Web Design and Digital Marketing Blog
As a leading Digital Marketing Agency, we’ve written a lot of articles about Web Design & Digital Marketing over the years. Our Blog exists to share all of our knowledge with you, in order to help you get a better grasp on how to grow your business. Feel free to browse our categories or scroll down to view all of our posts. Enjoy!
- Branding
- Business Management
- Case Studies
- Digital Marketing
- Email Marketing
- Mobile Apps
- SEO
- Strategy
- Thinking
- Web Design
In response to the novel coronavirus, aka COVID-19, outbreak, President Trump has signed into law emergency legislation known as the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) to assist American families and businesses. You could read the law and try to understand it for yourself, or you could read our analysis of it
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the coronavirus, or COVID-19, has been detected in 90 locations around the world, including the US.
While the scale of the coronavirus outbreak seems daunting, it’s important to remember that we’ve seen
My mother worked a standard 8 to 5 job for years, and I hardly saw her. Surprisingly, as she excelled in her career, I had the opportunity to witness her transition from crazy mornings, with rushed schedules and bumper-to-bumper traffic, to having relaxed mornings and a commute as short as
At Spade Design, our marketing team wears a lot of hats. We spend time on everything from customer support to interviewing candidates to cleaning workspaces—in addition to our time-intensive primary job responsibilities.
We’re a busy group, so we’re always on the lookout for ways to streamline workflows for better
Managers can be leaders and leaders can be managers, but there are significant differences between these two roles. Leaders may or may not have authority, but they always find a way to push people forward – to lead them to where they should go. On the other hand, managers direct
Is White Label Web Design Right for You?
Website development might be sucking the time you need to devote to other aspects of running your business. It’s time-consuming and ever-changing. Clients want their websites to look and function perfectly, and
How do spammers get your phone number and email address? Why do they keep trying when they have to know you receive loads of junk every day? Is there a way to stop them from bothering you once and for all? Why does spam sometimes seem to come in waves?
On Twitter this morning Google broke the news we can expect a broad core algorithm update some time today. It’s the second time this year they made a statement before rolling out a broad change. Today’s announcement was on Twitter, here it is in case you missed it:
I want to put all my time, effort and money into a business that fails…said no entrepreneur ever. Unless you’ve been living under a rock (in which case we recommend you wait a bit before starting a business), you’ve heard staggering statistics about how many new businesses don’t make it.
When our clients Monika and Kerry Crossley opened Sno-La Snowballs, demand for their product was overwhelming. New Orleans already had plenty of snowball shops, but Sno-La was different. Kerry created one mouth-watering masterpiece after another in flavors like Bananas Foster Cream, Oreo and Key Lime. He stuffed each one
When we opened our Austin location the other day, it hit me how much Spade Design has grown. It doesn’t seem that long ago that our digital marketing agency was just a dream, now we have locations in six major cities and clients from all over the world. Someone asked
With all the options you have for digital marketing, email is still one of the most effective. There’s always a fad, but email done right is a sure return on investment. One statistic says the average ROI for email campaigns in the United States is around $44 for every
Branding is integral to everything we do here at Spade Design. Branding is vital because it’s how consumers know, perceive and recognize your business. It’s so much more than just a business name, logo or slogan, your branding is your essence. Branding material affirms your credibility, delivers messages succinctly and
How to Rank Higher on Mobile
Businesses at the top of mobile search make more money. Right now Americans are using their cell phones to Google your products and services. Implementing mobile SEO best practices must be a priority if you want them to find you.
During the first quarter
Social media marketing for business is hard, and it seems to keep getting harder. The rules and tools are always changing.
Experts say study your target audience and invest your marketing dollars where they hang out. Early this year Pew Research reported seven out of ten Americans, around 69
Right now, a percentage of your consumers are online, willing to be engaged. Much of what they see they’ll automatically discard. Some they’ll store away for later. Then, they’ll respond to a very small percentage of what they encounter on email, social media apps, through voice technology or other sources.
If you’re researching SEO best practices, it’s probably because you want your website at the top of Google’s search results. The problem is, search engine optimization is always changing.
Google updates search algorithms with exhausting regularity, it feels impossible to keep up. There are more than 200 ranking factors, and
Often when businesses come to us about marketing automation, they’ve reached a decision point. They almost always fall into one of two categories.
In the first category stands the owner who has had enormous growth. They have more potential leads than they have time to nurture, and they’re tired of
You heard promises of huge growth if you just started marketing your business places like Facebook and Instagram. You know a huge chunk of your audience visits social media at least once a day, so it seemed like a good idea. So you took photos, maybe shot some video and
Google email list building strategy and see what pops up. When I do, I get a whole list of titles like the following:
- How to Build an Email List From Scratch
- 85 Free Ways to Build an Email List Fast
- Unbeatable List Building Strategies for 2019
- 22 Incredible Email
Is blogging worth your time and effort, or is it just hype? You’ve heard your business needs a blog, but people tell you your business “needs” a lot of things.
Creating great content is expensive. Either you have to carve out time you’d be spending doing what you do to
This year marks the end of a decade full of drastic shifts. If you look back to the beginning of the decade you find flash-based websites with blocky shapes. Keypress navigation was considered cool and innovative. Some designers packed multiple columns on a page just because they could. Web design
Okay, that title might be a little misleading. We see a lot of hype from web design companies and digital marketing agencies about the importance of owning your own website. It’s usually part of a discussion around why you should choose their services over building a site on Wix or
You may have heard your business needs an SSL certificate and it slipped right by you. Someone always seems to be claiming you have to do such-and-such right now, or something bad will happen. You’ll lose all your customers to competitors. In the blink of an eye, your business growth
How active is your community bank on social media? If you think Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and other channels are just for posting vacation photos and keeping up with relatives in other states, think again. Social media changed the landscape for almost every business. It provides unique marketing opportunities for financial
I get the same phone call over and over from business owners. The person is frustrated, and they say something like this.
“People can’t find me online. Even if they search for my business by exact name, sometimes they have trouble finding me. I’m the biggest provider of XYZ in
Your business website should be driving traffic and revenue to your business. An effective website does that by connecting with the people looking for you, meeting their needs and communicating brand values. Photography is a huge part of how your business website accomplishes those goals.
When we ask business owners
Are you sick and tired of pouring money and time into marketing and not seeing results? Make 2019 the year you get serious about your marketing strategy.
At Spade Design, we use smart goals to consistently achieve success. No matter what we set out to achieve, we have systematic
Anyone can call themselves a web design company. There’s no certification required to offer logo design, search engine optimization or search engine marketing. Some agencies make a lot of claims, and they know just enough to look flashy. The proof, though, isn’t in their claims, but in their portfolio. We
Gold Leaf Gallery Overview
Debbie Shores and Traci Brevard run Gold Leaf Gallery with one goal – to make art more beautiful in framing. The sisters help people find art they love. They also take treasured objects and help shop visitors preserve and display what they hold precious.
It only
Articles on SEO all tell you to optimize for keywords on every page, but what does that mean? What makes terms and phrases into keywords and how do you choose them? What does “optimization” involve, and how do you know when you’ve done it?
If you’re asking those questions,
How Much Does Poor Web Design Really Matter?
Does my business have a bad website? Is it just a little outdated, or does it lack critical components? Is my business website costing me money, and if so how much?
You’ve had those questions for a while now. They started like
Snola Snowballs Overview
Snowballs are a basic New Orleans staple, but this business takes things to the next level. Every day Snola Snowballs has a line that stretches around the block. This snowball shop changed everything with the Original Cheesecake Stuffed Snowball and “snowball tasting.” Owner Monika Crossley describes their
Business is, well, big business, so it should come as no surprise that an important segment of our clients at Spade Design include the suit-and-tie-clad who provide various financial services to major businesses and professionals across the country.
Though we serve our clients with equal amounts of ample T.L.C., it
Laura’s Maids Overview
The owner of Laura’s Maids has a lifetime of experience when it comes to extreme clean. Phillip started cleaning homes when he was a teenager, helping his mom work in Minneola, Texas. As an adult, he noticed the need for well-trained cleaning crews that would consistently do a
Bayless Custom Homes Overview
Gary Bayless has been building custom homes in Tyler, Texas for more than 30 years. His son Clint is following in his footsteps, building custom homes in the San Antonio area.
Father and son both attribute the home building company’s lasting success to their clients’ satisfaction.
When you run a business, the lines between work and personal easily become blurred. It makes sense to add a business line to your smartphone to clarify those boundaries, but do the benefits of an additional line justify the expense? With feature-rich options like Ruby Receptionist, Grasshopper and Talkroute,
It may be possible to handle your business communications with just a cell phone and an email address, but it’s not advisable. A professional-grade phone system allows you to keep in touch with clients and partners, and there are options for almost any size business and budget. Here are seven
What was your initial reaction when you saw that Nike ad? Before you read any feedback, did you love it or hate it? Did it strike a chord somewhere deep inside your value storage or did it make you feel that flashpoint anger rarely ignited by a photo?
Which meme
We don’t use the word “major” lightly. Google is celebrating 20 years as a search engine with some pretty big changes. The search engine has algorithm updates all the time, sometimes multiple times a day.
Sometimes they’re just small tweaks, but not this time. Fall 2018 we’ll see large-scale updates
Almost all businesses are asking the same question when it comes to marketing. They want to know, “how do we reach more people?” The question is the same across industries, but writing and marketing for financial services are unique.
At Spade Design we work with financial services businesses like credit
One of the hardest things for many business owners is launching a new website. There’s a lot of important things to consider when choosing a web design company to market your business. Many business owners are wise enough to know that some things are best left to the professionals and
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Your Site Before It Goes Live
Right now, our team may be in the middle of creating a website for your business.
If so, you’re probably as excited as we are to see the finished product.
In this article, we’re going to explain what your site looks like during
Great Reviews are a Way of Business
I just met with a restaurant chain that has over 15 locations throughout North and East Texas. We met to talk about ways to improve their reviews on platforms like Google, Facebook, and the “dreaded” Yelp. They expected an easy solution that they
Your New Website – What’s Happening During Content Creation?
At Spade Design when we say we’re creating content, we’re often met with blank looks. It’s like we said we’re “doing stuff.” Clients wonder what that means, and for good reason. Content can mean a lot of different things. We want
Running a small business is tough and so knowing how to increase marketing ROI is vital for your small business. With tight budgets, slim profits, and limited resources, there is always a constant struggle to cover expenses. Many small business owners have to wear many hats and fill in any shortcomings themselves, either due
What is a Sitemap and How Does It Contribute to Information Architecture?
If you hired Spade Design to create your website, right now our team is laying the foundation for everything to come. In this article, we want to give you a glimpse into what’s happening now, at the beginning
What is GDPR Compliance and Who Needs It?
Starting May 25, 2018, the European Union (EU) implements the General Data Protection Regulation, GDPR, sweeping legislation aimed at data security. While ethical companies like Spade Design already abide by these rules, not all organizations are aware of the new data protection
Leonardo da Vinci said:
“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication”
Why does minimalism feel so refreshing and timeless?
What makes minimalism work with anything you apply it to, regardless of the project?
Simplicity, Space, and Beauty
We think it’s the way minimalist designs are used to create simplicity and space. The
Social Media Management and Your Online Presence
Social media management and blogging go hand in hand because they are critical components of your online presence and digital marketing. Marketing no longer just involves buying billboards, creating radio ads and sending direct mail. Your business needs a social media
There’s a Direct Connection Between UX and SEO
In this article, I’m going to talk about how UX impacts website rankings and what you can do to improve your SEO.
What do you do when you are looking for a company to make a purchase from and you want the
NAP and Search Engine Optimization
NAP stands for Name, Address, Phone number in web design and outside directories. Search engines scan for location and contact information related to your business and factor it in for organic local search results. It’s critical for local SEO, geo-targeting and “near me”
What You Should Be Doing Off Site for Better SEO and Rankings
In our Article 5 Ways to Improve Website Ranking we discussed Off-site SEO, also known as Off-page SEO, and in this article, I’ll go into greater depth about it.
SEO experts, bloggers and content
On-Site Web Design and Search Engine Optimization
In our Article 5 Ways to Improve Website Ranking, we discussed On-site SEO, also known as On-page SEO. In this article, I’ll cover more about it and discuss our SEO Checker tool, that gives you a free and instant score
Load Speed and Search Engine Optimization
As we talk about 5 ways to improve website rankings, let’s talk about how load speed can make or break SEO and website rankings.
You don’t need Google to tell you your customers are impatient.
Page speed is a measure of how fast
Where Does Your Business Rank In Search Engines?
If you want to be successful online, people must be able to find you. When they type information related to your products and services into search engines, where your page comes up in the results often decides whether or not you get
Launching Websites Fast Is Key To Success
Traditional website design and redesigns can be extremely time-consuming and expensive. Especially when working with an antiquated project-based web design company.
At Spade Design, we do things differently.
We have a proven web design process that saves our client’s a ton of time,
What is a Social Media Management Strategy?
As soon as you read Social Media Management Strategy, you probably thought of posting on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn or Instagram. That’s part of social media, but not all of it. A social media marketing strategy is a plan for creating communities
Create a Roadmap For Success With SMART Goals for Marketing
Do you want this to be the year of consistent business growth? Setting SMART Goals for marketing will help you get there. Business owners often think of goals as synonymous with hopes or resolutions. In other words, it would
What is Social Media Marketing ROI?
Effective marketing costs money and takes time, social media marketing is no exception. If social media marketing doesn’t bring a return on investment (ROI), it’s just not worth it. So how do you know what your Social Media Marketing ROI is?
Does social
What Is Social Media Tyler Saying About Your Brand?
How information spreads has changed, but the weight of a word of mouth referrals hasn’t.
Traditionally, word of mouth referrals meant one person speaking to another to recommend products and services. Now it includes both natural processes and targeted social
What is brand identity?
In order to understand why and how a business’ online brand identity is so important, we first need to understand what it is. A brand identity encompasses every impression a company conveys. This brand identity includes advertising, promotional literature, logos and any other means that carry
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]In this day and age, where everyone carries around a smartphone and has instant access to the Internet, you may wonder about the practicality of business cards or why you still need a business card.
These questions beg to be asked:
- How important are business cards if you’re a
The best bloggers don’t only have amazing writing skills but they also take responsibility for their content’s performance in search engines. They’ve learned one simple trick and use this On Page SEO Checklist: Blogging for People and Search Engines.
As I mentioned in my previous article, Content Marketing Best
I received a phone call that turned into a discussion of why reputable SEO firms don’t guarantee search engine rankings. This was from an acquaintance, who stated they are really excited that their contract with a Dallas marketing agency will be expiring at the end of the month and they
How Much Do You Know About Social Media Marketing?
If you’re reading this article, you likely feel one of two ways. Either you’re new to Tyler social media and you’re interested in finding out how to use it for your business, or you’ve worked with another social media agency and
Content Marketing Best Practices
If you and I have ever talked about your website, Content Marketing, or even how to get your website to rank better, then you already know that I’m big on content and normally against “optimizing content for search engines.”
That approach gives you the wrong idea
Before marketing changed, content used to exist only in paper and ink and the process of creating content was simple: all you had to do was write a semi-interesting article and get it printed in the newspaper. The bad thing about this though was the lifespan of these articles was
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Part 1
Let’s discuss why business owners fail at scaling their business and review ways to solve that problem. It’s a bit cliché to say that entrepreneurs fail far more than they succeed. Most people have heard the stories or seen a friend try over and over again, some
How to Get Marketing Budget Buy In From Management
If you work for a company with a marketing department, you’re probably in the same position as so many others and wondering how to get marketing budget buy-in from management.
Here’s the story I hear so many times:
It starts back
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Updated April 11, 2018 for Wonderful Time.
Updated April 9, 2018 for LMAO.
Updated March 11, 2018 for BFF.
Facebook Colored Text and Facebook Text Animations Are Called Facebook Text Delight
For reasons that I don’t care to get into, Facebook keeps trying to tell
One-Time SEO or Ongoing SEO – What is the Difference?
Full disclosure: I’ll start off by saying, that my company is in the business of ongoing SEO. Since Spade Design does not offer one-time SEO, you might argue that my business decision means I despise one-time SEO and consider it worthless.
Online Reviews Are Vital To Your Digital Marketing Strategy
Making it in the business world is not an easy challenge. No matter which industry you happen to work in, there is more competition than ever before, so to ensure you stand head and shoulders amongst your competitors, you need to
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Google has been quietly rolling out new features and updates to Google Business over the last several months, and the team at Spade Design has compiled these underreported changes to help your business.
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Google Business Updates
We all know that Google is constantly launching updates to their
Whether you are having a website, a personal blog, an agency site or even a simple digital presence, there is one thing of big importance you should know today.
The only thing that drives success in the online world is growing your content.
Now, that growth is best defined through
Why Your Law Firm Needs A Blog
When people need a lawyer, they naturally turn to someone they trust. Perhaps a neighbor or friend happens to be a lawyer, or maybe they know someone who just had the same kind of legal problem. Even with a referral, however, smart legal
The state of your website plays a huge role in your SEO strategy.
But once you add something new to your site, you may be thinking…
“Isn’t my job done?”
In this installment of our SEO Basics blog, I’ll answer that question and tell you why!
Your Website Will Thrive
We created The Essential SEO Jargon Glossary to help define terms that people in “the industry” use on a day to day basis. We will continue to add to this SEO
If you’re just starting out online, or are researching ways to promote your website, you’ve probably stumbled upon the terms “SEO” and “inbound marketing” a few times by now. You may have even read a few articles on these topics and have a good grasp on what they mean but
With our mobile apps, integrating a Loyalty Card into your business is very easy. However, you might be wondering how to introduce a loyalty program to your clients in the most relevant way. Obviously, usage of a loyalty card varies from one business to the next. We hope that
The set of features we offer in our Digital Loyalty Card App is an excellent toolbox to nurture your clients and monetize your app. With a well-tailored loyalty program, you can, not only make customers fall in love with your business but also keep them coming back, with gifts and
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]When you sit down to evaluate your web presence, you may look to various KPIs to determine success. There are two main KPIs you can look at: Rankings and Website Traffic. These two factors often correlate, meaning if you are performing well in one area, you are likely doing well
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Last week, we had a prospective client came to us asking for a website audit (get yours for free by clicking here). They
Connecting with people can be tough and email subject lines are just another thing to master in the digital marketing realm.
Every salesperson I know has had “gatekeepers” keep them from reaching the manager or executive they want to get in touch with.
So let’s face
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As an Introvert, this is something I try to work on every day.
Every interaction you have, with everyone from your shoe shiner to your car mechanic, is an opportunity to network professionally.
But how do you most effectively represent and market your company or personal brand without seeming opportunistic, inappropriate,
Always Change For The Better
Starting something, whether it’s a new business, product or service, exercise or morning routine is exciting, motivating and comes with a healthy dose of vision, too.
These are the things that get us through the first week, the first two weeks, the first month and so
Marketing Automation Is Having A Huge Impact on Email Marketing
Marketing automation
Everybody knows that “traditional web design” is fatally flawed, but for years, it’s been the only option.
The traditional design process requires
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Why Traditional Web Design is Dead
Website Redesign.
Two words that can even bring Mark Zuckerberg to his knees.
If you’re like most insurance companies, construction companies or real estate agencies, a redesign is a must; but oh-so-challenging to carve out time for.
In
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Square Payments on Woocommerce WordPress Website
We are proud to announce the big news regarding Spade Design and Square Payments.
With the recent release of the Square API, we will now offer custom Square integrations that keep your online store and inventory matching with 2-way Syncing and Payment Processing.
Take a look:
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Description:
Join us Thursday, November 3rd at Jack Ryans Steak House for a fabulous lunch and presentation on Holiday Email Marketing. Tis the season for all things red and white, candy cane flavored, and snow covered? Not really, its October, but for people that make their living off Christmas Sales it’s
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Description:
In response to the overwhelming requests from local business professionals that were in attendance at Digital Talks 2016, we at Spade Design are happy to announce our first Digital Marketing Q&A Luncheon called: Spade DMC.
Join us Friday, October 21st at Jack
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Email marketing drove 20 percent of online holiday sales in 2015.
Do you know what you’re sending your email subscribers this holiday season?
Whether you want to drive online sales, boost year-end donations, or get shoppers into your store this holiday season, email marketing can help.
Start with the perfect holiday
Can you believe it’s time to start planning for the holiday shopping season already?
You may think it’s too soon, but with big shopping days like Black Friday,Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday coming up in November, you’ll want to start planning your email content now.
In particular, you’ll want your
Let’s be honest: small businesses have a lot of competition during the holiday season.
For the “big guys”, waiting for the end of November is fine. They can unleash an onslaught of commercials, billboards, radio jingles, newspaper flyers, magazine spreads, and big money sponsorships for those holiday TV movies we’ve
Sticking to a social media posting schedule is important for your business.
It helps you get things done, and keeps everything running smoothly.
The same is true when it comes to your social media!
Know the right networks for your business before creating a posting schedule.
Most businesses choose Facebook first but you
Many people that come to us don’t understand the difference between a web design company and what we do as a digital marketing agency. That’s alright, we’re here to clarify.
There’s a lot of web design groups and freelancers that can make you a pretty website. Some of them even do
No, we’re not telling you to Google “My Business.” It is the name of a service offered by the folks at Google.
My Business is Google’s exciting new tool for business owners. It pools all of Google’s many services into one platform.
It makes
Being a great leader is hard. Often the greatest challenge of running an effective business is leadership. Great leaders are almost always the answer, too. It’s a catch-22, while poor leadership can break a company, a good
Even though Facebook is always finding ways to be more valuable to us, that doesn’t mean it can replace the modern day website. Being that you care about optimizing your brand on the web, you probably already knew that. Those serious about their web presence understand that the
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Stream Live Video
The Social Media scene is constantly changing. This was made evident in Feb 2016 (again!), when Facebook released a new feature: Facebook Live. A feature that allows you to stream live video to your followers. This is HUGE for businesses: companies who share video enjoy around
We love our moms at Spade Design.
They made sacrifices for us, put up with us, and provided us with a life
Dear Potential New Client,
Spade Design is making changes. Today, we thought it was important to share why and how we’re changing – and we think you’ll like it, or maybe you won’t.
First, the why: we’re changing because we’re tired of suffocating in a sea
Knowing that your business is doing all the right things to have an effective online presence isn’t easy.
Although there are tons of resources available to help us have a better understanding on how to do so, discovering how deep and wide something like search engine optimization (SEO) is
I speak with a lot of brands that are looking to have a custom logo design made for their business. Many times, this is a small business that is developing their brand identity and also budgeting for all of the other items needed to get their business off the
When you’re a web design company, it’s pretty important to have a strong website. To our surprise however, we have found that clients we have talked with recently have providers with sites that are no longer active. A web design business without a website works much
Is your Tyler, Texas business socially relevant?
In the world of digital marketing, there are obvious giants of social media that have not only changed how we interact with each other today but have become major cornerstones of the internet itself. Social networks like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest have
Web design companies will promise you the moon and stars when it comes to the ability to convert to your new website. “You’ll increase conversions by 34%,” but they never actually tell you how to increase your conversions by 34%. We’re here to clear the air. Of course, this isn’t an
Small Business Qualities for the New Year
Recently a comprehensive article about the Chinese New Year came across my news feed. If you’re still getting your western new
The Digital Marketing industry is filled with fly by night designers and SEO’ers that promise the world and take a lot of money upfront. We hate to see this happen and we know it takes a lot of trust and respect to earn someones business.
When you’re in business, it
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