Online intentions for 2017

Holidays have started. Christmas songs on the radio, days getting shorter and people come into holiday mood. The approaching holiday season would not be complete without looking forward and backward.

Looking ahead at 2017, I would like to write about online intentions which I also consider myself, both for social media as for websites.

Online considerations in 2017

It is good to look forward to what is yet to come and to make advanced plans and initiate changes. So we can already put ideas on our to-do list and take new tasks into account. It's often necessary to sit down with colleagues or family to argue on plans for the new year.

In business there are many good intentions to think about, but don't forget your online intentions which are also very important in 2017. What are the things you will do differently in 2017 in the field of online marketing? Are you going to give your website a new look? More consistent use of social media? Online advertising? An A / B test to do? These are just some examples of plans that may be of importance in coming new year.

Please find below some online plans that are definitely worth considering for 2017.

• Make sure that everything is capable responsive to your website or social media and works on all kinds of screens. The bulk of internet traffic goes mobile, so make sure that your messages can be viewed on large and small screens. This isn't real innovative anymore but like all innovations, it's aging.
• Videos are a must-have! Online video is the real trend of the past and coming years ahead. If you want to raise your website and social media to the next level, the use of video is highly recommended! Be yourself, be spontaneous but don't direct it from beginning to end. Instead, give the viewer a look behind the scenes, give tips about your area of expertise and pay attention to important issues. Give your business a sound and image by using video!
• In addition to real-time content from videos, location data is also important: The location of people doing searches, visit your site or who are in the vicinity of a shop or restaurant. This information will become more better to track and to use. I once read that Brussels airport achieved 1.5 million additional revenue by using beacons: blue tooth chips that activate an app which determine relevant information of a visitor based on his / her location. Just think of all those discount vouchers are offered for shops nearby, flight information and check-in assistance.
• Good content is more important than ever. For both social media as websites, it's essential to place quality and relevant content. Beside exposing your expertise it has also a positive effect on the visibility of your website. Important is to provide information what your website visitors are looking for. It's essential that this information is available, easy to find and give relevant answers to their questions and solutions to their problems.

I wish you all pleasant holidays and a successful 2017, online as well as offline.