Tag Archives: SEO Guidelines

What is SEO and How Does it Work

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What is SEO? First of all SEO is short for Search Engine Optimization.  It is the process of increasing the visibility of a website in search engine results. This is usually referred to as organic. Organic means that the results are unpaid results. A page that is ranked well on the search engine results will receive more traffic. Most webmasters aim to have their page listed in the top 10 results or on the first page that Google serves to readers. Falling to the second page will lower your traffic substantially.

There are a common list of basic things you need to do to rank well. Obviously the first is to have a working web site that delivers content to the reader.  The fundamental rule for all web sites and the one that Google gives as the highest priority is quality content. It should answer the reader’s question clearly and not be filled with useless keywords etc.

What is SEO and How Does it Work

Beyond high-quality content, there are numerous other factors that search engines take into account when ranking a page or web site. In fact, Google is rumored to have over 200 factors that contribute to page rank. But quality content is at the very top of the list.

In addition, page load speed is a factor, as is mobility adaptable content. A page written for a desktop must also be able to be rendered on a smartphone equally quick. The page must also be readable. If not, search engines will rank your page low and readers will move onto other pages if it does not load quickly or is so small it cannot be read on a smartphone screen.

Once you are listed on the search engine results page, you must have meta data or a short sentence that captures the reader’s interest. They have 10 results to choose from. They might select the first one listed. Or they might select the one that has a description closest to what they are looking for. Always make sure that you have a great meta description for your post to attract readers.

For more details and additional SEO info, check out some of the other posts on this site.

SEO Mistakes to Avoid

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SEO Mistakes to AvoidBuilding a web site and a web page is actually quite a complicated challenge. There are lots of SEO mistakes to avoid. We have listed a few of the major ones to consider as you build your web page for your web site. We also expand on each item further down the page for your interest. If your readers cannot find your site because Google does not rate your page or site your traffic will be low. Whether you are selling something, providing information etc. it will be difficult to achieve your objectives. These items are not in order of priority. They all need to be addressed as you build your pages to help to rank with the search engines. Ranking on the first or second page of the SERP’s can make a huge difference in your results for your web site.

  • Web Page Load Speed
  • Image Size
  • Plugin Impact
  • Caching
  • Wrong Keywords
  • Competition
  • Long Tail Keywords
  • Page Title
  • Meta Information
  • Write Awesome Content
  • Answer Readers Questions
  • Original Content
  • Call to Action – Buy, Refer to Another Page, etc.
  • Write for Mobile

SEO Mistakes to Avoid

Web Page Load Speed – readers are not willing to wait. Use an excellent service provider with high uptime and fast load time results for their servers.

Image Size – reduce image file sizes to as small as makes sense. If an image is part of a large page load, it will really slow your page and cause readers to move on before your page loads.

Plugin Impact – there are lots of great plugins available for content management systems. They all take processing power and affect your load speed. Reduce load speed as much as possible by eliminating plugins or combining plugins.

Caching – your web site can be set up to enable caching for returning customers and readers. Take advantage of this feature to reduce load times for returning readers.

Wrong Keywords – keywords are extremely important. It is tough to compete with popular keywords. Long tail keywords are much more specific and have a smaller search audience. Find the right balance between the two.

Competition – do a search for your intended keyword. If there are millions of results, it is going to be really difficult to rank well for that keyword. Find a keyword phrase that generates fewer results to reduce the competition.

More SEO Mistakes to Avoid

Long Tail Keywords – that have a natural search phrase feel to them will generate fewer search results and make it easier to rank on the first page. However, as mentioned earlier a long tail keyword may generate fewer results.

Page Title – This is the first thing readers see when they review the SERP results. Make it interesting and attractive to your readers as well as Google.

Meta Information – provides the first few words about what your page is all about. Content processing systems can auto-generate metadata for you, however, review this data to make sure it conveys exactly what your page is aimed at.

Write Awesome Content – Always write great content that is interesting and compelling. The longer your readers stay on a page the better your chances of them staying on your page longer.

Answer Readers Questions – readers are generally looking to solve a problem of some kind. Your page should help them answer their questions, find a product, solve a problem whatever it is.

Original Content – duplicate and copied content will be penalized by the search engines. Always write original content.

Call to Action – Buy, Refer to Another Page, etc. to help achieve your objectives.

Write for Mobile – mobile browsing is clearly the future and all sites must be able to portray their content in a mobile-friendly manner. There are various strategies for solving this problem from duplicate websites to plugins that detect the device used to read the content. These plugins will automatically present the content in the appropriate format.

Evolving Long Tail Keywords

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Evolving Long Tail KeywordsKeywords have always been the lifeblood of the success of any website. If you do not focus your writing around keywords, provide useful content related to these keywords, your blogging success may be limited. This page is about evolving long-tail mobile keywords vs. much shorter keywords. The chart on the left indicates the cost/ competition vs reward for short vs. long-tail keywords. Many bloggers over the last few years have focused on long-tail keywords. They do this as a method of carving out a niche for themselves. They found the short keywords just too competitive and too expensive to include in their work. Now long-tail keywords are evolving once again with the introduction of mobile.

Evolving Long Tail Keywords – Mobile

Previously when you searched for something using a longer phrase, search engines would deliver SERPs based on the apps that were installed on your phone which was somewhat limiting in terms of the total content available.

Now they are delivering SERPs based on the total content available even if you do not have the app installed on your phone. This is good for searchers, and it is good for app developers. It does mean that there will be more competition and that many apps will need to focus on having content with long-tail keywords that they previously did not have in the past. More to come on this particular project.

Checking the Health of Your SEO Projects

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Checking the Health of Your SEO ProjectsSEO experts know that they cannot stand still and forget about their websites. Even a perfect website will need updates and adjustments to reflect changing search parameters and customer interest. At the same time, before you embark on an SEO project it is important to assess the impacts. Review the time or cost to make the changes and what the return on investment will be. Checking the health of your SEP projects can make a huge difference in your overall profit, from customer visits, etc. The following list includes areas you want to check into and confirm. Make sure you understand your overall objectives, the results, and how much it will cost before you start.

Checking the Health of Your SEO Projects

  • Measure organic and referral traffic
  • Check the latest queries and keywords that brought you traffic.
  • Search for your brand name to confirm it is indexed
  • How mobile-friendly is your website?
  • Pay attention to site speed mainly because it is a ranking factor and a potential annoyance for visitors.
  • Check on-page SEO regularly.
  • How relevant is your traffic? Does it apply to your site?
  • A good metric to track is the number of pages indexed.
  • Increase the number of landing pages. 
  • Can search engines crawl your website?
  • Check Google Webmaster messages.
  • Verify links to your site for relevancy and ranking
  • Improve conversions (leads, subscriptions, downloads, sign-ups, comments, likes, shares, etc.).
  • Is your SEO program aiming at Increasing engagement,
  • Increase stickiness of the content. A low bounce rate and a high number of pages per visit are key factors.

Set Editorial Due Dates for SEO

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Set Editorial Due Dates for SEOMuch has been made about generating the content, lots of content for your website that is original and attractive to the reader. Yes, you need all of these things and much more to create a successful website. However, in this post, we wanted to talk about a topic that is often overlooked. That is “set editorial due dates for SEO. What do we mean by this term? And how do you go about setting dates, schedules, etc. for SEO purposes? The bottom line, you need to be organized and produce content, edit content, and update content regularly. Your website is going to suffer in both quality and attractiveness if you do not follow these steps.

Set Editorial Due Dates for SEO

All of your writers need to be assigned tasks, and schedules, i.e., due dates, and expectations set. Without this either for writers you hire or even yourself, content management for your website will be haphazard at best. Here is what we mean!

New Content Generation – set a schedule for content generation, i.e., new pages that will be added to your site following all of the rules for SEO that are needed. Your writers should know the dates and expectations and meet these dates.

Refresh Old Content – some of your pages will be stale and even out of date factually just due to changing circumstances in your business. Establish a program with due dates, expectations for updates, and quality levels for all of your pages. Update them regularly so that make sense for your business.

Product / Service Updates – if your business changes, so must your online content. This needs to be completed rapidly. Otherwise, you will have very frustrated customers and even employees. Establish a task force if necessary to make this happen quickly.

The important message here is to establish and set editorial due dates for SEO purposes for your business website that makes sense for the business you are in!

Three activities that may put your website at risk

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website at riskMany websites are penalized by poor content management and linking strategies. There are a number of symptoms to look for to determine if you have been penalized by search engines.   Your website is at risk if your site has been penalized in the last year. Your ranking has declined or your traffic has declined then you might be suffering from one of the following three items:

Website at Risk – Poor content

We cannot emphasize the quality of the content of your website enough. If you have low-quality content, content that would be considered spamming, or content that is not useful to the reader then both the readers as well as the search engines will not be ranking your website very well. Write for the reader and try to answer the question that you believe the reader is searching for. Make it useful and informative. Make sure that the Content is unique and don’t use someone else’s content. You should also avoid duplication on your own website even if you wrote it. Some areas that are easily overlooked on websites is the content on the header page as well as the footer page. this could cause you some problems. keep the content new and exciting, refreshing old content, and keep it interesting and useful for the reader.

Website at Risk – Poor on-page optimization

Avoid packing your title and content full of keywords. This typically will get you penalized by search engines including Google. The easiest way to test whether you becoming spammy or not is by looking at the content, tag lines, etc., and ask yourself does this look spammy? Is it natural? Also, avoid linking content since it is frowned upon by search engines. Write for the users and readers of your content and don’t write for the search engines. You will be much better off in the long run.

Low-quality backlinks pointing to your website

Back links are particularly problematic for many website owners. Back links are links from other websites to your website which you have really no control over. However, if you have a lot of backlinks from other websites that are spammy, then it will bring your website down as well. Investigate tools that will help you within identifying back links and contact the webmasters to determine how you can have the back link removed. Alternatively, you can implement a no follow approach telling the search engines that those back links are not valid and should not be included in the analysis.

These three activities, when followed, will significantly improve your website optimization and ranking in search engine indexing. It takes a bit of work. Particularly with large sites so be prepared to put a lot of effort into this. From the get-go focus on quality content.

SEO – Inconsistent URL Structures

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Inconsistent URL StructuresThroughout our posts, we have emphasized that the content on websites must be great content, interesting to readers, answers their questions, and generally solves their problems. After all, they have initiated a search to find the answer to some questions that they have and they do not want to be bothered by poor content and content that does not address their needs. This is the objective that the search engines have set for themselves. They want to meet the customer’s demands and present the best possible results to their customers each and every time. Search engines employ search and indexing algorithms that are complex, to say the least. They are kept very top-secret for the most part by Google, Bing, and Yahoo as well as others. Inconsistent URL Structures can make it difficult for search engines to do their jobs.

Webmasters are tasked with keeping their content up-to-date and meaningful for their customers. They also try to make sure that they place well on the search results. After all, if you cannot be found then no one is going to read your web page, blog, etc.

Inconsistent URL Structures

One attribute that we believe the search engines value is consistent URL structures. In other words, they see the same URLs each time they visit and index a site. They also see new content being added. Many webmasters will look at old content that is no longer relevant for whatever reason. They may simply delete that page. This action can be interpreted as Inconsistent URL Structures and cause the search engines to rank a site lower in search results.

Instead, webmasters would be better off updating the content of the page. They should make it more relevant to today’s issues and needs of the consumer etc and retain these older URLs. It spells longevity, commitment to content, and commitment to ensuring that a website’s information remains relevant.

This is part of the SEO activity that many webmasters need to address. We will be discussing further issues like this one in upcoming posts.

Professional Web Site Design

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Professional Web Site DesignThere are probably as many opinions about professional website design as there are websites on the internet. Some people believe they should be flashy with lots of catchy pictures and colors. While others are much more conservative and frankly boring.  The bottom line is really determined by the owner of the website and the customers/clients/ readers or visitors think of the site and whether they come back for whatever reason.

Professional Web Site Design

Basic Functionality of a WebSite

The basic functionality of a site should include what services or products your company provides, where you are, and how to contact you. You will be able to include the URL on your business cards and people will be able to find you on the internet if they search specifically for your name or your company’s name.

Delivery Information

Your website can also deliver information. This can include sales promotions, information about new products, new staff members, and general information about the company. The sky is the limit in terms of what you may want to provide on your company’s professional website.

Increase the Customer Relationship

Providing social networking links, accepting and monitoring comments by customers, and adding testimonials are just a few of the things that can be added in this area. Basically, you are attempting to create customer loyalty in this area of your website. Customers might subscribe to a Twitter feed, a Facebook page, or an RSS feed to keep abreast of some of the products and services that you offer.

Full E-commerce Site

One of the next stages is creating a full e-commerce site that customers can interface with and order products and services. They should be able to pay for what they order and be able to also follow up and review the status of the order. This is a major step up from a basic site requiring much more in terms of design and back-office support.

Decide What the Objectives Are

Before you begin, we urge all customers to assess what their objectives are. A basic site represents your company. It is the online version of your storefront. It needs to be accurate, it needs to be pleasing to the eye without being complicated or gaudy, and it should deliver whatever you need it to deliver to your customers. Give some thought to what you are trying to achieve. You do not need a Cadillac design when you just want the basic information out there.

Hire the Right Company to Design Your WebSite

Most companies can set up basic websites and provide hosting. Not all companies can set up a detailed e-commerce site for prices that you can afford. Knowing your objectives and deciding what you need ahead of time will help a great deal.

Focus on Getting the basic Information to Your Readers

Start by getting the basic information to your readers. Spend the time you need to obtain the right domain name. The website design can always be upgraded at some future time. The domain name is the online version of your company’s name. It should, in some manner, be related to your company or the products and services the company provides.

Check out our services and prices here if you need help setting up your company or personal website. Click here

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Professional Web Site Services

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Professional Web Site ServicesMost small business customers are looking for a basic web site. It should come across in a professional manner without having to spend a lot of money to develop it. They want something they can link their customers to. They want an URL that they can show on their business cards. A site that they can easily update from time to time. They may or may not link to the social side of the internet with Twitter and Facebook. That is ok, it can come later once they see the value of these sites.

Professional Web Site Services

A professionally design site may look great, be a nice clean site providing all of the basic information, but it may not be easily found unless your customers have the exact address to type into their browsers. You really want to make sure the site can be found.  Without adequate search engine indexing and advertising your site will not be easily found by any new customers.

Online advertising is one method to use. Google for example provides a service that a website owner can use to advertise their site on other customers web sites. It is called Google AdWords and works very well. However, there is a cost to it based on the number of times your advertisement is clicked on. It is best to set up a monthly budget for advertising if you plan to use this approach. Ensure that your costs are kept to a reasonable level.

Professional Web Site Services – SEO

Search engine optimization or SEO also works. This page is an example of what is needed to increase the indexing of a site, in this case, our site. Google and Yahoo as well as Bing use various algorithms to figure out what information to display. Always have great original content that provides information to the searcher in the area they are looking for. The search engines will rank your site higher. They will show your information on the first page of search results. If you are down on the 50th page, you will never be seen and no one will come to your site.

Contact Us For More Information

Social networking such as Twitter and Facebook pages and tweets can be set up to increase your company’s exposure. A company’s web site can obviously go far beyond the basic 5-page web site that provides contact information, where to find you, the services offered, etc. however if you are looking to get started with a basic web site which can evolve to something more complex later on, contact us via our contact page for more information. Click here.

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Web Designer for Small Business

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Web Designer for Small BusinessMany small businesses know they need a web site. But they feel they cannot afford to hire a web designer to set up a web site for them. They really do not understand the costs involved. Many look at having a website as something they should have. But it may not be considered as part of their core business activities or core advertising business.

In this post, we decided to provide three examples of small businesses that needed a web site and the solution that they eventually went with for their business. All wanted the basic information to be online so they could refer their customers to the sites for more information, they wanted to be able to add the URL to their business card and they hoped to gain customers through their web site from visitors that found them on the internet. When they advertised using traditional models, they would also list the web site.

Electrician and Residential Gas Fitter

This customer really only wanted five pages initially with all of the basic information about his company and the services they provided. He wanted to add some pictures as well that showed some of the installations that he worked on along with testimonials from his customers. This was easily accomplished for him and other than the initial fee to set up the website, he only needs to pay the annual domain name fee and the hosting account fee.

Since we used a blog engine, we also set him up so that he could add pages or blog posts himself and he could also update existing material as his business changed. This was a really attractive advantage to him since he did not want to pay for updates to pages or adding pages. He had a very limited budget and this met his objectives.

Unfortunately, his web site is not ranked very high by the search engines since it is not SEO optimized. There are simply not enough pages with keywords that people usually use to search for the services he offers. At the present time, he is satisfied with that and will continue with his current arrangement.

Ski Club

While this is technically not a business, they have many of the same requirements that the above customer needed. Inexpensive and limited update costs were paramount. This site is used to keep members informed about trips and membership updates. There are only 5 or 6 pages that need to be updated. They want to be able to also make their own updates.

They already have a domain name, but no hosting location. Their budget is even more limited. They are presently looking for free hosting and someone to update their pages for them. They are still thinking about the services that are provided and that they need as well as looking for free hosting which one of their members may be able to provide. Again, they are willing to work on the content and just need the basic website structure to be put in place which a content management system such as WordPress can provide.

Word of Mouth Lawn Care Provider

Another potential customer has been offering lawn care services in the area for many years. He is trying to decide if he wants to increase his business or keep it at the present level. He does not have a web site and relies on word of mouth for his business advertising.

While this works for him at the present stage he is at. He knows he needs a web designer for his small business. He also needs a domain name, hosting account, and a web blog that would be easy for him to upkeep.

Although the costs are very low, he is trying to decide what his business strategy will be.  Before he takes the next step should he try to turn his part-time business into a larger full-time business? This will involve personal commitments that he is not sure he is ready for.

For more information about our services and our costs for those services, click here. We can help you with your website requirements.

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