If you watch my Instagram Stories, you would have seen me discussing a new study that was published by SparkToro which claims that 65% of all Google searches end in a ‘no click’. 

In other words, the person searching didn’t click through to a website after getting to the Google search results.

If you don’t watch my Instagram Stories, then shame on you… but I’m digressing now. 

Google has since refuted this claim by SparkToro insisting that ‘no click’ searches are far too nuanced a thing to be able to measure accurately. Though Google did admit that some of the tools it offers may reduce clicks onto a website.

Make of that admission what you will… 

So how does this affect your business? 

I’d recommend seeing it as an opportunity to outmanoeuvre your competitors. 

Whilst on-site SEO is still a must, try to also think about how your content interacts with Google – In essence, create content specifically for Google Snippets.

What is a Gooogle Snippet?

If you’ve ever Googled a question and had an answer appear directly in the Google search, you’ve seen a snippet. If not, they look like this

How To Get Featured In A Google Snippet:

Whilst there’s no guarantee your site will be featured as a snippet there are things you can do to increase your chances.

• Know the questions your customers are asking and create content that specifically answers this. If you’re unsure what questions your customer is asking tools like answerthepublic.com can help.
• Create good quality answers – it should go without saying you really need to focus on quality. Don’t just offer a quick summary, instead go as deep as you can into a topic and offer the best explanation possible.
• Be engaging – As well as being informative you need to make your answer easy to read and engage with. Use images and videos to illustrate a point if need be. 
• Create a question & answer page – If you’re worried that answering all of these questions will clog up your website or blog, try a dedicated FAQ page instead. 

Don’t Forget Your Google Business Listing

If you haven’t claimed your Google Business Listing, do so now. Like right now… I’m more than happy to sacrifice my page views for you to do this. 

Yup, it is that important.

If you already have claimed your Google Business Listing, then make sure all of your details are up to date. Also, add any relevant photos or videos you have that showcase your products or the services you offer. 

Try to add new photos regularly as this will show Google that your account is active and so it is more likely to favour showing it in search results compared to dormant Google Business Listings.

Even if you engage in limited Search Engine Optimisation, ensuring your Google Business Listing is up to date is essential as it is such a powerful tool for helping customers find your business.

One note, however, if you get any reviews on your Business listing, make sure that you respond to them – both the good and the bad reviews!

This will reflect so much better on your company than simply ignoring them. Besides if someone has taken the time to leave you a glowing review, it is only fair you thank them for it. 

In marketing as in life – have an attitude of gratitude

Emoji use in a professional setting seems to be continuously up for debate.

Some think they are harmless fun, others think that they are unprofessional and childish. But whatever your personal thoughts, it may be time to incorporate them into your marketing.

Or your social media marketing at least.

Research into emojis (yep, people research these things!) found that they can boost your engagement rate on social media.

How To Boost Your Engagement Rates Using Emojis

If we’re going to start with the obvious, using emojis is a simple but effective way to help your text grab attention by sprinkling it with a bit of colour.

But more importantly, emojis affect us in a subconscious way, which in turn helps us to feel more connected to the person, or brand that posted them.

Whilst words are important when we communicate with another human 93% of the ‘language’ we pick up on is nonverbal. This comes to us through ways such as facial expressions, tone of voice & gestures.

And now, research shows that when we see a facial emoji on-screen our brain identifies the face and reacts the same way as it does to an actual human face.

In essence, emojis trigger an ’emotional cognition’ in our brains, which in turn makes us feel seen by the person/brand and thus more connected to them.

By helping customers feel connected to your brand, they are more likely to support you through engaging with your content.

As you post regularly and build on that initial connection, this will also help to build trust in your brand, which over time will encourage conversions.

The use of faces has long been studied in relation to marketing and has been proven that including a photo of a face (preferably your own!) on a landing page can increase conversions by a huge 95%

Given how our brains react to emojis, there is no reason why they too couldn’t help with your conversions. However, it must be noted that context will play a part in this – with emojis being seen as more appropriate on social media than on websites.

How To Choose The Right Emoji’s For Your Social Media Marketing

Not all emojis have the same effect. Our brains only begin an emotional cognition when presented with an emoji that replicates a human face.

However, other emojis can be useful for transmitting the tone of voice and communicating your brand’s personality.

For example, if your brand has a cheeky style and targets millennials using the peach emoji as a byword for ‘bum’ will help humanise your brand. It will show the millennials reading that you don’t take things too seriously, that you are similar to them, and so are likely to be of interest to them.

If however, you work in corporate finance, for example, a peach emoji would seem totally irrelevant if not a bit crass.

When choosing your emojis, always remember that context is key.

They have to be relevant to the point you are making.

They have to fit with the style of your brand/your brand voice.

They have to be universally understood. If you use emojis to convey full sentences or key points, you risk them being lost on the audience as interpretations vary.

What The Data Says

Instagram – Social media analytics provider Quintly believes that Instagram posts that contain emojis see between 15-48% more engagement.

Twitter – Online advertising agent Wordstream conducted a study that showed tweets with emojis had a 25% increase in engagement rates compared to those tweets without emojis.

Facebook – Social media management tool Sprout, experimented with paid advertising on Facebook. They ran adverts with and without emojis in them and found ads containing emojis accounted for 84% of the clicks overall. This also meant that they had a 400% lower cost per click than the ads without emojis.

This week, I attended my first (outdoor) exercise class since the lockdown and truth be told, I was terrified. 

Partly because it was spinning and I know from experience that it basically destroys me. But mainly because I felt I was going back to square one. 

Just before lockdown, I’d really gotten into the gym – I was going 4 days a week, and whilst still not ‘fit’ I was seeing improvements and loved how it made me feel so much more energetic and confident in general. 

My gymtimidation was a thing of the past… but now it’s back and lurking at the side-lines so I figured it was the perfect time to share a post I’d drafted some time back, but never got round to posting.

……

Up until the last few years, I was somebody who hated exercise. I had a bad case of gymtimidation – and truth be told, any form of working out would make me nervous.

And I mean genuinely hated it… I wouldn’t run, even if it meant missing my bus. Whenever I looked back on my past experience with exercise, the picture was pretty clear: it just wasn’t for me.

Most people cringe when they remember being chosen last in PE, but I would wholeheartedly agree with the people that didn’t choose me. I was inarguably shit at it. So much so that when I would ask if I could ‘revise’ instead the teachers wouldn’t bother to argue – they could tell I was a lost cause.

So now it seems strange to think that in the past 2/3 years I completed a Couch to 5k programme, joined a running club and once that subsided joined a gym.

If I’m honest, the idea of me joining a gym isn’t that strange – I’ve joined numerous gyms in the past and went about twice before being scared off and falling victim to gymtimidation – I guess you could say I’m easily gymtimidated!

But for the last month, I’ve been eagerly going to the gym a minimum of four times a week. And now I am a woman obsessed: I talk about my workouts, I eye-up leggings when I shop and daydream about all the classes I could attend if I didn’t have to work.

And this is because I managed to overcome my gymtimidation. (And probably the extra endorphins)

It sounds silly doesn’t it, being scared of going to the gym and exercising in general. But I was scared, and I was embarrassed about being scared.

I was scared of not knowing what to do and how I was supposed to do it.

I was scared of not being able to do it.

I was scared of using the complicated machines wrong and looking like an idiot.

I was scared of what people would think of me – specifically the regular gym-goers who looked as if they had been weightlifting and running since birth.

I was scared of failure – promising myself that I would go get fit, and then not getting fit. Instead of just giving up after a session or two like I normally did.

 In a roundabout way, I was scared of letting myself down.

I might be totally misguided here, but I don’t think I’m the only one with those fears and many others fears besides them. When society only shows us images of people exercising who are already super fit, it’s easy to feel like we don’t belong.

But I got over my fears, and you will too. So, without further rambling, here is how I got passed gym intimidation

1. Choose the right gym

I’ve been to a few in my time, and looking back I can see why many didn’t work out. The one I use now may not be the most flash, but the people are ‘normal.’ They span all ages/genders/shapes/fitness levels and whilst many are phenomenally fit, most don’t look like the next big fitness influencer. Also, the instructors don’t just presume you know what certain muscles or movements are.

It probably says more about me and the internal work I need to carry out, but when I started working out there was nothing more intimidating than lycra-clad gods/goddesses who knew exactly what they were doing and expected you to know too. It was like these people were specifically designed to trigger gymtimidation.

Many gyms make you sign up for a monthly membership, but if it’s not the gym for you have no shame and cut your losses. Cancel the direct debit and try a different one.

2. Go to the induction.

Sounds basic I know, but I guess I was too big-headed to think I needed one.

I figured it would be a walkthrough, where they told you what each machine was and where the fire escapes were. I mean its always good to know where the exits are but I was pretty sure I would just forget how to use the machines if I used them at all.

My gym basically doesn’t let you attend any classes without an induction, so I was forced to go and I am so glad I did. Rather than just telling you about the machines, it’s a chance to actually use them with someone showing you how (this helped me remember the instructions a lot better!) and it’s an opportunity to become familiar with the staff so next time you go, there’s at least one friendly face.

3. Invest in some sportswear.

I say invest, but that doesn’t strictly mean spending loads. When I first started I bought some cheap gym kits because I didn’t want to spend loads on something I wasn’t sure I’d actually use. However, I’d strongly suggest buying something, mainly for its mental effects.

Getting changed into gym clothes has become a bit of ritual for me when I wear them I began to feel more energetic and ready to kick ass before I’ve even worked out.

You know that one dress that makes you feel like you may be named FHM’s sexiest woman of the year in a shocking twist of fate? Well, it kinda works like that but in a sporty sense.

Full disclosure, I may have ruined this one by living in leggings over lockdown, but I’m hoping to recapture the magic now I’m back at work.

As it comes to the end of this post, I guess the tips aren’t that groundbreaking, but I just want you to know you are not alone in feeling nervous about exercise and there is no shame needed.

If all else fails, try to ignore the looming sense of gymtimidation, take some headphones and focus on how smug you can feel afterwards.

If you are anything like me, you’ll hear a book mentioned, make a mental note to read it sometime, and then completely forget about it.

I’m especially bad at doing this whilst listening to books discussed on The High Low podcast.

As such, when my ‘To Be Read’ pile started dwindling during the lockdown, I  Googled books that had been featured on the podcast and ordered a few that seemed good at first glance.

And that is how I found Where’d You Go, Bernadette? by Maria Semple. I really enjoyed The Lost Sister so I thought this story, which followers Bee’s search for her missing mother sounded like a good fit.

The premise is simple: Outside of her husband and child, Bernadette doesn’t have many close contacts within her local community. This is because she has dedicated the last decade and more to raising her daughter Bee, who had health problems as a child.

When Bernadette goes missing Bee is the only one who can really help. Or rather is the only person who seemingly wants to help.

Only I didn’t realise before starting the book that Bee is a teenager.

The book is mainly made up of Bee’s diary entries, along with emails between Bernadette and her assistant and messages sent between other parents at Bee’s school. The mixture of perspectives certainly works well and helps to giver Bernadette’s character more depth. Despite the fact, Bernadette never speaks directly to the reader, the multiple perspectives us a greater insight into her thought process as well as the consequences she doesn’t register.

However, the mixture also means that many of the other characters do not get to develop the same level of depth as Bernadette. As a teenager who has lost her mother, you would expect Bee to have a whole host of intense emotions… yet she seems almost detached. The feelings she expresses in her diary come across somehow flat – if not verging on whiney – given the circumstances.

Though perhaps I am being unfair.

I expected this book to be intense, full of mystery and dark humour. I wanted it to explore mother-daughter relationships and I guess I just wanted this book to be more than what it is.

I don’t want this to come across as negative, because it was an enjoyable read regardless. Just be warned Where’d You Go, Bernadette? Is the type of book best suited to being read around a pool somewhere sunny, rather than a book that will draw you in on a cold, dark evening.

Which is not to say it is boring -the plot is certainly full of unexpected twists. It’s an easy read that will keep you entertained, though it is unlikely to be one that you cannot put down.

If you are looking for a book that will offer a bit of light escapism without consuming you, it will be a perfect read.