V5 Digital and Acacia Energy partner up to make the World a Greener Place

Acacia Energy is an international company with a powerful vision for the future: to help restore the Namibian Savannah while assisting businesses to shift away from fossil fuels. The way they will achieve this is by using the biomass from encroaching non-indigenous bush to harvest energy, which simultaneously helps restore the Savannah lands to their natural state. To realise this vision, Acacia Energy understood that they will need to attract customers for the green energy they produce as well as investors. But how would they attract their ideal target market of environmentally-minded European investors and business people?

Acacia Energy approached V5 Digital to build them a compelling online brand home, complete with a fresh logo to communicate their values.

This is where leading Namibian agency V5 Digital entered the scene. Acacia Energy approached the Windhoek-based innovators to build them a compelling online brand home, complete with a fresh logo to communicate their values.

This resulted in a win-win partnership, with V5 Digital landing its first major international client, and Acacia Energy landing a digital partner who understands how to craft superior digital experiences.

V5 Digital began the process by conducting a global audit of competitor and peer sites, to compile best practices for site functionality as well as look and feel. Next, the site map was constructed with the user experience in mind, ensuring that site visitors can navigate to exactly what they’re looking for in as few clicks as possible. The site was built with a highly functional content management system (CMS) so much so that news and updates can be published quickly and easily.

Acacia Energy’s new website was constructed to best convey their purpose: to highlight the critical issue of saving the savannas of sub-Saharan Africa and Namibia.

Acacia Energy’s new website was constructed to best convey their purpose, namely to highlight the critical issue of saving the savannas of sub-Saharan Africa and Namibia, and simultaneously providing a greener alternative to fossil fuels. This is conveyed through the messaging throughout the site, as well as through the immersive photo and video libraries that help visitors in other countries understand the issue on a visceral level - Acacia Energy´s ethos was distilled succinctly in the logo that V5 Digital conceptualized with them, conveying their green energy mission in a dynamic and memorable icon-style logo.

Google Analytics was installed, ensuring that Acacia Energy has a full view of users’ behaviour on the site (which pages they are most interested in, for example), as well as which channels are most effective at driving traffic to the site (such as Facebook and Google). Most critically, since we know that over 80% of internet users view websites on their phones, the new Acacia Energy brand home was constructed to be mobile-first, so that the mobile experience is prioritized and is as seamless and responsive as possible.

Best practice in technical SEO guided the build, so that the site is highly discoverable for search engines. In addition, a blog section on the site means that new articles can constantly be added, helping reveal Acacia Energy’s thought leadership in the green energy space. This fresh content not only keeps the site alive, giving visitors a reason to return, it also provides new keywords and phrases to Google that benefit SEO, fueling organic (unpaid) site traffic.

It is worthwhile to invest in this green energy and environmentally-minded initiative

Potential customers and investors were top-of-mind throughout the site build. This then resulted in the easy-to-use concertina-style FAQ page, where visitors can quickly find out what they need to know. For those interested in Acacia Energy’s updates and developments, a simple newsletter sign-up function allows them to stay in touch after they leave the website. Prospective customers and investors can find out exactly what the benefits of buying energy from Acacia Energy are, as well as why it is worthwhile to invest in this green energy and environmentally-minded initiative. Interested parties can then complete a brief form on the site expressing their interest so that Acacia Energy can get back to them swiftly. V5 Digital ensured that any customer data that is collected is compliant with GDPR.

A patch of savanna that has been cleared of invasive bush species on the Otjiwa Safari Lodge with the Omatako Mountains located in the background - Otjozondjupa Region of Namibia

Does your company need a brand home that can connect with your ideal customers, no matter where they are around the world?

V5 Digital is your ideal digital partner to help you strategically in the online space. Get in touch for your free, no-obligations consultation to discover the best solution to your business problem.

For further queries or a consultation, contact V5 Digital.

Game-changing Namibian NGO hits the digital refresh button - courtesy of V5 Digital

Successful graduates from the Commercial Advancement Training Scheme (CATS).

The Commercial Advancement Training Scheme (CATS) is an NGO that serves a critical role in Namibia: connecting school-leavers with employers who can provide them with on-the-job training over the course of two years. Students work four days a week while the remainder of their time is dedicated to theoretical training, which they receive via Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST). The training guarantees that students rotate through different departments of the business under the guidance of a CATS mentor and supervisor.

While this exceptional program helps to up-skill Namibia’s school-leaving population, making them more employable and providing companies with new talent, the NGO needed a digital refresh in order to attract the next generation of students and companies. CATS enlisted Windhoek-based agency V5 Digital for this very purpose. With so many options in the digital space, where would V5 Digital begin?

V5 Digital assisted the NGO with a needed digital refresh in order to attract the next generation of students.

The first step was conducting an audit to understand the digital lay-of-the-land. V5 Digital did a deep dive into the digital assets of competitor and peer programs globally, to understand the landscape and draw inspiration. Best practice findings were then collated to form the basis for the digital brand strategy for CATS. The major thrust of the strategy was to draft a clear plan for CATS' presence on social media, in conjunction with overhauling the website to make it a highly functional online home for the brand.

First, V5 Digital ensured that CATS' visual branding was refined in order to show up as professionally as possible across social media. Social media branding was developed so that CATS always puts its best foot forward, and that its look and feel was consistent to build consumer trust and recognition.

Next, a content strategy was put in place to guarantee that all posts generate interest and engagement. Content pillars were clearly established so that CATS’ posts highlight the benefits of the program to all potential trainees and companies.

Since we know social media is largely a pay-for-play environment, a paid media strategy was developed to assist CATS reaching its objectives online. Promotion of posts was laid out to cleverly unlock each platform’s targeting tools so that not only would more people would be reached, but also the content would reach the right people, through geographical and demographic targeting.

To reach companies who would be interested in signing up to participate in CATS, V5 Digital established a LinkedIn business page for the NGO, since LinkedIn is the ideal platform for business-to-business engagement. CATS' new business page was then optimized to ensure maximum reach and discoverability. When people discover CATS on Facebook, V5 Digital wanted to empower the social audience to have their FAQs answered quickly. To do so, the Facebook Messenger Response Assistant was programmed to effectively reply to a preordained list of common questions.

Signing up to the Commercial Advancement Training Scheme (CATS) newsletter is as easy as 1, 2, 3.

For the new CATS website, V5 Digital wanted to build the site with best practice user experience (UX) and user interface (UI) principles in mind. V5 Digital always keeps in mind a clear conversion funnel when building websites, which guarantees that the site plays its role in serving the businesses objectives. On the CATS website, key objectives include driving newsletter sign-ups, so much so that the NGO can keep in contact with interested parties as well as making it easy for companies and school-leavers to apply.

Creating a page with good page speed was paramount, as this is often the reason why most people drop off. Basic search engine optimization (SEO) was implemented site-wide to ensure discoverability and a constant stream of organic traffic. Google Analytics was installed so that V5 Digital and CATS can view site statistics on a regular basis to track factors such as the quality and quantity of traffic to the site.

We refreshed the imagery in the UI sphere to be relevant and appealing to the intended ideal target market. Two distinct customer personas were kept in mind since the site needs to serve both students and decision-makers at companies. And last but not least a simple clean navigation bar was introduced so that every type of site visitor can easily find exactly what he/she is looking for.

Is it time for your company to hit the refresh on your social media presence or website? Don’t hesitate to contact V5 Digital for your free, no-obligation demo/appointment so our digital experts can guide you to the right options for your business.

View the new CATS website for yourself, and check out their social media presence.

Seven must-have steps to ensure you appear on the first page on Google

Blogs used to be trendy and appealing and “blogging” was a buzzword. The buzz seems to have died down, so do blogs still matter? The short answer is yes. More so than ever, we still need blogs. Why? Because the amount of organic (unpaid) traffic our websites receive can be tremendously increased through blogging. The catch? The blogging needs to be done right. Without further ado, let’s dive into the top seven reasons why you should use blogs to drive SEO success.

Blogging is more relevant in 2020 than ever before.

1. Google’s algorithm loves blogs

The infamous algorithms that determine where your website or blog places in Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs) can be manipulated to your advantage through blogging. First of all, the more pages your website has, the more Google has to index. The more it has to index, the more chances that results from your site will appear higher up in SERPs. Blogs are the ideal way to keep adding pages to your site. The added benefit here is that you’ll be upping your freshness factor since blogs mean that new content is constantly flowing into your site – another factor that Google’s algorithm rewards you for.

Blogs are perfect for sharing, which readers will do should the content be valuable enough to be shared. This means that you are generating more inbound links to your website, which is yet another factor – the “Authority Factor” - that Google’s algorithm loves.

Blogs help you appear higher up in Google’s search engine results pages

2. Customers love blogs

People do research online before they make purchases. But did you know that 85% of consumers use Google to find out more about products? Besides that if your content is valuable to your customers, the do spend spend up to eight to twelve minutes reading your blog! The added benefit here is that the time spent in total on your site increases dramatically.

By using the right keywords and phrases in your content, your blog can attract people actively searching for your products and services. Blog articles are therefore critical for attracting people with the right purchase intent. The best part? You are not paying to advertise to these people: they are seeking you out, with statistics showing that more than 50% of web traffic comes from organic search results.

3. Blogs build brand credibility

Use your blog to demonstrate the value that you can provide for your customers. The principle here is that blogs should provide a personal solution to a universal problem. Your products or services should be helping or enabling your customers solve a pain point. See your blog as an extension of that problem solving. This will help position you as a thought-leader in your industry. Do this without name-dropping your brand too frequently in the content, since readers shy away from blogs that are too salesy.

Not sure where to start writing this type of content? Begin with your own manuals and tutorials as these can be turned into “How To Guides” and listicles. Next, think of the ways in which timely topics affect your customers in relation to your products and services. Finally, remember to check your competitors’ websites for inspiration.

4. Blog quality is rewarded

In 2020, Google’s bots can identify quality content just like humans. This means that quality content is king, rather than merely writing to pack in SEO keywords and phrases. The key to doing this is always to put yourself in your client’s shoes so that your writing is addressing their needs. Remember to avoid internal jargon and overly technical terms which might alienate some readers.

5. Keyword research is (still) king

The quality of writing for blogs is more important than ever, as we have just discussed, but keywords still matter. There are numerous tools to help you find the keywords and phrases that are actively being searched – most notably Google’s own free keyword planner tool.

Remember to stay creative as this will help you discover new keywords and phrases that may be less competitive. Again, think like (not about) your customer. For instance, if you are writing about yoga, you might include “food to eat before a yoga class” as a creative way to consider searches your customers are making.

Finally, double check what you think your keywords and phrases mean. Do they mean the same to your customers. Confirm this by entering the keyword or phrase into Google and analyse the results.

6. Blogs drive conversions

While you want to avoid having your blog sounding too salesy, you do want to use it to drive conversions. Ensure that there is a compelling Call-To-Action at the end of the article – the “Shop Now” or “Contact Us” button, for example.

You might be tempted to insert banners advertising your services throughout the content. Refrain from doing so as the point of the blog is to educate, not promote. Keep the banners to outside or alongside the content, but don’t break your readers flow.

Blogs are a valuable part of the customer’s product consideration journey, by helping to drive conversions.

7. Blogs have longevity

To ensure your blogs provide you with maximum ROI (Return on Investment by continuing to drive organic traffic to your site long after their publication, you must plan and monitor. To plan, you need to create a publication calendar so that you can publish blogs on a regular basis, since consistency is another factor Google’s algorithm will reward you for.

Next, you need to stay patient as you might only see your blog article driving the type of organic traffic you desire after two to three months. This means you need to check and measure the performance of each article as part of your publication calendar. If a blog is under-performing, remember that your content strategy can be altered, and you can refresh those keywords in the published blog.

If you have an online presence, blogs are one of the best long-term investments you can make into driving ongoing unpaid traffic to your website. This has so many added benefits – including building your brand credibility and driving your conversions – that you should strongly consider incorporating blogs into your digital marketing strategy. If you are not sure where to start with blogging and would like some guidance, V5 Digital is here to provide you with a free, no-obligations assessment.