VisFire’s Director of Client Services, Cory Rowan, was recently interviewed by Xemion website design guide. Cory discussed our processes and trends in web design, advertising and marketing. The interview will give you an insight into how VisFire exceeds client’s expectations by approaching every project with more than just design in mind.
8. You call yourselves a digital ad agency, how does this make you different from other web design companies?
Design, development, and marketing/advertising are treated as three separate but overlapping entities. We are not a web design firm that also buys ad space and we are not an advertising firm that happens to design for the web. All of these elements together function to give our clients the best experience possible.
We are often asked to market, optimize, or advertise websites other firms have designed and developed. This usually results in us spending huge chunks of time fixing someone else’s work before ours can even begin. Firms that are just focused on design seem to leave out some of the most important elements used for search engine marketing and display advertising. Clients that come to us for their design and development get these elements built-in the first time. It is our experience in marketing that makes our web design and development right the first time. In the end, this saves the client time and money.
9. As a digital advertising and web design firm, how do you approach social media integration?
Before any social media campaign is implemented, we have a conversation with our clients about expectations. Social media is not the uncharted gold mine as it was once perceived, it is now a necessity. It is part of every design, every marketing strategy, and every ad campaign we do. Some clients incorrectly believe that a social presence alone will suddenly bring them greater sales. Social media is part of the larger puzzle.
Social media is not just a marketing tool or advertising medium, it is a listening tool. It is not a place to blatantly blast customers with solicitations, but it is a place to start conversations and listen to what your customers really want. Much of social media’s ROI is soft or indirect. While sentiment metrics and click through counts are quantifiable, a change in the way your business views its customers (as people instead of numbers) is not so easy to measure. Businesses need to begin to think of social media as a necessity and an opportunity for understanding.
Some of our client’s biggest social media successes have not even been in the social medium. We often use social trends from Facebook and Twitter to drive banner ad or email campaigns. We have seen huge email opening rates when integrating social trends into subject lines. The same can be said for click through rates as well. By involving ourselves in client’s social campaigns, we are able to create web and advertising experiences that drive greater customer engagement. My advice – integrate social media into your website as much as possible and start listening.
View the entire interview here on Xemion.