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What Is Deep Linking? (+How It Impacts SEO)

Published

4 months ago

August 22, 2023

What Is Deep Linking? (+How It Impacts SEO)

If you’ve read any of our SEO articles in the past, you’re probably familiar with the concept of backlinking. Backlinking allows you to direct both users and link equity to desired pages on your website. It’s pretty much the most critical tool in the organic search marketer’s toolkit–without it, you’d have a really hard time getting any of your pages to rank in the index and drive traffic. You’d also have no way of funneling users to the parts of your site where they will ultimately become customers.

That last component of backlinking is what we’re going to focus on today. Because while deep linking is similar to backlinking, it differs critically in this way: deep links always link to specific pages on your website or in your app, rather than your homepage.

What exactly does that mean? And why is linking to specific pages an important distinction to make in the context of link building in general? These are precisely the questions we’re going to answer in this post.

Here’s your deep, easy guide to deep linking.

What is deep linking?

When you look across the web, you’ll often see deep linking explained in the specific context of mobile apps. Simply put: deep linking is the practice of linking to specific pages in one’s mobile app. As opposed to, say, a backlink, which would exist on one’s website.

In other places, though, you’ll see deep linking defined as any link to a specific page on one’s website or mobile app. And personally, as someone who has been doing SEO for a variety of businesses for a number of years, I think this more inclusive definition is a more productive one for business owners and marketers to understand. Why? Because not everybody has an app. But most marketers at least have a website, and therefore, have backlinks. Unfortunately, most of them aren’t backlinking correctly.

That said, we don’t want to neglect the folks out there who are marketing apps, so the second half of this post is going to focus on deep linking in the context of mobile apps. But first, we really need to understand why it might be a good idea to link to a specific page on your website, and how to do it in a way that increases site navigability, drives users to convert, and spreads link equity across your site.

Why you need deep links on your website

Let’s break down each of the three use cases for deep linking I just mentioned in a little more detail.

1. Increase site navigability

A carefully, well-thought-out site navigation helps users understand where they need to go to get what they want: whether that’s an educational resource, a product page, or a free demo page. Consider the navigation of wordstream.com.

deep linking benefits - example of wordstream navigation bar that includes deep links through site

Blog, Free Tools, Resources: these could all be considered deep links, in that they allow users to navigate to deeper pages on the WordStream website. Drill down into Resources, and you’ll see even more deep links, these to specific pieces of content:

deep linking benefits - links to specific resources from navigation bar on wordstream.com

Now, you wouldn’t be wrong if you merely called these internal links, but they are deep in the sense that they allow users to navigate from a commonly visited page, the homepage, to pages that are crucial for education, and may otherwise go unnoticed if not for these prominent placements in the navigation.

2. Drive users to convert

Our next use case for deep linking is conversion rate optimization. Linking to your homepage from your paid search campaigns, email campaigns, and Tweets might be beneficial in certain scenarios–say, if you’re running prospecting campaigns, and want people to familiarize themselves with your website or app prior to sending them to a product page. But in the majority of situations, the fewer clicks a user has to make before converting, the more likely they are to buy your product or service.

That’s where deep linking comes in. Check out this email campaign from Nokia. They could have linked to their homepage, or to a collection page containing all of their home security products, but by deep linking to a product page, they are creating an efficient and cohesive experience that encourages users to convert.

example of email with deep linking to drive conversions

This concept goes for all types of marketing campaigns, including affiliate and referral campaigns, guest posts, display campaigns, and even links within one’s own site. By being direct and deliberate with where you’re sending potential customers, you increase the likelihood of them taking the action you want them to take.

3. Drive link equity across your site or app

As a proponent of increasing search rankings, number three is my personal favorite. Link equity, or link juice, is the stuff that allows your page to rank in Google’s index, drive traffic, and drive revenue for your business. Here’s how it works, in a nutshell:

Most of the link equity on your site resides on your homepage. Your homepage is the foundation from which all other pages on your site gain “ranking power.” So, the better you structure your deep links, or the closer you bring your most important pages to the homepage (i.e. the fewer clicks, the better), the better chance they will have to rank. In the world of SEO, this is also called information architecture.
The amount of link equity your page has equates to the sum and quality of its internal and external links. We’ve talked about internal links above. External links differ in that they come from other websites. If you can get external links to your page from websites that have high domain authority, you give your page a massive boost in authority in the eyes of Google.

graphic that shows how link juice is transferred between sites

So in the above example, Web Page A would have a better chance of ranking (based purely on off–page factors) than Web Page B.
In order to give your page the best chance to rank for the keyword you’re targeting, you need to use the right anchor text. Anchor text is the text upon which you’re linking. So if you were trying to drive link equity to a page targeting the keyword “anchor text,” you would link like this: anchor text.

example of anchor text for deep linking opportunities

The more accurate and relevant your anchor text is to your page’s target keyword, and to what people are searching for, the more link equity you can send to that page.

Deep linking for mobile apps

As promised, we’ve come to the part of our discussion where we’ll specifically address mobile apps. Why would you want to deep link to your mobile app? For all the same reasons you would deep link to your website: to increase navigability, drive users to convert, and drive link equity.

But when we talk about mobile linking in the context of mobile apps, we’re most often going to be concerned with that second use case: driving users to convert.

Let’s look at this great example from Apps Flyer.

how deep linking for mobile apps works

As a mobile app marketer, you’re going to have any number of campaigns out in the ecosystem at a given time. Campaigns on a range of platforms, with a range of messaging, targeting a range of prospective customers. Deep linking in those campaigns helps drive users to the correct user journey in your app: one that nurtures them with the correct content and app experience, and ultimately, encourages them to sign up.

When to deep link to your mobile app

Let’s look at some common use cases for deep linking in mobile apps, and talk about why each works.

1. Abandoned checkout flow

Consider an app like Instacart. Millions of daily active users use the Instacart app for local food delivery. But how many of them actually get through the entire checkout process? That’s where a well-timed email campaign or SMS notification, combined with a deep link to the customer’s cart, can really come in handy.

abandoned cart email with deep link to app

By linking this email directly to the customer’s cart, Instacart can drive more sales on abandoned carts than if they simply linked to the app’s homepage.

2. User acquisition

Consider this example: you’re marketing a personal finance mobile app, like Robinhood. You’re running a Facebook campaign targeting prospects that you know are interested in precious metal investing. Your ad necessarily drives folks to the app store to download your app, with the message that if they do so, they can get a free $50 coupon for their first precious metal investment.

example of deep linking from robinhood

Where do you direct users after they download the app? To the homepage? No, you deep link to a collection of common precious metal stocks, with the coupon pre-filled in the user’s cart. Or, directly to a great gold stock. In doing so, you not only incentivize them to download the app but to start investing in it right away.

3. In-app contextual education

Let’s say you’re marketing a sports publication like the Athletic. You have an amazing staff of writers and loyal readers, but in order to increase lifetime value and retention rate, you really need to get users into your mobile app, where they can stay on top of your latest content and offers.

A deep link to your article, combined with a well-timed “keep reading for free in the app” CTA, is exactly what you need.

example of mobile site deep linking to mobile app

After downloading the Athletic app in the App Store, new subscribers will then go directly to the article they were reading on the web. With this user flow, the Athletic can reduce friction, and keep customers focused on what the publication does best: putting out awesome sports journalism that demands continuous patronage.

When in doubt, go deep

That about wraps this one up. If you’re looking for one takeaway from this post, it’s this: when in doubt, go deep. Whether you’re deep linking on your website or mobile app, doing so gives you the ability to increase navigability, serve accurate contextual content, drive link equity, and drive more conversions.

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The Easy Guide to Facebook Video Ads for Any Business

Published

7 mins ago

December 8, 2023

Max

The Easy Guide to Facebook Video Ads for Any Business

Social media platforms are focusing more and more on video content. Facebook used to be a place for folks to upload their photos into albums to keep them organized and share what they’d been up to, but with the increase in popularity of TikTok and Instagram Reels, users are now so much more accustomed to scrolling through endless videos designed to make them laugh, cry, or stay informed. With this change in user behavior, it’s now more important than ever to be sure you’re creating engaging content that cuts through the noise and stands out.

An example of a Facebook video ad.

Video ads on the Meta Business platform (which reaches Facebook and Instagram) is a great way to do this. Although the ability to churn out video ads regularly was reserved for brands with big budgets in years past, new tools and AI have helped democratize this and now any brand can advertise using high-quality videos without spending much at all.

In this post, I want to talk through some best practices for Facebook video ads and show you some tools you can use to execute those strategies.

Facebook video ads best practices

Follow these Facebook video ad tips to squeeze the most out of your Facebook ad costs.

1. Create videos in all aspect ratios

If you’ve used Meta Ads recently, you probably know there are tons of different placements your ads can show up on the network. The good news is that to cover this vast list of placements, you only need to come up with three distinct aspect ratios for your video ads:

Having videos in each of these aspect ratios ensures you’re eligible to show in all the placements you’d like to.

We’ll talk later about how you can make these aspect ratios if you don’t have a dedicated creative team, but in the ad creation process, you’re able to select different video files to fit into each aspect ratio. Facebook will then automatically serve the creative with the right sizing for each spot to ensure you have the best-looking ads.

Now, while it might not seem like a huge deal to have all three ratios, I think it’s actually one of the easiest things you can do to help make sure your ads look good and stand out. In the image above, you can easily see how different an ad will look in the vertical and horizontal placements if you only have a square image. They’re not bad, necessarily, but they certainly don’t have the high-quality, professional look that most users have become accustomed to in recent years.

🛑 Want to know how your Facebook ads are really performing? Find out with our free Facebook Ads Performance Grader!

2. Be prepared for all sound options

If you’re a Facebook or Instagram user, you’ve likely visited the platforms in all sorts of scenarios. With full sound while sitting on your couch or in your bed. Maybe you have your headphones in while out in public, or maybe you’re even one of those crazy people with their sound up on the subway. But odds are, there have been at least a few instances where you were on those platforms and didn’t have the sound on at all.

For each of these instances, you were bound to see ads and the level of volume you were using likely had an impact on how sticky those ads were for you. Designing your ads to be digestible regardless of a user’s sound level is highly important.

Here are a few questions to ask yourself while crafting Facebook video ads sounds:

Do you have an engaging/entertaining voiceover?
Is there music you can choose to fit the mood of the ad?
Do you have subtitles for the voiceover in case someone’s sound is off?
Is the voiceover clear and easily understandable even in a loud environment?

3. Get your main message across in the first 3 seconds

No matter what the original purpose was for someone to visit social media, the main point is that they’re not there to view your ads. I feel very confident in saying that for the majority of people visiting Facebook or Instagram, they’re not there to see what product or service you’re selling.

Similar to ads on YouTube, users are pretty easily able to skip and scroll past the ads on Facebook and Instagram. That is, unless you run non-skippable ads, but those are pretty rare. So, you need to make sure you’re making a big impact in the first few seconds of your ads…before the remainder of it is skipped. If you do a good job of creating a compelling hook in that short time, you can certainly draw their attention for longer, maybe up to 15-30 seconds, some even longer. But odds are, your views will be short so you need to be front-heavy.

In this time, it’s important to get your business name and core brand messaging across so that even if a user does scroll past you, you’ve at least made that much of an impact. They’ll have a higher chance at brand recall later if they’ve heard your name in that brief intro. This can include text, voiceover, business logos, and more, so be creative, engaging, and entertaining.

4. Blend into the platform aesthetic

In my experience, the best ads on Facebook or Instagram (I’m typically an Instagram user) are ones that blend into the platform aesthetic. The ads that typically entice me the most are the ones I don’t really know are ads until I look down to see the Sponsored messaging down at the bottom.

The best way to discover this is to become a user of the platform itself. For Instagram, go to the Explore tab and type in some of your key terms, maybe the same ones you use for search or maybe some terms that mirror the interest or behavior targeting you’re using for your campaigns.

See what the grid looks like. What shows up? What brands are there? How are they marketing to people? While you may not want to become just part of the noise, blending in allows you to make a greater impact and feel more natural to the audience.

For example, I have a renewed interest in landscape photography and am in the market for a new camera. If I were a camera brand (or someone selling camera-adjacent things), either of the two grids above could help give an idea of what my ads can/should look like to blend into the platform. Then, make sure you follow the other best practices above to get your message across.

💡 Ready to improve your Facebook ads? Get 16 effective strategies for Facebook ads to try now!

5. Retarget users who engage with your videos

I might be biased, but one of the biggest mistakes I think advertisers make is not retargeting people who watch their Facebook videos. Sure, they might find their way to seeing you again through prospecting or they may remember you enough to come back to your site, but why would you target people (who you seemingly thought were valuable) once, then not work to target them again? Especially after they are already aware of you?

On the Facebook ads platform, you can make audiences of users who have engaged with your videos in many different ways. Just head to the Facebook ads audience manager and choose Video as your source for an audience.

From there, you can choose how they have interacted with those videos. Did they watch the whole thing? A certain percentage of it? Think about where your value propositions and messaging hits in those videos and be sure to include that in your audience filters.

Next, you can choose the videos you want to retarget people from. Yes, you can select only certain videos if you think they’re more impactful, part of a separate campaign, etc.

Lastly, you can choose how long you want to reengage with someone who watched those videos for that amount of time. One error I see is always setting the time frame to the longest possible setting. Now be honest…if you saw a video ad once 180 days ago, do you think you’re still a hot prospect for that brand? Probably not. Make sure you keep that in mind when making these audiences. Higher engagers can likely stick around longer, but lower engagers probably should be let free from your retargeting grasp a bit sooner.

Helpful Facebook video ad tools

Now that we have some best practices out of the way, I want to talk about how to make the Facebook video ad creatives. Not every Facebook video ad has to be done by a hugely expensive creative shop. Some can be done just as well with your own means, and sometimes for free! Here are some of the top Facebook video ad creative resources your business can take advantage of:

Yes, phone cameras are acceptable

A big expensive camera only makes world-changing videos when there’s an amazing photographer or videographer behind the lens. For most people, a camera phone will do just fine. In many cases, they’ll do better than if you tried to use an expensive camera due to all the ways the tech companies are making them easier to use.

Next time you need to put together a video, take a shot with your phone first. Many times, those videos will turn out great, and will help fit you into the platform aesthetic naturally as much of the content on Facebook and Instagram is also shot on a phone.

Facebook’s cropping tool

Once you have a video, there are options in Facebook ads to adjust your creatives for different sizes.

In the image above, you can see we have a square video that needs cropped to vertical. Granted, this would be a terrible user experience, but if your video does lend itself to this easy cropping, there is an option directly within Facebook to do that for you.

Facebook video builder

If you don’t already have any creatives and you need to build something almost from scratch, Facebook also has a video creation tool you can use to put together videos.

You can use existing images combined with Facebook’s video ad templates to make a video for your account. There are tons of templates that allow you to control for colors, text, timing, and more. Just lead on the user-friendly builder and you’ll end up with a platform-ready Facebook video ad in no time!

Canva

While there are some paid in-platform upgrades, Canva is a great tool to get just about any type of creative made (video or otherwise).

There are countless free templates you can customize to help promote your brand. Canva also includes easy options to convert one theme into a new aspect ratio, helping you to cover all the video sizes as I mentioned above. In short, if you’re a novice to video marketing but need to get something done, you should check Canva out.

Create great Facebook video ads today

Facebook and Instagram video ads are a great way to interact with your customer base and are only getting more necessary as other platforms lean into video. It doesn’t take any particular expertise or deep pockets to get your Facebook video ads up and running. Just a bit of patience and some guidelines and you’re on your way!

When you want to improve your results, follow these Facebook video ad best practices:

Create videos in all aspect ratios
Be prepared for all sound options
Get your main message across in the first 3 seconds
Blend into the platform aesthetic
Retarget users who engage with your videos

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How to Make a Click-Worthy YouTube Thumbnail (+Free Tools!)

Published

24 hours ago

December 7, 2023

Max

How to Make a Click-Worthy YouTube Thumbnail (+Free Tools!)

With millions of videos vying for attention, your YouTube thumbnails serve as the first point of engagement for potential viewers. These seemingly small images carry significant weight in attracting clicks and views.

YouTube thumbnails provide a snapshot of your video content, setting expectations for what viewers can expect. A well-crafted thumbnail not only piques interest but also conveys the essence of the video.

In this article, I’ll share everything you need to know about YouTube thumbnails, including tools to create them, tips to keep in mind, and other lessons I’ve learned from running my own YouTube channel.

What is a YouTube thumbnail?

A YouTube thumbnail serves as a visual snapshot of what a video contains. It appears as a small image next to the title of the video on YouTube’s search results page, related videos section, or the recommended videos section.

This image plays a crucial role in attracting potential viewers and encouraging them to click on the video. The design and content of this thumbnail often influence the decision of a viewer to watch the video or not. Therefore, it holds significant importance in the world of YouTube content creation.

YouTube thumbnail size

The best YouTube thumbnail size is 1280×720 pixels. This is an aspect ratio of 16:9. The minimum width you should shoot for is 640 pixels.

You should also shoot for a relatively small file size—under 2MB. YouTube thumbnails can be saved as JPGs, GIFs, or PNGs.

YouTube thumbnail tips

Your YouTube journey begins with a single image—the thumbnail. This seemingly small, but critically important element is the initial gateway for your viewers.

“If people don’t click, they don’t watch. So, you want to give them something to click,” said YouTube star MrBeast.

Here are some tips to create effective YouTube thumbnails.

Make them engaging

Think of your thumbnails as digital hooks to capture your audience’s attention. Make them visually striking, vibrant, and engaging.

💕 Want more tips and ideas? We’ve got 130+ for you! Get the guide >> 130+ of the Best Online Marketing Tips for Generating More Traffic, Leads, & Sales

Be consistent

Building a recognizable brand on YouTube starts with consistency in your thumbnail design. A uniform style helps viewers easily identify your content. In addition to consistency in your thumbnail design, keeping a close eye on others in your field who share your audience is a smart strategy.

Checking out what your competitors are up to can give you helpful clues about how many people click on their stuff. This helps you see how your channel’s look, content, titles, and colors stack up, so you can ensure you’re putting your best foot forward.

As you can see below, MrBeast’s thumbnails are visually striking and attention-grabbing, featuring bold colors, expressive facial expressions, and compelling imagery. He maintains a consistent style in his thumbnails, making them instantly recognizable to his viewers and helping build a strong brand presence on YouTube.

Represent your video accurately

Your thumbnail should provide an honest representation of your video. Misleading thumbnails can lead to viewer frustration and backlash.

Create an emotional impact

It’s well known that emotions are contagious. This means that watching someone else have an emotional reaction to something can cause you to have the same reaction.

Humans react to other human faces, and it’s an easy trick to get more people to click on your YouTube videos. Humans will naturally assess the emotional state of the face. When their mouth is open, it’s usually to show that they are surprised. When someone sees this surprised reaction, they are enticed to see what is so surprising.

🚨 Speaking of emotion…get our free guide >> 135 of the Best Words & Phrases for Marketing with Emotion

Learn and adapt

Continuously analyze your analytics to adapt your content and strategy based on audience feedback and changing trends.

The thumbnail below was my first to go well (in relation to my other videos). The simple title in the thumbnail, the upward arrow, society’s current fascination with ChatGPT, the length of the video, me in it—smiling and wearing something that matched the color scheme of the thumbnail. These are things I took note of as potential drivers of success for future videos and thumbnails.

Source

Free YouTube thumbnail makers

Here are a few YouTube thumbnail creation tools to try, including the one I use for all my thumbnails.

1. Fotor

I use an app called Fotor to create my thumbnails. Fotor is a fantastic all-in-one platform that makes thumbnail creation a breeze. It’s an easy-to-use photo editing and graphic design tool, available in web, desktop, and mobile versions. It provides a full suite of tools that cover most image editing needs, including face retouching and image-generative AI.

Fotor also includes advanced AI-powered tools such as background remover, image enlarger, and object remover, which make complex edits simple.

I created a super simple video walkthrough where I use it to create a YouTube thumbnail. Check it out here.

2. Canva

Canva is a design tool (with a free option) that can help you create impactful YouTube thumbnails. Simply navigate to the site, choose YouTube thumbnail as your design option, and find an already-created template to customize or create your own design.

Within Canva, you can adjust colors, add your own images, and brand your YouTube thumbnail with your business logo.

3. Visme

Visme is another online design tool that makes it easy to create YouTube thumbnails. Like Canva, Visme has already created templates that you can choose and customize according to your branding.

Simply choose your template, customize it, download it, and you’re all set!

Start making effective YouTube thumbnails with ease

Creating a great YouTube thumbnail is only one piece of the puzzle when it comes to effective video marketing on the site. But the right YouTube thumbnail strategy can help you build consistency, attract people to click on your videos, and increase engagement with your content.

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12 Holiday Emails for Customers (Templates & Examples!)

Published

3 days ago

December 5, 2023

Max

12 Holiday Emails for Customers (Templates & Examples!)

How to put your customers into a holiday slumber 😴 :

To our valued customers,

As the end of the year draws near, we’d like to take this opportunity to extend a heartfelt thank you to all of you for your support. Thank you for choosing us and we wish you a wonderful holiday season and happy new year!

sleepy bored face

Want to send an authentic holiday email this year that your customers will actually want to read? This is your cheat sheet!

How to use these holiday email templates

This post contains both the copy and creative you can use for your holiday customer appreciation emails. These emails are longer and more personalized—great for your most loyal customers or for businesses with a small client base. If you want shorter, more general copy, head on over to my holiday greetings and messages.

The copy is also pasted into some templates I made in Canva, which you can access with a free Canva account!

Here’s the link to the templates in Canva.

free holiday email templates in canva

Holiday customer email tips

In such a short piece of content as this, small details have big effects. Here’s how to get it right.

Express gratitude! Customer appreciation is the goal here.

Keep it short and use a conversational tone. This is an e-toast, not a live journal.
Be inclusive of all holidays, and be warm and positive, but not overly hyped—the holidays can be difficult for many people.
Make it visual with creative graphics or a team photo.
Share your growth and achievements to give customers a reason to stay confident in your business. BUT make it about them—the growth you achieved with their support. What you achieved together.
Connect it back to your mission (NOT your value prop).
Focus on the future. Speak to an ongoing relationship, but not through a CTA or sales promotion. Save that for your year-in-review email.

Words & phrases to make your holiday email message authentic

Take a gander through these words and phrases you can use that the other gajillion businesses out there aren’t using:

Instead of ‘valued customer’

Don’t call them valued, make them FEEL valued through your messaging.

Dear customers
To our awesome customers
To our customers near and far, old and new
To all of you
To each and every one of you
To the Baker & Co. family
To the SparkLife community
To you and your families
Dear customers, partners, and your families
Friends
First name (if you have a small list and can MANUALLY do it).

Instead of ‘exciting year’

It’s been a…

Lively
Rewarding
Exhilarating
Electrifying
Wild
Awesome
Zestful
Refreshing
Bustling
Bright
Spirited
Rousing
Rigorous

….year!

Instead of ‘as we approach’

Any “as we.” As we approach, enter, wind down, you know them all. How about:

Every year, I/we
If you’re like us, you are…
As the saying goes…
One of my favorite quotes is
Ask a question
Whether this email finds you ___ing, ____ing, or ___ing, we hope it finds you well!
As I sit here listening to [unique/meaningful/inclusive song name]
Exactly 11 months ago, we were…..
When we started out this year we _____. Little did we know…
Here at ___ we believe in ____, so…
One of our core values here at ____ is ____.
As I write this email, I’m watching the snow falling outside my window for the first time this year.
As it turns out…

Instead of ‘take this opportunity to’

Take THIS opportunity to remove yourselves from the mileu by using phrases like:

Words can’t describe our…
We’re reaching out to say…
We want you to know that…
We extend our deepest…
It is with pride and joy that we…

Instead of ‘thank you for your support’

Nothing wrong with this statement, but make it better with specifics.

Thank you for…

Trusting us with your ____
Using ____ for your ____ needs.
Confidence and loyalty to _____
How much you’ve [taught us, inspired us, encouraged us, etc..]
Choosing us as your ____ provider
Giving us a reason to come into work each day
Showing up to our events
Your reviews, social shares, votes
Positive vibes, enthusiasm

5 holiday email templates any business can use

To make your life easier, I’ve compiled some templates that incorporate the tips and words and phrases above. Check’em out.

If you want to You can also customize them in Canva