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Showing posts from 2013

How to Navigate Through the SEO Sales Noise

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We have several clients who have been bombarded by a barrage of companies promising instant search engine ranking results with top placement for their business.  These clients typically already rank great, but ask us for our advice on dealing with these calls.  With the recent overhaul of Google’s ranking algorithm, here are my top 5 tips on how you can rank in Google organically (for free!) and help you navigate through the sales noise. 1)  Website content is king – your best chance of ranking well is to have focused, easy to read content on your website that gives value to your visitors, clearly describes your service/product and is localized to the area you serve. 2)  Social media is critical – your website should be the center of a “spider web” surrounded by social media activity on several platforms.  Building fans/followers and posting interactive content will be noticed and rewarded by Google. 3)  Understand what your customer is searching for – Keywords are not as i

Hummingbird – Google’s New Search Algorithm

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Yep, Google has done it again.  On the 15 th anniversary date of the company, the world’s most used search engine announced a new ranking algorithm called “Hummingbird.”  It is designed to give users faster query results and it is focused on user actually wants versus individual search terms.  According to Google, this is the most dramatic algorithm change since 2001 and is a complete replacement of the old algorithm. So what does that mean for your business?  It means that if you are not creating original, deep, subject-relevant content often for your website and your social media channels, you may be falling behind.  The Hummingbird algorithm no longer uses the brute force approach of looking at each individual keyword in a Google search. Instead it looks at the query as a whole to process the meaning behind it. Hummingbird considers over 200 signals when determining a rank for a website. Traditional SEO practices are not necessarily dead … they are just not as relev

How important is it to be ranked #1 in Google?

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Your website rank in Google – How important is it to be #1? Clients often ask us how important it is for their website to be ranked #1 in Google for their major key words.  We just came across a new study that measures the amount of click throughs for each page rank and we wanted to share this with you. Online ad network Chitika completed a study in June 2013 tracking the amount of traffic that each Google result page rank achieved.  The results are striking! The #1 position in a Google search receives 32.5% of the average traffic share The #2 position receives 17.6% The #3 position receives 11.4% The #4 - #10 positions quickly drop below 10% , with the 6-10 positions below 5% each! Let me translate this with an example.  If you are a printing company in the area, and someone does a Google search for “printing lake of the ozarks”, if you are in the top 3 rankings of page 1, you will have a 61.5% chance that someone will click on your website link.  If you are below thi

5 Questions You Should Ask Your Web Designer

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Questions you should ask before having your website designed Asking a series of important questions before contracting with a web design company can help avoid issues down the road.  Getting adequate answers to these questions will help ensure you selecting the best company for your needs. 1)  Can you provide me examples of your work or testimonials from your clients? If your website designer does not have a sample portfolio to show you or existing clients that you can speak with, then you should consider interviewing another company. 2)  Is there paperwork involved before you start on my website? Your web designer should present you written documentation of the exact cost and any recurring costs, as well as the length of the contract.  You should also expect a time table for the design of the website, what materials will be required, the feedback process on the design, and other important information.  If it’s not written down, misunderstandings can occur, as well a

4 Free Software Tools to Monitor Your Online Reputation

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It's more important than ever to be aware of what consumers are saying about your business. Negative online reviews can cause tremendous damage to your online reputation and sales. Consumer reviews may include both positive and negative commentary regarding price, customer service, as well as overall quality of their experience with your business.  Positive reviews are fantastic and we'll write an article in the near future about how to acquire more positive reviews online. It's the negative reviews that you need to know about quickly, so you can properly address them before they do harm to your reputation. 1. Google Alerts. You consider setting up Google alerts for your business name, the names of key team members, and your website address, at a minimum.  Google will then send you email alerting you to any mentions concerning your business, as well as any other alerts you setup.  To set go, to www.google.com/alerts 2. Social Mention. Social Mention allo

Your Web Site Address – Protect Yourself & Your Brand

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Picking the right domain name (website address) for your business website is an important decision for the small (or large) business owner.  4 things to consider when choosing a domain: 1.  Make it easy to remember.   Having a long domain or one that is easily misspelled may not be the best way to go. 2.  Make it attractive for search engines.   Try to work keywords into your domain name, when it makes sense.  For example, if you are a painting company in St Louis, consider something like StLouisPainting.com, if it’s available. 3.  Consider purchasing the .org, .net, .biz, and .co versions, as well.   This prevents someone from leveraging the hard work you have put in to building your brand. 4.  Always register your domain name under your name I have worked with many clients over the years that have had difficulty gaining control of their domain name.  If your domain is registered under another person’s name, or a web design company’s name rather than you

Building an Effective Web Presence through Social Media

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Google+ for your Business – The Basics Google+ Business pages were rolled out 18 months ago and the impact was immediate and effective. Google+ has 500 million registered members and can now make the claim as the second largest social media network.  We recently came across a great article about the basics of setting up and using a Google+ business page and wanted to share some of the high points.  You can view the full article at http://offers.hubspot.com/how-to-use-google-plus-for-business . Setup Basics Here are the steps to setup your Google+ Business page: Create a personal Google account on Google.com (free).  Go to www.google.com/+/business and click on the button at the top right that says “Create a Google+ Page” Select the appropriate category for your business under the 5 main categories Add your basic information about your business (Name, Telephone, email, address, website, etc.) Customize your public profile.  Tell your story revolving around the top 10 wo

Facebook for Business Revisited

We have talked about your Business Facebook page in past articles and thought it was a good time to share some new ideas on how to maximize this important social media channel.   Facebook continues to be the most used social media channel and has recently come out with some new features to help you make your business page really stand out. Use a Cover Photo that Pops The cover photo on your business Facebook page spans the most “real estate” at the top.   Make sure you are taking advantage of this attention grabbing area.   Calls to action, contact information, promotions, and eye catching visuals are all good strategies to use with your photo. Facebook recently changed their rules to allow these things in your cover image, as long as the image isn’t more than 20% text.   Make sure you follow Facebook rules, but have some fun with your cover image. Consider Using Facebook Apps Facebook has some really cool applications that you can use on your business page.   Some o

Get Social to Get Found!

Get Social to Get Found One of the biggest changes we have seen over the past year is the way that Google is looking at your Social Media presence as it ranks your website.   The harsh reality is that your website could be perfectly optimized for the key terms you want to rank well for, but if you are not doing social media, your competitors may be kicking your butt in the rankings. Steps You Should Take Today A great resource for you to read can be found on www.socialmetricspro.com .   Search for “25 Social Signals Google is Tracking – Factors to Optimize for Higher Search Visibility”.   This article guides you on how to leverage social media channels so Google takes notice!   Some highlights from the article: Get on Google+ : T his platform is weighed by Google whether you have many people in your circles or not.   Google+ is weighing heavily the social signals from its own social network. Facebook Rules : The amount of fans, comments, shares, and likes may infl

Responsive Web Design

Technology Watch – Responsive Website Design (RWD) One of the goals for our monthly article is to keep you informed of new ideas in website design and social media.   Responsive Website Design (RWD) became a coined phrase in the website world in late 2011 and in 2012 was listed #2 in top web design trends by .net magazine. The responsive website design approach is aimed at developing sites to provide an optimal viewing experience across a wide range of devices (from desktop computer monitors to mobile phones).  Responsive Website Design – Advantages There are several wonderful advantages to having a responsive design with your website.   One of the biggest advantages is that the site displays very nicely across all devices and all screen sizes. You also have one complete view for all traffic to your website, since it does not force re-directs to a different URL like a stand-alone mobile website does.   Responsive websites can also minimize maintenance demands for your webs