by Scott Jemison
DesignedbyCarla
Beware of any professional, SEO or otherwise, who is unable or unwilling to answer your questions. Recently we had a client who wanted us to justify why we were making the changes we wanted to make. I, for one, have no problem with that.
SEO, or Internet Marketing or PPC Advertising or any variation thereof, is not magic. If you are working with a consultant who is reluctant to discuss the rationale behind decisions or can't explain the intended effects of a certain technique, beware! There should be no "smoke and mirrors", only action and reaction.
I never mind explaining myself to a client. In fact, I enjoy it. I appreciate their interest and applaud their curiosity. This is a client who will appreciate your knowledge and your work. A client who is willing to sign a check and cross their fingers will too often be led blindly to the well.
Admittedly, the world of internet marketing is in a constant state of innovation and flux. It is built around secrecy and besieged by those who would sieze any opportunity to "game" the system. It should therefore be the commitment of all internet marketers to professionalism and transparency.
Be willing to say why. Be able to say how. Be ready to outline the test metrics and Analytics stats that will determine success or failure. In the beginning it may be costly and irritating to "explain yourself" but the trust you will build will be invaluable.
Showing posts with label SEO. Show all posts
Showing posts with label SEO. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 27, 2015
Tuesday, September 29, 2015
Your Website Traffic & Google Ranking
Website traffic can mean the number of hits the site receives, number page views, or the number of unique visitors to one site. All of these can increase over time. Some individuals want to increase web traffic while others want to increase page views by keeping the visitor or potential customer on the site longer. One of the most important steps of increasing traffic is SEO (Search Engine Optimization). This involves the development and proper use of appropriate keyword phrases that describe your website business.
You probably know your competitors in your local area. However, knowing your competitors locally is different from knowing online competitors based on appropriate keywords phrases. This consist of several relevant keywords phrases.
Important to the process of increasing website traffic is to avoid individual keywords like "boots" or "jeans". They are simply too competitive in the online market. Just searching for the term "boots" in Google, you are competing against 105,000,000 with this particular term; whereas, searching for more a specific term such as "Justin Boots" reduces the number of competitive searches to 1,280,000.
Understanding what your online customers needs are and how they search for a particular business is no different than someone walking in your store. When a client wants something, they are going to ask for it by name brand, this is true of online searches. Knowing some of the terms that are most frequently used will give you the advantage online.
But -- here's the hint, you're better off defining your terms in order of importance like primary terms, secondary and tertiary. This can help direct marketing of the site when creating Pay Per Click ads or writing specific content based on those terms. The frequency of the keyword phrases on the page, how often a term appears in a page title, meta keywords words, using them in alt tags and headers give you the edge in optimization.
Every unique and re-visit must be treated as potential prospect. Increasing your website's popularity is essential to improving website traffic. Updating the website on a regular basis, maybe include a blog article area for regularly updated information based on the terms are most searched, can increase your visibility.
"This was based on the new website for The Barn Online www.thebarnonline.com. They have been in business locally for over 30 years and Designedbycarla is structuring an online marketing strategy to improvement search results".
You probably know your competitors in your local area. However, knowing your competitors locally is different from knowing online competitors based on appropriate keywords phrases. This consist of several relevant keywords phrases.
Important to the process of increasing website traffic is to avoid individual keywords like "boots" or "jeans". They are simply too competitive in the online market. Just searching for the term "boots" in Google, you are competing against 105,000,000 with this particular term; whereas, searching for more a specific term such as "Justin Boots" reduces the number of competitive searches to 1,280,000.
Understanding what your online customers needs are and how they search for a particular business is no different than someone walking in your store. When a client wants something, they are going to ask for it by name brand, this is true of online searches. Knowing some of the terms that are most frequently used will give you the advantage online.
But -- here's the hint, you're better off defining your terms in order of importance like primary terms, secondary and tertiary. This can help direct marketing of the site when creating Pay Per Click ads or writing specific content based on those terms. The frequency of the keyword phrases on the page, how often a term appears in a page title, meta keywords words, using them in alt tags and headers give you the edge in optimization.
Every unique and re-visit must be treated as potential prospect. Increasing your website's popularity is essential to improving website traffic. Updating the website on a regular basis, maybe include a blog article area for regularly updated information based on the terms are most searched, can increase your visibility.
"This was based on the new website for The Barn Online www.thebarnonline.com. They have been in business locally for over 30 years and Designedbycarla is structuring an online marketing strategy to improvement search results".
Tuesday, September 15, 2015
Google Analytics - Seeing the Big Picture
by Scott Jemison
DesignedbyCarla
There is a wealth of information available through Google Analytics. It can provide you with a number of insights into the traffic coming to your website; such as, what your visitors are searching for and which pages hold their attention and which don't.
In previous posts we have examined a number of different aspects of web metrics and internet marketing strategy. We have touched on traffic sources and informative web metrics.
The world of internet marketing can seem daunting and confusing. And, unfortunately, there is as yet no definitive guidebook to navigating SEO. Rather, there is an almost daily debate among professionals as to what is working and what isn't.
The most important thing to remember when dealing with your internet marketing strategy and the information provided by Google Analytics is to put it in perspective for your particular business.
For instance, don't be discouraged if you are a service provider and your website sees high traffic but your bounce rate is high. If you have placed your contact information prominently on the site and are receiving calls then the website is performing well.
Likewise, if you have good time on site numbers and low bounce and exit rates but your traffic is slim, this indicates a great opportunity for growth. You should look at PPC and SEO for strategies to increase traffic.
As I said in the first article, "Google Analytics - What Do They Mean to YOU?", Google Analytics can provide a very comprehensive picture of your web traffic. The important thing is to look at those numbers in context of each page and its purpose.
You might surprise yourself.
DesignedbyCarla
There is a wealth of information available through Google Analytics. It can provide you with a number of insights into the traffic coming to your website; such as, what your visitors are searching for and which pages hold their attention and which don't.
In previous posts we have examined a number of different aspects of web metrics and internet marketing strategy. We have touched on traffic sources and informative web metrics.
The world of internet marketing can seem daunting and confusing. And, unfortunately, there is as yet no definitive guidebook to navigating SEO. Rather, there is an almost daily debate among professionals as to what is working and what isn't.
The most important thing to remember when dealing with your internet marketing strategy and the information provided by Google Analytics is to put it in perspective for your particular business.
For instance, don't be discouraged if you are a service provider and your website sees high traffic but your bounce rate is high. If you have placed your contact information prominently on the site and are receiving calls then the website is performing well.
Likewise, if you have good time on site numbers and low bounce and exit rates but your traffic is slim, this indicates a great opportunity for growth. You should look at PPC and SEO for strategies to increase traffic.
As I said in the first article, "Google Analytics - What Do They Mean to YOU?", Google Analytics can provide a very comprehensive picture of your web traffic. The important thing is to look at those numbers in context of each page and its purpose.
You might surprise yourself.
Tuesday, July 14, 2015
Proximity .. to what?
by Scott Jemison
When creating content for your website it is important to create keyword rich text in order for your web page to rank highly in the SERP's. But, what are the guidelines to creating keyword rich text without "keyword stuffing" or creating clunky, awkward text that no website visitor wants to read?
There are three basic factors to SEO in regards to keywords and content; density, proximity, and relevance. These three factors are the key to successful web content.
Density is the ratio of keywords to unique words. In other words, it is the balance between the "meat" of your content, disregarding conjunctions and prepositions, against the keywords your content is optimized for. While a high density of keywords is desirable, it is the delicate balance of keywords and unique words that makes your content readable.
Proximity is what search engines search for to strike the balance between keyword rich and keyword stuffing. Proximity is an evaluation of your keywords in relation to their position on the page and within your meta information. By positioning your keywords properly you can increase the importance and impact without having to "stuff" your content.
Relevance is possibly the most important factor. Search engines employ a practice called Latent Semantic Indexing. In order to distinguish relevant copy from ad copy, search engines evaluate the company your keywords keep. By placing them within relevant text, surrounded by closely associated terms (such as your secondary keywords), the text establishes a strong identity for both the search engines and your visitors.
A basic understanding of these three concepts can almost ensure your web pages will rank highly and create organic linking to other quality sites.
When creating content for your website it is important to create keyword rich text in order for your web page to rank highly in the SERP's. But, what are the guidelines to creating keyword rich text without "keyword stuffing" or creating clunky, awkward text that no website visitor wants to read?
There are three basic factors to SEO in regards to keywords and content; density, proximity, and relevance. These three factors are the key to successful web content.
Density is the ratio of keywords to unique words. In other words, it is the balance between the "meat" of your content, disregarding conjunctions and prepositions, against the keywords your content is optimized for. While a high density of keywords is desirable, it is the delicate balance of keywords and unique words that makes your content readable.
Proximity is what search engines search for to strike the balance between keyword rich and keyword stuffing. Proximity is an evaluation of your keywords in relation to their position on the page and within your meta information. By positioning your keywords properly you can increase the importance and impact without having to "stuff" your content.
Relevance is possibly the most important factor. Search engines employ a practice called Latent Semantic Indexing. In order to distinguish relevant copy from ad copy, search engines evaluate the company your keywords keep. By placing them within relevant text, surrounded by closely associated terms (such as your secondary keywords), the text establishes a strong identity for both the search engines and your visitors.
A basic understanding of these three concepts can almost ensure your web pages will rank highly and create organic linking to other quality sites.
Tuesday, June 30, 2015
How does SEO effect your business?
Businesses online today are marketing differently then two
years ago. SEO professionals can provide suggestive
improvements for your company's website. Some of my
clients are still in the beginning stages of understanding
how the search engines functions and the impact of their
business. Now, I would not expect my clients to know
every detail of SEO but it does help when relating to the
topics of discussion.
We, as web developers and SEO (search engine optimization)
marketers, are expected to relate to the client and track any
changes that might effect a website. The basic underlying
is to continue to expand your topics of interest on your website.
Every business has that "salesperson" that represents the
business and the same is true for your company's website.
The business presence online is the "salesperson". Stop
spending time trying to figure out if a banner ad will send
potential clients to the site or linking to other website and
begging for link partnership. What's most important is
content that is relevant to the your business. When new
or recurring visitors reach your website, they are only
interested in information relevant to the topic that they
initially searched.
Now, that's not to say don't plan these marketing
projects, but it should not be the first market initiative.
Content plays a huge role in how a client finds your
business and your connection to a sale. The search engines
will always continue to evolve, but the basics are always the same.
But as developers, we need to continue to provide you with the
information you need to make smart business decisions.
Are you?
Tuesday, June 16, 2015
Where Is Your Website?
People go to great lengths to try and learn their own version of “SEO” in order to market their online presence. Many hours are spent trying to capture traffic but you cannot succeed stuck behind a desk trying to understand the strategies of search engine optimization.
There are many factors that effect a website. Usually most start with “On Page” factors to make a site successful. But they often forget that it is “Off Page” factors that give them the ability to move the website in the rankings for the potential online sale they’re striving for.
What are “Off Page” factors? Whether you heard of the term “Off Page” factors or not, the concepts are anything but new.
"Off Page" factors are the areas that you don’t think about because most people concentrate on the “On Page” factors to get better the visibility for a website. But with the “Off Page” factors, you monitor the website linking on the search engines for chances of reaching your online goals. Google, for one, considers “popularity” important and really considers how your site is relating to other sites already established in the search engines.
Another factor is the “Age of the Domain”. Usually Google does not index a site until it is 6 months old, but other leading engines such as Yahoo and MSN will index a site the moment it goes live. If you want instant visibility from Google, then you may want to invest in a pay-per-click advertisement. Once a site has been indexed, it is important at this stage to not change the domain -- unless you want to start over.
These days, Google is constantly changing its algorithms for site indexing. So, “Off Page” factors are starting to receive greater significance to Google.
There are many factors that effect a website. Usually most start with “On Page” factors to make a site successful. But they often forget that it is “Off Page” factors that give them the ability to move the website in the rankings for the potential online sale they’re striving for.
What are “Off Page” factors? Whether you heard of the term “Off Page” factors or not, the concepts are anything but new.
"Off Page" factors are the areas that you don’t think about because most people concentrate on the “On Page” factors to get better the visibility for a website. But with the “Off Page” factors, you monitor the website linking on the search engines for chances of reaching your online goals. Google, for one, considers “popularity” important and really considers how your site is relating to other sites already established in the search engines.
Another factor is the “Age of the Domain”. Usually Google does not index a site until it is 6 months old, but other leading engines such as Yahoo and MSN will index a site the moment it goes live. If you want instant visibility from Google, then you may want to invest in a pay-per-click advertisement. Once a site has been indexed, it is important at this stage to not change the domain -- unless you want to start over.
These days, Google is constantly changing its algorithms for site indexing. So, “Off Page” factors are starting to receive greater significance to Google.
Tuesday, June 2, 2015
Who are your competitors?
Scott Jemison
Contributing Editor
To most people this seems like an easy question. Time was if you owned a hardware store, your competition was the other hardware store down the road. It was relatively easy to keep up with they were doing. You knew if their business picked up or they were having a big sale. But that was before the internet and the inception of e-commerce.
Today, your business not only competes with other local businesses but with business around the globe. So, do you know ... who are your competitors?
If there is another business with a website that provides a similar product or services, that business is your competitor. Personal computers are as commonplace in today's home as telephones or televisions and most cell phones are internet ready. You could be losing customers to the hardware store a whole continent away.
Now, more than ever, your online presence can provide an opportunity to locate new business and new customers. Maximize your website and be competitive. A good SEO professional can teach you how to evaluate your competition.
Enter terms into the search engines and look at the number of results that the search engines return. Each of those websites is a competitor. Also, look at the Similar Pages link. Those too are your competitors. Search around to see what others are dong to attract traffic and convert visitors into customers. Then, use this knowledge to optimize your site.
Even though the economy is tight, business is still out there. You just have to compete.
Contributing Editor
To most people this seems like an easy question. Time was if you owned a hardware store, your competition was the other hardware store down the road. It was relatively easy to keep up with they were doing. You knew if their business picked up or they were having a big sale. But that was before the internet and the inception of e-commerce.
Today, your business not only competes with other local businesses but with business around the globe. So, do you know ... who are your competitors?
If there is another business with a website that provides a similar product or services, that business is your competitor. Personal computers are as commonplace in today's home as telephones or televisions and most cell phones are internet ready. You could be losing customers to the hardware store a whole continent away.
Now, more than ever, your online presence can provide an opportunity to locate new business and new customers. Maximize your website and be competitive. A good SEO professional can teach you how to evaluate your competition.
Enter terms into the search engines and look at the number of results that the search engines return. Each of those websites is a competitor. Also, look at the Similar Pages link. Those too are your competitors. Search around to see what others are dong to attract traffic and convert visitors into customers. Then, use this knowledge to optimize your site.
Even though the economy is tight, business is still out there. You just have to compete.
Tuesday, February 24, 2015
Optimizing for the Big Three
Scott Jemison
Contributing Editor
Most SEO concentrates on achieving top search rankings for Google, but what about the other search engines? Is optimizing for Google equally effective for Yahoo and MSN? And what about other search engines such as Ask or Dogpile?
Well, the quick answer is Yes and No. All search engines have their own distinct algorithm which gives differing weight to differing factors. So optimizing for Google does not emphasize the same factors which are important to other search engines. And, beyond that, the algorithms the search engines employee to establish search rankings are constantly changing.
When choosing which search engine to optimize for the key factor is your target audience. Google is the established leader. Whereas, Yahoo is considered to primarily appeal to home users; a prime audience for retail. MSN is considered more highly business users. A good SEO will offer strategies which will target your audience but still provide for traffic from all search engines.
However, strong content and ease of navigation are universally important. By providing strong relevant content on your site and making the site easy to navigate, your website becomes valuable to users and, ultimately, well ranking with the search engines. Content is, cliched as it is, king.
Contributing Editor
Most SEO concentrates on achieving top search rankings for Google, but what about the other search engines? Is optimizing for Google equally effective for Yahoo and MSN? And what about other search engines such as Ask or Dogpile?
Well, the quick answer is Yes and No. All search engines have their own distinct algorithm which gives differing weight to differing factors. So optimizing for Google does not emphasize the same factors which are important to other search engines. And, beyond that, the algorithms the search engines employee to establish search rankings are constantly changing.
When choosing which search engine to optimize for the key factor is your target audience. Google is the established leader. Whereas, Yahoo is considered to primarily appeal to home users; a prime audience for retail. MSN is considered more highly business users. A good SEO will offer strategies which will target your audience but still provide for traffic from all search engines.
However, strong content and ease of navigation are universally important. By providing strong relevant content on your site and making the site easy to navigate, your website becomes valuable to users and, ultimately, well ranking with the search engines. Content is, cliched as it is, king.
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