The winner of the matchup, in fact, may be subjective in relation to your business’s current needs compared to where it is going in the near future. Oftentimes, the decision comes down to how well the software meets the business’s needs, while considering any specific benefits and drawbacks of the solution.

What is Spyfu?

Founded in 2006, Spyfu is a Scottsdale, Arizona-based company that offers a suite of features and tools that include an SEO marketing suite, a PPC (pay-per-click) analyzer, in-depth views of historic data and competitive analysis, backlink outreach, unlimited keyword and domain projects, as well as custom reporting.

With over 200,000 monthly users, Spyfu is a featured player for businesses of all sizes seeking a solid SEO marketing tool, including big brands like Amazon, Adobe, and Salesforce.

Pros of Spyfu

• Robust Competitive Keyword Research Tool: SpyFu’s competitive keyword research tool tracks over 80 million domains and five billion results. The tool performs millions of searches every day that are auditable back to the actual search engine result page. This is one of SpyFu’s biggest pros.
• Quick and Easy to Create or Adjust Campaigns: Spyfu has an easy-to-use interface that allows users to access things like competitor keywords with a simple copy and paste. Building out or adjusting digital campaigns is simple and intuitive, saving time wasted with complicated processes and deep learning curves.
• Simple User Interface (UI) with Lots of Features: Spyfu describes itself as an all-in-one tool with a UI that is not overwhelming. Users like the clean, focused interface that doesn’t overload them with irrelevant data. Straightforward dashboards and clear, easy-to-digest reports help users achieve goals and save time.
• Support Available When You Need It: Spyfu offers 24/7 response through email and chat. And it offers a library of informative training videos and live, one-on-one webinars to help with any questions.

Cons of Spyfu

• Inaccurate PPC Reporting: A common complaint among Spyfu users is a lack of confidence in its PPC data, especially in regards to competitive data.
• Manual Search Is Required: To get at relevant data on competitors’ keywords, users often state they have to perform manual adjustments to ensure the resulting data is real and accurate.

What is Semrush?

Founded in 2008, Semrush is a Boston-based company that offers users the ability to access SEO, content marketing, competitor research, PPC, and social media marketing from just one platform. Semrush touts its database size with access to over 22 billion keywords for 130 countries and all-in-one capabilities that eliminate the need for multiple tools to achieve online marketing and SEO goals.

Semrush has won multiple industry awards and states that 30% of Fortune 500 companies use its tool.

Try Semrush free.

Pros of Semrush

• Easy-to-Use Organic Ranking Tool: Semrush users are able to quickly and easily access deep analysis of how their site is ranking, what keywords are working, and how the competition looks in comparison.
• Slick PPC Campaign Functionality: Businesses that rely heavily on PPC to achieve goals will appreciate the easy-to-use and effective PPC tool within Semrush. Offering an all-in-one solution, users like the ability to launch PPC campaigns with lots of analytics and tools to make executing their ads easier.
• Content Marketing Support: Semrush is complementary to businesses that are content-centric. With tools that provide improvement suggestions into keyword performance, content performance, and even user experience, Semrush is an excellent tool to help optimize the content aspect of marketing efforts.
• Simplified Reporting Tools: Semrush offers reporting tools that are easy to create, customize, and export. The power of the Semrush reporting tool eliminates the need for manual data captures, saving time and money.
• Analyze & Track Social Media Effectiveness: Semrush helps to track brands across all social media platforms including influencer campaigns and paid social activity.

Cons of Semrush

• UI Comes With a Learning Curve: The Semrush user interface is not intuitive for novice users. While technical professionals may be able to master the tool quickly, the tool may not be great for teams that have less technical prowess.
• Single Login Issue: Semrush comes with a single user login. Additional seats can be purchased, but it can get costly. The tool discourages sharing of credentials by wiping out history and saved data when new IP addresses sign in with the same information.
• Paying for More Than Is Needed: Semrush is a robust tool with a multitude of features and modules, which may simply not be needed.

Choosing between Spyfu and Semrush

Choosing which is right for your business in a comparison of Spyfu and Semrush can come down to budgets and features. Determining what you need right now, identifying your short- and long-term goals, and then aligning with your budget will help make the decision between these two excellent SEO tools easier.

The post Spyfu vs Semrush: Which Is Better for Your Business? appeared first on TechnologyAdvice.

Ahrefs Features

Ahrefs is self-described as a software company that delivers online SEO tools as well as free educational materials for marketing professionals. Headquartered in Singapore, Ahrefs values creating quality SEO content and tools, so customers can excel at SEO performance.

Ahrefs market share

Ahrefs reports approximately 6,346 companies are using their tool. These companies using Ahrefs are most commonly found in the United States and belong to the marketing and advertising industry. Ahrefs is popular with companies that have 10–50 employees and with revenue reported in the range of $1–$10 million USD and a market share of 17.24%.

Ahrefs key features

• Site Audit Tool to audit & optimize websites
• Site Explorer Tool to analyze competitors
• Keywords Explorer Tool for finding which keywords customers are searching for
• Content Explorer Learn to gain insights from an industry’s top performing content
• Rank Tracker to track, audit, and analyze a business’s ranking progress
• Link Building — Ahrefs was originally built for link building

Read the full Ahrefs product review | TechnologyAdvice.com

Semrush Features

Semrush is a robust marketing toolkit that was created with the needs of digital marketing professionals in mind. The software contains tools for optimizing strategies across SEO, PPC (pay-per-click), social media, content, and PR (public relations).

Semrush ensures marketing professionals always have time for creativity and experiments while it takes care of data. It is the only software which enables marketing professionals to build, manage, and measure campaigns across all channels to improve their online visibility.

Semrush is your digital team member — your analytics buddy, your mentor, your safety net, and a compass to new markets.

Semrush market share

Semrush shares the top spot in the SEO and SEM (search engine marketing) software market share at 9.02%. Around the world in 2022, over 11,000 companies use Semrush as their chosen SEO And SEM tool. The top industries that use Semrush are in the marketing, digital advertising, and SEO services industries.

Semrush key features

• Keyword research
• On-page SEO
• Competitor analysis
• Local SEO
• Content marketing
• Social media management
• Link building
• PPC
• Paid advertising

Try Semrush free.

The Pros and Cons of Semrush vs. Ahrefs

Ahrefs and Semrush are both leading SEO software suites. There is a reason that they are leaders in the marketplace and that many top digital agencies and private businesses use both.

There is a significant amount of overlap in any comparison between Semrush and Ahrefs, but there are unique features that should be examined before choosing which tool is right for your purposes. By exploring the pros and cons of each tool, it will be easier to discern which fits your objectives.

Ahrefs pros

• Expert-Level Backlink Solution: Ahrefs pioneered the backlink space. The tool is able to dig deeper into competitors’ search traffic than most other tools in the SEO software industry. The ability to gain these insights tells businesses what content is generating higher income. Here are some of the strengths of Ahref’s backlink tool:
  • One click allows for a clear profile of any site or URL
  • Insights into anchors and links to backlinks’ strengths
  • Ability to track backlinks and follow their development
  • Advanced reporting and smart filter features
• Positions Explorer Tool: Ahrefs provides deep insights into competitors’ search traffic, including what keywords they use to rank in search engines and which ones they include in their paid campaigns.
• Content AnalysisTool: Ahrefs’ content audit tool provides in-depth insights into content performance.
• Keyword Insights: Ahrefs offers up clear views into SERPs (search engine results pages), keyword by geographic location and language, as well as mobile performance.

Ahrefs cons

• No Free Trial: Unlike many other SEO software suites, there’s no free trial associated with Ahrefs.
• Reporting Limitations: Users report that the reporting function is limited, and customized views of data are tough to get at.
• Small Link Index: The Ahref link index is smaller than those of key competitors, namely Semrush.
• No Live Phone Support: There’s no phone support on Ahref’s platform, which can be challenging for companies with limited inhouse tech teams or those seeking customization.
• No Mobile: On-the-go SEO work is harder without a mobile app.

Semrush pros

• Ease of Use: Users report that Semrush is generally easy to use.
• Reporting Clarity: Domain analysis, keyword intent data, and large quantities of data represented in easy-to-grasp visual form make getting to actionable insights easy.
• Backlink CRM: Semrush offers a link-building tool that includes a CRM-style feature to streamline outreach efforts.
• PPC Tool: Semrush helps with organic search but has an added layer with its comprehensive PPC analytics tool.
• Lots of Customer Support: With three channels of support available — phone, chat and email — Semrush is more comprehensive than most of its competitors.

Semrush cons

• • Only Google: Semrush only provides data for Google, which can be limiting for B2B (business to business) and global businesses.
  • Limited User Account: The baseline Semrush plans only come with one user account. Additional seats are available but at a high price tag.
  • Additional Cost Creep: Semrush offers competitive analysis features, but the cost is an additional $200 per month extra.
  • Not Responsive: Because the Semrush interface is not responsive, SEO on the go is tough for this tool too.

Try Semrush free.

Which is the best?

Both Ahrefs and Semrush are solid and extremely popular tools for supporting the SEO channel. When assessing who wins the matchup between Semrush and Ahrefs, it’s important to drill down on the features to see where the true fit lies with your business’s needs.

The post SEMrush vs Ahrefs: Top SEO Tool Comparison appeared first on TechnologyAdvice.

Success in SEO can often come down to taking a deep dive into performance using a robust analytics tool that syncs up with your tech stack and business objectives. The usability, relevant insights, and compatibility with your marketing stack are all variables that will help business decision-makers in choosing which SEO tool is the best fit.

Inevitably, attention is turned toward a match-up between Ranktracker vs. Semrush. While both Ranktracker and Semrush are market leaders and offer a variety of in-depth features, the winner in the battle between Ranktracker and Semrush likely comes down to your business’s goals and unique needs.

Try Semrush free.

Ranktracker

Ranktracker is a leading SEO tool with a robust suite of functionality that allows for ranking insights, keyword searches, SERP reviews, backlink monitoring, and website audits. Ranktracker offers complex reporting and an easy-to-use dashboard for visual layout of key SEO metrics.

Ranktracker Pros

There are a multitude of advantages Ranktracker has over Semrush. A few notable benefits include:

• Ranktracker features the ability to keep track of the performance and progress of your competitive SEO strategies by:
  • Pulling real-time data from the web by scraping search results;
  • Tracking rank from almost all of the search engines and locations globally; and
  • Filtering and sorting tools for customized and robust data analysis that allows for accurate decision-making.
• Ranktracker also allows for deep insights into how your brand is performing in SEO through:
  • User-friendly reporting that allows businesses to determine which web pages are ranking high on the SERPs and for which keywords; and
  • Visual representation of ranking history.

Ranktracker Cons

No SEO is a one-size-fits-all option. And there are some disadvantages of Ranktracker that should be considered, such as:

• Many of the functionalities that could be automated are not.
• If you are a beginner at the SEO analytics game, understanding the tracking tool could come with a learning curve.
• The data feed allows for only one client at a time.

Pricing of Ranktracker

Of course, budget comes into play when considering any technology to add to your marketing stack, and Ranktracker has a few tiers to consider all based on the amount of usage you need. The plans, titled Starter, Double Data, Quad Data, and Hex Data, range from $14 per month to $167 per month.

Semrush

Semrush promotes access to over 22 billion keywords for 130 countries, providing in-depth website audits as well as the ability to analyze content to increase search rankings. This dynamic tool also allows for monitoring competitor websites, launching and monitoring PPC (pay-per-click) and social media campaigns, and lots of reporting capabilities.

Semrush Pros

Semrush did not rise to the ranks of a leading SEO tool without an array of advantages to offer. Some of the advantages you can experience while using Semrush include:

• The friendly interface allows for ease of managing and monitoring organic rankings.
• The PPC module allows users to easily create result-oriented, data-driven PPC campaigns.
• Content audit tools help optimize the use of content and know what is performing, what isn’t, and where content gaps exist that need to be filled.
• Robust and easy-to-use reporting helps to make accurate decisions with a low learning curve.
• The social media suite allows for the tracking and analyzing of social media for a holistic view of online presence.

Semrush Cons

While Semrush is a popular tool, there are some user-reported disadvantages to take into consideration, such as:

• Insights are limited to Google, which can be too shortsighted, especially for global and B2B-focused companies.
• Semrush comes with a bigger price tag than other SEO tools. This is likely attributed to its depth of functionality, but some of the bells and whistles may not be needed.
• Some users have reported that the interface is not responsive and that use of the tool on mobile is less than optimized.

Pricing of Semrush

Semrush comes with a seven-day free trial. Beyond that, they offer a three-tiered pricing plan — Pro, Guru, and Business. These plans range from $120 per month to $450 per month, with an additional option to create a customized plan that can cater to the large corporation’s needs.

Try Semrush free.

Choosing Between Ranktracker and Semrush

Deciding which SEO tool is best for your business is no easy task. Both Ranktracker and Semrush are popular choices that lead the marketplace. There are significant differentiators that should help your business come to a clear decision, depending on factors like functionality needs, budgets, and unique business parameters.

The post Ranktracker vs. Semrush: SEO Tool Comparison appeared first on TechnologyAdvice.

The great news is that we’ve done the heavy lifting for you and this guide will help you take a closer look at Semrush as it compares to Moz and set the stage for a decision on which tool to invest in for your SEO initiatives. But, first let’s review how important it is to your business.

• Search engines are the starting point for 68% of online experiences. (BrightEdge).
• SEO can reduce the cost of customer acquisition by 87.41% on average compared to digital advertising. (Terakeet)
• Organic search drives 53.3% of all website traffic. (BrightEdge)

Now that we’ve reaffirmed the obvious – that the SEO channel is an integral part of your marketing arsenal, let’s explore two of the leading SEO tools available in today’s marketplace. And, while we’re at it, we’ll attempt to answer the age-old question of who wins in the battle of Semrush vs. Moz.

Try Semrush free.

A Comparison of Semrush vs Moz

It’s always good to start at the beginning and review the basics before diving in more deeply so let’s explore what each tool is, its purpose and see how they compare:

What is Semrush?

Founded in 2008, Semrush is a web-based marketing software that helps businesses manage and execute digital marketing strategies related to SEO objectives. It is a comprehensive tool that supports organic SEO initiatives as well as pay-per-click, social media and content marketing campaigns. 

How the SEO functionality of Semrush works

• Allows you to identify search trends and keywords impacting your industry.
• Helps you audit on-page SEO and suggest ways to improve. 
• Guides you in identifying what keywords your competition is using and how they rank. 

What is Moz? 

SEO gurus Rand Fishkin and Gillian Muessig founded Moz in 2004 as a blog and later launched the web-based software designed to help businesses integrate SEO into their digital marketing plans. In addition to software, Moz houses a library of educational videos and fosters a community advice forum to help people become better at SEO.

How the SEO functionality of Moz works

• Moz is a great tool to use in addition to Google Analytics.
• Moz Pro is a comprehensive SEO tool that helps businesses manage a wide range of facets related to their SEO including auditing, and keyword research.
• Moz Local is Moz’s other software that focuses on updating and optimizing the organization’s local online presence.

What Features Should You Look for in Your SEO Tool?

While every business is unique, there are five features that are essential to your SEO software tool:

1. Rank Tracking – One of the most fundamental features of the SEO tool is rank tracking. Your rank tracking will provide insights into knowing where your website is ranking and how keywords, backlinks, updated content, on-page optimizations and more are impacting those rankings.  

2. On-Page Auditing – Your SEO tool will act as an on-page auditor that can give you actionable insights to help key areas of your website perform better in terms of rankings, conversions, time spent on site and much more. 

3. Keyword Research – Whichever tool in the competition Semrush vs Moz prevails, a high-quality keyword research tool should be on deck. Uncovering target keywords that you can use to drive traffic organically in search engines is a foundational component of your SEO channel. You’ll want reporting features such as monthly search volume of the keyword on Google, cost-per-click for the keyword on Google Adwords, SEO competition for the keyword in Google’s organic search engine rankings and more. 

4. Backlink Analysis – Another top feature of your SEO tool is related to the site’s backlinks – an important drive of SEO rankings. Backlinks are a marker that tells search engines if your webpage is relevant to users’ searches and worthy of higher rankings. This tool will also help analyze how your competitors’ backlinks are performing. 

5. SEO Metrics – Metrics are at the key of your SEO initiative, so your SEO tool whether you go with Semrush or Moz, needs to have a robust dashboard of metrics that illustrate how your site is performing, where your opportunities and competitive challenges lie.

Semrush Vs. Moz Pros & Cons

Semrush Pros:

• Easy to use – Users report that the interface is logical and data is visually presented in a way to analyze SEO performance metrics. 
• Powerful link-building functionality, which includes a CRM-style feature that makes outreach easy and effective. 
• Robust site auditing allows you to make concrete improvements to technical SEO and on-page SEO.
• Provides you with an extreme amount of PPC data.

SEMRush Cons:

• Data points only for Google, no other search engine insights are included. 
• Plans only come with one user account, additional accounts can be costly. 
• Users report that it is not mobile-friendly.
• Some competitive analysis features cost an additional fee.

MoZ Pros:

• Offers a powerful set of tools for in-depth analysis of key SEO metrics.
• Includes a range of SERP analysis and site crawling tools.
• User-friendly and easy-to-learn link explorer tool.
• Superior customer service available 24/7.

Moz Cons:

• No mobile app.
• More expensive than some of the other options in today’s marketplace.
• Some aspects of the user interface may require a steep learning curve. 

The post Semrush vs Moz: Top Features, Comparisons, Prices appeared first on TechnologyAdvice.

Marketing analytics solutions are as varied as the companies that use them. Learn about this software and compare the common features of top vendors in this list of the best marketing analytics software.

Jump to:

Leading Marketing Analytics Software to Consider

Top Marketing Analytics Software Comparison

	Multichannel tracking	ROI calculations	Pipeline analytics	Number of data connections	Business size
HubSpot	yes	yes	yes	750	small to enterprise
MailChimp	yes	yes	no	250	small to medium
TapClicks	yes	yes	yes	200	small to enterprise
Looker	yes	yes	yes	SQL database	medium to enterprise
SharpSpring	yes	yes	yes	150	small to enterprise
Pathmatics	no	yes	no	15	small to enterprise
AgencyAnalytics	yes	no	yes	60	agency

The Best Marketing Analytics Software Options

This list contains solutions that are considered standalone marketing analytics platforms as well as full-service marketing automation platforms with marketing analytics features. Small businesses may prefer the standalone tools that allow them to scale as they grow, while enterprises will likely want to focus on the full marketing automation suites with analytics included. We’ve included options suitable for many different types and sizes of companies.

HubSpot Marketing Hub

HubSpot Marketing Hub is a premium option that combines the power of the free HubSpot CRM with automations, email marketing, ads, blogging, and business analytics tools in the Marketing software. The power of HubSpot Marketing Hub comes from its interconnectedness. The marketing analytics tools help users build their content marketing, email marketing, and social media marketing campaigns. It then collects all relevant data into powerful dashboards and reports to help users understand their marketing impact.

MailChimp

MailChimp is well-known for its email marketing product, but recent expansions into marketing automation, online forms, lead generation tools, and social media ads mean that MailChimp connects data across marketing campaigns. Using MailChimp’s marketing analytics tools, marketers gain a better understanding of how the campaign performance of email, automations, landing pages, and social media ads perform and contribute to ROI.

TapClicks

Whereas some of the other tools on this list added marketing analytics tools to existing marketing automation features, TapClicks was built as a marketing analytics and reporting tool from the beginning. While TapClicks can’t help organizations run their email campaigns, it can import data from over 200 marketing and business applications, and it even has partnerships with major business intelligence software vendors like Google Data Studio or Tableau. This means TapClicks users can combine marketing data across departments and platforms.

Looker

Looker is a business intelligence platform with built-in marketing analytics tools. Choosing from a wide variety of data visualizations and powerful data analysis features, marketers can combine, connect, and drill into data. Because it’s true BI software, Looker draws data from the company’s SQL language database. This makes Looker both more powerful for data scientists and more difficult to use for non-technical marketers.

SharpSpring

SharpSpring is a full marketing automation platform with deep marketing analytics capabilities driven by campaign tagging and tracking. The tools integrate with the business’s website, email, digital ads, and social media sites, and help marketers understand how their marketing efforts contribute to lead pipeline and ROI. Agencies can also white label the software and sell it to their clients as an additional line of revenue.

Pathmatics

Pathmatics provides marketing analytics tools for digital advertisers to give them a true multichannel view of their digital ads from social media, video, ad networks, and more. The software provides deep insight into the sites and creative that sell the most, and the powerful reporting tools will help users present their findings to stakeholders.

AgencyAnalytics

AgencyAnalytics is a marketing analytics platform built to provide reporting for marketing agencies. The tools connect with over 60 applications, let users build automated reports to keep stakeholders informed, and offer white labeled reporting to protect the company’s branding. Using built-in SEO tools for deeper insights into how the agency’s efforts contribute to marketing success, AgencyAnalytics connects data from email, social, online reviews, and call tracking to gain a full picture of campaign performance. It also includes a handy site audit feature that will highlight any broken links or images, duplicate content, or missing meta-data.

Google Analytics

Google Analytics is a free web analytics tool that helps businesses track the ways users interact with their websites. Using Google’s powerful content analytics features, organizations can see which of their web pages get the most engagement and which they need to improve. Web analytics also show which keywords the site is ranking for and which pages rank for those keywords. Google Analytics is a great tool for organizations just starting out with their marketing analytics, but it can easily be scaled as users get more comfortable with the platform.

Find out how the new Google Analytics 4 update affects your SEO strategy!

Choosing the Right Digital Marketing Analytics Tools

Marketing analytics software comes in many forms, so choosing the tool that’s right for your company can be confusing. TechnologyAdvice can help you cut through the noise and find the software with the right features at the right price. Use the product selection tool on our marketing software page to enter your requirements, and one of our unbiased Technology Advisors will send you a curated list of the marketing analytics software that meets your needs. It’s fast and free.

Need help with your content? Check out these 10 Brainstorming Ideas to Inspire Your Content Marketing Team.

The post Top Advertising & Marketing Analytics Software appeared first on TechnologyAdvice.

Marketing services in small businesses

A recent CMO Spend Survey shows that marketing technology spending made up 26.6% of total marketing budgets in 2021, in comparison to 12% in 2016. However, it also found that while 68% of startups and small businesses purchase marketing technology tools, few have a strategy for measuring ROI from their investment.

On a positive note, it was found that more than 75% of marketers report their marketing technology was positively impacting the bottom line, and 91% of those surveyed said they are “very confident” their investments were bringing in value.

Why small businesses are affected more deeply than large corporations

Small businesses felt the pain of the global shutdown and aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many are still bouncing back after a couple of challenging years, especially with the legitimate recruitment issue created by the Great Resignation.

Critical areas of the small business can be impacted significantly by lack of strategy, barriers to entry, labor and talent shortages, as well as riding costs. Whether trying to recoup in the post-pandemic world, identify ways to compete in a hyper-changing digital landscape, or scale the business, the net effect is felt within the small business immediately.

Tips for creating a B2B marketing budget

Assess what is working

A common mistake many businesses make when setting up their B2B marketing budget is to overlook the current situation. Your assessment of what you’ve been doing is foundational to your success.

Perform an audit to assess things like:

• What’s been working and what hasn’t;
• What the acquisition costs are;
• Which audiences are your best opportunities and which aren’t;
• Which tools provide the deepest insights; and
• What processes support your growth and which are unsustainable.

Take risks

Once an audit has been completed of what is working and what isn’t, your B2B marketing budget will begin to look at growth opportunities. Striking the balance between always looking at the newest, shiniest marketing tool or technique and widening the net to garner big results is key here.

Some small businesses look at an 80:20 ratio, where 80% of the budget is focused on more predictable campaigns and channels, while 20% is centered around more unknown territories that could prove successful or possibly not.

Pivot when changes are needed

The days of the set-it-and-forget-it B2B marketing budget are gone, it seems. It’s important to continuously look at your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats as things that change both internally and externally. All of this analysis will help you stay aware of your business and allow you to pivot when the time is needed.

Identify metrics, KPIs, and ROIs

It is important to set up measurements in advance to ensure you know how your marketing initiatives are performing. You’ll want to identify the correct KPIs and cross-reference them to your spend in a way that is easy to get at and understand and with the ability to adjust according to your insights.

Choose what to outsource and what to keep in-house

When setting out to create your small business’s B2B budget, you’ll want to consider what you will keep in-house versus what you will outsource.

This will vary based on a variety of factors, including your talent’s skill set and/or your need for expertise; technology requirements; budget; and commitment to the channel, campaign, or initiative.

In some cases, keeping the task in-house can allow for more control, flexibility, and cost controls. In other cases, outsourcing can bring an expert to your processes that you might not be able to afford to hire, or it may allow you to dabble in some area of marketing for a short-term period.

Developing your marketing budget

Creating a B2B marketing budget for a small business is no small undertaking. From organic traffic driven by SEO campaigns to social media influencer initiatives and much in between, there is a vast ocean of consideration when developing your marketing budget.

With a focus on insights and metrics as they compare to your goals, projections for the future, and budget, you’ll be able to create a plan that moves the needle for your business.

The post Setting a Budget for B2B Marketing Services appeared first on TechnologyAdvice.

According to a recent survey report by Bain & Company, 80% of companies believe they have great customer service, but only 8% of customers feel they actually received great service. The so-named “Delivery Gap” can be reduced with the use of robust MSP help desk software that fits your company’s goals and objectives, and the communication rigor required by your customer base.

Read more: 4 Essential Reports for IT Managed Services

A few factors to consider when evaluating MSP help desk software:

• Availability: You may need to make sure your provider is available to you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.
• Fast service and response times: Your provider needs to respond quickly to your needs and problems.
• Disaster recovery planning: How prepared will your MSP be when the unexpected occurs, such as a weather disaster, cyberattack, or other outages?
• Daily backups and cloud services: Ensure your data stays safe and secure with automatic backups on a remote server.
• Support: How much customization and technical support will you need? Finding the MSP that fits your needs in this area is a crucial step.

Explore the Top MSP Help Desk Software Vendors

Zoho Desk

Zoho Desk reports 50,000 businesses worldwide using the software to streamline their customer service workflow. Zoho Desk offers tight integration with other Zoho products like Zoho CRM, a long list of features, a highly configurable interface, and a reasonable price point. On the con column lies a few concerns, which are all related to user friendliness. Zoho Desk can have a learning curve for getting started, and customization that is cumbersome. Its user interface is not seen as intuitive, and some of the MSP help desk tool’s advanced features may only be available at a higher price point.

Zoho Desk Standout Features

• Ticket system from social media
• Knowledge base
• Self-service portal
• Mobile apps
• Support widgets
• Customized reporting

Freshdesk

Freshdesk reports 150,000 happy customers around the globe and a one-stop, cloud-based solution. With a multitude of price points, Freshdesk is a popular choice in help desk software for the smaller business. Notable features of this help desk software tool include a robust query tool, a freemium model that allows customers to get a feel for the system before committing, and a gamification feature that resonates with tech-savvy and younger customer service agents. Freshdesk is limiting to some, as many of the advanced features are only available at higher price points. Also, higher-end analytic features are only available in the beta version of the software.

Freshdesk Standout Features

• Ticket system from social media
• Knowledge base
• Self-service portal
• Support widgets
• Live chat and chatbot support
• Custom reporting

HappyFox

HappyFox offers a practical help desk and customer support solution with a robust customer service ticket system, self-service knowledge base, and community forums. Users love HappyFox’s customizable user interface, integration with Slack and Microsoft Teams, easy multi-step ticket management, and a library of free training resources. HappyFox’s cons include limitations on social media connections (only Facebook and Twitter), as well as asset management that’s only available at enterprise tiers.

HappyFox Standout Features

• Asset management
• Ticket system from social media
• Knowledge base
• Self-service portal
• Support widgets
• Live chat
• Custom reporting

Jira

Jira Help Desk software is a popular choice for larger businesses, or those with more expansive help desk needs. It offers attractive features, such as customizable dashboards and a low-code smart forms generator. Additional pros of Jira include a free plan for up to three agents, and an ever-expanding list of new integrations. That said, the cons of choosing this option are related to those integrations; users say many remain subpar, creating challenges.

Jira Standout Features

• Knowledge base
• Self-service portal
• Support widget
• Custom reporting

Spiceworks

The Spiceworks Cloud Help Desk touts a quick and easy way to jump in and get going. The cloud-based tool offers seamless integration with other online tools, and no server procurement, setup, or maintenance. It’s a no-frills ticketing tool but it comes at a great price — free. Additional pros of the Spiceworks help desk software include solid functionality and a smart reporting plug-in. Cons of the tool include lacking some in-demand features, like social media links and chat support. Users also complain it has little to no reporting customization, and in-app advertising is distracting.

Spiceworks Standout Features

• Knowledge base
• Self-service portal
• Mobile apps
• Live chat

Read more on TechRepublic: How to Build a Strong Help Desk Team

How to Choose a Help Desk Provider

Get clarity on what you need from your help desk software. Many businesses skip right to the software selection stage without ever taking a quick step back to audit what they need. This includes reviewing what you currently use, and determining what is working well and what isn’t. Included in this process should be a future projection into what you may need as you scale up (or down) in the future.

Gain deeper insights into your customer expectations. Take a moment to get to know what the help desk users will want; see things from their point of view, so you can select a help desk software solution that exceeds expectations.

Make a punch list of needed help desk features. After going through the steps above, this punch list should be easier to create. Be sure to take into account your current tech tools and places where integration or customization would be needed.

Try it before you buy it. Once you’ve gotten to the point of narrowing down a few contenders that fit business objectives, budgets, and tech requirements, get the team involved — customer service leaders, tech team members, and marketers as well. If it’s possible, have a couple trusted customers or experts walk through the process to ensure that what you’re adopting is a good fit with long-term benefits for your customer experience and the organization as a whole.

For more information and tips, check out our Help Desk Software Buyer’s Guide.

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What is Jitsi?

Jitsi is an open source software company that specialises in video-conferencing software for small to enterprise level businesses. Jitsi was founded in 2002 in Sydney, Australia and currently has over 4,610 employees registered on Linkedin.

What is Zoom?

Zoom is a self-described frictionless communications platform that was founded in 2011. Zoom is publicly traded on the NASDAQ exchange and headquartered in San Jose, California.

The Pros & Cons of Jitsi vs Zoom

Jitsi vs Zoom for video quality

Jitsi features three major video quality resolutions –  1280×720 HD, 640×360 SD, and 360×180 LD. If you are using the web-based user interface or app, you lose the ability to modify the resolution easily. Users have to use a config file for editing which can be challenging for non-coders. A common user complaint is that the Jitsi video quality, despite its HD support, is not high quality.

Zoom supports HD video up to 720p (standard HD) and 1080p (Full HD) resolutions. However, these are not available with the freemium model and 1080p is only available in special cases. The higher video quality options for Zoom are available from the app whether mobile or desktop and can be easily adjusted in the settings. When comparing Jitsi vs Zoom, it is noteworthy that Zoom offers a unique feature called Group HD, which is activated automatically depending on the number of people in a Zoom room. This feature is contingent upon the performance of your device and network and its bandwidth.

Also Read: Brave Brings New Privacy-Focused Video Conferencing Tool out of Beta

Jitsi vs Zoom for implementation and onboarding

To download the Jitsi Meet mobile app,  install it from the Apple or Android app store. On the desktop, however, installing Jitsi is a little more technical, especially if you are self-hosting. To make things easier, Jitsi allows users the option to set up a room on the Jitsi website and embed it into their own website. This may take some technical expertise in the beginning to get things set up. An upside to Jitsi over Zoom is that you don’t have to set up an account or register an email address and create a password to start a meeting online via your web browser. 

One reason for Zoom’s popularity is its ease of use. For both desktop and mobile apps, Zoom is free to install and meetings launch quickly and are user-friendly from either device. Zoom meeting hosts will have to create an account and be logged in to host the meeting. Share meetings  via links, and attendees can join your Zoom meeting even if they do not have a Zoom account of their own. 

Also Read: RingCentral vs Zoom

Jitsi vs Zoom user limitations

Small business decision makers looking for the reasons to select Jitsi versus Zoom will review the features and pricing but also will need to check out the limitations to each platform and assess how important and impactful they are to the business’s needs. So, we broke down as follows:

• Meeting Time – As noted, Zoom has a freemium option and a paid option, while Jistsi is free. The Zoom freemium model comes with a limitation, however. Your meeting ends automatically at the 40 minute mark. Jitsi does not have any time limitation on meetings. 

• Meeting Attendees – Zoom allows up to 100 participants by default in each meeting for both the freemium and pro options as well as a “large meeting add-on” that can increase attendee size up to 1,000. Jitsi states that the highest number that can join a Jitsi meeting is 75, but recommends a maximum of 35 participants per meeting to maintain quality. With a participant count that exceeds 35, users report experiencing issues such as poor video quality, lagging and even complete disconnection in some cases.

• Enhancements and Effects – The right video conference tool can become the lifeline of a spread out workforce, making enhancements and effects essential.  Jitsi doesn’t offer any effects or enhancements, but because it is open source, a developer can program bids on enhancements and effects. On the other hand, Zoom has many native enhancements and effect options to improve the quality of your video, such as the touchup appearance feature, video filters, low light adjustments, virtual backgrounds and studio effects. These can be applied in both desktop and mobile. 

If you are researching whether to choose Jitsi vs Zoom for your small business video conferencing needs, there are some clear differences. While both platforms have very similar customer ratings numbers, it often comes down to features and how those features compare to pricing (and your budget). Zoom clearly offers more native bells and whistles and has the ubiquitous network effect (everyone is using Zoom). Jitsi, on the other hand, with its open source code base offers flexibility to the technical business that wants to make things the way they want them.

TechnologyAdvice can help you find the right video conferencing software for your needs. Visit the product selection tool and enter your requirements. One of our Technology Advisors will reach out with up to five vendors who meet your needs. It’s fast and free.

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What Are The Benefits Of Using Flowchart Tools?

LucidChart and Visio are both popular flowchart tools. 

In many cases, it is more effective to display workflows visually than to describe it with words. Flowcharts can explain a business’s process clearly through the combination of symbols and text. Businesses of varying sizes and in varying industries use them for a wide variety of reasons, including but not limited to: 

• Process Documentation/Training Materials — Flowchart software tools are commonly used to create better processes and support training workflows. 
• Workflow Management and Continuous Improvement — Efficient and optimized workflows can be the key to customer experiences, reduced or stable operational costs, and resource optimization. Flowchart software can help with management and support improvement over time in this area. 
• User Experience Mapping — Your choice of flowchart software can be essential in outlining your user’s experience as they navigate the customer journey. 
• Regulatory and Quality Management Requirements — Flowchart technology can help businesses that are subject to deep regulatory requirements and need to show clear documentation of their regulatory compliance. 

For these and many other objectives, businesses turn to either Lucidchart or Visio for the robust functionality that allows for freedom to choose from different shapes and styles to create solutions for a myriad of their flowchart needs.

Jump to:

• The Feature Breakdown- Lucidchart vs. Visio
• Choosing Between Lucidchart and Visio

The Feature Breakdown — Lucidchart vs. Visio

Both Lucidchart and Visio excel in their speed and responsiveness. They share features that help businesses accomplish their needs in different and sometimes similar ways. Let’s compare the top features shared by Lucidchart vs Visio and what they look like based on which choice you make for your flowchart tool. 

Collaboration Tools

Collaboration in teams spread across varying locations is harder than ever before, while at the same time crucial. Both Lucidchart and Visio have collaboration tools that support the need for team collaboration that can lead to streamlined productivity and innovation. 

Lucidchart

Lucidchart offers easy-to-use collaboration tools that can improve the way your in-house and remote teams work together with features such as real-time co-authoring, in-editor chat, shape-specific comments, and collaborative cursors.

Call out benefits — In-editor chat and shape-specific commenting features make it easy for teams to work together inside the tool. 

Visio

Collaboration tools in Visio support the same goals with the co-authoring feature for the web that allows the team to edit a diagram in real-time with others. If a diagram is stored in a web-based platform, such as SharePoint or OneDrive, team members can easily perform tasks, such as inviting others to take actions like create, edit, and review as well as offering the option to add comments.

Call out benefits — Syncing up with web based platforms like SharePoint and OneDrive helps you optimize your existing assets and resources.

Data Import/Export

A key element to any new tech tool is how it supports integration with what you already have. The ability to import and export data from Visio versus Lucidchart is an important feature to consider.

Lucidchart

In only a few quick steps, Lucidchart allows for simple import and export of data from sources like your Google Sheets or CSV files. It also allows users to simply drag and drop a row of data or an individual cell of data onto the blank canvas to create a new shape.

Call out benefits — Lucidchart allows for simple data import and export for even the non-tech user. Dragging and dropping allows you to import and manipulate only the data you need without having to take extra steps to access it.

Visio

With the Pro version of Visio, users can easily import data from external sources, such as Excel and CSV spreadsheets, Access or SQL databases, and SharePoint as well as an OLEDB or ODBC source. 

Call out benefits — Visio has a deeper import and export function for organizations that need more. These functions will appeal to the tech team and allow for deeper integration for the data scientists to work with.

Drag & Drop

Drag and drop is a feature that can appeal to both the tech savvy and the non-technical set. Saving time, reducing the learning curve, and creating a more friendly user interface are all benefits of the drag and drop feature.

Lucidchart

Lucidchart’s drag and drop feature makes it extremely user-friendly. Users easily master tools like drop shadows, locking objects, and a find/replace tool to make diagramming easier to accomplish. Drag and drop is less restrictive and makes creating diagrams more seamless and less time consuming. 

Call out benefits — Lucidchart’s interface caters to the non-technical group, making it easy to learn and master.

Visio

Viso offers an easy drag and drop feature as well. With keyboard commands and lots of user-friendly tools, users can speed up the process of creating their diagrams.

Call out benefits — Viso’s drag and drop features appeal to the more technically savvy user, appealing to their sense of shortcuts, keyboard commands, and fast working styles.

Mind Maps

Mind maps are an excellent way to use technology to support brainstorming. It’s a good way to download creative ideas and then immediately start to parse them, flesh them out, and put them into motion.

Lucidchart

Lucidchart offers mind mapping that can support brainstorming sessions and help to lay the foundation for the visual diagrams your team needs to create. Once your ideas are outlined, you can auto-convert your “brain dump” into an organized mind map with just a few clicks.

Visio

Visio also offers the mind map feature. It’s easy to create a mind map, and the platform also offers the ability to convert this into a visual diagram with only a few steps. 

Call out benefits — Lucidchart versus Visio, in the area of mind mapping, might come down to a tie. Both programs offer this feature and both programs allow users to convert to a visual diagram with only a few clicks.

How to Choose Between Lucidchart and Visio for Your Business Needs?

Lucidchart is easy to use. Lucidchart has a reputation for its user-friendly design and low learning curve. The interface allows users to jump in quickly and intuitively know how to move through the program to get results.

Lucidchart has a library of training videos. While Viso has phone support, Lucidchart offers a library of training videos for users to learn more. Videos are a popular way for users to get quick answers to commonly asked questions as they get up to speed on how to use the technology.

Visio is available on and offline. One advantage Visio has over Lucidchart is its online and offline options. Lucidchart is available strictly online. This flexibility may be a requirement for some organizations who need a non-web option.

Visio is Mac-friendly. If your working environment is Mac-based, Visio is your clear choice since Lucidchart does not offer this option.

Visio has phone support. Visio offers a phone support option, which may be important if you do not have in-house tech support and require assistance with someone to accomplish your goals.

Both Lucidchart and Visio are excellent choices for your workflow technology tool. It will come down to the small details to help you decide whether Lucidchart or Visio is right for your needs. Of course, once you’ve exhausted all of your feature comparisons, you’ll start to look at price. But pricing should be a consideration only once you’ve narrowed down the features that are important to your needs.

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Notwithstanding the circumstances of the pandemic, the virtual meeting was already on the rise, and Zoom seems to be the powerhouse tool that everyone goes to. The virtual meeting app is so ubiquitous that “zooming” has become a verb in the corporate meeting descriptive vernacular. 

Pre-COVID days (remember those days?) approximately 6% of Americans were working remotely, a number that was increased by at least sevenfold overnight due to the pandemic conditions. The reality quickly set in for many companies, work from home may never go away.

Also read: The Best Zoom Alternatives for Your Business

With all this remote work taking place, meetings are happening predominantly via video conferencing software, and Zoom calls make up a majority of those meetings.. According to TechRepublic, Zoom currently owns 60% of the online video conferencing market share and, not surprisingly, that number is on the uptick. On any given day around the globe, Zoom is the go-to tech host for somewhere in the range of 300 million daily meeting participants.

Zoom does have competition with a top ten list including Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, Skype, Webex, RingCentral, 8×8, Fuze, LogMeIn, Mitel and Vonage.

Jump to:

• What is Zoom fatigue?
• Top tips to limit Zoom fatigue
• Cut one another some slack

Also read: Brave Brings New Privacy-Focused Video Conferencing Tool out of Beta

What is Zoom fatigue?

All this world domination has brought about a new phenomenon lovingly referred to as Zoom fatigue. Without any explanation, Zoom users will nod in agreement. They know exactly what Zoom fatigue is all about. For those who don’t already know about the concept of Zoom fatigue, let’s outline why it’s a real condition:

• The tech is tedious. Logging on, slow connections, lagging internet and so on create stressful situations. It’s such a common occurrence that it is almost expected.

• You can multitask. Both a blessing and a curse, the ability to check your email, respond to a Slack message and finish up some pressing work while you are on a Zoom meeting can leave you scattered and unproductive — ultimately leading to burnout

• Your home life boundaries get blurred. Taking a Zoom meeting in your bedroom does a lot to blur the already-blurred lines between your home life and your professional life.

• Communication gets challenged. Everyone talks at once. Collaboration and feeling heard becomes harder in many Zoom interactions leaving participants frustrated, drained and less than innovative.

This short list paints the picture of the implications Zoom fatigue can have on employees as well as the organizations they work for, so what can be done to offset this new phenomenon that is likely here to stay. 

Also read: A Short Guide to Video Conferencing Etiquette

Top tips to limit Zoom fatigue

1. Set no-meeting zones. 

Block off times for employees to count on to be Zoom meeting free. This allows for an attention toward productivity and the ability to have more control over their daily schedules.

2. Don’t Zoom when a phone call will suffice.

It’s become so mainstream to Zoom that sometimes we go through all the trouble when we don’t have to. If an “old-fashioned” phone call will work, why not just call? 

3. Keep an eye out for updates. 

Zoom has regular updates that keep it running better. Staying up to date with Zoom latest patches and updates will protect your security but also avoid some frustrating technical difficulties.

4. Log on early. 

Giving yourself a few extra moments can help alleviate the stress of frantically logging on just as the meeting begins. (And, allow for time to troubleshoot any technical issues that might pop up.)

5. Designate a moderator. 

For Zoom meetings with larger groups, a big issue (and contributor to Zoom fatigue) is confusing communication flows where everyone talks at once. A moderator can help guide the flow of conversation and avoid that dreaded deluge of all talking at once, but nothing is heard.

6. Offer recorded sessions to optional attendees. 

For those who don’t absolutely have to be at the Zoom meeting, a great benefit is the ability to record the session for review later. This can alleviate Zoom fatigue with the added benefit of a possible increase to productivity.

Cut one another some slack

Adopting a positive mindset can go a long way in making things better.  Zoom fatigue is a real condition that we face in our respective workplaces, it’s true. However, a mindset shift can go a long way in combating it. 

Working from home or remote locations allows us freedoms and commute-free existences, so perhaps Zoom fatigue is a small price to pay. The best Zoom fatigue avoidance tip I can offer is to take some precautions to make sure Zoom doesn’t get the best of you and embrace the ability to work from anywhere, for the time being. 

Looking for the best video conferencing software? Our unbiased TechnologyAdvisors can help you find the right tool based on your requirements. Contact us at 855.718.1369, and we’ll provide you with a list of five vendors that meet your needs. It’s free, and it’ll take less than five minutes.

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