Posts Tagged search engine optimization
SEO Techniques that Don’t work
Posted by jason in business tips on February 17, 2010
As a Web site development firm, we get a lot of questions about search engines. People always want to know what will get them top listings in search engines. They often have ideas on how to do it, and unfortunately, some are just wrong. Here are some popular myths:
Myth #1: Hidden Text helps Search Engine Rankings
This one involves placing text in a box that doesn’t show up for regular users but would appear for a search engine. People also suggest putting text in the same color as the background of the Web site (white text on a white background, for example). This technique was popular in the late 90′s, but all major search engines are savvy enough to detect and either ignore text like this, or ban a specific Web site from its listings. This is well documented by many commentators, but the best source of all is Google.
Myth #2: Meta Tags Are the Key to Good Search Engine Placement
Meta Tags are codes that are put on each page of a Web site that help describe the Web site to search engines. Two Meta Tags that are popular are the keywords tag and the description tag. People think that if you put these on every page and stuff them with lots of keywords, you search engine rankings will rise. The fact is that the “keywords” meta tag is ignored by Google, and the “description” meta tag is only used for display purposes, and not for ranking purposes. Other search engines use these tags in a minor way, but other factors are much more important in determining whether your Web site shows up on page 1 of a search query.
Those are the myths about SEO we hear about most often. What myths have you heard?
How To Get Listed on Page 1 of Search Engines — Part 2
Posted by jason in business tips, newsletter on June 24, 2009
Want more tips on how you can improve your Web site’s rankings? In this concluding article we’ll discuss a few more things you can easily incorporate.
In last month’s article, we discussed the quality of your content. But, you should also be concerned about its placement. Your search engine-friendly content should be placed up at the top of the page, not at the bottom. For instance, it may not help you to set a scene of beautifully set tables, with fine wine and a romantic atmosphere – and then at the bottom of the page, state that you own a catering business located in the Puget Sound area. Instead, you should lead with this information and talk about the type of atmosphere you can create later.
The content and pictures on your site should also be well balanced. When it comes to text vs. pictures for a search engine, text always wins. However, it’s better for the user of your site if they aren’t overwhelmed with a lot of text. The converse is also true – be sure that your site doesn’t look like a picture book for kids. So, do choose your pictures carefully – they should illustrate and balance the text and neither be overwhelmed by, nor overshadow the text.
But, since your pictures aren’t recognized by search engines, it’s important to use ALT tags. Think of an ALT tag as a caption written in HTML code. A picture of a swan would have an ALT tag that states “this is a picture of a swan.” While it may not capture the attention of a search engine as much as regular text, this extra step certainly can’t hurt! ALT tags are also a nice touch for the visually impaired, as the browsing tools they use do recognize and describe picture ALT tags.
Which brings us to the next tip: think of your user first! Search engine rankings can be influenced by the number of visitors to your site. The more visitors, the better the ranking. If your site doesn’t function well, or is visually unappealing, chances are that you’re not going to see many visitors who stay and click through the various pages of your site. A low visitor rate may lower your chances of being found by a search engine. So, treat your site as you would your own physical business, keeping the user in mind – ensuring that it’s neat, tidy, and works well for your customer. This will help generate traffic and ultimately, the attention of search engines.
Our clients often ask us about the importance of including links to other sites. The answer is that they don’t often help as much as you might think. In-bound links are far more important in Web site rankings than outbound ones. In-bound links on a site are ranked by number as well as quality. The more in-bound links you have the better. But, where those links come from is also important. Industry-related in-bound links are going to fare better with search engines than unrelated ones. So, while cousin Vinnie’s link from his hardware store to your bridal shop site may be helpful, it isn’t nearly as great as a link from cousin Marilyn’s wedding cake business. And out-bound links may help if you have a reciprocal agreement, but the sheer number of out-bound links, or to what sites the links are directed, aren’t very important to a search engine.
In summary, there are a few easy things you can do to make certain your site is found by search engines. Put your customer first, use simple tools like alt tags, and provide a well-balanced site when it comes to pictures and text.
Guest Post: 5 Easy Ways to Drive More Traffic to Your Website
Posted by jason in business tips on June 22, 2009
In this guest post: we’ve asked Practical Marketing Expert Stacy Karacostas to share some thoughts on how to drive more traffic to your Web site.
Got a great Website? Congratulations! But as you’ve probably already realized, getting a Website is only half the battle…You still have to get people to visit your site.
In other words, while having a Website is a part of any good marketing plan these days, you also need a plan for marketing your Website. Otherwise it will just sit out there “gathering dust” on the Web instead of helping to grow your business.
So, how do you get site visitors? The first step is to make sure your site is submitted to the major search engines. Ideally you want this to happen on a regular basis—and especially anytime you add new content.
After that it’s time to do a little smart marketing—both online and off.
Below are 5 easy and inexpensive ways to drive more traffic to your Website:
#1 – Make it obvious. Be sure your Web address (your URL) is on everything you do and send out including business cards, invoices, articles, marketing materials, videos etc. And get an email address that’s attached to your Website (IE: yourname@yourwebsite.com). You’ll be amazed how many people will see this and visit your site to find out more about what you do.
#2 – Let the world know. Send an email to all your customers and contacts inviting them to stop by your new site. If you have a nifty free offer they can take advantage of while they’re there, all the better. Also put your Web address on all your social networking profiles. And of course, if you Twitter, Tweet about it.
#3 – Join the conversation. If you have thoughts, ideas or suggestions that might benefit your target market, try participating in online forums. These are Web pages or sites where people can ask questions and you can give answers. Many social networking sites have Q & A forums too.
Find ones your prospects participate in and do your best to be helpful. Don’t ever blatantly pitch your products or services here! Let your good advice be the selling device, and the link to your Website will start driving folks who like what you say back to your site.
#4 – Write about it. If you’re a writer, regularly submitting articles online is a powerful way to get tons of targeted traffic to your site. You can submit articles to directories like www.ezinearticles.com and social networking sites like www.Biznik.com.
Hundreds of these sites exist, so find ones that focus on your area of expertise. Include a bio with a little about you, a special offer (optional but highly recommended) and a link back to your site, and voila.
#5 – Use offline promotions. You can do all kinds of terrific print promotions to drive people to your Website including, but not limited to: postcards, classifieds ads, print ads, sales letters and more.
Again, having a free offer that they can take advantage of on your site gives them a good reason to visit. And it lets you collect their email addresses for future follow ups.
Now it’s time to get busy!
Each of these Website marketing tips is easy and inexpensive to implement. While it may take a bit of time and consistent effort for your Website traffic to really grow, if you keep using these tactics on a regular basis your visitor numbers—and your sales numbers—are sure to start going up!
Practical Marketing Expert Stacy Karacostas helps savvy entrepreneurs take the stress, struggle and confusion out of growing their small businesses. If marketing your Website—or your business—has got you tearing your hair out grab her FREE REPORT on The 7 Deadliest Small Business Marketing Sins right here http://www.7deadliestsins.com.
Have you used any of these tactics with great success?
What other tactics have you used to generate tons of targeted Website traffic?
Please do share your thoughts by leaving a comment below.
About Curvine
Every company has a Web site. But most business owners don't know how to make their Web site generate leads and sales. Our firm, Curvine Web Solutions -- a Web site development firm located in Bellevue, WA, creates strategies, designs and writes code to make your Web site make money for your business.
Please contact us at 425-818-9096 to ask for a free proposal. You can also visit our Web site at www.curvine.com