Quote: Andy Clarke

This post was originally published March 23, 2017, and has been updated to reflect new information.


Web developers design today's websites to be mobile-friendly and responsive—that's just the standard now. Both because it enhances user experience and because Google ranks those websites higher in search engine results pages (SERPs). About 89% of people who recommend a brand do so after having positive mobile experience with it.

But chances are, if you're not a web developer yourself, you may not know the difference between mobile-friendly and responsive, and you may believe that your website being mobile-friendly alone—but not responsive—is enough. Here's why that thinking is a mistake.

Photo: Anthony Ginsbrook, via Unsplash

​We pushed back our news post a week so no one would be tempted to work on vacation, but now it’s time—the top 10 digital review for June! This month, we have some social media updates, marketing and branding strategies, a little SEO and content marketing tips for local businesses, and some great advice on work/life balance.

(Photo: Bruno Cervera, via Unsplash)

— Neil Patel

Times, they are a’changing! The average user now spends 60% of their time interacting with online content on their mobile devices—not their desktop computers—which means mobile marketing has become a crucial element to your business’ online success. If you want to stay competitive, you not only need to optimize your brand for mobile devices, but also incorporate mobile marketing into your overall strategy.

Not quite convinced? Consider these findings:
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• Conversion rates are up to 64% higher on mobile devices than on desktop computers. 
• 88% of Facebook advertising revenue comes from mobile ads.
• Mobile ads increase the chances of a sale by 1.9 times.

​This well-researched infographic by Red Stag Fulfillment contains 32 actionable tips to help you effectively optimize your marketing for mobile. Take a look—and start thinking about how you can ease your mobile customers’ journey!

Photo via Raw Pixel

It’s time again for our monthly top 10 digital marketing review! We’ve included the articles we think will be most helpful to you: various social media tips and updates, the new local search environment, and why it might be time to start paying attention to voice search (the robots are coming).

We are delighted to announce that Canopy has achieved Google Partner status!

Currently, we have certifications in both Search and Display advertising, but if you know us, you know we’re always striving for improvement—so additional certifications are just around the corner. In the meantime, here’s what it means to be a Google Partner:

Photo by Bence Boros, via Unsplash

April just flew by, didn’t it?

Once again, we’ve collected 10 of our favorite articles for your perusal. We like to keep the number down so you know you’re getting our best recommendations! We did add one little extra this time—an infographic by Top 10 Website Hosting with new Internet statistics for 2018. You’ll find it below, or you can skip right to it.  (Note: These aren’t U.S.-specific stats, but hopefully you’ll find them interesting anyway!)

Photo by Chris Knight, via Unsplash

Time for another monthly review! We’ve narrowed the list down to just 10 articles—the ones we think will be of the most benefit to you—so you know you’re getting our best recommendations.

Don’t forget to check out last week’s post about the Facebook Zero update and the best ways to keep your organic reach up. Now, without further ado, here’s our recommended reading for March!

Photo: Jordan Whitfield, via Unsplash

What is Facebook Zero? Back in January, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg announced a major change to the platform, a shift in focus from “helping you find relevant content to helping you have more meaningful social interactions.”

Any time a marketer catches wind of updates to an algorithm, we cringe and hold our breath. They’re not all a big deal—these tweaks actually occur pretty frequently as each platform strives to create a better user experience. But this one is expected to have widespread repercussions for businesses and marketers, and here’s why:

Uh oh. You mean the decline in organic reach we’ve seen over the last year and change is only going to get WORSE? What are you trying to DO to us, Zuckerberg?!

Oh, right. Make people enjoy using Facebook again. Okay, that’s fair. Obviously that makes things a little more difficult for us, but all is not lost! Let’s take a look at a few simple, actionable strategies that will keep your business showing up in the news feed.

Photo: Nick Morrison, via Unsplash

Another month come and gone, and lots of news to show for it!

February was full of social media updates, but there’s also some good articles on writing, eCommerce, email marketing, and the rise of mobile, not to mention SEO and video. Take a look—you don’t want to miss anything!

Photo: ​Cristina Gottardi, via Unsplash

This post was originally published December 20, 2017, and has been updated to reflect new information.
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Net Neutrality is a phrase that’s been in the news a lot lately, and with good reason. To distill it down to its simplest form, it is the nondiscrimination law of the Internet. It protects our ability to communicate freely online, to visit the websites we choose, and to view the content we want to see.

Last Thursday, the Federal Communications Commission voted in favor of dismantling their own 2015 rules and relinquishing their authority over Internet Service Providers. What does this mean? 

The way has effectively been cleared for the nation’s largest phone and cable companies to block, throttle, and discriminate against content they don’t like. 

Major communication companies like AT&T, Comcast, and Verizon will have the ability to slow down their competitors’ content in order to drive more traffic to their own. They can charge extra fees to allow some companies greater speed, while leaving others in the dust. They can block content completely—websites, messaging apps, and video services like FaceTime and Skype—unless you pay a fee.

This ruling will likely have far-reaching impacts on the way we use the Internet, both personally and professionally. This week’s blog condenses the major points down to the 10 most important, so you’ll know better what’s happening now and what to expect in the coming weeks and months.