URL that you can use on your website or easily spread the word about your channel.

Changing Custom YouTube URL

YouTube no longer allows you to change a custom URL after you have chosen recently in the new format of youtube.com/c/username

Although previously allowed, YouTube has also stopped letting users adjust the capitalization, accents, or diacritics (settings that were mostly linked to Google+ to make usernames consistent on both platforms).

– Previous details of changing custom YouTube URL removed. It was previously possible to change the capitalisation or accents of the custom YouTube URL.

Requesting Custom YouTube URL Offer

You can reach out to YouTube creators support if you have specific cases such as a conflict when youtube.com/username and youtube.com/c/username point to different channels.

You can also reach out to YouTube support as a creator for more information on custom URLs, but you won’t be able to request particular custom YouTube URLs for your channel. Make sure you check out the YouTube help forum for any queries that might have already been answered.

Currently, there’s no way to request a custom YouTube URL offer. Once you are eligible, you should get a notification in your email or on your YouTube notifications page.

You can always check your YouTube features page on your channel dashboard to see if you are eligible for a custom YouTube URL including other features such as YouTube monetization. Find the right card under features to see if you are eligible (see the screenshot below).

Associate Website for Custom YouTube URL of your Choice

If you have a website with a custom URL keyword in your domain name, you might be able to skip some YouTube requirements and get the custom YouTube URL of your choice.

Once you associate your website with your YouTube channel dashboard, YouTube might email you with an offer to claim the suggested custom URL of your choice. Here’s what the email looks like offering you to claim your custom URL.

Please note that this email is for a custom Google+ URL, but once you get this notification, you will also have the same custom URL available for your YouTube channel.

Steps to associate your Website with YouTube for Custom URL

Follow the instructions below to get your website associated with your YouTube channel.

The custom URL offered is mostly based on the domain name that you own (see how to buy domain names here) and provided that others haven’t claimed the custom URL already. To associate your website with your YouTube channel, you should have your website added and verified in the Google search console.

– Go to Google Search Console and sign in with your Google account. Click on Add a Property and enter the URL of your website.

You will be presented with several options that you will need to complete to verify the domain name. After you proceed, you will see a success message verifying the ownership of your domain with Google Search Console.

Once you have your website successfully verified in Google Search Console, you can then associate with your YouTube account. Follow the steps below.

When logged in, Navigate to Advanced Channel Settings of your YouTube Channel by clicking your account > Creator Studio > Channel > Advanced.

2. Under the “Associated website” section on the Advanced settings page, enter your website URL in the box and click Add.

3. If you have successfully completed the verification in Google Search Console with the above steps, you will instantly see a success message with a green dot. Click Save to make your change.

In other cases, you will be guided to verify your website in the Google Search Console. If you see Pending, You can either click Verify if you own the website (after adding in search console) or Request approval to have a web admin approve it.

Once you have associated your website, wait for few days and you might get an email from Google+ or a YouTube notification for your custom URL even if you don’t meet all the requirements (mainly the minimum subscriber option).

YouTube association with Google+ profile

Google+ is a social network that adds a social layer to your Google presence, and Google previously made it necessary to have a Google+ profile to use its video network – YouTube among other platforms.

Back in 2015, when Google+ shifted to a community and interest-based social experience platform, Google announced that the YouTube channel no longer requires the Google+ profile.

Such developments also changed the YouTube custom URL settings, and that’s what we will look into next.

YouTube Custom URL – Google+ Profile Influence

To make the user experience consistent and have a unified identity for the creator, Google previously allowed choosing the same Google+ URL as your YouTube custom URL or YouTube vanity URLs.

With changes in the Google+ requirement for Youtube, the custom URL option has now changed, and you can no longer get a custom Google+ URL as your custom YouTube URL or YouTube username.

These changes also mean that you don’t need the same Google+ URL to claim a new YouTube custom URL and vice versa.

In fact, you can totally delete your Google+ profile association if you have connected them in the past without affecting your YouTube channel. Make sure you don’t delete your entire Google profile, though.

Final Thoughts on Custom YouTube URL

Custom YouTube URL is an essential feature of your channel, and I hope I have convinced you to take extra efforts to claim the URL of your choice.

The YouTube team also believe that a custom URL is an essential feature for both creators and subscribers on the platform. The recent changes such as disconnecting from Google+ and allowing users to claim to brand new custom URLs with minimum requirements are all part of improving the feature.

Have you claimed a custom URL for your YouTube channel yet? Let me know if you have any confusion related to the new changes in claiming your custom URL in the comments below.

And if you found this tutorial helpful, consider subscribing to my YouTube Channel here.

Need a hand growing your YouTube channel? Try TubeBuddy for free today!

How to Unsuspend Twitter Account? – 2026 Guide

Thu, 11 Aug 2016 09:26:22 GMT

Learn how to appeal and restore your Twitter account when it gets suspended in this tutorial.

There are several reasons why your Twitter account may get suspended. Twitter decides to suspend a user’s account if it’s been compromised or on the grounds of not adhering to Twitter rules.

Twitter accounts mostly get suspended because Twitter thinks your account might be spammy, or fake, or if it detects abusive Tweets or behaviour that can harm other users.

You can appeal to Twitter to get your account unsuspended and restored as usual if you haven’t done any serious violation of their rules.

Follow the steps below as I walk you through this step-by-step guide for getting your Twitter account resuspended.

The screenshots that you see in the tutorial below are from a client’s Twitter account(@SocialShire) when it was suspended and appealed to get it restored.

Make sure your Twitter account says it’s been suspended. When your account is suspended, your Twitter account URL will be redirected to this account suspended page.

Steps to Submit Appeal Form for Suspended Account

Step 1: The first step is to log in to your Twitter account. Sometimes, restoring your suspended Twitter account can be as simple as verifying your email address or adding your phone number to your account.

If you see any notifications asking you to provide your phone number or verify your email address, follow the instructions and your account will be unsuspended shortly.

Step 2: If you don’t see any such notifications, you might only see a prompt like below asking you to visit the Suspended Accounts page for more information.

You might want to visit the page and learn more about why your account might have been suspended.

Step 3: So, if you think Twitter made a mistake suspending your account, go to this Appeal Form and submit a description of why you think Twitter might have suspended your account.

Please ensure that you have been logged in from your suspended account to access this form. You will see a notification asking you to login if from the suspended account if you are logged in from any other active account.

Step 4: You can just select desktop for the first question asking you “Where are you experiencing this issue?”

Second, take some time to explain the issue and why you think your account might have been suspended.

Remember, you are writing to a real person on the other end – it pays to be polite.

Step 5: You can now expect an email from Twitter support within the next few days.

Step 6: If they are convinced of the reasons or might have done it in error, you will get an email shortly saying your account has been unsuspended.

Step 7: It only took a few hours for my account @socialshire to get unsuspended and here’s the email that I received.

If you receive any other email, please follow the guidelines and cooperate with them to get your account unsuspended.

You can find more forms for several other Twitter issues such as getting your account restored, help with a locked account or verifying your account on this page.

I hope the tutorial was useful to help you unsuspend your Twitter account. Please let me know if you have any questions in the comments below.

How to Move Your Tumblr Blog from one Account to Another?

Tue, 09 Aug 2016 13:57:21 GMT

If you have created more Tumblr blogs under one account, you might easily come across a situation where you will have to move your blog to some other account.

This might be transferring the blog to someone else’s account or your own Tumblr account.

Moving your Tumblr blog from one account to another is really easy. Follow the steps below with complete screenshots to change the main account for your Tumblr blog.

Please note we can only move Secondary blogs to a different account. You can learn about Primary vs. Secondary blog features in this official Tumblr guide.

In this tutorial, I will show you the complete steps for changing the account for your Tumblr blog. I will first create a Tumblr blog on my old account and show you how to change it to my other new account.

Creating a Secondary blog on Tumblr

Step 1: Creating a new blog on a Tumblr account is simple. From your Account icon on the top right, click on +New.

Step 2: Fill in the title and URL of your blog and click Create blog.

Step 3: We have now created a new Tumblr blog for SocialShire!

Now, I have a new Tumblr blog that needs to be moved to another account. (Of course, I created the new blog here on purpose just to show the steps in this tutorial.)

Follow along to change the main account or move to a new account for this Tumblr blog.

Change Account for Tumblr Blog

Step 1: Go to the Members section from the right-side menu of your blog.

Step 2: Enter the email address of your new Tumblr account and send an invite to join your blog.

Step 3: Tumblr will now send a link to the new email to join the blog under the new Tumblr account.

You can also copy the link yourself and open it in another window. (Remember to sign out of the current Tumblr).

Step 4: Sign out of your current Tumblr and sign into your new account.

Step 5: The blog will be added to your new account, and you should now see your new account under members of the blog.

Step 6: Sign in back to your old account and you can promote the new account as Admin.

You will get a notification saying you cannot undo this step. Proceed only if you want to do this.

Step 7: Finally, you can choose to remove yourself from the old account if you only want the new account to have access.

You will get a warning to confirm that you want to leave the blog.

Step 8: Sign in back to your new account and you should see you only have access to the new blog.

If you had created posts under your previous account, all of them would remain on your Tumblr blog.

I hope the tutorial was helpful to you in changing the account of your Tumblr blog. Let me know if you have any questions below.

Reid Hoffman at Oxford Said Business School

Fri, 10 Jun 2016 15:08:07 GMT

Reid Hoffman, LinkedIn co-founder, venture capitalist and author, returned to Oxford last Sunday to speak at the Said Business school, University of Oxford.

For those of us in tech and startups, Reid Hoffman doesn’t need any introduction. He is a silicon valley veteran and the brain behind many startups that we know today.

In an hour-long talk with the school’s dean Peter Tufano, Hoffman spoke on several topics and issues related to Entrepreneurship and Startups. The conversation specifically revolved around topics including blitzscaling, trends in technology, and modern career trajectories.

I took the opportunity to broadcast his talk live from my Facebook page. This was also the perfect chance for me to try Facebook live from my personal page.

You can watch the talk recorded live in the video below.

Reid Hoffman at Oxford SBS Live Video

Sorry for the poor quality of the video – the school’s wifi wasn’t strong enough to meet the requirements for Facebook’s high-quality live video.

You can watch the full official video recorded live here.

Reid Hoffman Oxford SBS Images

Here’re a few photos that I managed to take at the event in addition to streaming the live video.

Introducing Reid Hoffman, School’s dean Peter Tufano first took an aside to talk about how Said Business school (SBS) has been supporting entrepreneurs with their LaunchPad program and other activities.

The aside, however, was for a big announcement that Reid Hoffman has donated a seed fund of $1M for ‘The Oxford Foundry,’ a new initiative to support future student entrepreneurs from across Oxford. Hoffman has also agreed to be the senior advisor giving his time and advice to the initiative.

The discussions then started with Reid’s book Startup of You, which is a fantastic book not only for startup founders but for all graduates to think about their careers in an entrepreneurial way.

He also managed to take a few questions from the audience to talk about a wide range of other topics towards the end of his talk.

Interestingly, as a prolific venture capitalist, Hoffman was also asked about the current hot issue of Peter Thiel vs Gawker. With no surprises, Hoffman had a straightforward answer in support of Peter Thiel keeping the secrecy part of his involvement aside.

Finally, he took some time to stay after his talk and meet some of us for a group photo. Here’s a group photo kindly provided by David of Fisher Studios.

When the school emailed us about this announcement, it was mentioned that this will be one of the rare chances to see Reid speak in the UK.

Indeed, Reid’s talk with Dean Peter Tufano was really inspiring and stimulating. Thank you, Oxford SBS! Thank you, Reid!!

How to Monetize YouTube Videos With AdSense – 2026 Guide

Wed, 09 Mar 2016 01:54:48 GMT

One of the easiest ways to monetize YouTube videos is to enable the monetization option for your YouTube account and link your channel with your Google AdSense Account.

Google AdSense is a program by Google that helps publishers make money from their content. As a YouTube creator, you can join the publisher program to start making money from your videos.

Monetizing your YouTube videos with Google AdSense is one of the most common and easy ways to make money from your YouTube videos.

Once you have associated your YouTube channel with an AdSense account, you will have the option to submit your videos for monetization.

Your video will be approved for monetization if it passes YouTube monetization requirements. General criteria for meeting such requirements include provisions of your videos being advertiser-friendly and that you own the rights to the content to use it commercially.

In this tutorial, I will walk you through the steps that you need to complete to monetize YouTube videos and start making money from your videos.

YouTube Monetization Update: YouTube has introduced further changes to its Partner program, limiting the monetization to YouTube channels that have over 4,000 hours of watch time within the past 12 months and 1,000 subscribers.

Previously the changes required YouTube channels to meet the minimum threshold of 10,000 lifetime views to apply for the YouTube partner program and enable monetization.

Here’s the summary of steps to associate your YouTube account with AdSense for monetization if you know your way around both YouTube and AdSense.

Go to your YouTube dashboard by clicking on your YouTube account icon and Creator Studio.
From your Creator Studio dashboard, go to the Monetisation page under Channel Menu on your left sidebar (Channel > Monetisation)
Under the “Guidelines and Information” section, you will see information about FAQ – “How will I be paid?”.
Click on the AdSense Association page and follow the next step that directs you to AdSense and YouTube association pages.
Sign in with the Google Account that has AdSense enabled and the one that you want to associate with your channel.
Once you have logged in, click to Accept the association on the page.
You will now be redirected to your YouTube account and soon receive messages and notifications to enable monetization for your videos.

Follow the detailed guide below with all the steps that are involved in the YouTube monetization process with AdSense.

Follow the steps below to enable monetization on your YouTube account and link your YouTube account with Google Adsense.

Step 1: First, you will need to go to your YouTube Creator Studio dashboard. When you are on YouTube, click on your icon on the top left, and click on the Creator Studio button that takes you to your creator studio dashboard.

Step 2: When in Creator Studio, navigate to Channel > Monetization, and here you should see an option to enable Monetization. Click on the Enable button, and you will be guided to complete a monetization agreement.

Additional note: Your channel needs to be verified to complete this step. Getting verified status for your channel involves associating your phone number with your account.

You should be able to see your channel status as Partner Verified before you proceed with other steps.

Step 3: Once you enable the monetization for your account and complete the YouTube monetization agreement, there’s one more step left to do.

You now have the option to monetize your videos, but you will need to link your YouTube account to an Adsense account.

Step 4: At this point, check to see that your account is enabled for Monetization under the Account Status.

Although there’s no link or button to configure the AdSense account on this screen, there are a few ways you can go ahead from here.

You should immediately receive an email outlining the steps that you need to take forward to be paid by YouTube.

Step 5: The email, as you can see in the screenshot, urges you to link to an AdSense account and provides you with a link that you can click and start the process.

Alternatively, you should get a notification bar on top of your dashboard urging you to link your channel to an AdSense account.

“Almost there! Don’t forget to link your channel to an AdSense account to earn money and get paid for your monetized videos.”

Step 6: Proceed by clicking on the link by using any of the methods above and you should see this “Welcome to AdSense” screen.

If you already have an AdSense account, you can simply sign in with the Google account that you have used to sign up for Adsense. If you are signed into AdSense already, you should see a screen that asks you if you want to sign in using the same address.

One important thing to note here is that you don’t need an AdSense account associated with the email account of your current YouTube account. You can link to any other independent AdSense account.

Creating an AdSense account is another big topic, but if you need to signup for an account – Sign in with your Google account first, and you will be guided to apply for an Adsense account.

You should obviously have used a Google account to set up a YouTube account, but if you want your AdSense account to be on a different account, you can click on “Create Account”, and it’s easy to follow along.

Step 7: Assuming you have an AdSense account already, click on sign in, and it will now take you to Step 2 in the process, where it will simply list your YouTube channel under my website section.

(The YouTube URL shown here is the ID-based URL of your YouTube Channel. Learn how to claim a custom YouTube URL here. )

Accept the Association with your Adsense account and it will redirect you back to YouTube Confirming all the details.

That’s all you need to do to link your YouTube account to your AdSense account! You should now see options for AdSense settings and review and change your AdSense association.

There’re a few more steps that you need to do to start making money from your videos.

Enabling Monetization for YouTube Videos

Step 8: As mentioned in the email that you receive after enabling monetization, you will need to go to your Video Manager and enable monetization on all of your videos published already on your channel.

You should also receive an email saying that your AdSense account association with YouTube has been approved and that you’re ready to start making money from your videos.

Click on monetize my videos to enable monetization on videos that you have already published on your YouTube Channel.

If you have several videos uploaded on your YouTube channel, you can monetize all those videos at once by navigating to Channel > Monetization. You will see your videos left to monetize on this page. Click on “Monetize Videos” (see screenshot).

Step 9: For videos that you upload after associating with an AdSense account, you will see an option to enable monetization for each of them directly in your upload manager.

When you upload your videos, go to your Monetization tab and flip the switch button for Monetize with Ads. You will also be asked to agree with the terms that you own the rights to the video and its content.

Ad Formats to Monetize YouTube Videos

As you can see above, you can choose from all the available Ad formats that will decide the type of Ads that will appear in your YouTube videos.

Here’s the list of all available Ad formats for YouTube videos that can help you decide to choose from. I recommend selecting all Ad formats so that YouTube can choose and decide to display the most relevant Ads to your viewers.

Display Ads – Ad sizes of 300×250 or 300×60 appearing on the right side of the videos on desktop devices.
Overlay Ads – Ad sizes of 468×60 or 728×90 appearing on the lower end of the videos on desktop devices.
Skippable Video Ads – Full-sized video ads that play before your video in the player and can be skipped after 5 seconds. The Ad play on several devices and can be inserted before, during, or after the main video.
Sponsored Cards – Displays cards with related products featured in your video on desktop and mobile devices.

You don’t see it in the screenshot above under Ad formats options but depending on your account, you might also see options for Bumper Ads (6 seconds long, Non-skippable video ads) and Non-skippable video ads up to 30 seconds long, available to monetize Youtube videos that you upload.

I hope the tutorial was helpful to you in setting up monetization for your YouTube videos by linking to an Adsense account.

If you are just getting started on YouTube and looking for ways to make money with your videos, watch this short video from YouTube Creator Academy.

Do you monetize YouTube videos with Google Adsense? Let me know in the comments below.

If you find this tutorial helpful, consider subscribing to my YouTube channel here.

Need a hand growing your YouTube channel? Try TubeBuddy for free today!

Amazon Affiliate Program: Amazon Associates – 2026 Guide

Wed, 09 Dec 2015 17:51:22 GMT

This is a getting-started guide to the Amazon Affiliate Program. Follow this tutorial to signup for an Amazon affiliate account and learn how to create Amazon affiliate links.

If you are into affiliate marketing, I am sure you should have heard of Amazon associates. The affiliate program of Amazon, Amazon Associates is, in fact, one of the pioneers of Affiliate marketing. It is one of the most popular and successful programs in the entire affiliate marketing ecosystem.

One of the reasons why Amazon’s affiliate program – Amazon Associates works is that Amazon is a well-known and trustworthy brand. The online giant has something for everyone, and it converts really well. Depending on your niche, you can expect to earn significant commissions by referring to several Amazon products.

What is Amazon Associates Program?

Amazon Associates is really popular affiliate program from the eCommerce giant that has been around for years and is one of the top programs for several affiliates and bloggers.

Many bloggers claim to have made a significant amount in commissions from the Amazon Associates program. Darren Rowse of Problogger, for example, claims to have made more than $420,000 in the last ten years of his blogging journey with the Amazon affiliate program.

Few other reasons why I think you should get started with the Amazon affiliate program;

Easy to Enrol: Amazon Associates is for everyone, and it’s really easy to get started (see the three steps walk-through below). You can be up and running in less than five minutes.

Simple to Link: Linking to Amazon products is really easy. All you have to do is search for the products in your niche (that you want to recommend) and grab the link.

Paid for Complete Orders: You don’t just get paid for the products that you refer to. You will earn commissions for the entire order someone makes within 24 hours period (affiliate window) of landing on Amazon from your link.

Amazon’s affiliate program, however, is criticized lately for being a complete waste of time. Few reasons that I repeatedly hear criticisms of the program include;

Low Commissions: The commission rate ranges from only 4-8% depending on the product type and your performance (number of sales).

Short Cookie Period: Your referrals need to make a purchase within 24 hours. (Items added to cart within the 24 hour period will still earn you commissions if the purchase is made within 89 days.)

You can take some time to research the program and see if it’s worth your time, but I recommend getting on board and slowly making your way if it fits your blog.

Amazon affiliate program is easy to get started, has a wide range of products, and the integration is really simple.

If you decide to go ahead, let me guide you through the process of creating your account and adding links to your content in the tutorial below.

Signing up for Amazon Associates is a fairly easy process. Let me walk you through the three important steps that you need to complete.

First, you need to decide which Amazon marketplace you want to join. Amazon operates in different countries, and all of them have separate associates program.

You might either want to join your own country’s associate program or the Amazon US associates program. You can decide to join as many marketplace programs as you want, but you want to make sure you can receive payments from those Amazon marketplaces.

For example, programs in Japan, China, India, Brazil, and Mexico currently do not offer international payments, and you might not want to join those unless you are based in that country.

Here’re the links to the participating associate programs –

Once you have decided on the marketplace to join, let’s proceed with the steps to create an Amazon Associates account.

Step 1: Creating an Account on Amazon Associates

The first step is to create an account on Amazon with your email address. You can also use your existing Amazon account (that you use for purchases) to sign in.

Go to the Amazon Associates website and choose the marketplace that you want to sign up for.

If you are signing up for a foreign marketplace, use Google translate to help you understand the fields.

Click Join Now on the homepage of the desired Amazon marketplace.

You can either sign in with your existing Amazon email address or create a new account to proceed.

Step 2: Information about your Website

In this section, you will need to fill in details about your websites or blogs that you will use to drive traffic to Amazon products.

The information on this page is catered to a broad category. So, don’t worry if your website/blog doesn’t fit in one of the categories provided or if you don’t have specific options to select from.

Amazon collects this information so that it can better serve you and you can also update this information once you are inside the program.

See the below screenshot for general information that I have filled in.

Once you proceed, depending on the country’s program that you are signing up for, you will be presented with additional options to opt for.

For example, if you signup for Amazon Associates UK, you will be presented with options to signup for other Amazon associates programs in the EU countries. This makes it easy to join several EU programs with a single application.

Amazon.de PartnerNet, Afiliados de Amazon.es, Club Partenaires Amazon, and Programma Affiliazione di Amazon.it are some of the programs of Amazon associates operating in the EU region.

Additionally, note that you will get a different Associates ID for each program that you sign up for. The Associates ID are unique with part of your name (or full) at the beginning with a number representing the country (20 for the US, 21 for the UK) at the end.

Please make a note of your Associate ID as you might need to provide it occasionally to verify your Amazon affiliate account.

Although you are immediately granted full access to Associates Central, your account will only be reviewed after you have referred your first sale to Amazon.

Another important thing to note is, that you will need to refer your first sale within 180 days for your Amazon Associates account to remain active (More on that in the later section).

Step 3: Specify Payment Method

Although you can actually skip this and complete this task later, I recommend completing it now so that you have a good idea of how this works. You will need to complete it before you start receiving payments.

Click on Specify Payment now to proceed.

I recommend using the direct deposit option if it’s available. The option is only available if you are signing up for your home country Amazon Associates program.

You will need to enter your bank account number, sort code, IBAN, and BIC number to complete this form. You can contact your bank or refer to online banking to get the International Bank Account Number (IBAN) required to receive international payments.

Most banks have a tool to let you create your IBAN and BIC numbers (use this tool for Barclays Bank in the UK – More info here).

The next option is cheque payments but there are processing fees (usually very high) associated with this option.

And if you do all your shopping on Amazon, you can surely benefit by getting paid with Amazon gift card certificates.
Finally, If you are signing up for multiple associates programs (for EU programs as mentioned in step 2 above), you can use the same payment method for all of the programs.
Click on Continue and you are finally on the dashboard of your affiliate account!

Now that you have signed up for an account, you might want to learn how to link to Amazon products so that you can start making commissions.

Create Amazon Affiliate Links

Amazon makes it really easy to create affiliate links for its products. After you log in to your Amazon affiliate dashboard called Associates Central, you will have options to search for products and get links to products within your dashboard.

Here’re a few ways that you can create affiliate links with your Amazon Associates account.

#1 Associates Central Dashboard

Using Search Box

You will be presented with a search box to search for products on Amazon.

Enter your keywords or ASIN/ISBN (more on that later) to get a list of the products that you can link to. See the screenshot below.

Corresponding to the product that you want to link, click on the “Get Link” button on your left.
You can click on highlight HTML and copy and paste the full link. You can also generate a Short URL for the product that you want to link (see screenshot).

As you can see, I search for Canon 7D Mark II (one of my favourite cameras that I use), and this is the default link and short link for the product.

Browsing Product Categories

On the next tab, you have the option to browse for products from the major categories on Amazon. (See Screenshot).

Choose your product category and you will be presented with a list of products from that category.
From the list of 400 products, click on the corresponding get link button of the product that you want to link.

#2 Links and Banners Page

In addition to the Associates Central Dashboard (discussed above) that helps you to quickly create links, Amazon provides a dedicated page to generate links and banners for your affiliate account.

Click on the Links and Banners menu and you will have the option to create product links, banner links, quick linker and link checker tools. Let’s further look at the product links page.

Similar to the search box on the home dashboard, you can search for products by selecting categories and using keywords or ASIN/ISBN number.

You can directly find the product by using unique ASIN/ISBN number that is found under Product description on each product page of Amazon.

Once you find the product, you can again create and copy the link that you need.

#3 Amazon Website Stripe / Bar

Using Amazon website stripe is probably the easiest way to get links for the products that you want. When you are logged into your associates, you will see a stripe on top of your Amazon website.

The affiliate stripe appears at the top of every Amazon product page and you can use it to quickly create links.

You also have additional options on the bar including social sharing and links to your earnings summary page.

Adding Amazon Affiliate Links to Blog / Website

Now that you have created your affiliate link, go ahead and link it from your content within your blog or website.

This is similar to adding any other links to your content. Select the words that you want to link and paste the link that you created above. See the screenshot of the WordPress editor.

One additional tip is to add rel=”nofollow” to your links URL. This is rather important for your SEO aspect and it’s easy to add manually when creating the link.

– Image source

Top Amazon Affiliate Program Tips

Optimizing and making the most out of your affiliate program is another long topic (keep an eye out for an upcoming post) but here are a few tips to set you in the right direction.

Join Multiple Amazon Affiliate Programs

One thing that many beginners aren’t aware of is that you will earn commissions or referral fees from sales in the same locale as your Associate ID. Join multiple Amazon marketplaces and promote products from stores where you get the most visitors and clicks.

Also, find tools that can help dynamically generate links to the marketplace native to your visitors.

Find Right Amazon Affiliate Tools

This might take some time, but I suggest you start looking for tools that can help you simplify the process of creating links and inserting them into your content.

WordPress plugins such as Amazon Link and platforms such as Geni.us can help you to create links that dynamically change based on the visitor’s location. Geni.us lets you track the countries that you are getting the most clicks from and associate your local Amazon Associates ID.

Make use of Amazon Opportunities

You will see several opportunities highlighted by Amazon to make the most out of their affiliate program. Most of such opportunities are available in the spotlight section of your associates’ dashboard.
Besides, keep an eye on the seasonal promotions (such as this Beautiful Lists, updated daily) and follow the Amazon Associates blog to keep updated with the program.

Prevent your Account Deactivation / Rejection

Amazon expects your websites to receive consistent traffic and importantly wants you to refer more sales. Your Amazon Associates account will be rejected or deactivated if you fail to refer a sale within 180 days of sign-up to the program. You will then lose your access to Associates Central.

You can however always reapply for the Amazon Associates program. Just sign in again and resubmit your application. Although you will be accepted immediately, make sure you prevent your account application from getting rejected by making a sale within the next 180 days.

Here’s the email that you will receive from Amazon associates if your account gets rejected following inactivity or no sale.

I will follow up with another post with more tips to make the most out of the Amazon Associates program but if you have more tips for the program, go ahead and share them in the comments below.

I hope the tutorial was helpful to you in setting up an Amazon affiliate account. Let me know if you have any questions in the comments below.

Do you Need a Degree in Entrepreneurship to Start a Startup?

Sun, 22 Nov 2015 18:23:25 GMT

As part of my usual routine, I was reading some answers on Quora this morning, and this question about Entrepreneurship and Startups, in particular, grabbed my attention.

The short version of the question is – Should I do an MBA / MSc in Entrepreneurship to start my Startup?

The question echoes the broad ongoing discussion on if you really need an academic qualification to become an entrepreneur or start a startup.

The broader alternative to the above question that I have seen frequently discussed around the web is “can entrepreneurship be taught?”.

Read my Quora answer along with some other general viewpoints that I think are important to help you make the decision.

My Quora Answer

My one-word answer would be NO, but I decided to add a few more lines to help with the query. Here’s the complete answer.

“I just finished my MSc in Entrepreneurship from one of the business schools here in the UK. Like you, I was probably lured by the fact that I could have a degree in Entrepreneurship. If the degree is the only thing you care about, then go for it.

But wait, you said you wanted to do it to set up your own business. Well, if entrepreneurship can be taught or not is a big issue for discussion, but the truth is that business schools are mainly designed to teach Management.

Even the top schools have yet to grasp how to teach Entrepreneurship. Most of the programs in Entrepreneurship are poorly designed, and schools do it because they are seeing a huge interest from their potential applicants.

Also, the fact is that most of these schools want to establish themselves as modern schools for several other reasons.

Having said that, as with MBA or MSc in any discipline, the most important thing you can get out of it is “networking”.

If you get the opportunity to do an MBA at one of the top schools, just go for it for all other benefits, such as networking but do not expect them to ‘teach’ you Entrepreneurship.

Long story short, if you want to build your business, get started NOW. You do not need to master the management, Startup, and entrepreneurship topics. What you need to master is your customer’s needs.

Good Luck!”

Reflecting on the positive aspects, I have written an essay on skills that you can develop from a degree in entrepreneurship.

Other View Points

Here’re some other viewpoints that I recommend reading on the central theme of “can entrepreneurship be taught?”.

Richard Branson, one of the famous entrepreneurs, suggests that entrepreneurial success depends on a combination of personality traits and instinctive skills. He further argues that academic coursework is not enough to develop such skills and that it requires actual jobs and the right mentorship.

George Deeb, the author of “101 Startup Lessons–An Entrepreneur’s Handbook”, in his Forbes article, evaluates essential skills required for entrepreneurship. He concludes that it really isn’t about taught or born skills and that you need both to maximise your skill set for being an entrepreneur.

Another Wall Street Journal article provides few comprehensive insights quoting critics from both sides of the argument. Here’s an infographic from the article presenting the characteristics of successful entrepreneurs.

Paul Graham, best known for helping startups (Ycombinator), in his lecture on How to Start a Startup, argues true entrepreneurship, not learned entrepreneurship. The entire video is worth watching.

You can also follow me on Quora or ask any questions related to the topic in the comments below.

So, what do you think of Entrepreneurship? Can it be taught, or is it something that you have to develop by doing?

Skills That I Developed From a Degree in Entrepreneurship

Sat, 21 Nov 2015 23:23:12 GMT

I invested my last year pursuing a postgraduate degree in Entrepreneurship at one of the universities here in the UK.

I am now a business management graduate and hold an MSc degree from Oxford Brookes University, one of the universities based in Oxford, UK.

As part of one of the personal development modules, I wrote a reflective essay on skills that I developed from my degree in entrepreneurship.

This essay is my reflection on the skills that I gained from the postgraduate degree in entrepreneurship.

Follow the essay to know more about the skills you can develop while at the university that are helpful for your entrepreneurial career.

1.0 Introduction

I think I was trying to do “entrepreneurship” even before I knew what the term meant. When I explored the term’s meaning, it didn’t take me long to associate myself with it and then began my passion for entrepreneurship.

I came to this university mainly because I could specialize in Entrepreneurship by doing my master’s degree in business management.

Over the year, I have developed several skills that are crucial in terms of growing my two startups and leading my life as a successful entrepreneur.

2.0 Personal and Professional Development

There is an ongoing debate on if you really need to have a degree to be an entrepreneur (HBR, 2011) or a startup something but for me, a rather important concern was that I wanted to be in an academic environment that will inspire me to think about ideas and do something.

The best part besides being in an academic environment at this University was being involved in two entrepreneurial societies based in Oxford – Oxford Entrepreneurs and Oxford Brookes Entrepreneurs that significantly helped me to grow my network and build effective connections.

I had plans of launching my startup within a few years, and I started exploring options for the best possible ways to do it.

Considering that it’s very difficult to return to the academic environment once I start working full-time, I thought of investing a year more in doing a master’s degree.

The entire MSc program was geared towards developing business and leadership skills and thus, in hindsight, I believe to have made a really good decision.

A year’s investment in the degree has helped me prepare in a much better way for my proposed long-term plan for an entrepreneurial career.

3.0 Skills Development Reflections

Several skills, that I learnt and improved on, have assisted me in gaining a better understanding of my self-awareness and have greatly enhanced my knowledge of career options that I can pursue for my thriving future.

The application of Johari Window (Luft and Ingham, 1955), particularly knowing about my blind area skills helped me build self-awareness, as by decreasing my blind area, I would have more of my truth open to me.

This was particularly useful in developing group working skills among others that were the main priority in my previous action plan.

Joining the program also helped me evaluate other options that are open to me and although this hasn’t changed my primary plan of following an entrepreneurial pathway, it has made me open to other contingency plans.

I have developed myself certain skills such as group working, presentation, critical thinking, career management, and leadership, and I am using this reflective statement as an opportunity to reflect on those skills I have learnt to transform myself over the past year.

3.1 Group Working Skills

Working in a group is always a challenge and with multicultural groups like ours, it was even more challenging.

Because I didn’t prefer to work in teams initially, I made improving group work skills as my short-term plan. As I became aware of my own nature with an understanding of MBTI nature and Belbin roles, I used that to develop the skills effectively in group-working situations.

Understanding my Belbin roles (i.e. being “Plant” type, I was more action orientated) helped me understand my own role among the particular team, which I used to develop my strengths and manage my weakness as a team member, and thus improve my contribution to the overall group work.

It didn’t only help me to understand my own behaviour in the group but also knowing others’ preferences and roles was useful in terms of delegating and managing my expectations from the group members. Similarly, relating my MBTI preferences indicated being an INFP (Introverted Feeling with Extraverted Intuition) that supported my preference of being intuitive about people, being a good listener and keeping people at ease.

I can further relate this to my entrepreneurial career, which will involve team building and group work as a crucial aspects of it.

Ensuring fair composition within my team members with regard to Belbin team roles and understanding each other’s MBTI preferences will ensure that the team implements robust solutions and takes a bird’s eye view in making decisions.

Also, reflecting on the group works carried out during the semester, I have developed essential skills such as working in virtual groups, which might be essential for me for my future projects of startups.

Additionally, the reflection also made me seriously think about if I was able to lead and motivate others to follow and deliver my vision. Indeed being able to motivate others is a crucial skill required for entrepreneurs and I used the group work incident on framing the changes I could make to develop this skill.

Using the above-mentioned Johari Window tool and using it as a framework for identifying blind area skills also helped me to know the perspectives of my team members in the group.

By learning and adopting a framework of group work stages (Tuckman, 1965), I have thus realised that I need to focus more on communication during the storming phase to achieve better results from the performing stage.

3.2 Presentation Skills

My initial feedback on presentation skills from one of the master classes of the module suggested that I should work on my articulation.

After that session, I approached the trainer to seek ideas on how I could improve my articulation and simple tips (such as reading aloud, among others) that I practised every day helped me to improve the articulation of my speech during future presentations.

I added this to my short-term plan and the improvement in articulation was supported by the Viva feedback I received from the module leader of this PDL in semester one.

I was glad to have received feedback that acknowledged my possessing other skills such as good posture, eye contact, body language, voice projection, and good pace of speech among others necessary for effective presentation skills.

Reflecting on the recent incident of pitching my idea in a hackathon, however, made me realize of more practice is required in different settings.

I could have performed better with presentation skills amongst familiar faces in classroom settings but as things change in large and unfamiliar settings, my practice to gain confidence is still necessary.

Linking this to my career management, strong presentation skills will further benefit my startup/business presentations, be that for funding or partnerships.

3.3 Critical Thinking Skills

Critical thinking is the most crucial skill that I struggled to gain over the year at Brookes.

The university program has definitely helped me in achieving a huge leap of critical thinking efforts from being unconscious incompetence (as I wasn’t particularly aware of the deficiency till semester 1, to being conscious competence (as I believe I can perform it reliably at will).

With continued practice of critical thinking skills both in my writings and in everyday life, I aim to make it my second nature i.e. be unconscious competence at critical thinking.

In addition, an assessment of my personal strengths and weaknesses (SWOT) along with my preferences and their possible impact on my decisions made me practice critical thinking.

My own understanding of critical thinking skills when I started the program was basically at an “unreflective thinker” stage i.e. I was unaware of significant problems in my thinking. Based on feedback from semester 1, I have put this into my short-term goal under my future action plan.

With regular practice of this skill in conjunction with assignments and discussion, I want to progress to “the advanced thinker” stage i.e. to advance in accordance with my continued practice. And progressing it further, I want to take it to the level where skilled & insightful thinking becomes second nature to me, and I achieve the “master thinker” stage (Paul & Elder, 2006).

3.4 Career Management Skills

The course and degree overall opened a broad array of opportunities. The most important option that I considered evaluating and actually doing was joining a graduate program of innovative companies.

Even after passing the several stages of one of the top graduate employers and having a clear view of the development process of graduate roles, I finally decided to withdraw from the graduate program.

Such a bold decision was after seeking advice from a consultant at careers service and advice from my close networks who in fact supported my option of continuing with building my startups.

Leaving the graduate program option, however, meant that I had to make sure of my graduate entrepreneurial route through the university endorsement scheme.

With further advice from my careers consultant, I approached the business development manager at Brookes responsible for the graduate entrepreneur scheme. After discussing my business plan and eligibility for the scheme, I have been assured a place in the scheme, and I can proceed to be a university-endorsed graduate entrepreneur as soon as I receive my master’s degree results.

But to be successful as an entrepreneur over the next few years, I need to have a clear idea of opportunities (arising from self-evaluation) and challenges that I need to overcome. Along with evaluating my entrepreneurial options, I have taken a step further to evaluate opportunities and challenges for me being an entrepreneur.

Considering the previous action plan, I had determined career planning and building my startup as important goals. I am a social-savvy person and although I had made sure of my presence on networking sites like Linkedin, the master class on career management included additional tips on optimizing the profile to look more professional.

With almost ten thousand followers on Twitter (@pradeepdotco) and hundreds of useful connections on Linkedin, I have built an extensive social profile useful for my career.

Further, observing interview skills in action in one of the master classes and taking recorded mock interview practice at the Brookes careers service has not only increased my own interview skills but also provided insights into the aspects of what to look for in people and how to make decisions on hiring the best candidates.

I reflect this from the perspective of an entrepreneur where finding co-founders and team building can be really important for me.

While I have now built on the necessary skills that I identified as my success criteria, this is the area that I need to further focus on in my forward action plan to achieve my long-term plan of being a successful entrepreneur.

3.5 Leadership Skills

The importance of leadership skills was made evident frequently through master classes of the personal development module that helped me develop in areas of problem-solving and decision-making skills, communication and negotiation skills, and personal effectiveness and building self-awareness.

My own observation of skills (through a recorded video demonstrating leadership skills) and the feedback received from peers made me self-aware of my leadership style. Based on the positive feedback received from the participation in the graduate trainee selection exercise, I perceive being an effective leader as one of my competencies.

As a leader, I am more of a collaborative person that respects the different perspectives of people in the team.

Additionally, the use of Kilmann’s (1977) conflict mode instrument (TKI) helped me foster my leadership ability in the later stages of the semester.

Reflecting on the previous group works I find myself to have been in the “competing” mindset but with the application of TKI, I now realize perhaps adopting a “collaborating” mindset with high assertiveness and cooperativeness would have been useful in conflict situations.

4. Conclusion

Working on this essay and several critical incident logs or reflective journals over the year developed my self-awareness significantly and became an essential part of my learning and development.

I have realized that reflections like this undoubtedly help me grow personally and professionally.

I plan to continue reflective thinking and writing and make it part of my learning process in my entrepreneurial journey.

* The essay makes reference to multiple action plans, critical incidents, and feedback sheets from seminars over the course of the year. A few prominent references are listed below.

References

HBR (2011) Harvard Business Review on Succeeding as an Entrepreneur. Harvard Business Review Press

Luft J and Ingham H (1955) The Johari Window, a Graphic Model of Interpersonal Awareness. Proceedings Of The Western Training Laboratory In Group Development. Los Angeles: UCLA.

Paul R and Elder L (2006) Critical thinking. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson/Prentice Hall

How to get your Business Facebook Page Verified?

Sun, 08 Nov 2015 01:24:22 GMT

Facebook now lets you apply to get your business Facebook page verified.

Getting your business page verified on Facebook is a great way to show that you are officially representing the business on Facebook.

Until now, Facebook verification was only available for celebrities, public figures, sports teams, media or entertainment pages. All such verified pages were represented with a blue verification badge.

Facebook has now introduced a slightly different grey verification badge, especially for business pages.

I recently applied to get one of my local businesses verified on Facebook. Now that my business page is verified, I want to document the verification process in this blog post.

You can follow through the process, to know more about the requirements and complete the steps to get your own business Facebook page verified.

Requirements for Business Page Verification

You will need to submit one of the two specific requirements to Facebook to get your business page verified.

Publicly listed phone number of your business.
Official Business documents such as Phone bills.

You will need to go through a slightly different process with each of the information.

A publicly listed phone number makes the verification process lot easier and here’re the steps that you need to go through.

Steps to get Business Facebook Page Verified

1. Navigate to your Page. Click on Settings on the top right side of the page. (You need to be an admin for the page to see this).

2. On the first General tab, click on the Page Verification. (It should say Page is not verified – Continue reading if you don’t have this option)

3. Click on Verify this Page link. (You should see the link below this information – Verified Pages show up higher in search results.)

4. You will need to enter publicly listed phone number of your business, your country, and language.

5. Click Call Me Now to allow Facebook to call you with a verification code.

6. Enter the four-digit verification code you receive and click on Continue.

Facebook will now automatically search for public records to see if the phone number that you provided is connected to your business.

This doesn’t take long, and you should get a reply usually within 10 minutes of the outcome. You should see a notification for a reply from Facebook support inbox.

You will also receive an email from Facebook with the outcome.

If you don’t pass the telephone verification, follow the steps below of getting verified by submitting your business document.

Page Verification with Business Document

If you don’t have a publicly listed phone number (or if Facebook fails to verify automatically with the number that you provided), you can still apply to get verified with an official business document.

Business Document Requirements

Facebook requires you to submit one of the following official documents for your business.

Utility bill for your place of business
Local business license (issued by your city, county or state)
Tax document for your business
Certificate of formation (for a partnership)
Articles of incorporation (for a corporation)

Verification Steps Using Business Document

1. Click on Settings of the Page.

2. From General settings tab, click on Page Verification.

3. Click on the “Verify this Page with documents instead.” on the lower left corner.

4. Click on Upload File and select your official document in accepted formats.

5. Finally, click on Send Document.

Please note that you should upload your file in one of these formats – .doc, .docx, .pdf, .jpg, .jpeg, .png

Obviously, this won’t be instant, and it might take few days to get your Facebook page verified.

Facebook suggests waiting up to 3 business days to get your verification request reviewed.

Your business page will have a dark gray verified checkmark next to the name once it’s been verified.

Benefits of Getting Facebook Page Verified

Showing authenticity might be the obvious benefit, but Facebook is promising a few other benefits such as higher ranks and early access to new features to the verified business pages.

Here’re the few benefits Facebook is officially promising for getting your Facebook page verified.

Higher ranks in search results to attract more visitors – Your page should appear on top when people start typing names related to your business.
Visitors know your Page is authentic – Of course, having a verified page means there’s an official representative behind the page.
Exclusive early access to new features – Facebook keeps rolling out several new features and thus getting your Facebook page verified means you might be lucky to get early access to several of those new features.

Facebook mainly aims to help its users reach the right and authentic local businesses with verified badges.

Did the verification process work for you? What do you think of the verified business pages?

How to Merge Google+ Brand Page with Local Business Page

Tue, 27 Oct 2015 00:19:21 GMT

So, you jumped on to Google+ to create a brand page and now find out that Google already has a page for your local business!

Or you have just added your local business on Google, and now you find that there are two different pages representing your brand.

If you have a local presence for your business, you might easily come across this situation on Google My Business where you have two separate presence for your brand.

It might not be a problem when both the pages are brand new as you can easily delete the brand page and just keep the local one.

The problem, however, is when you have accumulated some followers already on Google+ brand page and now have to start a brand new local business page.

Luckily there’s a way around this problem.

In this detailed step-by-step guide, I will show you how you can merge your Google+ brand page with your local business page.

Steps to Merge Google+ Page with Local Business Page

I will show you the steps by merging one of Sociler’s Google+ brand page with the local business page of the same brand.

Step 1. First, locate both of your pages. Navigate to Business.google.com and you will see two tabs (Locations and Brand Pages).

This is assuming that you have both Google+ pages and a Local business page. You should have added and verified a local business for your page to appear here.

Here’s the Local Business page of sociler under Locations.

Here’s the Google+ brand page of Sociler under Brand Pages.

Step 2. Now, Click on the “Manage Location” under Local Business page.

Step 3. Once you are on the local page, click on the Menu icon on top of the page.

Step 4. Now, click on Settings towards the end of the sidebar Menu.

Step 5. Under Settings, scroll to the Profile section towards the end of the page.

You will see that the page is connected to Google Maps. Click on “Connect a different page” button.

Step 6. You will now come up with “Link a different page to this location” dialogue box.

Choose the page you want to merge with from the drop-down menu with the list of your Google+ pages.

Step 7. Click Next and you will see a list of changes that you will need to confirm for.

The changes should be self-explanatory but here’re the major changes you should expect in your new page.

You page will be renamed to Local Business page name (You can always edit your name later).

The verification badge of a local business page will be retained.
All details from the local business page including telephone number and details will be on the new page.
Will retain all of your Google+ brand page followers.
Will have the URL of the Google+ brand page.
Will retain photos from the Google+ brand page and the existing local page photos will be archived.
Go ahead and confirm the changes.

You should now have a new page with all details from your existing Google+ brand page merged to verified and location of the local page.

Here’s the new merged page for the brand Sociler.

You can find your local page as “Backup of …” in your list of pages. Although the page is still visible on Google+, it won’t be visible on search results and Maps.

You can now safely delete the previous page.

I hope this tutorial helps you to merge your Google+ brand page with your local business page. Let me know if this was helpful for your brand in the comments below.

Toyota Business Model – Managing Business Operations

Wed, 24 Jun 2015 20:16:21 GMT

This report analyses and evaluates how well Toyota (Toyota Motor Corporation) uses its business operations to create a competitive advantage.

The report focuses on analyzing Toyota’s motor vehicle manufacturing operations. First, a brief profile of Toyota is presented which is followed by an analysis of Toyota’s operations based on the ‘4Vs’ model and in the context of the automobile Industry.

Next, the five performance objectives within the automotive industry are interpreted and the operations of Toyota are then evaluated in line with those performance objectives.

Further, the extent to which lean and/or agile principles are applied in Toyota’s operations, and the company’s supply chain are analysed.

Finally, the report summarizes the effectiveness of Toyota’s operations strategy suggesting recommendations and future challenges.

Brief Profile of Toyota

Toyota is one of the leading automakers in the world that produces and sells motor vehicles. The multinational company, headquartered in Japan has its operations based in North America, Japan, Europe and Asia including sales in more than 170 countries around the world.

Toyota has strong brand recognition and market position with a significant share of the home market (48.4 % in Japan), North America (13.8%), Asia (16.5% excluding Japan and China) and Europe (4.6%) for its products (Toyota SWOT Analysis, 2014).

The company operates 52 manufacturing companies in 27 countries around the world excluding Japan (Toyota UK, 2014) and employs a workforce of 338,875 employees as of March 31, 2014.

Such a strong market position and global production facilities help Toyota deliver sustainable business and achieve a competitive advantage in the long term.

Economic Environment Impact on Automobile Industry and Toyota

The automotive industry is mainly affected by global competition, various laws and government regulations (Loc.gov, 2014).

Toyota competes with other principal manufacturers such as General Motors, Ford, Honda, Volkswagen, and Nissan among others in the globally competitive marketplace.

Increasing competition in the industry can lead to a decrease in unit sales and a large inventory, thus urging manufacturers to decrease their prices. The competition will ultimately affect the financial and operations results of key players such as Toyota and others.

Complying with government laws and regulations is essential for companies within this sector. Toyota had to recall around 8.5 million vehicles worldwide in 2009/2010 to comply with standards of laws and governmental regulations (BBC, 2010) and such recalls affect the brand image of the company in addition to incurring significant costs.

The opportunities for the automotive industry include the recovering US economy and growth in demand from emerging BRIC markets which are expected to dominate the global car market by 2020 (KPMG, 2013). Industry players have benefited from moving their production facilities to India and China to tap into those markets and benefit from low-cost production.

Toyota also sees an opportunity in the growing hybrid and electric car market in the US where the demand has been increasing since 2012, as the economy is getting better and the US government legislation is favouring high-efficiency vehicles (Loc.gov, 2014).

Increasing fuel prices and growing environmental concerns among consumers encourage manufacturers to shift production to hybrid electric automobiles (Global Car & Automobile Manufacturing Market Research, 2013) and Toyota is taking advantage of that focusing on the production of high-efficient and green vehicles (Toyota Annual Report, 2012).

Toyota Business Model Operational Analysis

Analysis of Toyota’s operations based on 4Vs Model

Slack et al. (2012) defines operations principle as the way in which processes need to be managed and outlines the 4Vs i.e. volume, variety, variation and visibility that influences the operation processes. Toyota’s operation has been analysed based on those 4Vs below.

Volume of Processes

Toyota manufactures a large number of vehicles (8,736.5 thousand units in 2012, Toyota Production figures) and for such high output, there’s greater degree of repeatability in the process.

The high volume of output has allowed Toyota in systemization of activities and Toyota believes in developing deep expertise in specialities among its workforce as an essential requirement to its product-development system (Sobek II and Liker, 1998).

Such high volume process output helps Toyota gain economies of scale and thus reduces the unit cost of its production.

Variety of Processes

Toyota carefully chooses a variety to balance market demands and operational efficiency (Iyer, Seshadri and Vasher, 2009).

The company is present in all the segments of automotive and at least 70 different models of vehicles are sold by Toyota (Automotive, 2014) making the portfolio with a wide range of products and this accounts for a higher variety of processes.

High variety of processes enables Toyota to match a wider range of customer demands and be more flexible in eyes of customers. This, however, accounts for higher unit costs and makes the process relatively complex but Toyota has advanced other productions methods to control such aspects.

Variation of Processes

With predictably constant demand, it’s easier to allocate resources to a level that is capable of meeting the demand Slack et al. (2012).

The variation in demand for Toyota’s products is low in past few years and the company’s production has integrated Just in Time production techniques to fulfill those demands. Low variation enables Toyota to implement stable, routine and predictable operation processes.

Visibility of Processes

Process visibility indicates how much of the processes are exposed to its customers Slack et al. (2012). Toyota has low process visibility, as most of its operation process is ‘factory-like’.

Low process visibility means there’s a time lag between production and consumption of Toyota products but it enables the company for high staff utilization and enjoys low unit cost for its products.

Few of its processes such as those of sales center and test drive facilities, however, have some kind of contact with customers allowing limited visibility.

Analysis of operations in context of Automotive Industry

Volume and Variety of processes are two dimensions that can differ from competitors of Toyota in the automotive industry. Competitors in the industry that compete on price (for example, Ford, Honda) will have a high volume of processes similar to that of Toyota.

In contrast competitors such as BMW that compete on differentiation has a relatively low variety of processes in comparison to Toyota.

It can be argued that variation and visibility of processes remain similar to Toyota for most of the players in this industry. The demand for automobiles is growing at a constant rate with some high growth seen in emerging economies.

Toyota and other industry players can predict the constant demand and thus produce accordingly. Because of factory-like operations, Toyota and all other competitors are low-visibility processes in the automotive industry.

Performance Objectives for Toyota Operations

Slack et al. (2012) identifies five aspects of operations performance that have an impact on business competitiveness and its customer satisfaction. The five performance objectives include Quality, Speed, Dependability, Flexibility, and Cost.

These objectives, although similar for all operations differ in exact meaning for different operations and thus it is necessary to interpret them based on the automotive industry operations.

The operations of Toyota are further evaluated to see how well the operations perform against those objectives.

Five Performance Objectives – Toyota Business

Quality

Quality is about being right and in terms of the automotive manufacturing industry, quality refers to making reliable products, assembling it to right specifications, all parts made to specification, and making products attractive and flawless (Slack, Brandon-Jones and Johnston, 2013). Focusing on quality can reduce the cost and increase the dependability of the operations.

Quality in Toyota’s Operation

Toyota has integrated several operations such as development, design, purchasing, production and after-sales service to maintain the highest quality. Several research firms including J.D. Power have consistently rated Toyota among the top automotive brands in terms of reliability, initial quality, and long-term durability (Stewart and Raman, 2007).

Toyota has built a successful reputation of providing quality products and this shows the high importance and successful performance of Toyota in terms of quality.

Speed

Speed is about doing fast and in terms of automotive manufacturing industry, Speed refers to minimizing the time between dealers requesting a vehicle of a particular specification, and minimising the time to deliver spares to service centres (Slack, Brandon-Jones and Johnston, 2013). Speed focused operations will help in the faster delivery of products and save costs.

Speed in Toyota’s Operation

Through Lean manufacturing or what Toyota calls Toyota Production System (TPS), it has managed to balance the actual speed of the production line exactly to meet the demands of the customer (Davies, 2009).

Toyota has managed to increase the speed of its operations by rearranging layout and flow and thus enhanced simplicity.

Dependability

Dependability is about being on time and in terms of automotive manufacturing industry, it refers to on-time delivery of vehicles to dealers, and on-time delivery of spares to service centres (Slack, Brandon-Jones and Johnston, 2013). Dependability focused operations provide the potential for reliable delivery of products and save costs.

Dependability in Toyota’s Operation

With ‘Just-in-time’ production systems, Toyota has focused on its operations to be reliable and thus controlled its costs. Toyota with its labour intensive workforce and a global footprint of production facilities is capable of fulfilling the demand on time.

Flexibility

Flexibility means being able to change the operations and in terms of automotive manufacturing industry, flexibility could mean the introduction of new models, a wide range of options, ability to adjust the number of vehicles manufactured, and the ability to reschedule manufacturing priorities.

Based on customer’s need to change, four types of requirement i.e. product/service flexibility, mix flexibility, volume flexibility, and delivery flexibility can be provided (Slack, Brandon-Jones and Johnston, 2013).

Flexibility in Toyota’s Operation

Toyota’s operations are capable of providing a wide range of products to its customers. The company has been able to achieve the high level of output producing relatively small batches of different Toyota models in the past. Toyota’s operations are currently focused to reconsider production models with changing market needs and thus to establish a flexible and efficient production system (Datamonitor, 2014).

Cost

Cost refers to being productive with the operations and in terms automotive manufacturing industry, the cost could mean Bought-in materials and services cost, Technology and facilities costs, and Staff costs (Slack, Brandon-Jones and Johnston, 2013). Keeping operations cost down is an important objective of operations to improve productivity.

Cost of Toyota’s Operation

Toyota has effectively managed to produce high-quality vehicles at reasonable prices. The company has implemented several initiatives such as value Engineering, value analysis, and value improvement programs that have helped to reduce costs from its operations (Smalley, 2010). It has also shifted its focus towards local production capacities to meet the customer demands.

Analysis of Order Qualifiers and Order Winners

Distinguishing between order qualifying and order winning factors help determine the relative importance of the competitive factors (Slack, Chambers and Johnston, 2010).

Qualifying factors may not add to the competitiveness but they are important being the basic level of operations performed to be considered by customers.

In the automotive industry, players such as Honda that compete on low prices consider the cost of high priority among their performance objectives. In contrast, BMW competes on differentiation, quality and dependability will be considered of high importance in terms of their performance objectives.

While for Honda, ‘cost’ can act as an order winner, for BMW it will only act as an order qualifier and other objectives such as ‘quality’ and ‘dependability’ will act as order winners. Order qualifying and order winning factors, however, change according to changing customer demands.

Air conditioning and power steering, for instance, which were considered additional order-winning features in the automotive industry, have now become order-qualifying features (Jones and Robinson, 2012).

Based on the analysis of the performance objectives of Toyota above, it can be seen that cost, quality and flexibility remain order winners for Toyota.

Taking competitor Mercedes in comparison of order qualifiers and order winning factors, a polar diagram (see Figure 1) summarises the importance of performance objectives.

The performance objectives for Toyota, however, could change according to the product model and target market.

Overview of Business Operations Strategy issues of Toyota

Calling Toyota as one of the most storied companies in the world, Spear (2004) has pointed out that the capabilities of Toyota have repeatedly outperformed its competitors in terms of quality, reliability, productivity, cost reduction, sales and market share growth, and market capitalization.

Toyota with its focus on different operation objectives over time has significantly improved its operation methods to outperform its competitors. Its operations strategy focuses on superior quality at a lower cost than its competitors. Toyota’s low-cost operations not only produce products at low cost but also make higher profits being competitive in the market.

All such positive aspects are derived from the achievement of its performance objectives.

On the other hand, in light of the order-winners that Toyota is required to deliver, Toyota faced a few challenges in the area of maintaining the quality and standards of its variety of products in past.

Although Toyota is considered as a leader in setting quality standards in the industry, its recall of 3.8 million U.S. vehicles in 2009 (Bunkley, 2014) shows that the company struggled to maintain the quality of its products.

With a high variety of products, operations become rather complex and Toyota’s quality problem can be linked to its product complexity (Cole, 2011).

Toyota uses a unique process called ‘Toyota Production System’ that makes use of Just-in-time manufacturing techniques and this works really well for Toyota.

Lean Principles applied within Toyota’s Operation

Lean principles aim to fulfil demand instantaneously, with perfect quality and no waste. Toyota itself is considered the initiator of the lean approach.

The company developed a set of practices called Toyota Production System (TPS) and those set of practices has hugely shaped what we call ‘lean’ today (Slack, Chambers and Johnston, 2010).

To analyse the extent to of lean principles have been applied to the operations of Toyota, two frameworks are considered in detail –

TPS as ‘Just-in-time’ and ‘Jidoka’ (Toyota, 2014)
“The 4P model of the Toyota Way” by (Liker, 2004).

TPS as ‘Just-in-time’ and ‘Jidoka’

Spear (2004) in his HBR article “Learning to Lead at Toyota,” emphasises that TPS is a system of nested experiments that enable constantly improving operations, and Toyota has a structure where those principles are practised at all levels.

Toyota (2014) lists outcomes of TPS as providing customers with the highest quality vehicles, at the lowest possible cost, providing members with work satisfaction, and giving the company the flexibility to respond to the market.

According to Toyota (2014), Just-in-time within TPS allows the production process to be regulated by the natural laws of supply and demand, removing non-value-added activities in operations and eliminating waste.

No activity is carried out until there’s demand for the product and demand stimulates the production of a vehicle and this production stimulates other parts of the value chain.

Just in time within Toyota’s operations are carried out by means of steps involving heijunka (leveling and smoothing the flow of items), kanban – Sign to the earlier process that more parts are needed (See figure below) and nagare (laying out processes to achieve smoother flow of parts throughout the production process) (Slack, Chambers and Johnston, 2010).

‘Jikoda’ in TPS means ‘automation with a human touch’. The process is operated within Toyota production by means of fail-safeing, line-stop authority and visual control (Slack, Chambers and Johnston, 2010).

Toyota encourages its employees within operations to identify opportunities that can be improved and implement those improvements (Power, 2011).

Toyota’s production system uses both Just-in-time and Jidoka techniques to eliminate waste from its production. Toyota has identified seven types of waste that need to be eliminated from its operations process: overproduction; unnecessary transportation, inventory, worker motion; defects; over- processing; and waiting (Staats and Upton, 2011).

Toyota within TPS also includes ‘Kaizen’ that allows continuous improvement in the operation processes (Alves, Dinis-Carvalho and Sousa, 2012).

The 4P model of the Toyota Way

Liker (2004) discusses 14 management principals Toyota applied for its ‘lean’ methods using a 4P model:

Philosophy
Process
People & Partners
Problem Solving

The model (see figure below) shows the lean principles applied within Toyota. Authorities within Toyota claim that it’s not just processes and tools of management operations that make Toyota lean, its strength rather lies in the overall philosophy of their approach to lean (Slack, Chambers and Johnston, 2010).

The 4p model of the Toyota way indeed explores more of that philosophy.

Analysis of Toyota’s Supply Chain

Modern operations are concerned with making supply chains more efficient. Improving supply chains will ultimately improve the performance of the whole chain by reducing costs, shortening lead times and reducing inventory (Hill and Hill, 2012). With global sourcing, however, management of supply chains have rather become more complex (Slack, Chambers and Johnston, 2010).

Toyota’s supply chain management uses unique processes mostly based on its operational strategy called Toyota Production System (TPS). The TPS has been benchmarked and at Toyota, the practices and principles of TPS spread over the entire supply chain to ensure efficiency (Iyer, Seshadri and Vasher, 2009).

Toyota’s competitive advantage, in fact, comes from its knowledge shared with its supply chain (Halpern, 1999).

The 4VL Framework of Toyota Supply Chain

Iyer, Seshadri and Vasher (2009) in the book “Toyota Supply Chain Management” introduce v4L framework to describe the Toyota’s supply chain processes. The v4L framework links variety, velocity, variability, and visibility (4v’s) with learning (L) principles used by Toyota.

Toyota considers both processes and results achieved in its operations (Toyota, 2014). The authors observe that Toyota, to balance the key supply chain parameters, considers ‘variety’ by balancing market demands with operational efficiency; ‘velocity’ by continuing a steady flow throughout the system through synchronised capacity planning; ‘variability’ by reducing to enable all of the supply chain flows to operate with low levels of inventory, and ‘visibility’ of processes to enable learning and promotes continuous improvement (Iyer, Seshadri and Vasher, 2009).

Three essential parts of Toyota’s supply chain operation (See Appendix D for stages) are analyzed below.

Toyota Suppliers

Toyota has transformed automotive supply-chain management by building close relationships with its long-term partners and a sense of mutual benefit (The Economist, 2010). The company has a remarkable trustworthy partnership with most of its suppliers and the suppliers appreciate the communication and concern Toyota shows for their profitability, often ranking Toyota higher than other manufacturers (Liker and Choi, 2004).

Toyota’s focus is on building a stronger foundation at every stage of the supply chain, from product development to after-sales service (Stewart and Raman, 2007). It has been successful with its goal of minimizing a number of suppliers and creating long-term partnerships with its suppliers to achieve cooperation in innovations, cost reduction and quick response to demand fluctuations (Iyer, Seshadri and Vasher, 2009).

Toyota Logistics

Toyota uses ‘network logistics model’ for an efficient inbound logistics that enables it to receive materials from its suppliers on daily basis and reduce its logistics costs (Iyer, Seshadri and Vasher, 2009). With its TPS approach to just-in-time processes (known as heijunka), Toyota minimizes the inventory costs by having the parts required arrive at their point of use only as they are needed (Toyota, 2014).

Toyota Dealers and Clients

Client satisfaction is one of the main priorities of Toyota and its dealers have an important role in delivering that satisfaction to its customers. Toyota has built an efficient supply network to support its dealers and interact directly with its customers.

The company enables its dealers to directly serve the customers even for their after-sales service needs (Iyer, Seshadri and Vasher, 2009).

Toyota’s Evaluation of Demand-side and Supply-side issues

Operating in different markets with different characteristics, and a wide range of products requires different supply chain configurations and makes the process more complex. Toyota’s focus on heijunka (the smoothing of the production flow) and just-in-time assembly requires strictly scheduled and frequent deliveries (Ludwig, 2013). Controlling the supply chain means Toyota can address the supplier and market changes with higher speed.

On adverse aspects, Toyota rapid growth and increased product complexity have affected its supplier management system and overall performance as its existing supplier base couldn’t keep up with demands (Cole, 2011). Also in the advent of Toyota’s rapid growth, the company couldn’t maintain the “Toyota way” and failed to evaluate its outside suppliers resulting in quality problems of its products (Cole, 2011).

Additionally, Toyota’s lean and just in time supply chain structures couldn’t withstand its demand during natural disasters when its production facilities had to be closed. Toyota has addressed that issue by effectively “un-leaning” its supply chain and broadening its supply chain’s scope to temporarily include its major competitors (Blanchard, 2011).

Toyota has also asked its suppliers to spread their production across multiple locations and hold extra stock to build its contingency plan that will ensure a production recovery within two weeks (Automotive Logistics, 2012).

Summary of Findings

Effectiveness of the Operations Strategy

Based on the operational analysis, it can be summarized that Toyota is one of the best automakers with high-quality products, high productivity, manufacturing speed and flexibility.

Its competitive advantage undoubtedly comes from its efficient “Toyota Production System” that lies at the heart of Toyota’s operation, practised and continually improved for years and become a benchmark for other manufacturing companies to follow.

Recommendations for Change and Future Challenges

Toyota needs to continue focusing on its quality and try to decrease recall incidents of its vehicles. The company has built a reputation of the strong desirable brand and such recall incidents can a serious impact on its brand image. Toyota also needs to focus on developing alternative strategies in order to fulfil its demand during disasters.

Customers lost during such incidents might find other brands more reliable than Toyota. The principles of just-in-time inventory control and other methods that helped Toyota maintain a competitive advantage in past are no longer adequate, Toyota should focus more on innovation to retain its leadership position.

Another future challenge for Toyota will be retaining its dominance in the hybrid and electric car market and again to achieve this, Toyota needs to needs to continue innovating its alternative fuel offerings.

The growing demand in emerging countries such as China and India brings new opportunities for growth in the automotive sector but if Toyota really excels the homegrown brands are a bigger challenge. KPMG (2013) report predicts demand shift to China will reach unprecedented levels by 2020 and the China market will be responsible for nearly one-third of annual new vehicle sales worldwide.

Toyota should be aware of this increasing demand seen in China’s and other emerging countries’ markets and thus increase its operations focused on those markets for its sustainability.

To summarize, Toyota embodies state of art in manufacturing operations. The company needs to retain its existing competencies and build on its strengths to overcome future challenges.

Kodak and The Digital Revolution – Management of Innovation and Change

Thu, 05 Mar 2015 13:48:07 GMT

This report analyses and evaluates why a highly successful company like Kodak ran out of money and had to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2012.

Clayton Christensen’s theory of ‘sustaining and disruptive innovation’, in consideration with several other frameworks, has been applied to Kodak’s case to evaluate the leadership and management of innovation and change at Kodak from 1975 onwards.

This report is based on the popular Harvard Business School case study of Kodak and The Digital Revolution by Giovanni M. Gavetti, Rebecca Henderson and Simona Giorgi, published in November 2004 and revised in November 2005.

1.0 Introduction

1.1 Brief Profile of Kodak in 1975

1975 was an important year in the timeline of the Eastman Kodak Company. The company invented the Digital Camera, one of the greatest technological inventions of the modern world (Castella, 2012) and yet the greatest irony; the same digital camera was the starting point of Kodak’s slow demise.

Founded in 1880, Kodak was one of the most innovative companies for most of the 20th century. The company built on a culture of innovation and change (Kotter, 2012), transformed photography from a complex activity into an everyday life activity accessible to billions of people (Munir and Phillips, 2005) and thus revolutionised the entire photography industry.

By selling its camera for a low price and using the razor-blade strategy to drive profit from selling consumables such as films, Kodak achieved higher profits and continuous growth (Gavetti et al., 2005).

The invention of the digital camera in 1975 by Steve Sasson, one of Kodak’s engineers, was part of intensive investments in research and development and portrays how innovative the company was back then. Kodak, however, didn’t see the potential in the digital camera early and couldn’t capitalise on the invention. As films were bringing in most of the profits, investing in the digital camera would be cannibalising their own profits.

Kodak accounted for 90% of film and 85% of camera sales in the US by 1976 (Gavetti et al., 2005). A company employing more than 100,000 people to sell film rolls to generate billions in revenue then, couldn’t care much for a filmless device that could potentially be a threat to their own business.

Kodak held back from developing digital cameras for the consumer market for fear of killing its profitable film business (Usborne, 2012). The company brought its first digital product to the market in 1991, and although there were a few players in the market already, Kodak was initially successful in the Digital market.

Until 1999, Kodak held a 27% share of the US digital market, but despite its market share and position, Kodak was losing $60 for every camera it sold in 2001. Kodak was used to earning really high-profit margins on its films, and in comparison, the margins in the consumer electronics hardware market were much smaller (Gross, 2012).

Eventually, Kodak executives’ mindset of razor-blade strategy forced them to focus on other consumables rather than the electronic device itself.

So, how could an innovative and massively successful company like Kodak which dominated photography all of the 20th century (Harris, 2014) had to give up on the modern digital revolution that it had helped start in 1975?

2.0 Sustaining and Disruptive Innovation at Kodak

Photography giant Kodak was undoubtedly an innovative company that made photography accessible and affordable to the general public. The fact that a company dies because they do not respond to the disruptive changes in its marketplace just doesn’t apply to Kodak (Anthony, 2012).

How could a company that invented the digital camera, invested heavily in digital imaging and bought websites like photo-sharing site Ofoto, be liable to succumb to a digital revolution?

Perhaps it was a different challenge for Kodak, and, as cited by The Economist (2012), Clayton Christensen believes the problem was fundamental, and Kodak faced an enormous challenge due to a significant shift that couldn’t be met with existing technology.

Indeed, Kodak saw a massive transformation in the industry, first with digital cameras and second with camera-enabled smartphones. To analyse what happened to Kodak in terms of change and innovation, let’s use Clayton Christensen’s theory of ‘sustaining and disruptive innovation’ as a framework for further analysis.

2.1 Christensen’s Theory of Sustaining and Disruptive Innovation

Companies need to innovate with their products and services to be competitive in the marketplace (PwC, 2012). Clayton Christensen’s theory of ‘sustaining and disruptive innovation’ is one of the most popular theories to understand how innovative new entrants beat the long-standing successful companies like Kodak.

Christensen (1997), in his popular book The Innovator’s Dilemma, distinguishes two types of innovation, i.e. sustaining, and disruptive innovation. Interestingly, Kodak has been through both types of innovation and couldn’t withstand the disruptive innovation of digital imaging after 1975.

Sustaining Innovation is based on developing current technologies that overall improve the performance of established products, being either of radical character or of an incremental nature. In contrast, “disruptive” innovation introduces new products or services that may not be standard relative to currently available products but offer other dimensions, such as simplicity, convenience, lower cost, and greater accessibility (Christensen, 1997).

Kodak, with its introduction of film rolls, was “disruptive” as the company made photography much easier and affordable to the masses. Kodak kept on improving its performance of black-and-white film rolls to better films, in colour and of high quality, all of which were sustaining innovation for the company.

The emergence of Digital cameras, similar to film rolls, added a different dimension to photography. It wasn’t about competing on quality anymore. People back then adopted digital for entirely different reasons other than quality.

Thus, the innovator’s dilemma for companies like Kodak is whether to focus on current customers or to focus on a new population of consumers with lower-margin opportunities.

In hindsight, it seems Christensen’s claim that established companies face difficulties dealing with disruptive technology has come true with Kodak. But was “disruptive innovation” the reason behind the failure of Kodak?

The detailed look at sustaining and disruptive innovation of Kodak, based on Clayton’s framework, under separate headings below, might help us answer that.

2.2 Competition and sustaining innovation in the film business

2.2.1 Sustaining Innovation in Digital Technologies

Successful firms like Kodak, according to Christensen, are most effective at implementing and developing incremental or sustaining innovation (Dodgson et al., 2013). This can be related to the failure of Kodak to commercialise disruptive innovation like digital imaging, as the company was mostly concerned about its current customers’ defined and predicted needs back then.

Christensen himself discussed how Kodak, in 1999, tried forcing its digital photography to compete on a “Sustaining Innovation” basis against film and other consumer electronic players such as Sony and Canon (Christensen, 2006). Kodak offering a simple, convenient and low-priced camera called EasyShare is one example of Kodak’s sustaining innovation strategy to focus on digital imaging.

2.2.2 Sustaining Innovation in the Film Era

Before digital, the continuous improvement in the quality of films for Kodak can be taken as sustaining innovation. Kodak had a huge share of the film market and literally didn’t have any competition for a long time. When Fuji emerged as a firm competitor for Kodak in its film business (See image below), Kodak’s management failed to maintain the same value proposition and continuously lost its market share to Fuji.

The market leader of Japan, with more than 70% market share around 1984, steadily increased its market share in the US market by offering its products at lower prices than Kodak. The aggressive competition from Fuji also triggered Kodak to carry its sustaining innovation faster.

Kodak’s introduction of disposable cameras, for instance, was only after the success of Fuji in its home market. Kodak’s other significant sustaining innovation included the firm’s move into medical imaging and graphic arts, exploiting its core capability in silver-halide technology.

2.3 Response to the disruptive innovation of digital imaging

Christensen’s theory, as discussed earlier, argues that disruptive technology is usually cheaper, easier and more accessible. Applying this to Kodak, when digital cameras were introduced, they were costly (by 1995, only three models were priced under $1,000), but became cheaper and accessible over time.

Christensen’s theory, however, fails to address the fundamental shift in digital imaging and other factors of digital imaging that made it a disruptive innovation to replace the existing film market.

One of the limitations of the theory is that Christensen’s characteristic of disruptive innovation products fails to explain the digital imaging shift. People adopted digital imaging not because it was cheaper or smaller, but in fact, because it changed the process of photography (Munir, 2012).

People were able to see the image instantly and copy/share it on the Internet, which also impacted the distribution channel Kodak had built over the years and formed an entirely new digital imaging chain (Gavetti et al., 2005).

Christensen’s theory elaborates that disruptive technologies bring to the market a very different set of value propositions than had been available previously. Kodak seriously misinterpreted the value proposition digital imaging brought to the photography industry.

Kodak’s efforts in film-based digital imaging in 1990-1993, such as introducing Photo CD, were an effort geared towards creating synergies between film and digital, which shows Kodak hadn’t fully grasped the digital movement until 1993.

Christensen further argues that established companies find it extremely difficult to invest adequate resources in disruptive technologies. Kodak’s comfortable investments in films continued because that’s where all the profits came in.

Christensen’s theory points out that large companies adopt a strategy of waiting until new markets are “large enough to be interesting” and this is in line with Kodak’s strategy back then. Kodak only started investing heavily in digital imaging after the market was filled with several players.

Investment in digital imaging until Fisher’s era was scattered, and it was only after Fisher in 1994 that Kodak separated the digital imaging operations that paved the way towards the dedicated digital movement for Kodak.

2.4 Resources, Processes and Values

Christensen et al. (2004) framework of resources, processes and values (RPV) can be applied to Kodak’s case to understand how the firm struggled to deal with digital technology. As for resources, Kodak certainly had enough capabilities to exploit digital technology to its advantage.

New processes were necessary for Kodak to succeed with digital technology, and Kodak tried to create those processes, be that by bringing CEOs from different backgrounds or by establishing separate divisions for digital operations. The significant problem lay with values; how could Kodak prioritise digital imaging when it posed a major threat to cannibalise its profitable and attractive film business?

Such situations, according to Christensen, create an innovator’s dilemma for companies. The view is also supported by the review of disruptive innovation theory by Yu and Hang (2010), and the primary solution advised in such cases is to establish an autonomous organisation.

Had Kodak established digital imaging as a stand-alone organisation, it would have definitely helped create a different set of processes and values, and this might have helped Kodak’s transition to disruptive technology.

3.0 Kodak’s Leadership and Strategy for Growth and Profits

The leadership at Kodak executed several decisions pertaining to a certain strategy and direction for growth and profits over time.

Considering such Kodak events from the case study ‘Kodak and Digital Revolution’ by Gavetti et al. (2005), strategies adopted by the leadership positions during different times can be analysed and evaluated to explore the management of innovation and change.

3.1 Kodak’s Leadership 1975 – 2012

Looking at the leadership, achievements and transition phases of Kodak, three separate time periods based on the CEOs after 1975 can be considered for this analysis.

The period of 1975 to 1993 included CEOs Walter Fallon (1972 – 1982), Colby Chandler (1983 – 1989), and Kay Whitmore (1990 – 1993) and the interesting observation about this period is that all the CEOs came from the same manufacturing background within Kodak itself.

Another period, from 1993 to 2005, included George Fisher (1993 – 2000) and Daniel Carp (2001 – 2005) as CEOs of Kodak. Fisher was the first outsider to run Kodak, and while he emerged as a strong leader to push Kodak into the digital age, he failed considerably in changing the culture of Kodak.

Another CEO – Carp’s significant achievement included improving consumer digital imaging by introducing the first digital film processing software for the masses.

The recent period, after 2005 until Kodak filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2012, was headed by Antonio Perez as CEO of the company. Although Kodak’s profit was declining then, Carp was successful in building the digital imaging brand for Kodak, being No. 1 in the U.S. market and No. 3 worldwide (Dickinson, 2012).

But as Kodak lost hope and couldn’t sustain with fewer margin profits from Digital cameras, Perez started exploring other options, such as restructuring the company and focusing on other service-oriented business models (Hamm and Symonds, 2006).

3.2 Ansoff’s Matrix for Products and Markets

Ansoff (1957) presented a framework that can be used to analyse strategies used by Kodak under different time periods of leadership mentioned above.

Considering Kodak’s activities in products and markets (see the figure below for an overview of Kodak’s Ansoff Matrix framework), the general theme that can be deduced is that the company primarily focused on Diversification.

And looking at its competitor, Fuji, which survived because of extreme diversification, one can argue that Kodak did the very best thing. My analysis, however, suggests there wasn’t adequate diversification and that the process was poorly managed.

Kodak, during the period of 1975 to 1993, started off with an ill-conceived process of unrelated diversification by investing in a pharmaceutical firm, the only logic behind being the industry-relatedness with its core chemical business.

The company carried on with its unrelated diversification spree, which was then divested to pay off debts, immediately after Fisher came on board in 1993.

Unlike the previous leadership that believed their core business was chemical, Fisher believed the company was a film and consumer product business. Although divesting the health sciences unit helped to bring Kodak’s core focus to imaging, the previous diversification efforts were all wasted.

In hindsight, Fisher’s decision to divest the health science, just because it didn’t turn a high margin profit (like the film business) immediately, cost the company overall. Fisher initially pursued market penetration strategies by underestimating the digital adoption rate in emerging economies like China.

When the strategy failed, Fisher shifted towards a product development strategy by looking for a network and consumables-based business model.

3.3 Ansoff’s Growth Vector Components

Expanding the framework further, Ansoff’s growth vector components represent two extreme choices;

Continue serving present markets with existing product/service or technology
Serve new markets with new product/service or technology

Analysing those growth components, it’s clear that Kodak was more focused on serving present markets with its existing products and technology.

Unlike Kodak’s focus, disruptive innovation centres on creating new sets of markets and customers (Dodgson et al., 2013) and thus the framework makes it distinct why Kodak failed at disruptive innovation.

3.4 Growth Strategy of Kodak – BCG Matrix

Application of another similar framework, the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) matrix, to identify growth targets for Kodak during the emergence of digital cameras is portrayed in the image below, where Digital cameras are ‘question marks’ and films are ‘cash cows’ for the company.

The application of the matrix suggests business units like the digital camera should be injected with huge cash to maintain their market share. This also explains Kodak’s management dilemma of choosing to invest in the right ones and divest the others.

4.0 Culture and Climate of Kodak

As an extension to Christensen’s theory of disruptive technologies, Lucas and Goh (2009) propose a framework that includes considerations of organisational change and the culture of the organisation to evaluate how firms deal with disruptive technology.

The framework illustrates that Kodak had developed a robust culture over time, but the previously successful culture didn’t work with the rapidly changing environment and rather became a barrier to the company’s digital innovation.

4.1 Culture Change and Its Effect on Decision Making

Overall, Kodak had a similar culture over time, and when leaders outside of Kodak’s background (especially Fisher) tried changing it, they faced several difficulties.

Unlike other CEOs, Fisher was brought into Kodak from outside the company with the challenging responsibility of taking Kodak into the digital age. Fisher tried restructuring Kodak and creating a separate digital division, but this didn’t help to change the culture of Kodak.

Noticeably, middle managers resisted the change and alignment with the previous culture, and they didn’t act to bring the ideas from lower levels of the organisation.

Kodak was a bureaucratic organisation with a tall and hierarchical structure that had a different culture of information passing from top to bottom, and this didn’t help leaders like Fisher, who wanted to change the dominant culture.

4.2 Lewin’s Force Field Analysis

Kodak’s inability to change can be evaluated using a framework of Lewin’s force field analysis, which helps analyse the forces for and against change in Kodak’s digital transition. The Figure below shows the forces that were mainly dominant in Kodak’s move to digital.

Lewin’s Force Field Analysis for Kodak – For and Against Kodak’s Digital Change

Forces For Change

Growing Consumer Demand
Leadership of George Fisher
Research Forecast

Forces Against Change

Organisation Structure (Tall, Bureaucratic)
Existing Profitable Film Business
Kodak’s Culture
Kodak’s Middle Managers’ Attitude

The change was mainly restrained by factors, including Kodak’s structure and culture/climate, among others, and it became very difficult for Kodak to overcome these restraining forces with its limited driving force.

5.0 Summary of Findings

While on the surface it seems Kodak is another victim of disruptive innovation, this analysis and evaluation of Kodak’s case have found several other problems behind the failure of Kodak’s digital innovation.

A few of such problems realised from the above frameworks include the failure of Kodak to change its culture, the previous success of Kodak in the film industry (which kept Kodak focusing on existing markets with existing products), cognitive inertia, and the compliance built with success over time at Kodak.

5.1 What could have saved Kodak’s Moment?

Kodak’s main competitor, Fuji’s growth and survival in the digital age, convinces us that Kodak could have prevented the Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection disaster. But Kodak’s problem lay in long-term problems like being stiff with its culture, inconsistent leadership and unsuccessful diversification that couldn’t have been changed in a few years’ time.

One solution that Kodak could have adopted to solve its innovator’s dilemma is that, early around 1975, Kodak could have established a different startup for its digital imaging away from Rochester (Probably in the tech hub – Silicon Valley) and built a separate workforce for its digital technology.

Perhaps, an important question today is what innovative companies can learn from the disaster of an immensely successful and innovative company like Kodak?

Innovation in itself isn’t enough; the ability to predict and adapt to change can be the key to sustainable business, among other things.

Social Media For Business – Research on UK Universities (HEIs)

Sat, 07 Feb 2015 20:46:50 GMT

This dissertation explores the overall theme of Social Media for business studying the use of social media in UK-based Higher education institutions (HEIs).

It is adapted for this blog from my work and the months-long studies I did for my final dissertation as part of my MSc program in 2014/2015.

Chapter 1. Introduction

1.1 Background

The rapid growth and ubiquity of social media have presented businesses with significant opportunities (and challenges), making the medium one of the most important tools for businesses (Kaplan and Haenlein, 2010). Reporting the presence of more than 70% of worldwide businesses on the social networks, a KPMG (2011) research dubbed social media to be the most viable and effective business tool. Social media has gradually changed the relationship between businesses and consumers (Solis, 2011; Heller Baird and Parasnis, 2011; Tuten and Solomon, 2014) and thus it has emerged to be an indispensable part of the modern business landscape.

Increasingly, social media has an immense influence on our society and the economy as a whole (Qualman, 2012). A latest Deloitte report (2015) claims that platforms like Facebook have helped to power a new Internet economy by reporting figures of $227 billion in economic impact and 4.5 million jobs worldwide created by the platform alone. Social media as a web 2.0 innovation and its influence in the business is an emerging topic discussed extensively by several authors (Qualman, 2012; Safko, 2010; Kerpen, 2011; Charlesworth, 2014; Holloman, 2014). As a medium that has enabled a two-way conversation with consumers (Constantinides and Fountain, 2008), social media is deemed extremely beneficial for businesses in building relationships. It has indeed helped businesses to reach out to consumers and understand them like never before (HBR, 2010).

Despite several opportunities, the rapid growth of social media has, however, lead to misconceptions and confusions in businesses developing several challenges that demand further research to understand the phenomenon (Kaplan and Haenlein, 2010). Besides, topics on social interactions and social media marketing were the main research priorities of Marketing Science Institute (2014) recently, which further implies the importance of studying such areas to develop a comprehensive understanding.

Moreover, social media has been increasingly adopted by the businesses in several industries. A recent MIT Sloan and Deloitte research report (2014) based on the findings from its third-year global survey claims the rise of companies across several industries that are creating value from social media. Education is one of those sectors that the report has identified to hugely benefit from the business value of social media. Other studies especially focused in the Higher Education (HE) sector of the United States (US) have also reported the growing value of the social media for the HE sector (QS, 2014; Silverman, 2012).

This research focuses on the business use of social media in the HE sector of the United Kingdom (UK). As in every sector, social media use is rapidly growing in the UK’s HE sector (Parcell, 2014). Two significant aspects of the HE sector that make it interesting and relevant to study their social media use for this research are further discussed.

First, I argue that the HE sector is one of the prominent sectors that can hugely benefit from the use of social media. The significant audience of the social media is the millennial generation (currently in their mid-teens to mid-30s), who have grown up with the advent of this new medium and technology (Nielsen, 2014; (Bridgestock, 2013). Interestingly, the generation also happens to be the largest customer base (audience) of the HEIs (Tucker, 2014). Now, if students should be treated as customers is an emerging discussion (Parcell, 2014; McNeill, 2012). Especially within the UK HEIs, the marketisation and commercialisation of the HE sector indicate the growing commodification of academic education (Brown, 2011), which redefines the relationships between academics and students as service providers and customers (McNeill, 2012). While that might be more of an educational discussion, the focus on this research is on certain business aspects the implications the marketization has brought into the HEI’s branding and promotion, and thus the growing focus of HEIs on students’ experiences (Molesworth et al., 2011; Brown, 2011). In the context, Parcell (2014) argues effective social media engagement needs to be developed within wider quality and communications processes to address such concerns of students as customers or partners. Similarly, Shaw (2013) contends social media use of HE has come at right time for students who are progressively spending more money on their education. The medium is sought beneficial for students to make an informed decision by providing more targeted information in the form they want to consume and engage (Bridgestock, 2013). Students these days prefer tweeting and sending Facebook messages than using e-mail (Shih, 2011) and the excessive use of social media has changed the habits and the preference of students.

Secondly, rather contradictory aspect is, unlike other sectors, this sector is struggling to keep up with the pace of social media use (Silverman, 2012). Studying the phenomenon, Tattersall (2014) points out that UK universities have been slow in joining the social media platforms and are finally realising its importance. Socialbakers, a social monitoring firm, reported in 2012 that more than 30% of the UK Universities aren’t making good grades on social media by ignoring their Facebook fans. However, as social media is increasingly becoming an integral part of student’s lives, the HEIs are catching up the trend (Silverman, 2012).

Despite the slow adoption, there has been a drastic change in the HEIs’ perceptions of social media use. It wasn’t long time before that social media was seen as a distraction and blocked by the institutions (Parcell, 2014). The benefits of social media have been gradually realised by the institutions and now almost all of the HEIs based in the UK have some form of official presence on SNS (Russell, 2012). Nonetheless, the discussions on how to best integrate social media into the educational environments continue to evolve (Leech, 2014).

Having concluded the HE sector as interesting to study for social media, insights of the medium’s use in HEIs are further examined. HE sector has the potential of social media use in two major aspects – i) teaching and learning aspects and ii) business aspects. Several authors have studied the teaching and learning aspects of social media, ranging from its use in student’s engagement (Junco, 2014) to its use in the classroom, learning environments and overall educational purposes (White et al., 2011). I further argue that teaching and learning is one of the core services of HEIs as organisations. Also, students similar to business consumers need to be marketed, recruited, and provided with customer services in business regards.

Social media has an enormous impact on HEIs as business organisations. Indeed, the latest report on social media use in the US based HEIs (QS, 2014) has recognised the medium as game changing in several sectors including the marketing of HE (Tucker, 2014). Few surveys conducted within the UK HEIs also reveal the benefits of social media regarding digital communication and recruitment purposes (Shaw, 2014; Kuzma and Wright, 2013). The lack of studies in the UK context means that the HEIs making use of the medium depend on insights derived from the general business use. Parcell (2014), however, argues available insights on social media use and engagement that has been perceived from the global business may not transfer seamlessly to the case of the UK HEIs.

Additionally, a high percentage of UK students have been reportedly using social media (Shepherd, 2008; Ipsos MORI, 2007) and the lack of significant research to understand the phenomenon is rather surprising. The growing use of the medium in the UK institutions certainly has several opportunities (and challenges), but research is necessary to understand the phenomenon in details. Previous studies and surveys (Parr, 2014; Unipod, 2013; Socialbakers, 2012; Shaw, 2013) that mainly focus on the numbers of the social media communities to explore the involvement of the HEIs only tell part of the story. Arguably, the studies do not dig deep into gaining more insights of the phenomenon hence, informing the need for further research in the sector.

Finally having established the importance and need for research in the sector, the overall research process, aims and objectives, and the structure of the study are outlined below.

Research Process

Firstly, existing literature on the social media and general business use of social media has been explored to give context to the research. A qualitative study involving in-depth interviews with social media practitioners of HEIs and qualitative web analysis of their social media platforms posts has been further carried out to gain further insights into this complex phenomenon of social media. The trends in social media use and the challenges (and opportunities) this encapsulates for their institutions are further examined in the study.

1.3 Aims and Objectives

This study aims to examine the business use of social media in HEIs based in the UK, insights on how they use the medium, and what they gain out of their efforts. As with other business organisations, social media has been increasingly adopted by HEIs. Despite this growing adoption and use, relatively little is known about how HEIs are using this medium for business purposes. Thus, this research aims to fulfil the gap in the literature by studying social media use in HEIs based in the UK.

In a broader context, several studies and researchers have explored more on the usefulness of social media in academic use but less on how HEIs themselves can use the medium for their business purposes. A gap is evident with only a few studies on business aspects of social media, and this research additionally aims to contribute to the growing literature on the business use of social media. Studies of the business use of social media, to my knowledge, have not been done in the UK based HEIs. The research will not only boost the understanding of why HEIs use social media but also suggest how they can better implement the medium for their business purposes.

To achieve such aims, the study has identified the following research objectives,

Research Objectives

To critically review the literature on social media and the business use of social media in the HEIs.
To investigate how the institutions make use of social media for business purposes and their perception of the added value of social media.
To examine the opportunities and challenges that business use of social media encapsulates in the HEIs.
To formulate recommendations on social media optimisation for the HEIs.

1.4 Dissertation Structure

The dissertation is divided into five chapters. This first chapter presents the background of the study and the aims and objectives of this research. The second chapter introduces social media and critically reviews existing literature on the topic of social media in HEIs and their business use. In the third chapter, the methodology used for overall research of the study is presented. The fourth chapter reveals findings from the research and subsequently discusses those research findings in relation to the literature. The fifth chapter finally concludes with major findings, research limitations, and recommendations for the future research.

Chapter 2. Literature Review

2.1 Introduction

Social media as a rapidly moving phenomenon (Ellison and boyd, 2013) has recently garnered a huge interest in several sectors (Tuten and Solomon, 2014). More than a technology, the medium has originated as a new form of communication (Fuchs, 2011; Tuten and Solomon, 2014; Sankar and Bouchard, 2009) and has increasingly attracted several academics to investigate this new medium (Kaplan and Haenlein, 2010).

The literature review starts with exploring emerging discussions on social media and critically evaluating the key studies and works to define social media. This is followed by evaluation of the main themes emerged from reviewing the existing literature. Finally, the review aims to classify the business use of social media and how it is used in the context of this research, especially within the HEIs.

Several initial studies on social media agree that the term originated after the rise of collaborative and participatory Internet called web 2.0 technologies (Charlesworth, 2014). Kaplan and Haenlein (2010), for instance, elaborate web 2.0 as new tools and techniques that make the World Wide Web possible in terms of its basic functionalities and operation. They thus define social media based on web 2.0 as “a group of Internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of web 2.0 and allow the creation and exchange of user-generated content.” Along the same lines, a simpler explanation combining the views of several authors comes from Solis (2011) who defines social media as any tool or service that uses the Internet to facilitate conversation. Thus, Hunsinger and Senft (2013) summarise the common understanding of social media as a medium related to networked communications systems, particularly on the Internet.

One of the significant difficulties academics face is the different terms social media has been referred to depict its development over time (Charlesworth, 2014). Common themes, however, found among many definitions and studies of social media are user generated content and web 2.0 technologies (Kaplan and Haenlein 2010; Boyd and Ellison 2007; Mangold and Faulds 2009). Other variations referring to social media apart from “web 2.0” include social networking sites (SNS) (Ellison and boyd, 2013), and social networking (Mustonen, 2009). As social media is largely a web-based activity (Kaplan and Haenlein, 2010), its definition thus wouldn’t be complete without a detailed explanation of modern web 2.0. Additionally, as the terms, social media and web 2.0 are often used interchangeably (Constantinides and Fountain, 2008), a distinction between them is necessary to gain a clear perspective on social media.

2.2.1 Web 2.0 and Consumer Generated Content

Many studies on web 2.0 suggest the rise of technology platforms introducing new forms of participation and user generated content (Fuchs, 2011; Graham, 2005; Constantinides and Fountain, 2008; Ellison and boyd, 2013). The term originated in 2005 when O’Reilly (2005) defined web 2.0 differentiating from the existing web in terms of the new web’s focus on “the web as a platform” that has the power to harness collective intelligence. O’Reilly’s definition emphasises on collaborative and communicative (many-to-many instead of traditional one-to-many communication) the web that also forms the basis of overall social media (Tuten and Solomon, 2014). Comparing and contrasting the features of web 2.0 with previous web 1.0, Fuchs (2007) points out to several features of web 2.0 such as many-to-many communication, cooperation, open source, real participation, self-organized structures, and collective intelligence that are important for this social media study. Constantinides and Fountain (2008) points out the “knowledge and market power of the users as participants in business and social processes” in their definition of web 2.0 and further classify web 2.0 into five main categories. These include i) Blogs, ii) Social networks, iii) (Content) Communities, iv) Forums/bulletin boards, and v) Content aggregators. Comparing those web categories with the present social media landscape, introduced later in this chapter as classified by Solis (2014), most of them overlap and thus it’s not surprising to see the terms web 2.0 and social media to be used interchangeably. However, to distinguish between two, Constantinides and Fountain (2008) themselves observe that web 2.0 is mainly used to refer to the applications and that the social media is used to refer to the social aspects of those web 2.0 applications.

Overall, such studies define social media based on several types and features of the medium (Boyd and Ellison, 2008), which makes it necessary to explore more on the forms of social media in the next section.

Boyd and Ellison (2008) track history of social network sites starting from the first of its kind platform called SixDegrees in 1997 to have ticked all the features of author’s social media definition discussed above. Further, they explain the global phenomenon and rise and fall of popular social network sites including Friendster, Orkut and Myspace among others. Sorting through that list and looking at the current popular platforms, social media forms that exist today include Facebook and Google Plus (SNS), WordPress, Tumblr and Blogger (blogging) Twitter and QQ (social networking, microblogging), YouTube and Vimeo (video sharing), and Wikipedia (wiki-based encyclopedia) among others (Fuchs, 2011).

Adding to the above-discussed classification of web 2.0 sites, Solis (2014) developed a visual map of the social media landscape illustrating the top social networks categorised by their use and nature (see Figure 2.0).

Figure 2.0 The Conversation Prism, (Solis, 2014)

What’s interesting about Solis’ prism is that the landscape has 26 social media categories with at least six popular platforms in each of them, portraying the complex nature of the current social media landscape (Wasserman, 2013).

Social media for businesses is still in its early stages, and although several authors discuss growing importance of this medium for businesses (Charlesworth, 2014; Tuten and Solomon, 2014), it has yet to gain comprehensive scholarly insights. The business use of social media can be linked starting with web 2.0 influences in business to forming brand communities (Constantinides and Fountain, 2008) to modern day social media marketing (Tuten and Solomon, 2014) activities using several SNS.

2.3.1 Web 2.0 Influences

Before social media, web 2.0 influenced the evolution process of using the Internet as the marketing environment (Sankar and Bouchard, 2009). Early studies of Muniz, Jr. and O’Guinn (2001) that introduced the brand community define it as a specialised community based on social relationships among the admirers of the brand. Web 2.0 enabled brands to consider relationships of online communities (Brogi et al., 2013) thus urging marketers to focus on aspects of connectivity and participation of social network members (Wu and Fang, 2010). Many studies on the business impacts of web 2.0 frequently refer to online brand communities (Constantinides and Fountain, 2008). Fournier and Lee (2009), for instance, argue that brand communities enabled by web 2.0 technologies are increasingly used by businesses to build a community around their brands to influence customer loyalty, marketing efficiency, and brand authenticity. The growth of web 2.0 influences in business (McAfee, 2006) was further examined critically by Bughin (2008) who wondered if Enterprise 2.0 (businesses that adopted web 2.0) was a relevant business trend and the research findings revealed the rapid global adoption pattern of web 2.0 by businesses to acquire new competitive advantage. Similarly, professional firms such as McKinsey and Company (2009) that have been reviewing the increasing adoption of web 2.0 technologies by businesses for several years reported that more than 69% of respondents (from 1,700 executives from different industries and functional divisions around the world) agreed to have achieved measurable business benefits in terms of innovation, marketing, lower costs, and higher revenues. Having explored the traditional use of social media (particularly web 2.0) in business, we can now move to a completely new era of businesses making extensive use of social media.

Social media adoption by businesses and the entire phenomenon is of significant interest to many authors (Qualman, 2012; Safko, 2010; Kerpen, 2011; Charlesworth, 2014; Holloman, 2014). One of the most important views on social media use for business comes from Erik Qualman, the author of Socialnomics (Pérez-Latre et al., 2011). Qualman (2013) having studied social media use in businesses among 75 Fortune 1000 companies, 50 academic institutions, and over 100 small businesses and non–profits, enlightens how businesses are using social media to reach customers directly to increase their sales and by reducing their marketing costs. Further, Mangold and Faulds (2009) studying social media for businesses argue that the medium is a hybrid element of promotion mix as it facilitates the communication between customers and companies in both ways. Sterne (2010) adds that social media should be in fact taken as a significant part of a brand’s marketing mix. Gallaugher and Ransbotham (2014) thus summarise that the medium has a fundamental impact on the interaction between business and customers and it significantly intensifies the existing firm-to-customer relationships and vice-versa.

Referring to the web 2.0 classification from the above literature, two forms of web 2.0 i.e. blogs and SNS (especially, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn) will be further explored in this study. The choice of platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and blogs is because they have captured most of the scholarly attention in comparison to other forms of social media (Tuten and Solomon, 2014; Tappin, 2014). Their business usage, however, has yet to gain significant attention from academics.

2.4.1 Facebook

Facebook is by far the largest social media platform available for businesses (Solis, 2011; Ballve, 2013). With 1.35 billion monthly active users worldwide (Facebook Newsroom, 2014; MediaBistro, 2014), Facebook provides a significantly large audience (compared to other traditional mediums) that businesses can use to their advantage (Zarrella and Zarrella, 2011). No wonder, why marketers consider Facebook as the most important social media platform in comparison to several other platforms (Stelzner, 2014). Addressing the commercial activities on Facebook as “F-commerce”, Solis (2011) explains that the network provides a platform for businesses to build their presence and introduces them to opportunities of building connections and relationships. One of the early platforms that recognised the value of social media for business, Facebook offered businesses the ability to create to their presence on social media (Shih, 2011; Carvill and Taylor, 2013) and other tools to connect with their customers and thus help grow their businesses (Facebook, 2015).

2.4.2 Twitter

The business page of Twitter describes itself as a platform used by businesses across the globe to generate awareness and connect with customers (Twitter, 2015). Studying the platform’s use in business, Bulearca and Bulearca (2010) contented its value for businesses particularly to listen and influence consumer’s opinion. Although different from the model of Facebook, Curran et al., (2011) argue the platform has tremendous potential for businesses that can engage with their customers to discuss important and relevant topics with them. Twitter’s importance for business doesn’t simply lie in presenting the brand on the platform (Carvill and Taylor, 2013). It is a serious tool to drive traffic to blogs and websites of businesses (Kingston, 2013), which then can be useful for lead generation and increasing sales (Comm and Comm, 2010). Connecting with mobile and local customers in real-time and providing them with instant updates is another are crucial benefits of the platform for businesses (Carvill and Taylor, 2013; Ryan et al., (2014). Twitter is thus useful in aspects of marketing (monitoring brand, promoting events, etc.), public relations (building relationships with bloggers, media persons), and customer services (responding to people’s concerns or queries about products and services) among other business propositions (Hubspot, 2014; Comm and Comm, 2010).

2.4.3 LinkedIn

One of the first social networks devoted to business, LinkedIn’s role in business, particularly for recruitment purposes (Tuten and Solomon, 2014; Shih, 2011; Holloman, 2014) and B2B lead generation (LinkedIn Corporation, 2014; Dhoul, 2014) has been studied before in details (Butow and Taylor, 2009). The social platform differs from Facebook not only being professional in nature (Holloman, 2014) but also because it specifically caters to a specific niche (Mattern et al., 2012). LinkedIn has made recruiting easier both for employers and would-be employees (Chamorro-Premuzic, 2012). Features such as targeted search capabilities and massive access to a network of connections on the platform have simplified the process (Shih, 2011). While businesses can target numerous connections using their existing employees’ network for jobs, employees themselves also can look for better jobs on the platform (Chamorro-Premuzic, 2012). Leveraging the connectivity tools of the platform, businesses can find prospective clients, boost sales and sales delivery, and streamline their sales pipeline among several benefits of the LinkedIn (Butow and Taylor, 2009).

2.4.4 Blogs

Blogs arguably are the initial forms of social media that still have a major impact, and they have been considered the most pertinent form used in the field of communication management (Kang, 2010; Holloman, 2014). Being around in the social media landscape for a long time, blogs have gained significant insights from numerous academic circles (Weber, 2007). Safko (2010) argues blogs are the easiest ways for two-way conversation among consumers and businesses, and being such effective medium of communication they help build trust among consumers. Blogs have been referred to as popular marketing tool (Holloman, 2014) that can be used by businesses for several strategic purposes including niche marketing, branding, improving online presence, and gathering marketing intelligence among others (Chua et al., 2009; Weber, 2007). In contrast, one of the researches carried out by Center for Marketing that studied social media use of Inc. 500 companies in the US for five consecutive years reported the decline of use in blogs for the first time since 2007 (Barnes and Lescault, 2012). The report summarised that emerging tools such as Facebook and Twitter are slowly taking over blogs as means of social media communication for the companies. Such decline in the usage of blogs doesn’t necessarily signify declining value of blogging tools (Gattiker, 2013) but strongly indicates the radical nature of social media tools and platforms. Such phenomenon of new emerging platforms is also validated by a comScore (2011) report that highlighted its finding of micro-blogging platforms such as Twitter and Tumblr as disruptive new forces among SNS. Similar is the case with other earlier forms of social media such as forums and wikis whose influence is diminishing with the emergence of SNS such as Facebook and Twitter.

To analyse how businesses make use of social media platforms, it’s necessary to study if they make use of any management and analytics tools. Depending on their social media goals, businesses are concerned with measuring their impact such as conversion rates, brand awareness, and customer satisfaction among others (Bradbury, 2013). The measurements of these goals require different analytical tools, which are progressively being used in several businesses (HBR, 2010).

Harrington and Lewis (2013) suggest a new set of emerging social media tools that can be useful to businesses to monitor their brand and conversations on multiple platforms. Further, Bradbury (2013) examines a variety of social media tools from Hootsuite (that helps manage multiple social media channels) to enterprise level tools such as Salesforce Buddy Media and Adobe Social (that are mostly concerned with analytics). Evans and Cothrel (2014) categorise such analytical tools (see Figure 2.2) with their focus on publishing, engagement, or support.

Table 2.0: Social Media Management Tools, adapted from Evans and Cothrel (2014)

However, an HBR report (2010) revealed that although crucial, several firms have yet to adopt social media analytic tools to monitor and analyse their performance on SNS.

Social media is no longer a fad. As Shih (2011) argues, it has now moved from fad stage to the stage of “getting results”. Surveying over 2800 marketers, Social Media Examiner’s Social media marketing industry report of 2014 revealed that in an increasing trend, 97% of marketers are currently participating in social media and that 92% of marketers agreed that social media is important for their business, up from 86% in 2013 (Stelzner, 2014). Several such increasing key stats in relation to social media use by businesses justifies that social media isn’t just fad (Kusinitz, 2014).

Sterne (2010) argues, there are only three major goals businesses should be concerned with social media use i.e. i) increasing revenue, ii) Lowering costs, and iii) increasing customer satisfaction. Several studies on social media emphasise those three major goals in the business-to-business use of social media (Heller Baird and Parasnis, 2011). Many authors have discussed the cost reducing effects of social media use in business (Kirtiş and Karahan, 2011). As conversations on social media keep increasing, firms are attracted to promote products as lower cost and aim in increasing sales and satisfying customers (Feng and Papatla, 2012; Zailskaite-Jakste and Kuvykaite, 2012).

Unlike most of the early literature emphasising social media as an important tool of communication (Tuten and Solomon, 2014), social media recently has been accepted to be much more than the marketing vehicle (Holloman, 2014). A Mckinsey report based on social media usage of several German companies revealed that social media is important for the entire value chain of any company including product development, marketing and brand building, sales, service, external communications, human resources and internal applications (Mattern et al., 2012). Further, Kerpen (2011) contends that social media should be integrated into the entire customer experience by implementing into all customer-facing departments. With a combination of 12 in-depth interviews and survey of 2100 businesses, another report from HBR (2010) that analysed social media usage in several sectors found the medium mostly being used for promoting their brand, products, or services. Compared to other traditional media forms, social media excels in terms of extending reach to a global audience at a meager cost and being instantaneous and interactive (McKinsey and Company, 2012). On a broader level, social media has helped shape the buying behaviours and has amplified the effect of marketing and advertising for businesses (EY, 2014).

Key themes emerged from examining the benefits of social media use in business include the impact on branding, sales, and customer service among others (Shih, 2011). DeMers (2014) claims increased brand recognition as one of the most important benefits of social media use. Recognising the impact Solis (2011), however, warns of brand identity crisis if the socialised media presences are untethered from the central strategy of a business. Businesses have realised that social media can make or break brands (Evans and Cothrel, 2014). Neilsen’s (2012) report on social media observes how social media has become the preferred way to contact businesses in comparison to traditional mediums such as the telephone. Increasingly social media has become the first, and instant channel customers use to talk about their problems (Charlesworth, 2014). Brynley-Jones (2013) further argues businesses can benefit by supporting their customers effectively with a consistent customer service experience on the social media of their choice. Every customer interaction on social media channels provides an opportunity to enrich relationships with the customer (Cisnero, 2014), thus building richer customer experiences (DeMers, 2014).

Moreover, businesses are increasingly concerned about the value they gain from social media (Holloman, 2014) and thus developing social solutions that can be measured has been a growing priority (Solis, 2011; Sterne, 2010). The measurement of social media and its economic gain, most commonly referred to social media ROI, has been a controversial issue for years (Fisher, 2009). Assessing social media ROI has been equally important for marketers to prove social media is worth doing in terms of time and investment (Kelly, 2013; Holloman, 2014). Besides, some social media network sites such as Facebook and Twitter have built-in ROI features, and they make it seemingly easy to answer the ROI of social media efforts (Holloman, 2014). Use of external analytical tools also helps to measure key metrics facilitating businesses with ROI aspects (Bradbury, 2013).

Although many authors agree with social media being a great tool for communication and other purposes as mentioned above, few also question the risks (Kim, 2012) and discuss the challenges (Charlesworth, 2014) of this new medium. While social media can generate several opportunities for businesses, it can also present risks such as reputational risks (EY, 2014), which then can affect other important business aspects such as customer loyalty and revenue.

Similarly, businesses face challenges with regards to managing this new medium (Armano, 2009). For instance, social media marketing may have adverse effects if strategies of handling negative comments on these channels are not in place already (Tsimonis and Dimitriadis, 2014). Arguably, companies should be able to handle such negative comments and turn them into business opportunities (Dekay, 2012). Also, concerns of ethical challenges in social media have been raised (Lipschultz, 2014) with increasing use of social media for business. IBE (2011) in such context argues the business use of social media has blurred the boundaries between personal and work lives. This has thus raised serious ethical challenges as employees use social media both on behalf of their companies and personal purposes (IBE, 2011). The easy access of employees to create social media profiles exposes the business to reputation risks if social media policy and practices are not communicated properly (EY, 2014). Moreover, the ongoing discussion on whether professionals should participate as themselves or as branded representatives of their business (Solis, 2011) will need to be defined by appropriate social media strategy for a business.

Other challenges that businesses face with social media are outlined below:

Content production remains one of the challenging aspects to fulfil the goals of social media marketing (Lieb, 2012), particularly for firms that lack resources dedicated entirely to the process (Pittard, 2014).
Privacy of users on social network sites has been a bigger issue of discussion with the growing popularity of SNS (Boyd and Ellison, 2007).
Lack of proven business case or value proposition in business is one of the common barriers as faced by many businesses adopting social media (MIT and Deloitte, 2014).
Funding available for social media activities is another challenge for business. Even in large businesses, a report shows only 20% of them have dedicated funding for social media activities with the marketing department controlling the budget in more than 50% of the businesses (HBR, 2010).
Few other challenges include integration of the medium with other business functions, and measuring the influence and impact (ROI) of social media (Armano, 2009).

Having discussed the business use of social media, the importance of specific popular social media platforms, and the opportunities and challenges social media encapsulates for general businesses, I will now discuss extent literature on the business use of social media in the HE sector (particularly in the UK based HEIs).

Social media use in the HEIs has been discussed from two perspectives –

i) the business use of social media and
ii) the use of social media in teaching and learning.

As discussed in the previous chapter, I argue that even though social media has been used for teaching and learning, it is particularly helping the core business of HEIs.

Only a few studies of social media have been conducted among the HEIs based in the UK. An independent reviewer, Unipod (2013) attempted to rank UK universities based on their social media key figures including Facebook likes, Twitter followers and YouTube channel subscribers (OxfordBrookes, 2013). Although the study argued that the UK universities use social media as part of their recruitment, marketing, branding and other business strategies, it isn’t evident from the results and the data doesn’t reveal much apart from the rankings. Similarly, another study from Socialbakers (2012) attempted in ranking the UK universities on social media based on factors such as engagement rate and other key metrics such as the total number of fans and questions response time.

Concluding that 30% of the UK universities ignore their Facebook fans, the study suggested social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter as essential communication tools for HEIs (Socialbakers, 2012). Further, the study argued social media being more than a trend and in fact an essential tool for building relevance and validation for current and future students. The dynamic nature of social media (Boyd and Ellison, 2007) however means that what may be up-to-date and relevant today could completely disappear tomorrow (Kaplan and Haenlein, 2010). The audience key metrics of social media (such as likes on Facebook, followers on Twitter, subscribers on YouTube) for the UK universities change over time, and thus one can easily question the validity of such research and ranking based on only rapidly changing metrics.

Over last few years, several UK universities have built a significant presence with almost all of them present in some form of social media platform by now (Russell, 2012; Parcell, 2014). Studying the phenomenon, Tattersall (2014) points out that UK universities have been slow in joining the platforms and are finally realising its importance. Such realisation among universities is partly because of the significant presence of their students on those platforms. It’s not surprising that a very high percentage of UK students reportedly use social media on a regular basis. An Ipsos Mori (2007) study, also reported by the Guardian, found that almost 95% undergraduates in the UK use the social media platforms regularly (Shepherd, 2008). The rapidly growing community around social media platforms of universities clearly indeed presents new challenges and opportunities for those institutions, which need further research into the phenomenon.

Although slow, social media use is progressively growing among the HEIs based in the UK (Parcell, 2014; Russell, 2012). Under its key findings, a research carried out amongst universities in the UK by Jadu (2010) reported that developing the business case for the usage of social media is one of the top challenges. The report further predicted that developing the business case of social media usage would remain number one challenge for HEIs over the years (Jadu, 2010). The research clearly indicates the gap for studying what challenges HEIs currently face in using social media for business purposes. Is proving business case of social media still a challenge in the HEIs? Also, research is required to understand how HEIs are using the platforms and what they are gaining out of their efforts and investment on social media.

Regarding the landscape of social media in the HEIs, a study from JISC considers a similar landscape as of Solis (2014), defined earlier in the social media section (Parcell, 2014). Incorporating results from survey findings of Russell (2012), the study proposes a landscape categorising social media tools into four main categories that help HEIs in publishing, sharing, discussing, and networking. Like other businesses, social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Blogs are popular among the usage of HEIs (Russell, 2012). Besides, Jadu (2010) findings revealed blogging and online forums as most used social media tools for internal solutions, but as suggested by general usage of social media literature, this has rather declined over years as the external social networking tools are becoming more dominant (Parcell, 2014). Few years have passed since the studies, and an up-to-date research is again necessary to understand which platforms are accessible and work best within universities.

It can be argued that popular platforms such as Facebook and LinkedIn are highly optimised for the use of students. With its origin at the Harvard University, Facebook started as a niche community initially targeting the college community (Boyd and Ellison, 2007) and the rapid adoption by students made the platform a huge success (Comm and Comm, 2010; Shih, 2011). So what other businesses other than the educational institutions itself could make the best use of this platform? Similarly, with LinkedIn, the platform has its reputation of being a professional social media network (LinkedIn Corporation, 2014) and students are always looking for meaningful connections on the platform. Celebrating its 15 million members milestone in the UK, LinkedIn officially revealed that the fastest growing demographic on the platform were students as their numbers increased by more than double in the past year (Eckstein, 2014). The platform also launched university pages to help students explore universities, join the conversation, and build a professional network (Allen, 2013). Universities themselves, on the other hand, can adopt those pages and make use of the students and alumni community around their pages for several purposes. The previous study in the UK found it to be one of the less used platforms among the UK HEIs (Russell, 2012) but has such recent benefits of the platform increased its usage in HEIs? A current and timely study is again required to comprehend if universities are actually benefitting from the growing network of students on the platform.

The most obvious opportunity social media provides to HEIs is the ability to attract prospective students, serve current students and remain connected with the valuable alumni (Kowalik, 2011). The latest report studying global student trends by QS (2014) that surveyed more than 2,200 prospective students worldwide found that Social media is widely used in prospective students’ research. Such trend can certainly be useful for HEIs to looking to recruit prospective students. Similarly, a Socialbakers (2012) study contends the use of social media platforms such as Facebook can help universities attract more students and reduce their acquisition costs. Another Hootsuite research examining social media use of the leading US universities reveals how universities have used the medium as part of their strategy to recruit and engage with potential students (Foulger, 2014). Social media can indeed be a useful tool to enhance digital communication for recruitment and other purposes (Shaw, 2014; Kuzma and Wright, 2013).

Social media is increasingly becoming a powerful communication tool for overall businesses (Holmes, 2012) and HEIs (Zailskaite-Jakste and Kuvykaite, 2012). Although mainly focused on exploring the literature on the use of new technologies in teaching and learning at UK’s business schools, Thomas and Thomas (2012) reported the growing trend of social media use as an essential communication tool. Their main argument is that while websites have been used as a dominant tool for reaching potential and current students, the growing use of new social media tools can prove valuable for media relations and internal communication within HEIs. Additionally, being informed from the general literature that social media helps in branding; it’s necessary to see how this new medium has influenced brands of the UK universities. Branding of the UK universities has actually been studied even before the ubiquity of social media (Chapleo, 2005). Along same lines, reporting the findings of how UK HE uses the web, Bains (2009) suggests university websites make an increasingly significant contribution to promoting ‘brand’. In addition to the web, social media channels undoubtedly help the UK universities in branding purposes (Thomas and Thomas, 2012). The key points from the recent roundtable discussion of the Guardian on the branding of universities also noted that social media influence and reach should be considered seriously for successful branding purposes (Neumark, 2012).

Customer engagement is one of the most important benefits of social media use (Solis, 2011) and this aspect has lately been part of important discussions in HEIs (Parcell, 2014). Conducting an online survey with first-year undergraduate students at UK universities, Madge et al., (2009) explored how social media influences social integration of students in their university lives. Although their paper was mostly concerned about the relationship aspects among students, the research pointed out to a higher level of social media use and engagement before enrolling into the institution. Such trends can be beneficial for HEIs looking to attract and recruit potential students (Shaw, 2014).

Besides communication and engagement tool, universities increasingly see marketing on social media as one of the significant benefits of the medium (Kuzma and Wright, 2013). In comparison to print advertising and other traditional marketing methods, social media can be a cost-effective method for HEIs with limited budgets, but again research is necessary to understand how social media has changed the traditional practices. A recent Sixth Sense survey that polled 69 UK universities marketing team reported that 98% of them consider social media marketing more important than five years ago (Shaw, 2014). The report considering the specific promotion of open days in universities found that universities are getting more creative in advertisement and promotions using social media platforms such as Facebook (96%), Twitter (88%) and YouTube (77%). Similar to opportunities for other business, social media as a business tool provides several other opportunities for universities with regards to customer service, marketing, advertising (Shih, 2011), branding, etc. among others. All such opportunities are however realised from general studies of HEIs, but are they perceived in the same way by the UK institutions?

Top three challenges of social media usage as found by Jadu (2010) study among UK universities includes developing the business case, overcoming cultural issues, and compatibility issues with the current software. Other challenges included resource and budgetary constraints and the ability to meet the growing user demand. Another recent study among US-based institutions found similar social media challenges such as the inability to measure its effectiveness (echoing difficulties developing business case) and lack of integration with learning management system (echoing compatibility issue) among others (Tinti-Kane, 2013).

Universities will need to have proper strategies in place to make the most out of the growing communities on their social media (Parcell, 2014). A Guardian report examining social media in the UK universities revealed that more than 60% of the surveyed universities were looking to increase investment in social media (Shaw, 2013). While the increasing investment in social media indicates the seriousness of HEIs in the UK in adopting social media, the report further questioned unmet expectations of students from university channels who do not find useful information catered to them (Shaw, 2013). Such observations clearly demand more research into what students expect from social media and how universities can meet the challenge of producing relevant content to increase engagement with their social media efforts and investment.

Concerns about privacy and identity are also among one of the top barriers of using social media in educational settings (Tinti-Kane, 2013; Boyd and Ellison, 2007; Shih, 2011). One of the early studies that analysed 4,000 student profiles of a US-based university on Facebook highlighted several potential privacy threats for the students based on information provided by them (Gross et al., 2005). Other challenges include the credibility of social media sharing and academic communication (Moran et al. 2011). Several other authors agree that the credibility of social media remains as one of the key factors that influence engagement mainly in educational settings (Kang 2010; Edwards et al. 2013).

Social media facilitating learning and research of institutions is also helping with their core business. HEIs providing online education in the UK is an increasing trend (Universities UK, 2012) and while this might support the use of social media and technology for learning purposes (Pelet, 2013), it can also be argued that the institutions are making use of such tools to expand their reach and overall business. Social media is indeed a global phenomenon and its impact in academic sector has been seen in several US-based studies (Moran et al., 2011; Hunsinger and Senft, 2013; Johnson et al., 2014) that mainly suggest the growing trend of social media use in higher education. Additionally, research is also at the core part of university’s business, and social media in several ways facilitate the process for academics. Few academics have actually focused on studying the use of social media for carrying out research purpose itself (Poore, 2014; Poynter, 2010), which shows the importance of social media in the academic learning process. Alampi (2012) argues that social media cannot be just limited to marketing of the academic work and that it is useful in every step of the research process, from updates in the industry to receiving feedback to the promotion of the final work.

However, the focus of this research is on the business opportunities that social media can create by serving purposes such as learning and research. In addition to the advancing the learning process, social media is making the institutions efficient in delivering the courses, maintaining communication and engagement and thus helping to create a sustainable business.

2.9 Conclusion

The literature review thus critically examined some of the emerging social media discussions from different academics. The study of relevant literature revealed the importance of social media in business context. The business use of social media, however, has yet to get significant traction from the academics and this was reflected in the literature, which was mainly drawn from consultancy firm reports, online reports and practical trade publications.

Additionally, existing studies showed that business use of social media is gradually increasing in the UK’s HE sector. The lack of adequate studies in such context, however, indicated a gap in the study and raised questions that need further studies to understand the whole phenomenon.

The next stage of this research will outline the process and describe the methodology of this overall study that will seek answers to fulfil the gap in existing studies.

Chapter 3. Methodology

3.1 Introduction

The previous chapter explored the literature based on the business use of social media in general and progressively focused on the HEI’s business use of social media.

The purpose of this chapter is to outline the process and describe the methodology used to achieve the aims and objectives of this research. Starting with key methodological decisions and the research design, the overall framework for the research process has been explained.

3.2 Qualitative Research Design

Research design serves as a framework for the collection, measurement, and the analysis of data (Sekaran and Bougie, 2013) and is a plan for the entire research project (Myers, 2013). Qualitative exploratory research was considered for this study of the business use of social media within HEIs based in the UK. The framework of this research was developed considering the marketing research design (with an integration of social media) of Malhotra (2012), research process onion model of Saunders et al. (2012), and elements of research design of Sekaran and Bougie (2013). Each layer or elements for the framework and the approach adopted by this research is outlined in the table.

Table 3.0 Research Design Layers

3.2.1 Philosophical perspective

By addressing the epistemological aspect, the philosophical perspective and approach of this research have been enlightened. The research aims to develop new knowledge by answering how social media is being used for business purposes in HEIs of the UK. Epistemology, a philosophical theory of knowledge (Saunders et al., 2012), is indeed about what is accepted as valid knowledge (Collis and Hussey, 2009) and how knowledge is created and disseminated in a specific subject area (Horn, 2012). In contrast to purely conceptual study, empirical investigation based on qualitative study seeks to contribute to the body of knowledge (Myers, 2013). Based on the qualitative research design, I have embraced interpretive philosophies for this research, as it is closely associated with qualitative research methods (Saunders et al., 2012). The philosophy although not popular as positivist, has recently gained grounds (Myers, 2013) in the areas of business and management research. Unlike positivist tradition, an interpretive tradition helps to analyse the complex world and gain rich insights, which is more suitable for conducting research among humans in their roles as social actors (Saunders et al., 2012). It also minimises the relationship distance between researcher and what is being researched (Collis and Hussey, 2009). This further helps the researcher’s beliefs to determine what should count as facts in contrast to a positivist assumption in which research facts constrain researcher’s beliefs (Smith, 1983, pp. 10-11). Additionally, it can be argued that business situations are complex and unique (Myers, 2013), and generalisations like in positivism cannot sufficiently understand the complexity (Saunders et al., 2012) thus making interpretivist suitable for this business and marketing research. Interpretive research, however, ignores scientific procedures of verification and thus its results cannot be generalizable to the population (Sekaran and Bougie, 2013).

3.2.2 Research Approach

Depending on the extent to which knowledge of the research topic has progressed, the nature of the study can be exploratory, descriptive, or causal (Sekaran and Bougie, 2013; Malhotra, 2012). As business issues of social media in HEIs has hardly been studied before, it can be argued that exploratory study is best suited for this research. Exploratory studies are useful for gaining insights about the topic of interests and have an advantage being flexible and adaptable to change (Malhotra, 2012), in comparison to other research approaches (Saunders et al., 2012). However, as an exploratory study like this one is conducted on a small and non-representative sample, the findings are considered tentative (Malhotra, 2012). Further, this research followed an inductive approach and was guided by ‘bottom-up’ reasoning i.e. the data was collected first and then the theory was developed as a result of its analysis (Saunders et al., 2012; Horn, 2010). The inductive approach ensures flexibility in contrast to deductive approach, which is rather rigid with the process (Saunders et al., 2012). Additionally, the inductive approach for this qualitative study was suitable, as the focus of the research has narrowed down from general business use of social media to business use of social media specifically in the HEIs. Regarding research strategy, Sekaran and Bougie, (2013) lists case studies, grounded theory, action research, and mixed methods as some of the research strategies used in the business research. Mixed methods approaches have been adopted for this research. Often associated with mixed methods, triangulation or method triangulation, to be more specific, was used to collect data using multiple methods (Sekaran and Bougie, 2013). The decision to adopt mixed methods, however, wasn’t a straightforward decision. Initially, I had considered multiple case studies as a strategy for this research, but a holistic approach and perspective required to carry on a case study research (Yin, 2014; Myers, 2013) was not possible considering the time constraints.

3.2.3 Time Horizon

A cross-sectional approach was taken for time horizon aspect keeping an eye to the time limitations for this research (Saunders et al., 2012). The data for the study was collected from August 2014 to January 2015 making it as a one-shot study. The cross-sectional approach has benefit over longitudinal studies, the latter taking more time, effort and costs to study (Sekaran and Bougie, 2013). However, if I had more time for the research, I would prefer longitudinal studies, which could provide richer insights throughout different periods of time (Malhotra, 2012).

3.3 Data Collection Methods

Based on the interpretive philosophy of this research as discussed above, there was clear need for in-depth qualitative methods for the study. Further being an exploratory study, this research depends on qualitative approaches (Malhotra, 2012; Saunders et al., 2012).

Two methods, semi-structured interviews and qualitative web content analysis were used for data collection of this research. Both of them are further examined below.

3.3.1 Semi-structured in-depth interviews

Horn (2010) argues interviews, as a method can be very effective to explore meanings, perception, and understandings in qualitative research. Discussing types of interviews, Esterberg (2002) classes three different types of individual interviews i.e. i) Structured Interview, ii) Semi-structured interview, and iii) unstructured interview. Summarising the advantages and disadvantages of those three types of interviews Myers (2010) concludes semi-structured interviews as the ones that sit in between two extremes taking the best of both approaches and minimising the extreme risks. The decision to adapt semi-structured interviews (also referred to as in-depth interviews) is because of its relative benefits in this exploratory study to help understand and explore the complexity of the topic (Saunders et al., 2012) related to the objectives of this research. Also, using semi-structured interviews, I benefitted from having a structure to start the conversation but without a strict adherence that allowed new lines to emerge during the conversation (Myers, 2010). I was also able to clarify topics clearly to interviewees and as they were not confined to the questions, they responded in ways that felt sensible to them, thus adding important insights to the conversation (Kvale and Brinkmann, 2014). Semi-structured interviews, however, do not allow consistency over data collected from the process (Myers, 2010) and this became one of the limitations of using such type of interview. In addition, as Velde et al., (2004) argues the answers can notably vary depending on how interviewees formulate them and thus it can become difficult to process, analyse, and generalise the results of the interview.

Pilot Test

A pilot test was undertaken with a social media professional with an immense interest in social media use of HEIs, who also had worked as a social media manager in past for two UK-based universities. The test study helped in reflecting the entire process and implementing the feedback to improve the research process. Additionally, the pilot study helped in testing the interview questions and the effectiveness of recorder among others.

Interview Process

Participants, those who agreed to be part of this study, were further contacted for their availability of face-to-face interview (see Appendix for the list of the participants). Arranging a time and schedule for the interview, most of the interviews were conducted in their respective university premises. The interviews were one-on-one, mostly probing in nature to gain a clear understanding of the complex technicalities behind the social media use. All Interviews were recorded, with the consent of the interviewee, by use of a high-quality recording app on an iPhone. The recordings were then extracted and saved on a computer for transcription purposes. At least one interview from each institution was fully transcribed. In the case of multiple interviews from the same institution, the interviews were listened few times to ensure the secondary interview confirms the details in the primary interview, and notes were made of the new details. See (Appendix I) for the questions used for the interviews.

3.3.2 Qualitative Web Content Analysis

The ongoing data analysis in this research process that began after conducting few interviews informed the need for subsequent data collection. In most of the interviews, social media managers interviewed for this research were trying to explain some questions through the use of data and recent reports, urging the further need of their social media channels analysis (web content analysis). Content analysis is one method that can be used to evaluate the contents of all forms of recorded communication (Sekaran and Bougie, 2013). The content analysis of media has been studied before and creatively used for qualitative analysis, often in combination with other research strategies (Riffe et al., 2013). Ackland (2013) concludes that the focus of qualitative content analysis is on latent content although it involves processes similar to quantitative content analysis such as frequency count of words/phrases in text bodies and application of coding schemes. Bryman and Bell (2011) suggest that content analysis method can, in fact, serve as a complimentary method to support and validate other primary research methods. Although social media has increasingly become a source of data collection for market researchers, Branthwaite and Patterson (2011) argue that monitoring social media posts is poor substitute instead of in-depth qualitative research. This research, however, applied social media monitoring in addition to the in-depth qualitative interviews methods, which helped to better understand and validate the data, thus supporting the primary method.

In terms of application, official social media channels (Facebook and Twitter) of all seven universities were visited on a browser and the entire posts for the month of December 2014 were made visible by scrolling on the timeline. Texts of both Facebook posts and tweets were then copied manually and recorded using an excel sheet to form two separate documents of all the content. As it was possible to collect all the Facebook posts and tweets (of the universities studied in this research) between 1st December till 31st December, sampling was avoided for this data collection (Ackland, 2013). Additionally, a premium plan of Socialbakers was used to export the analytics reports of all the official university Facebook pages with several key metrics such as engagement rate, the number of posts etc. included in the reports (see Appendix II – IX). The choice of using Socialbakers is because the platform has the largest social-media data pool of any social analytics company (Forbes, 2015). The reports were beneficial to study “how” universities use social media and acted as reality checks to what was found from the claims in the interviews.

3.3.3 Validity and Reliability

Valid research arguably is about making appropriate choices in terms of research strategy and data collection (Biggam, 2015). Using semi-structured in-depth interviews in this study ensured achieving a high level of validity because of its flexibility to clarify questions and probe meanings (Saunders et al., 2012). Pilot tests carried out for the interview further helped in confirming the reliability of the process. Additionally, using multiple data sources helped in strengthening the reliability of the research (Biggam, 2015; Quinton and Smallbone, 2006). With regard to interviews, the purpose of multiple interviews from the same institution, in few cases helped mostly with the validity of the data collected. In multiple interviews, the same themes were repeated and thus it was useful to get the overall picture of how social media is perceived at an institution. Also, sending information to the participant before interview meant that interviewees were prepared with additional data, which ultimately helped in validity and reliability (Saunders et al., 2012). The research strategy, however, questions the issue of validity, as the results cannot be generalised. Moreover, the use of interviews for primary data collection in itself is open to bias and inaccuracy thus questioning the reliability (Biggam, 2015). Nonetheless, above discussed measures tried minimising the bias and inaccuracies.

3.4 Sampling Design

A non-probability purposeful (or judgmental) sampling was used for the process. Using my judgment, I contacted specific universities that had a good social media presence that might help me answer my research questions based on the objectives of this study. The use of purposeful sampling, however, implies that the sample cannot be generalised to the entire population (Saunders et al., 2012; Sekaran and Bougie, 2013).

Sample

As I am based in London, I considered studying HEIs (mainly universities) based in London and Oxford for the research. Considering those universities that were really active on social media (based on key metrics and my judgment), social media managers for the universities were searched using Google and social media platforms such as LinkedIn and Twitter. Those that didn’t have social media managers (as the case with many universities), I contacted their marketing and communications department seeking the participation in this study.

A total of twelve participants from eight different universities involved in social media activities agreed to participate in the research. The list of universities and the number of participants from each university are listed in Table 3.1.

Table 3.1 Sample List and Participants

The sample consists of different types of universities in the UK including those chartered in the 19th century (e.g. University College London) to “New Universities” or post-1992 universities (e.g. Oxford Brookes University). Further, the participants represented a wide range of roles within the university including marketing, communications and web development in addition to the social media management roles. Such varied range of universities and participants has provided rich and comprehensive insights on the issue.

3.5 Data Analysis

Many authors recommend the use of computer programs to simplify the process of conducting analysis from a large volume of qualitative data (Kvale and Brinkmann, 2014; Malhotra, 2012). Nvivo, a popular and frequently used software program for qualitative data analysis (Horn, 2010) was used to import and code the transcribed interviews. With several codes, themes were identified thus helping to analyse and interpret the data.

3.5.1 Thematic Content Analysis

The data analysis for this study involved the process of analysing the interview transcripts to identify the themes within the data. Starting with the preparation of analysis, open coding was done on the transcribed texts (Myers, 2013; Kvale and Brinkmann, 2014). The transcribed interview document was imported into Nvivo for coding or categorization process of the interview statements (Kvale and Brinkmann, 2014). The interview text was then coded with emerging themes and the process was repeated for all the interview transcripts. New themes emerged along the process and constant comparison was done between the themes of different interviews to finally build major themes from several sub-themes. Transcripts were thoroughly analysed to ensure that the analysis process was systematic and rigorous. Finally, along with constant comparison, links between the themes were identified and analysed to interpret meaning from the findings. The thematic content analysis process was again repeated for additional data collected through qualitative web content analysis. This process established the existence and frequency of themes (Sekaran and Bougie, 2013) in the text data of Facebook posts and tweets.

3.6 Ethical considerations

The research should “do no harm” was the main aim (Horn, 2010) concerning ethical standards of this study. Involvement of human participants in the qualitative study meant that ethical issues should be of priority in the research (Saunders et al., 2012). The research adhered to key ethical issues including informed consent for interviews and direct exchanges with research participants. Participant’s right to clear understanding of the research was fulfilled by sending them information on the research in advance. Besides, participants were assured of the data confidentiality and anonymity of any sensitive issues mentioned in the process.

Additionally, for the qualitative web content analysis used in this research, ethical issues were seen in terms of online research. Studying the domain of ethics in e-research and web 2.0 context, Wiles (2013) argues the primary ethical issue arising from the recent methods involving web 2.0 that collects data from social networking sites relate to the issues of privacy and consent. Further, Snee (2008) concludes that although particular web 2.0 ethics isn’t necessary for studies collecting data from social network sites platforms, special considerations need to be taken to address ethical of changing notions around privacy.

Thus, one of the key ethical issues to be concerned with web 2.0 and social media is whether the online data is public or private (Saunders et al., 2012). The posts and tweets used in this research were publicly published by the university’s official social media channels and are available to everyone, even for people who are not members of those platforms. In most of the cases, the tweets and Facebook posts are also integrated on their official university websites, making them accessible to everyone. Informed consent sought from the university’s social media managers to study those posts further helped to maintain high ethical standards.

3.7 Conclusion

In summary, a framework for the research design was developed, and the methodology for the research was examined and justified in this chapter.

All the approaches and details of the study for carrying out this research have been clearly explained under different sub-topics. Further, the limitations of the methodology and the ethical issues involved in this research have been examined.

Chapter 4. Findings and Discussion

4.1 Introduction

This chapter reveals the findings of this study and helps to answer the questions that form the objectives of this study. The findings have been mainly derived from twelve in-depth semi-structured interviews with participants from eight different UK based institutions.

The themes were recognised and categorised from the analysis of qualitative in-depth interviews (see Appendix II – IX for transcripts) conducted to examine the social media use in HEIs. The additional data from qualitative web content analysis further helped in confirming the main themes arisen from thematic content analysis of transcribed interview texts. A constant comparison between the connecting themes was done to interpret the findings.

Additionally, the findings from the study have been presented and subsequently discussed in this chapter. The discussion is informed from matching the findings to what has been established in the literature and adding my own views to draw conclusions.

The first objective of this research is to investigate how universities make use of social media and the value they gain out of their social media efforts. To meet this objective and answer the question of “how”, it’s necessary to gain holistic insights into the social media strategy of the HEIs. Social media strategy for a specific institution in this study means types of SNS they use, platforms that they emphasise, and the insights from those that are involved in managing social channels among other aspects. Thus, the analysis of social media strategy in the institutions identified four sub-themes that are presented in Figure 4.0 in a thematic map.

Figure 4.0 Thematic map of sub-themes related to Social Media Strategy

All interviewees were asked what social media meant to them and interestingly this revealed unique perceptions and understandings of the medium in different institutions. Overall, the meaning of social media is mostly influenced by where the medium sits within their organisation, which mainly includes departments such as media and communication, marketing, and digital communications. Depending on the departments represented by the individuals, social media primarily means a channel of communication, a marketing platform, or an online branding tool. While most of them related its significance to multiple aspects, some thoughts with significant preference include,

“The main meaning of social media for us is that it acts as a communication channel for the current students. Primarily, it’s a way for our students to talk to us and for us to talk to our students.”(Brunel)

“For many universities, social media is a recruitment tool, which it is here as well but it sits within communication and we take it a bit differently from marketing and recruitment.”(Goldsmiths)

“It’s a way of our stakeholders engaging with the kind of stories and content we produce in a much more interactive way.”(QMUL)

Social media thus means different to different universities. Oxford1 assumes “because the platform is so new,” not all can see the benefits in the same way the practitioner does. Others doubt on how the medium is being perceived by the senior management. One thing, however, everyone agrees is of the variety of purposes social media can serve. The literature on social media perspectives recognises the broad themes of the medium used for a variety of functions (see Charlesworth, 2014; Fuchs, 2011) and thus this finding aligns with literary perspectives.

Within this broader theme of the social media strategy, several sub-themes related to the use of specific platforms emerged which are discussed in details below.

To investigate the use of social media, it is necessary to know which platforms are currently popular among the HEIs. Further, the wide range of social networks available (Solis, 2014) means that it is also important to know which platforms are mainly emphasised by the institutions. Not surprisingly, Facebook and Twitter followed by LinkedIn among others emerged to be the top social media platforms used in HEIs. Most of them expressed their preference of Facebook and Twitter among other platforms. Further, Goldsmiths’ view, for example, “it’s mainly Facebook and Twitter that we emphasise” was representative of all participants in terms of platforms emphasised by the institutions.

In line with the interviewees, analysis of their institutions’ analytics reports (See Appendix II – IX) revealed that most of the institutions had a strong presence on Facebook. Figure 4.1 shows the Facebook audience of the institutions ranging from thirty thousand fans of the Kingston University to more than hundred thousand fans of the University of Oxford as of December 2014.

Figure 4.1 Facebook Fans of UK Universities as of December 2014, Data Source: Socialbakers

These findings agree with the previous studies of the social media use in the UK universities (Parcell, 2013; Jadu, 2010) that recognised Facebook and Twitter to be the most used platforms. Previous studies however also recognised MySpace and YouTube as other top platforms (Jadu, 2010). Among them, MySpace wasn’t mentioned at all by any of the participants as the platform has lost its traction and faded away (Shih, 2011; Solis, 2009) but many universities still use YouTube extensively for sharing professional videos.

This study thus identifies Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn as the trending platforms within HEIs. Other sub-themes from the findings for those trending platforms are individually explored below.

4.2.3 Facebook

Most interviewees discussed Facebook as the main platform that they used in their institutions. Moreover, some institutions had their entire social media strategy focused around Facebook. Goldsmiths, for example, explained,

“Facebook is where I spend most of my time, making sure it’s used really well than other channel, tweets are only tweets.”(Goldsmiths)

Such view explains the relative advantage of Facebook in comparison to another most used platform Twitter within institutions. Besides, almost all of the interviewees agreed Facebook was the main platform that represented a significant part of their social media audience. Content analysis of the institutions’ major metrics (likes for Facebook) as shown in Figure 4.1 also supplements the interviewees’ opinions that they have their significant user base mostly on Facebook. Besides, Figure 4.2 shows their share of interactions based on their activity on Facebook, which proves their high activity on the platform for most of the institutions.

Figure 4.2 Share of Interactions of the Institutions’ Facebook pages, Data Source: Socialbakers

The main reasons to use such platforms included sharing news, announcements and discussions on their issues related to the institution, which resembles the business use of Facebook as suggested by Shih (2011). Facebook’s use in institutions, however, isn’t only limited to marketing and communications (Zarrella and Zarrella, 2011). It is the only platform that was identified by most of the participants for its use in teaching and learning, which aligns with finding in the literature (Parcell, 2014).

Two important factors as discussed by the interviewees in this study that make it relevant to the institutions include “reach” and “engagement” which supports what was discussed in the literature (Shih, 2011). Facebook is undoubtedly the leading social network in terms of its active users, engagement and worldwide reach (Solis, 2011; Ballve, 2013). Its significant use in overall businesses (Zarrella and Zarrella, 2011) and in HEIs (Socialbakers, 2012) has been comprehensively recognised in previous studies (Shih, 2011). Thus all such findings i.e. Facebook being the most emphasised platform and the reasons behind it are in line to the literature that has discussed the importance of this platform in business (Shih, 2011).

4.2.4 Twitter

Interviewees revealed several ways Twitter is used in institutions including publishing content and real-time updates, monitoring opinions, communicating with peers, and finding new connections among other uses. Similar to Facebook, some interviewees revealed the growing value of Twitter for advertising purposes, but none of them talked about Twitter solely on its own for their strategy. Nonetheless, participants stated the excessive use of the platform mentioning single or multiple channels representing their institutions. Brookes1, for example, mentioned,

“From the various departments and areas of expertise we have over (…) 400 twitter feeds and many others.”(Brookes1)

Use of such multiple channels on Twitter indicates the versatile use of the platform in HEIs. Such extensive usage of Twitter is in line with previous studies of the platform among UK institutions (Parr, 2014). Content analysis of the institutions’ tweets (see Appendix XI) shows that the participating institutions have produced 509 tweets in total for the month of December 2014. Although active in terms of producing content, they are not receiving many interactions in comparison to Facebook. Additionally, most of them are rather producing more content on Facebook than Twitter. Moreover, very few direct mentions from most of the institutions confirm that they aren’t engaging much in the platform (Comm and Comm, 2010).

Twitter is undoubtedly one of the rapidly growing platforms (Curran et al., 2011) for businesses (Comm and Comm, 2010) but the findings indicate it might take a while for the HEIs to take a grip on this platform. Twitter requires an “engaged” audience to make most out of it (Carvill and Taylor, 2013) and the only way to have such audience is by participating in conversations directly with them (Comm and Comm, 2010; Charlesworth, 2014). As with any social media platform, it requires communication both ways. If Twitter is taken similar to a traditional one-way channel of information (which is the case for most of the HEIs currently), it will be hard for institutions to make most out of it.

4.2.5 LinkedIn

Most of the interviewees stated LinkedIn as one of the top social media platforms in their institutions, but when further probed about its use, only one institution was explicit about its business use. Others either stated the minimum use of it or completely skipped citing it as platform managed by their alumni department. Stating LinkedIn’s role plainly, QMUL said, “we do not do a great deal on LinkedIn, our alumni part runs that” and Goldsmiths tried to show minimum influence by reporting, “the platform is shared with our alumni team.” In contrast, Oxford1 discussed in details how they used the platform not just to connect and engage but also for their expensive advertising purposes.

The institutions that are part of this study had a huge number of followers and connections on the LinkedIn, which is represented in Figure 4.3.

Figure 4.3 Number of LinkedIn connections of the universities as of December 2014 (From content analysis)

Despite being discussed in the literature as one of the lesser-used platforms in a 2013 JISC study (Parcell, 2013), the current numbers definitely portray LinkedIn to be one of the most popular platforms. This study, however, couldn’t reveal inner insights on the use of this platform from most of the institutions as their alumni departments mostly managed it. The literature also discussed LinkedIn’s specific advantage for business schools (Dhoul, 2014) and the findings of this research that included one business school explicitly referring to the potential gains of LinkedIn doesn’t come with a surprise. LinkedIn has been referred to the top social media tool for recruiting students and staff (Shih, 2011), generating leads and building connections (LinkedIn Corporation, 2014) and according to Oxford1, for their business school, this means recruiting students on to their expensive courses and facilitating connections amongst them.

Some findings such as the platform’s changing role in HEIs with its recent introduction of specific university pages, however, may be relatively new and interesting with this research. Traditionally, because of the professional nature of this platform (Holloman, 2014; LinkedIn Corporation, 2014; Mattern et al., 2012), mostly alumni networks were concerned about it and the universities had their presence on the platform as company pages (Shih, 2011). LinkedIn’s recent introduction of university page and the automatic addition of all members connected to specific university network in that page (Allen, 2013) provides a massive targeted audience that can present broad opportunities to the universities. The new university pages make it seem easy for the HEIs to use it for business purposes considering their extensive reach. According to interviewees, although beneficial, this has initially created confusion on how this platform should be used in the institutions. With recent university pages, added on top of existing group pages and company pages, it has rather confused HEIs themselves on what should they be focusing on. Nonetheless, LinkedIn recent changes benefit all institutions and this indicates that the platform’s popularity and use in business in HEIs will significantly increase in the future.

4.2.5 Blogs

It is difficult to figure out where blogs, as social media are going on within the institutions. Four of the interviewees, in particular, Oxford1, Brookes1, QMUL, and UCL mentioned that their institutions had some sort of blogging involved in their social media strategy. While Oxford1 stated that they were taking it seriously and had been trying to use it for a year, Brookes1 mentioned that they were just getting started with it formally. Besides, UCL1 added, “only staff and department blogs were in use” and the strategy was not focused on getting the students involved. Other universities didn’t have anything significantly related to blogs, apart from their views similar to that of Goldsmiths,

“We allow our students blog about the university and their life at university, but they have to do it independently with the use of external tools such as Blogger or WordPress.”(Goldsmiths)

The findings also uncover that blogs work as complementary to other social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter. Those that use blogs, see SNS as rather helping to grow the reach and promotion of their blog posts. UCL, for example, that uses blogs to make its museum’s archives digitally available argued, “social networking sites, in fact, grow the outreach of our blogs”. This supports the literature of blogs being rather supportive of other SNS. Blogs arguably were the first social media platforms adopted by HEIs starting with web 2.0 CMS (Tattersall, 2014) but the findings reveal they are largely limited to department and staff blogs. This might however not be true representation of all HEIs considering the sample of only a few universities. HEIs nonetheless are concerned about blogs and aim to make it a significant part of their social media strategy. Further, Looking onto the broader spectrum of declining use of blogs in businesses (Barnes and Lescault, 2012) however may not fit for the case of universities. Being academic institutions, the focus will always remain on creating valuable content, and blogs are crucial social media platform for creating meaningful (Holloman, 2014) and scholarly content (Parcell, 2013).

Among several other social media platforms used by HEIs, many interviewees mentioned Instagram as one of the emerging platforms among their audiences. Kingston1 stated,

“Instagram seems to be leading the race; everyone seems to be about images, these days.”

QMUL, Imperial, and Goldsmiths also supported the rising case of Instagram’s use. Apart from Instagram, other platforms that were mentioned in interviews included Google+, Vine, Flickr, and Snapchat. This raises the question of which platforms should HEIs really adopt and emphasise?

The noteworthy argument behind the use of only specific platforms came from Brunel who mentioned the reason behind the use of only top platforms was that they “do not want to spread so thinly on all the networks”. In contrast, Brookes1 argues that their ethos is “not to dictate a preference over platforms” on their communities. The decision to adopt several platforms or being focused on few platforms thus should be based on individual strategies. Use of Weibo (Chinese micro-blogging website), for instance, by QMUL to engage their international audiences shows that the HEIs should be looking for platforms that are popular among their audiences and be able to use that to their advantage.

The purpose of mentioning the emerging platforms here (that are rather anomalies of my findings) is to address the rapidly changing landscape of social media (Kaplan and Haenlein, 2010) that sees specific vendors and technologies come and go (Shih, 2011). It also justifies the query raised in the literature that up-to-date studies are always essential to see which platforms are trending at any time. Emerging platforms certainly show the way social media is going forward (MediaBistro, 2014) but the question is not only about being on the platform. The platform hardly has any value if it fails to address the business prospects of the HEIs.

Another important aspect of the second objective was to investigate what business purposes social media serves for HEIs and the perceptions of added value social media brings to the HEIs.
The majority of the interviewees related several aspects of marketing and communication as business purposes of social media. One interviewee, with a broader view, finely summarised how social media is used in their institution,

“Social media has been utilised (…) for; customer services and enquiries, marketing, internal communications, international recruitment, event engagement via internal live twitter walls, crisis management, surveys, user testing, customer feedback on new products and also current student engagement around competitions, giveaways and general user affinity and engagement.”(Brookes1)

Along the same lines, UCL discussed that social media helps them with four specific aspects, which includes i) raising the profile, ii) students experience, iii) optimising marketing, and iv) operation efficiencies.

Few themes that were repeated in the discussion of the business use of social media in most of the interviews are summarised as sub-themes in the thematic map (Figure 4.4) and discussed in details below.

Figure 4.4 Thematic Map of sub-themes related to Business use of Social Media

These findings highlight the growing importance of social media in different aspects of business, and are aligned with literature that discusses the importance of social media for the entire value chain of the organisations (Mattern et al., 2012).

Most of the interviewees could easily relate to the changing marketing practices with the growing use of social media. They firmly believed in how social media has changed the traditional marketing practices at their institutions. In context, Brunel expressed the primary objective of using social media is for marketing purposes. UCL, for instance, expressed social media is helping them to “optimise their marketing”.

Some aspects revealed from participants that have affected marketing included social word-of-mouth, real-time engagement opportunities, and access to information among others, which supports the broad topic of social media marketing as discussed by Tuten and Solomon (2014). The findings also conclude that social media is a crucial part of everyone’s overall marketing strategy supporting the views of Sterne (2010) and others that have comprehensively discussed the importance of social media marketing in the literature (Tuten and Solomon, 2014; Kuzma and Wright, 2013). Also, the findings align with the evidence from the previous study in the HEIs of the UK (Shaw, 2014) that increasingly consider the importance of social media marketing. It also supports another study of overall businesses (Stelzner, 2014), which reported the significance of the medium as considered by more than 92% of the marketers.

Interviewees who had used social media advertising for their institutions perceived it as a powerful advertising medium. Features such as “global reach”, “specific targeting” of social media advertising were expressed in support of the medium’s use for advertising purposes. The main backing of using advertisements is to grow reach and boost engagement, among other purposes.

An interesting finding was the range of budgets allocated for advertising and spending on social media advertising in the institutions. It was revealed while one institution spent six figures sum per year only on social media advertising, others spent nothing at all. Having a specific budget for social media advertising is where most institutions struggled with, many relying on the main budget of their main departments.

However, not all of them are using the medium for advertising purposes. Brookes1, for instance, expressed,

“We have, as yet not found a need to do so, as the key is planning and often social media advertising is quite short term in the solution it offers.”(Brookes1)

The general notion yet is that social media advertising is something most of the institutions will be considering in the future. Brunel’s additional viewpoint clarified,

“We want to do some of it but then we do not want to go that road of making it a purely paid solution. We wouldn’t really want to be in that situation, where we have to pay money to talk to our own students who have chosen to follow us already.”(Brunel)

Such view supports many interviewee’s rationales of not willing to advertise on the platforms but at the same time, many of them are aware of the changing algorithms of trending platforms such as Facebook, which will compel them to use advertising to reach their audience in future (Charlesworth, 2014).

Using social media for business purposes means that it involves some kind of reporting to gauge the effectiveness and relay the progress. To understand the ROI of social media, I started exploring the views on what institutions wanted to achieve from social media and what they measured for its effectiveness.

Most interviewees had some clarity on what they wanted to achieve from social media but only a few of them knew what they should be measuring specifically. Some interviewees such as Oxford1 and Kingston2 were able to directly relate to social media ROI in form of tangible results by showing figures of how many students applied for their courses costing X amount coming from advertisements on social media. While others related ROI in other mixed forms that they were measuring such as the responses from social media, traffic on their websites, or simply the likes, followers and other key metrics of social media. Imperial, for example, related it to growth of traffic to their website,

“The campaign saw an increase of visitors to the website especially during the period directly after fresher’s week.”(Imperial)

ROI in institutions thus depended on what they were trying to measure with the use of social media, which represents the view of those that have discussed social media ROI extensively (Blanchard, 2011; Holloman, 2014). Also, literature discussed the importance of assessing social media ROI (Kelly, 2013) and along same lines, it was crucial for HEIs to measure ROI to prove its business case (which is later identified as one of the challenges of social media).

All of the universities use one or more social media management tools to help simplify the process. HootSuite was specifically mentioned to be the most used social media management tool among the institutions. Others included a variety of tools including free ones such as Tweetdeck to paid platforms such as Sproutsocial and Falconsocial. Google analytics that has been extensively used by institutions to mainly measure the analytics of websites and its recently integrated social media features (Holloman, 2014) were reportedly used by all of the institutions.

Another important finding was that although most of the institutions didn’t have a social media management tool in place already, they were looking to adopt one sooner. Their understanding was that such tools might help to solve some of the complex problems they are facing in terms of managing multiple channels. Additionally, most of the interviewees showed interest in measuring the student’s journey through social media, and thus certain CRM software that integrated with social media is what they expected to implement in near future.

This data supports the growing need for businesses to use analytical tools (Holloman, 2014; HBR, 2010) and use of a variety of management tools in businesses as identified in the literature (Kelly, 2013). Apart from the in-house management tools to simplify the process, it’s disclosed that some universities made use of external social media agencies for tougher tasks like social media advertising. This, however, is in combination with the other traditional marketing campaigns such as print and other online advertising. To enlighten the issue, Brunel explained,

“A lot of social media advertising that we do is done through agencies. We work with specific digital agencies, we recruit them for a fixed term and we will pay them a package to deliver a campaign, which will include social as well.”

Use of external agencies is not uncommon for businesses (Foulger, 2014) but building in-house capabilities especially for large organisations such as universities will be useful in the longer term.

Four different sub-themes were identified in relation to social media opportunities in institutions. Figure 4.5 shows the thematic map of those sub-themes.

Figure 4.5 Thematic Map of sub-themes related to social media opportunities

4.4.1 Brand Awareness and Reputation of HEIs

Brand awareness is one of the major opportunities of social media that was discussed by all of the interviewees. UCL and Oxford1 were mainly concerned about their growing brand recognition with social media. The main thing, Oxford1 contented to expect from its wider audience on social media is “brand awareness”. Also, UCL citing brand building as one of the biggest objectives explained,

“It has to do with raising the profile of the institution, UCL is a big brand but it’s not known internationally as it should be known, I suppose, and that’s one thing we are looking to improve with social media use.”

Additionally, reputational aspects are the primary focus behind using social media argued Brookes1, Imperial and Goldsmiths. While Imperial and Goldsmiths claimed it to be related to “PR and online reputational aspects”, Brookes1 further explained,

“Our brand is central to our identity, and social allows us to convey our identity in a subtle and engaging way. When choosing content, we always aim to ensure that the content reflects at least one of our 4 guiding principles – connectedness, generosity of spirit, confidence and enterprising creativity. This ensures that users come to understand, often subconsciously, what our brand stands for and who we are.” (Brookes1)

The findings relate to the literary discussion of the influence of web 2.0 and social media in the branding of HEIs (Neumark, 2012) and overall businesses (Solis, 2011). Although most of the interviewees discussed the reputational aspect themselves, the detailed focus on this aspect might be influenced by one of the interview questions that explicitly asked about the impact of social media on branding purposes.

4.4.2 Communications and Engagement tool

One of the most obvious opportunities, interviewees revealed different ways the institutions are using social media as a communication and engagement tool. Brookes1 asserts social media to be “fundamental part of the overall communications mix” and UCL reflects both institution and that their major audience students benefit from social media being a communication channel.

Similarly, Brunel terming social media as entirely communication channel stated they use social media as “a tool to communicate with their students and receive their instant views, comments, and feedbacks”. Discussing its importance, Goldsmiths, however, warns of the changes in the communication space,

“I think it has also changed the way we talk to people and our brand, so you just can’t hide on social media, you can’t just have like PR sort of jargon, you need to have an honest voice as well (…) it has changed lot in the communication space.”

True to their words, content analysis of tweets of Goldsmiths, Kingston, and Brunel, (Figure 4.6) portrays that they are using Twitter to engage and communicate both ways with their audience.

Figure 4.6 University Tweets participating directly to interact and engage (From Content Analysis)

UCL, Brunel, and Goldsmiths discussing opportunities mainly in terms of communication, however, can be related to the finding that the medium sits within communication department in their respective institutions. That certainly justifies the higher degree of influence in those institutions but again in overall, communications and engagement is one of the most crucial advantages of social media (Zailskaite-Jakste and Kuvykaite, 2012).

4.4.3 Student’s Recruitment

Almost all the participants believed that social media is helping in recruitment purposes. Four interviewees in particular mentioned recruitment as one of the key objectives of social media use. Under specific business purposes, Brookes1 mentioned social media as key to the “recruitment activities”. Similarly, Kingston1 stated,
“Our income is based on a number of students and so social media is all about getting students into the university.”(Kingston1)

Irrespective of what platform HEIs use, most of their objectives include getting students on their courses, which agrees with the recent studies of social media being used for recruitment purposes (Shaw, 2014). Although most of them emphasised on student’s recruitment, some also pointed out to attract the best staff and faculty members for the University. Goldsmiths citing recruitment as one of the major purposes served by social media mentioned that they have focused on student recruitment with separate channels entirely dedicated for the purpose. QMUL further asserted that social media has helped in “boosting recruitment” and that the university has hired student interns to be part of managing social media under their undergraduate recruitment team.

Although the interviewees quickly related student’s recruitment as one of the primary benefits of social media, they were not able to provide in-depth details citing the fact that their admissions department handles it. Their views and understanding, however, implies that social media helps to reach more prospective students. This finding is in line with the previous studies of social media use in admissions departments by the HE sector (Socialbakers, 2012). The recruitment opportunity can also be related to the customer acquisition benefits of social media discussed for general businesses in the literature (DeMers, 2014; EY, 2014). Further, the literature has also discussed that social media is widely used to target prospective students (QS, 2014; Shepherd, 2008) and thus it’s not surprising for HEIs to realise recruitment as one of the top opportunities. Although social media helps in reaching prospective students and this can certainly increase the conversion rates (Shaw, 2013), how much influence does this have on their decision making to choose a particular institution?

It can be thus argued that HEIs should understand the limits of social media for recruiting purposes (Shaw, 2013). Even though active involvement and direct engagement might be noticed and appreciated by prospective students, it doesn’t help them make their decisions based on few tweets. They might still want to visit the university and talk to an academic to make final decisions.

Although all interviewees agree that social media can be useful as a customer service tool for their institutions, they had different views on how customer services are handled on the medium currently. Some interviewees such as Brunel and Brookes3 contended that social media is already used “as a customer service platform” in their institutions while others such as Kingston and Goldsmiths perceive it as something they might see more of in the future. Besides, differentiating between the platforms, Brookes1 added,
“Facebook is used for more qualitative engagement and Twitter for more customer service enquiries.”(Brookes1)

Resources allocated for this medium seem to affect customer service prospects. Although an opportunity, citing the resource problems, QMUL explains that universities haven’t been able to fully grasp benefits of social customer service.

In contrast, Oxford1 claimed that social media doesn’t mean a customer service tool for their institution, and further added,

“Surprisingly, we do not get a lot of complaints and queries on our pages. Most of our students know where to go for their problems. They know that our social media channels are not the best places to go and complain about the program.”(Oxford1)

Although the literature extensively indicates the growing use of social media for customer services in businesses (Charlesworth, 2014; Brynley-Jones 2013), the above view represents the distinctive use of social media in universities. Perhaps, the public nature of social media makes students uncomfortable complaining of their own issues of institutions as their personal reputation is also largely associated with them.

The findings support the notion that lines between marketing and customer service have been blurred (Evans and Cothrel, 2014). Students turn immediately to social channels in cases of problems and expect instant replies. In such context, the interviewees revealed the importance of being ready to react and answer those queries. Many interviewees, however, see the growing use of social media as customer service tool in HEIs and reflect its importance for future purposes.

As the participants involved in the research were mostly related to marketing and communications, this aspect was rather discussed from their personal perspective and not as what institution as overall sees. Most of them agreed that social media could be really beneficial with the teaching and learning aspect of social media. Oxford1 discussed that their institution was trying to integrate social media into teaching and learning,

“We are considering platforms that might better serve for our students to come into a closed group network where they could build connections and share their academic and professional activities.”(Oxford1)

Similarly, Brunel mentioned that although they were not doing anything with regard to teaching and learning, they have noticed students benefitting from the groups’ features on platforms such as Facebook where they can discuss everything from essay deadlines to lecture timings.

The importance of social media in teaching and learning aspects has been widely recognised in the literature (Moran et al. 2011; Hunsinger and Senft, 2013). Extreme use of social media in students makes it easy for universities to get across to them. Some institutions such as Imperial actually see it as a benefit that the audience is already there, and that they do not need to be orientated with a new system, new website and new processes. They believe “students are already trained to use the platforms and if it can serve educational purposes it would be really great”.

Additionally, although the majority of the interviewees agree that social media could help in dissemination of the research, most of them are not using it for such purposes. QMUL discussed,

“Universities are indeed research bodies and the research issues matters to us significantly, but as we are good at getting national and international press media coverage for our research, we hardly use social media for such purposes.”(QMUL)

In contrast to QMUL, few participants including UCL and Oxford1, however, discussed how social media is already helping them to effectively disseminate their research works, reach a wider audience to talk about their works, and engage their stakeholders with their findings and its relevance. Such findings are consistent with the literature of social media benefits in facilitating research aspects in HEIs (Poore, 2014; Poynter, 2010).

Despite the several opportunities discussed above, institutions faced unique challenges in utilising this medium. Figure 4.7 highlights the sub-themes associated with social media challenges in a thematic map.

Figure 4.7 Thematic Map of sub-themes related to social media challenges

4.5.1 Resources

When asked about challenges of this new medium in their institutions, almost all of the interviewees said “time” and “money”, which relates to the fundamental issue of resources allocated for this medium. Kingston1 asserting funding as one of the biggest issues revealed,

“We are under-resourced, everyone is looking to expand, but the problem is people at the top not really understanding how important it is to the organisation.”(Kingston1)

Such view perhaps emphasises the need for the culture change with regard to senior management understanding, which could benefit and attract more funding over time.

Although all participating universities had people involved in social media activities, a very few of them had people dedicated to it. In most cases, social media was only a small part of the marketing and communication people’s role. Content analysis of posts on Facebook also revealed that only a small number of posts were created on the platform. Figure 4.8 shows the number of posts all the institutions created for the month of December 2014.

Figure 4.8 Number of admin wall posts on Facebook of the universities (From content analysis)

Although the figure 4.8 might not represent total social media activity of institutions, it’s sufficient to imply that most institutions are struggling to post even a post a day on average on a platform they consider to be their top used platform. When probed to clarify during the interviews, most of them explicitly mentioned the lack of time and people to produce enough content, which supports challenges as discussed in the literature (Lieb, 2012; Lieb, 2012).

QMUL stated that to solve this problem they have adopted a strategy of recruiting students as interns for social media. It not only solves the resource problem but also brings a different perspective on their channels. Similar is the case with Kingston2, who has been recruiting students as social media ambassadors and asking them to engage with prospective students by answering their queries and helping them to make decisions about course and school.

Other recurring themes across the interviews included multiple challenges such as “changing nature of social media” and “managing multiple channels” but a close look at these brings to the fundamental issue of resources. Rapidly changing nature of social media (Ellison and boyd, 2013) is rather taken as a challenge by most of the institutions. As Imperial mentioned,
“One of the challenges is the speed at which things progress, including changes to platforms, the availability of different and new platforms, and the way perhaps one platform appeals to a certain audience demographic over another, therefore having a presence on many platforms can be time-consuming and means resource having to be spread out across the team.”(Imperial)

With limited human resources, HEIs find it really difficult to build presence on new and emerging platforms. UCL in the context further added,

“My job is fairly busy and it’s difficult to keep track with the ever-changing nature of these platforms and upcoming platforms”.

In addition, Institutions also face the challenge of combining their multi-department issues through a single channel or even a single account on the social media channel. This is again a matter of having sufficient resources to have to support multiple channels and platforms. Further, the challenges of resource and budgetary constraints resemble the challenges presented in previous studies (Jadu, 2010) and survey (Shaw, 2013) in the UK based HEIs. To realise the opportunities of social media, it will be essential for the institutions to have adequate resources dedicated to the medium (Charlesworth, 2014). Views of Imperial and UCL earlier implies that the real-time feature of social media that was discussed as an opportunity (Charlesworth, 2014) for social customer service above, will rather be a disaster if not ineffective for those institutions that are under-resourced.

4.5.2 Engaging Content

Content production is already a challenge citing to the above-discussed issue of under-resourced institutions and yet on top of that producing engaging content on social media is a bigger challenge for most of the institutions (Lieb, 2012). Brunel argues producing relevant engaging content is “a huge challenge” and while advertising might help to promote the post temporarily, there’s absolutely need of high-quality content to attract the audience. Similarly, Goldsmiths contends that,

“Although it’s possible to know things like videos work best on the platform (…), it requires skilled staff and funds to make high-quality videos.”

Further, content analysis of one of the top pages (OxfordSBS with an audience of more than hundred thousand, see Figure 4.9) as managed by Oxford1 shows that the most popular post in December 2014 had only 213 interactions.

Figure 4.9 Top engaged post of OxfordSBS in December 2014, Source: Socialbakers Analytics

Such poor engagement shows the need for institutions to invest their resources in producing more engaging content. Having said that, it’s equally necessary to note different social media metrics matter to each institution (Holloman, 2014). Oxford1 in such context mentions that they mostly measure traffic to their websites from social media and the overall metrics such as likes, comments, and shares aren’t of much importance. The findings align with the literature discussions of engaging content being one of the challenges for businesses using social media (Lieb, 2012; Pittard, 2014). Moreover, this also relates to the survey findings of HEIs that stated challenges of producing relevant content catered to the students (Shaw, 2013). Institutions should indeed have a good content strategy to produce relevant and engaging content (Lieb, 2012).

4.5.3 Privacy Issues

One of the recurring themes in the interviews, identity and privacy issues are seen as major challenges of social media (Shih, 2011). Some interviewees, however, stressed that students themselves are becoming concerned about privacy. For example, Goldsmiths expressed that the students were increasingly becoming more aware of privacy issues on social media mentioning the increase on private messages instead of public wall posts but then debated that despite such issues, some are still willing to complain publicly. Along similar lines, Brunel added that they had to remove posts asking students not to share their information publicly.

Privacy might be seen as a bigger problem in aspects of teaching and learning in the institutions. Oxford1 citing the privacy problems in learning environment stated,

“Privacy is one of the significant problems, even though you can have closed a group, that doesn’t stop people from copying the content, taking out of the network and making it public (…) because the platform cannot be monitored for such issues, privacy is indeed a problem.”(Oxford1)

In contrast, for general learning uses Kingston2 argued,

“Privacy might not be a problem really because you can create closed groups and you can maintain that privacy and security.”

The findings, especially concerning the views of Oxford1, support discussions of literature that safeguarding intellectual property and confidentiality are bigger risk areas (Shih, 2011). Privacy issues are indeed one of the biggest challenges of social media (Tinti-Kane, 2013; Boyd and Ellison, 2007) but increasingly there are ways to deal with such issues (Shih, 2011). Growing awareness from both sides, users and providers, perhaps will minimise the impact of privacy in the future. This study, however, doesn’t reveal much apart from the identification of this challenge. As this issue mostly affects students, research from student’s perspective would have been crucial to gain further insights into how it’s affecting them and what makes them exposed to such issues.

Another commonly mentioned challenge is proving the business case of using social media. Most views of the interviewees on such matter related to two issues, i) reporting the social media progress and ii) the views of senior management. While measuring the impact and being able to report the conversion in terms of ROI should have been an opportunity (Holloman, 2014), it is, in fact, a challenge for most of the HEIs. Although few of them are aware of how it could be done and waiting for best tools, most of them see it as a challenge of the medium. Citing the ROI problem that makes it difficult to measure and report, QMUL sums up,

“It’s the question of you are reaching a volume of people but are they are the right people, and it’s often very difficult to tell if they are right people (…) [the metrics] won’t give you that story and journey of someone interacting with the institution.”(QMUL)

Goldsmiths adds that proving business case especially to the management has been a challenge for businesses in general but argues, “it isn’t different from other traditional marketing challenges”.

As this medium is relatively new, its difficult for the management to understand and thus difficult for the social media managers to justify its business case. As discussed in the literature, proving the business case is one of the common barriers as faced by many businesses adopting social media (MIT and Deloitte, 2014) and thus such finding isn’t surprising. As predicted by Jadu (2010) study, developing a business case for the usage of social media is still one of the challenges in the HEIs. Nonetheless, the situation is getting better with more people getting involved in it and producing quality results to impress views of their management

4.6 Conclusion

The findings thus reveal unique perspectives and approaches to social media use within UK’s HEIs. Looking at the opportunities and challenges in the HEIs, it can be concluded that these opportunities and challenges are mostly similar to the case of general businesses.

Summary of key findings and recommendations on how social media can be optimised for HEIs will be outlined in the next chapter.

Chapter 5. Conclusion

5.1 Introduction

This study explored the business use of social media in the UK based HEIs. Literature based on social media usage of general businesses was primarily analysed to form a theoretical framework. The study then investigated how social media is used within the UK based institutions and what business value they gain out of their social media efforts. Further, the opportunities and challenges of this new medium were studied in details. Finally, recommendations based on the best practices of social media were considered to provide social media optimisation suggestions to the HEIs.

This chapter summarises the research findings, provides social media optimisation suggestions to HEIs and discusses how it adds to the existing knowledge of social media use in the UK universities.

5.2 Summary of Findings

The summary of findings is presented in relation to the objectives directing the overall research.
The first objective guiding this research explored the critical review of the literature on social media and the business use of social media in HEIs. Although a fairly new topic that emerged in last decade, social media is an expansive field and the medium has accounted for varied perspectives from different authors. The review concludes that although the rapid growth and ubiquity of social media has attracted several researchers to study this phenomenon, there are only a few studies on the business aspects of this medium. In addition, studies of specific social media platforms, such as Facebook and Twitter, that are at the core of this social medium and extensively used for businesses, have yet to generate significant studies from academics. Thus, a gap was evident with the lack of sufficient studies in such context, which informed of key questions to be answered by this study. Moreover, insights such as growing use of social media in HEIs and overview of social media use in overall businesses formed a theoretical framework, which helped in meeting my first objective thus forming a basis for my empirical work to explore answers to other research questions.
Thematic analysis conducted on data collected from semi-structured interviews and web content analysis informed a number of themes that were categorised and further analysed to answer the research objectives. Figure 5.0 displays all such major themes that were discussed in this study.

Figure 5.0 Themes from Empirical Research Data

The second objective of this research was to investigate how the institutions make use of social media for business purposes and the added value it brings to them. Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn are the top social media platforms in use within the institutions. Apart from the top platforms, emerging platforms such as Instagram and Google Plus are sought to be growing faster among the HEIs’ social media communities. Among the major findings related to business use, the main areas benefitting HEIs from social media includes marketing and communications among others. Importantly, most of the institutions are concerned about the ROI of the social media and were using some kind of management and analytics tool to report the progress. Further, the third objective directing this research investigated the opportunities and challenges that business use of social media encapsulates in HEIs. Findings reveal the present-day major opportunity for the HEIs is to increase their brand awareness and reputation through social media. Other opportunities such as communication and engagement and recruitment of students are also seen as the current benefits of the medium. Moreover, most of the HEIs see the major opportunities of the medium for social customer services in the future. In contrast, the top challenges of social media in business include time and money, which implies most of the institutions, faced the challenges of meeting the required resources for the medium. A few other challenges include proving the business case, producing engaging content and the privacy issues of social media. Such latest insights on the popularity of platforms, business use of social media, and its opportunities and challenges in HEIs thus helped in meeting the second and third objectives of this research. Some research limitations such as word-count however constrained in focusing only on the major aspects, affecting comprehensive insights of the findings.

The final objective guiding this research was to provide recommendations about how social media can be optimised for HEIs. Apart from a few suggestions on addressing the challenges as discussed in the previous chapter, the views of interviewees didn’t reveal much as most of them found it difficult to generalise and suggest what could work best for everyone. Considering some of their views, challenges, and data from content analysis, some suggestions on social media optimisation for the HEIs are formulated below.

The evidence from this study reveals that HEIs are taking social media seriously and experimenting with different ways to make the best use of it. As most of the HEIs are now using social media platforms extensively, the question no longer is about if they should be doing this or not. Perhaps, the important question is how they can do it and do it great.

Considering the present challenges, it is recommended that HEIs should adopt an institution-wide approach to social media. The primary recommendations are having a dedicated social media strategy, producing engaging content, making effective use of advertising, and continuously learning and applying new knowledge. Here are a few more suggestions for HEIs in addition to the framework for the best practices discussed in the previous chapter,

The immediate need for HEIs is to build dedicated resources for this medium. This study clearly shows that lack of sufficient resources is where most HEIs have built on further limitations for their social media usage. Institutions should have at least a few skilled people entirely dedicated to social media.

Another suggestion for HEIs is to engage with their audiences more. From the content analysis, for example on Twitter, it clearly shows that some institutions haven’t even made a single direct reply to their audiences. Keeping the targeted audience engaged is what brings the most value out of social media.

Content should be the focus of any social media campaign of the HEIs. The right content strategy helps in building a long-term relationship with the audience and encourages brand reinforcement. Institutions should always try and measure what resonates or what doesn’t with their audience.

HEIs should listen to what students are saying about them on the platforms. Also, consider how students can be made part of the process. Hiring student interns to be part of the activities, for instance, can facilitate the resources required for the medium.

Resources are always going to be a challenge and social media practitioners should find creative ways around it; for example, hiring student interns for their team to address human resources, and being rather creative in increasing the organic engagement to address financial resources.

However, there isn’t any set of practices that institutions should follow. Rather than having specific guidelines of what works and what doesn’t, HEIs should try and see it for themselves.

5.4 Contribution to Knowledge

This research fulfils the gap of literature in the business use of social media within UK-based HEIs. It is also an important contribution to the growing literature on overall business usage of social media.

For the HE sector, this study provides important insights into the growing use of social media. Although the findings may not be generalised, it is worth it for the HEIs to consider these findings in practical terms and see what works best for them. The recommendations can act as a base and inform the process of creating a dedicated social media strategy for the HEIs.

5.5 Research Limitations

The biggest limitation has developed from the relatively small sample size of this study. The findings are based on the sample of the universities based in London and Oxford, and although a diverse sample, it isn’t representative of all types of HEIs based in the UK. It thus becomes a limitation of this very exploratory research that the findings cannot be generalised to the entire HEIs based in the UK. Additionally, as the research was carried out in a limited time of a few months – only a month-long data were monitored and analysed for the qualitative web analysis. A longitudinal study along with qualitative data analysis monitored over three months would have provided richer insights.

Further, with respect to the word-count limitations of this report, only the major findings could be reported and analysed in detail.

5.6 Future Research

This study informs the need for further research on students’ part to see how they are using social media and interacting with the social media channels of the HEIs. Students’ motives for using social media and the value they are gaining from social media need to be studied to form a holistic opinion on the medium’s use in the HEIs. With business use, this can be trying to explore how students as customers perceive the messages they see on social media channels and if it influences their decision making such as choosing universities, enrolling into programs or other general sentiments.

Additionally, one of the limitations related to the small sample size of this research means that future studies can study the phenomenon in a larger sample using other research strategies such as multiple case studies of the HEIs. That would then provide rich and comprehensive insights into the use of social media.

5.7 Final Conclusions

The study examined how social media is used in UK-based HEIs and the opportunities and challenges this encapsulates. As the first qualitative study focused on the business use of social media within the HEIs of the UK, it contributes to fulfilling the literature gap on the topic.

Social media and its ubiquity have indeed impacted the business world and our society as a whole, and this has urged researchers to study this medium and gain a comprehensive understanding of its benefits and challenges. HEIs (as business organisations) could hugely benefit from this medium, be that by strengthening their brand and reputation or by redefining their relationships with their students and other stakeholders. Not many years ago, universities perceived social media in a different way and, many of them had restricted its access. This perception has now progressively changed with the evolving nature of social media. The benefits of the medium have become so compelling that they have not only embraced this medium but also are finding ways to meet several challenges. The impact and potential of this medium for the HEIs make it relevant to study this topic, and hence, the significance of this research.

The appendix, interview transcripts, and social media reports used for the research are available on request for fair usage. Please get in touch if you need them for your project.

Business Strategy of Google Within Online Advertising Industry

Wed, 14 May 2014 15:53:57 GMT

One of the most valuable brands in the world, Google and its products have always fascinated me. In this article, I have analysed the business strategy of Google within the Online Advertising Industry.

Google’s diverse range of products and services means that we need to narrow our focus to a specific industry to comprehensively discuss its business strategy.

As Google generates substantially all of its revenues from advertising (86% in 2017, 91% in 2013), it’s appropriate to consider Google as an advertising business and look at its business strategy specifically within the online advertising industry.

Although Google is heavily investing in areas such as digital content, enterprise cloud services, and hardware products, at its core, it is an advertising business that generates most of its revenue primarily by delivering both performance advertising and brand advertising.

Introduction

This article presents the business level strategy of Google within the online advertising industry.

First, a short overview of the online advertising industry is presented. Second, the competitive environment of Google is evaluated with evidences and its core competencies, and the key future challenges are pointed out. Third, the key business strategies of Google over the past five years are identified in the article.

The strategies are then evaluated using Porter’s generic strategies and discussed why those strategies were pursued or changed.

Finally, the strategies are evaluated by matching with the resources and capabilities of Google in terms of Suitability, Feasibility, and Acceptability.

Overview of the Online Advertising Industry

The online advertising industry is a high-growth and fast-paced industry accounting for more than 100 billion dollars in revenue worldwide (Emarketer.com, 2013).

The industry is growing faster with the increasing use of Internet-based advertising to reach more targeted customers with methods such as online display advertising, search engine marketing, mobile advertising, social media advertising, etc.

The Ad revenue figures show a steady growth of the industry in recent years with a higher growth rate projected in the upcoming years.

Forecasting a compound annual growth rate of 7.3% during 2013-2018, a Research and Markets (2013) report on the Global online advertising industry 2013-2018 reports that consumer behaviour and shift towards digital media trends are key drivers of the industry.

Other key factors driving the industry include economic stability, growing mobile users and increasing Internet accessibility. Government Internet regulations, censorship, and online privacy are the major challenges of the industry.

Competitive Environment of Google – Overview

Google is a technology company with products and services that help users provide and connect with information. The company’s visionary mission is to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.

Core services from Google include search and display advertising, the Android operating system platform, consumer content through Google Play, enterprise, commerce and hardware products (Google Annual Report, 2013).

With a variety of its tools and services, the main value proposition Google tries to deliver as per its business model is targeted online advertising.

Google provides services such as AdWords and AdSense to advertisers that help them reach targeted customers in a cost-effective way and in return help the company generate its revenue from those advertisers.

The process is made possible by its popular search engine which facilitates the entire advertising business model.

Competitive Environment of Google

Google, Facebook, Yahoo!, Microsoft, and IAC are the top five players in the industry accounting for more than 40% of the global online advertising revenue in 2013 (Appendix A).

Search and Mobile advertising are strong sectors within the industry. Although search and display advertising are current leading advertising formats, the mobile’s excessive growth will level the gap in upcoming years.

Besides, social media advertising is completely changing the way advertisers target their customers and thus affecting the industry as a whole.

The rapid growth of social platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn is making them capable of challenging and competing with other traditional online advertising companies, which can be taken as a future trend of online advertising.

Google is clearly a leader in the online advertising landscape seizing almost a third of the market share. Google’s core competency in the industry includes its fast and efficient search engine that accounts for almost 70% of the search engine market share followed by Baidu, Yahoo, and Bing (Netmarketshare, 2014).

Smart, complex, and constantly updated algorithms help keep its search engine at the forefront of the industry.

The search engine, however, is available for free for its users and what generates the revenue is paid listings and advertisements on the search pages.

Two of Google’s innovative products responsible for advertising i.e. Adwords and Adsense have created a competent advertising ecosystem that makes use of its massive search engine users. Google continues to dominate both search and mobile, a tremendously growing niche within the online advertising industry.

The company is already a leader in search market share for several years and has also seen tremendous growth in mobile advertising in recent years. Google’s popular mobile platform – Android makes it possible to excel in the mobile sector of online advertising.

The key future challenges of Google are maintaining a strong brand image, complying with future government laws and regulations, protecting technological intellectual properties, addressing privacy concerns of the growing user base, successful international operations and expansion, retaining key business personnel and maintaining the overall culture of the business (Google Annual Report, 2013).

Google Business Strategy

Porter (1985) suggests three generic strategies that businesses can adopt to achieve and maintain competitive advantage i.e. cost leadership, differentiation, and focus.

Evaluating Google’s unique products and services and their different segments of customers, it’s clear that the company is following a differentiation strategy in terms of Porter’s framework. Google’s huge technology infrastructure, a wide range of innovative products, and a greater market share give the firm a competitive advantage in the industry.

The company has gained a sustained competitive advantage by outperforming other competitors such as Yahoo, Microsoft, and Aol for a long time and maintaining a high share of the online advertising industry.

Google’s former CEO Eric Schmidt in an interview said that the company doesn’t have a five-year plan and rather focuses on what’s new and exciting (Carlson, 2009).

Google indeed believes in the free flow of ideas and its strong and unique culture has fueled innovation in several aspects of Google’s works.

Speaking onstage at TED 2014, Google’s CEO Larry Page revealed several future plans of Google. Larry’s views in the video provide us with several insights to Google business strategy in the future.

Page’s plan for Google includes changing the world with technology by fulfilling visionary goals such as making the internet available to the entire population and exploring possibilities with innovative projects such as Google self-driving car and Google Glass among others (TED, 2014).

In an article, Forbes quotes Search strategist AJ Kohn to explain Google’s strategy in the simplest terms “Get people to use the Internet more” in addition relates all the latest innovative products of Google to the strategy of encouraging people to spend more time online and thus generate more revenue from it (Kosner, 2013).

The key strategies of Google, as perceived from its focus and actions in the past five years along with its analysis of where the company is heading next are discussed below.

Increasing Internet Accessibility

Google’s main focus is to gain more Internet users as the company’s revenue depends on more and more people using its search engine and other services.

Be that with new and improved products or visionary projects like Project Loon, Google is mostly concerned with reaching a wider population on the planet by expanding Internet accessibility.

Focusing on the fact that two-thirds of the world’s population are yet to have access to the Internet, Google’s Project Loon balloons help connect remote and rural areas with access to online information (Google.com, 2014).

Google’s CEO, Larry Page at TED 2014 reveals that he has been thinking about the idea of providing global Internet access for the last five years and he is really excited about Project Loon.

A recent acquisition of Titan Aerospace, a high-altitude drone maker by Google is also an indication of how serious Google is about the project.

According to BBC, Google said that Titan Aerospace would facilitate its Project Loon in making the Internet accessible to a wider population (BBC News, 2014).

Google’s other project, Google Fiber, which provides a hundred times faster Internet has changed the way people use the internet for entertainment purposes among other usages of the powerful Wi-Fi.

Rolled out in a few US cities already, the company is providing basic Internet free with additional costs for higher speed and its TV services (Fiber.google.com, 2014).

Google faces a threat from ISPs (Internet service providers) that may disrupt the accessibility of Google services to its users. The company itself being the internet service provider, in the long run, will secure its users and advertisers.

Innovative projects such as Project Loon and Google Fiber, Google is working on are unique products and, therefore, the company follows a differentiation strategy.

Improving Search Infrastructure

Search products are the core offerings of Google and are directly related to advertising, the main revenue stream of the company.

The company built its brand on basis of a powerful search engine offering advertisement opportunities on the search pages matching the keywords of the search engine users.

Google revealed that it spends more than 70% of its resources on building and improving its search and advertising products and this can be easily justified by looking at continuous changes in its portfolio of related products.

Innovating in search products and services so that they can sustain search advertising revenue has been of significance to the company.

Expanding the domain of search infrastructure the company is also focusing on its products such as Google Chrome which help users browse the web with faster speed and with greater security and privacy.

With more than 750 million users (Google Annual Report, 2013), Google is trying to create another ecosystem with its chrome apps and users.

Charles Golvin, an analyst with a research company, Forrester argues that Google is pushed to search for expensive advertising and its focus on several platforms such as Chrome is all advertisement driven so that it can offer higher price advertising to its main customers – advertisers (Keizer, 2014).

Google is constantly expanding its search services and wants to innovate the search process with improved knowledge graphs backed with artificial intelligence technologies.

All these activities are distinct from its competitor Facebook, Amazon and others that have built search facilities along other domains of the social graph, personal relationships, and the product.

Improving Mobile Products and Advertising Solutions

Announcing the first-quarter earnings of 2014, Google’s CEO and founder Larry Page said that a lot of improvements were done in mobile products in the past quarter (Google, 2014).

This clearly reveals the focus of Google to be a strong player in the mobile market and make mobile a core part of its strategy.

The first quarter results although increased in comparison with the first quarter of 2013, weren’t in line with the predictions. In addition, the decreasing percentage in cost-per-click that Google charges to its advertisers became a concern considering Google’s inability to charge advertisers higher prices for mobile ads (BBC, 2014).

Google and the entire online advertising industry are struggling to monetize mobile devices including new smartphones and tablets.

Mobile’s tremendous growth is not a surprise to Google but the company has yet to master mobile advertising matching to its desktop counterpart.

Google’s chief business officer believes that the mobile advertising rates will eventually be better than the desktop prices citing the fact that context and location are important aspects of mobile advertising (Edwards, 2014).

It’s indeed a difficult time for Google to convince its mobile advertisers to pay a higher price for Ads because of their poor conversion and this will need some serious work from the company as its business is shifting more towards mobile.

Apart from search and advertising solutions on mobile, Google’s focus is also on growing and keeping ahead of its competitors in smartphone platforms.

Mobile platform Android, led by Google dominates the market occupying 52.1% of the OS market, slightly ahead of Apple with 41.3% as of February 2014 (comScore Reports, 2014).

The platform, as reported in corporate highlights of Google’s annual report (2013) crossed one billion users as of September 2013.

Google has built a complete ecosystem of a smartphone market with Android and continues to invest huge time and effort in improving the open-source platform to provide a better mobile experience to its users.

Android is different from other mobile platforms being open source and free for hardware manufacturers, differentiating its offering from other paid and manufacturer-restricted platforms.

Google also follows a differentiation strategy in terms of providing unique search advertising facilities to advertisers on its top mobile properties.

Social platforms like Facebook and Twitter which quickly soared on the advertising landscape have urged Google to pursue its social platform strategy seriously.

The company might have failed several times with its social strategy in the past, but it looks like it is finally gaining traction with its social platform called Google+ launched in November 2011.

The company forced its other platform users such as Gmail and YouTube to be part of the platform and this has added users aggressively on Google+ to surpass Twitter user numbers.

Forrester, a market research company as reported by Edwards (2014), has revealed fresh insights in terms of user engagement and conversions comparing Social platforms Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.

Stating the fact that Google+ has got the user engagement boost from the usage of its search engine, Edwards (2014) argues that the social platform is now a potential threat to other platforms like Twitter and Facebook for social advertisements.

Apart from influencing brands and businesses to join the platform, Google+ recently announced a new type of social Ads called +Post ads on their product updates page that advertisers can use to turn their updates into engagement ads (Google, 2014).

The new social advertisement feature is similar to Facebook and Twitter advertisements in the sense that businesses can now amplify the reach of their posts across the social web.

Resources and Capabilities of Google

Grant (2010) defines resources as productive assets of an organization and capabilities as what an organization can do using the resources adding the fact that all resources must act together to form the capabilities of an organization.

The principal type of resources in terms of tangible, intangible, and human resources for Google in reference to the above strategies are discussed with further evidence below.

Resources of Google

Exceptional Products and Financial Resources – Tangible Resources

Tangible resources have physical attributes and are visible to an organization (Rothaermel, 2013).

Google has a huge technology infrastructure that supports a portfolio of exceptional products that can be used by agencies and other businesses for their online advertising activity.

Google’s wide range of advertising products includes AdWords, Adsense, DoubleClick Ad Exchange and other platforms that advertisers can benefit from are Google’s network member websites and Google-owned websites including Google Finance and Youtube (Google Annual Report, 2013).

Google’s multibillion-dollar infrastructure includes its data centres in several locations in the US and a few other countries that power its products (Levy, 2014).

Google also has a strong financial performance over years and this has generated huge financial resources for the company.

In the recent annual statement as of March 31, 2014, Google reported 59.38 billion dollars as its cash and cash equivalents (Google Q1 Results, 2014).

Google’s Culture and Brand – Intangible Resources

Google has an open and entrepreneurial culture, mostly resembling the culture of start-ups where everyone’s ideas are valued and everyone on the team is made comfortable sharing their opinion (Google.co.uk, 2014).

The company’s structure is non-hierarchical and flat which allows collaboration between teams and makes the leadership position easy to approach.

Google’s culture also serves as an ideal medium to foster the company’s innovation and, in fact, several innovative products of the company can be credited to its culture (Economist, 2009).

Google maintains a strong brand reputation among its users, advertisers and partners. The company has a reputation as one of the top brands in the world and the best place to work. Google was Fortune’s top company to work for in the latest ranking report of 2014 (CNN Money, 2014).

Google’s valuable intellectual properties such as trademarks and patents are also worth considering under the intangible resources of the company.

Google’s Employees and Skills – Human Resources

Google spends significant efforts in hiring, retaining and motivating its skills force.

The company considers its key personnel and services essential for long-term vision and crucial to implement its business strategies (Google Annual Report, 2013).

Google competes with several other tech companies such as Microsoft, Facebook and Yahoo for its employees and makes sure it can retain those employees for a long time at Google.

The company hires the best engineers with its reputation as one of the best places to work and builds a strong and motivated workforce that is culturally fit to the company and is immensely productive.

Capabilities of Google

Google’s resources on its own are not sufficient to get the tasks done. Its capabilities make use of those resources to gain competencies in what Google does very well.

The management practices of Google’s executive team and the top performance of Google’s engineers matched with world-class resources add to the capabilities of what Google can actually achieve.

The company’s culture enables its employees to work on several ideas even beyond their job responsibilities and this helps fuel innovation capabilities at Google.

The strong financial resources of Google also provide it with the capability of acquiring several startups and the genius minds behind those startups.

Evaluation of Strategies in terms of Resources and Capabilities

The strong capabilities and comprehensive resources of Google make it possible to carry forward its strategies with ease.

The company often exceeds its target of realistic goals and tries to get closer to its long-term visionary goals.

In terms of strategies discussed above in section 3.0, the company is making real progress with most of its strategies and this is justified by the company’s growing market share and users of its different services.

Thanks to its financial resources, the company has acquired companies like Titan Aerospace to make its strategy of increasing Internet accessibility successful.

The constant innovation of Google in its products and services has made it possible for billions of people as of September 2013 to adopt its mobile platform and this growth will definitely make its mobile strategy successful.

Google’s investment in research and development with its skilled and top-notch engineers (human resources) will help the company eventually come up with innovative products that will solve big problems in advertising and in other sectors.

Evaluation of Strategies in terms of SFA

Suitability of Strategies

Suitability helps to evaluate the strategies of an organization in terms of addressing the key opportunities and threats of the organization (Johnson et al, 2011).

Google’s strength lies in its popular search engine and strategies discussed above such as improving search infrastructure directly relates to building on Google’s strength.

The company is facing threats from social networking giants like Facebook and Twitter that are quickly gaining the traction in the online advertising landscape.

Google’s strategy of growing its social network and social advertising minimises the threat from those competitors and at the same time, urges to move in direction of where advertising might be going in future.

Feasibility of Strategies

Feasibility assists in evaluating strategies on basis of the organization’s capability to accomplish it (Johnson et al, 2011).

Google’s strategies are indubitably farsighted but the organization’s powerful resources would make most of it feasible in the long term.

The company expects to hire people aggressively, acquire more startups and invest heavily in its infrastructure to build the strengths of its resources and all these resources will work towards delivering the company’s strategy.

Increasing revenue and profits in recent years also display that Google’s strategies have been feasible.

Acceptability of Strategies

Acceptability helps us evaluate strategies considering the outcomes of strategies and if they have actually met the expectations of stakeholders (Johnson et al, 2011).

Google’s latest financial results as of the first quarter of 2014 have disappointed investors and this shows that Google is struggling to fulfil stakeholders’ expectations of estimated growth.

Besides, Google’s strategy of diversifying its product portfolio is worrying its investors that the company is not focusing on the core part of its business i.e. advertising.

Google’s stakeholders, however, have faith in the innovation of the company as the company has built a reputation for incredible achievements in the past.

Conclusion

Google has seen some crucial changes in its focus, culture and strategy after its co-founder Larry Page succeeded Eric Schmidt as CEO of the company in April 2011.

Under Page’s leadership, who now leads the development and technology strategy, Google’s focus is more on improving fewer products, pursuing innovative ideas, and maintaining the culture of Google.

The company generated 91% of its revenue from advertisers as reported in its annual report of 2013 and will continue to be an online advertising industry giant with its successful social and mobile strategies in upcoming years.

Please note that the original article was written in 2014 and is continuously updated with new links. Google’s complex and ever-evolving business, however, means that the specifics of its strategy also continuously keep changing.

Feel free to use the above academic framework and resources to work on the latest business strategy of Google.

Famous Quotes About Social Media to Inspire and Motivate You

Sat, 29 Mar 2014 16:46:35 GMT

Find a list of famous and motivational quotes about Social Media from some of the inspiring internet personalities.

Social media sites are amongst the most used category of websites. In fact, social media sites like Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and LinkedIn consistently rank among the top ten popular websites based on different web metrics.

They may have positives as well as negatives. But the one fact that we all can almost unanimously agree on is that such sites have great power and they have a profound impact on different aspects of our lives.

Social media sites are a great platform for connecting people over the world, living in different places and circumstances, and communicating ideas between them.

In this article, we list 16+ famous quotes about social media sites. These famous quotes about social media reflect their power and influence on wide aspects of human civilization.

1. “We don’t have a choice on whether we do social media, the question is how well we do it.”

– Eric Qualman

2. “It’s because of this fundamental shift towards user-generated information that people will listen more to other people than to traditional resources.”

– Eric Schmidt, Executive Chairman & former CEO, Google

3. “Transparency may be the most disruptive and far-reaching innovation to come out of social media.”

– Paul Gillin, The New Influencers

4. “As more people use social media to tell the story of the future, the wants and needs of more people will be reflected.”

– Simon Mainwaring, CEO of We First Inc

5. “Nowadays, social media is the easiest place to go to find something.”

– David Nail

6. “Twitter is a great place to tell the world what you’re thinking before you’ve had a chance to think about it.”

– Chris Pirillo

7. “If content is king, then conversion is queen.”

– John Munsell

8. “Marketing is no longer about the stuff that you make, but about the stories you tell.”

– Seth Godin

9. “LinkedIn is for the people you know. Facebook is for the people you used to know. Twitter is for people you want to know.”

– Unknown

10. “When you give everyone a voice and give people power, the system usually ends up in a really good place.”

– Mark Zuckerberg

11. “On Twitter we get excited if someone follows us. In real life we get really scared and run away.”

– Unknown

12. “A brand is no longer what we tell the consumer it is – it is what consumers tell each other it is.”

– Scott Cook

13. “When you’ve got 5 minutes to fill, Twitter is a great way to fill 35 minutes.”

– Matt Cutts

14. “Social media are tools. Realtime is a mindset.”

– David Meerman Scott

15. “Privacy is dead, and social media holds the smoking gun.”

– Pete Cashmore, Mashable

16. “Social media has given us this idea that we should all have a posse of friends when in reality, if we have one or two really good friends, we are lucky.”

– Brene Brown

17. Focus on how to be social, not on how to do social.

– Jay Baer

What do you think of the famous quotes about social media we’ve listed over here? Do you know any other famous and inspirational quotes about social media?

Feel free to share them in the comments below.

Pradeep Singh

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