Gloucester-based McDougall Interactive Marketing spearheaded the idea of Internet marketing and search engine optimization (SEO) after the dot-com boom in 1995. Headed by Internet marketing and advertising guru John McDougall, the company’s mission is to create and guide dynamic websites for clients looking to maximize their presence online.
“Internet marketing has revolutionized the marketing and communications world forever,” says McDougall. “I think people are finally starting to fully appreciate it and take their web presence more seriously.”
Over the past 14 years, McDougall Interactive has built more than 200 websites for clients like the North Shore Chamber of Commerce, Comcast, the Atkinson Resort & Country Club in New Hampshire, and Gordon College in Wenham.
McDougall Interactive’s mission is to drive traffic toward a company’s website using SEO and social media. Plus, when built by an expert team of Internet specialists with more than 15 years of experience, a dynamic website can create more leads and rankings on the Internet, McDougall says. “Since my staff are all specialists in something very specific, they have time to keep up to date on their own channels.”
Along with building a dynamic website, McDougall suggests that the key to Internet marketing is “creating and documenting a comprehensive strategy before you design and build a site.” McDougall Interactive works with clients to create an Internet marketing strategy that is based on clients’ goals. To ensure the highest productivity and ranking, the company conducts an analysis of a client’s website. After a thorough analysis, the company takes every possible angle and strategy to revamp the website’s productivity, including monitoring user traffic and implementing user blogs, e-mail newsletters, and site design. McDougall Interactive makes it easy and enjoyable for consumers to explore its clients’ websites while still keeping them engaged.
While many companies are using Facebook as their sole marketing tool, McDougall suggests that a diversified group of tools—a combination of Facebook, Twitter, and Google, for example—be used in order to ensure the maximum volume of user traffic. After all, the more traffic a website gets, the higher its ranking on Google and similar sites. Other top tactics to consider, McDougall says, are paid search marketing, mobile marketing, e-mail marketing, online public relations, link building, and content development.
Navigating their way through the somewhat esoteric industry of online marketing, McDougall’s clients can rest assured that his company keeps its finger on the pulse of the business, helping theirs, in turn, to flourish. mcdougallinteractive.com
THE RIGHT SITE
Five key factors in creating an effective website.
1. Make it easy for first-time visitors to ascertain what you do with a quick glance. “Taglines, headlines, and photos should all explain your business versus just burying your soul in the text that many may never read if you don’t make a powerful first impression.”
2. Have a clear unique value proposition. Lowest price or best quality, etc.
3. Have clear calls to action. A “contact us” form, e-mail newsletter signup, “shop now” buttons, or “view this video,” etc. “Don’t make them guess,” says McDougall.
4. Encourage people to engage. Add social media buttons to key content, like “Share it on Facebook”/ retweet icons, or ask questions after blog posts to encourage comments.
5. Focus group. Sign up today for three videos of users explaining what they like or don’t like about your site at usertesting.com for $87.