Believe it or not, the text you use to link to other pages on your site matters for SEO. Search engines pay close attention to links, and the text used for them. When linking to other pages, really consider the words you use. You want to choose words that relate to the page you are linking too, and using your keywords is even better! So, for example, “click here” is not a very effective text for your link! A much better choice is to use “internet marketing services” for an internet marketing professional or “toddler girl’s dresses” for a children’s clothing store. You want to be sure, as always, that the wording makes sense in context. You may need to re-word or re-arrange a sentence or two to make sure it reads smoothly. But, just this simple change can help to better optimize your site for search engines. Now, go through your website and see if you can choose more specific text for your links.
Quick Website Tips: Share Button
This tip applies to your blog website. Please add some form of share button to your blog. You want your readers to be able to share your post easily on Twitter, Facebook, Delicious, and the list goes on! By adding a Share This or Re-Tweet button to your blog, you do your readers and yourself a great service! You save them time, while also allowing your information to spread faster. If you want your content to spread, make it easy! There are various plugins for WordPress that will add a way to share posts to your blog (I use Sociable). Or just Google “share button” and you will find many options. You are working hard to provide great content, now make it easy for readers to share it.
Quick Website Tips: K.I.S.S.
Keep It Simple Stupid – I think I learned this is seventh grade. But, it still applies to so many areas of my life and business! And it applies to websites as well. I like a simple, easy to follow, easy to read website. When I land on a page with a ton of ads, flashing pictures, and Google Adsense all over the place, I am immediately turned off and usually leave. It is so distracting! The bottom line is when I am searching for information, I want to find it quickly. I do not want to have to navigate through a mess before I find the information I was searching for. It is amazing to me how many websites still are crowded and, well messy. Don’t get me wrong, I am not saying ads are bad – just consider how they are placed on your site. Make sure it is easy for a visitor to get the information they are seeking. Take a look at your website from a visitors point of view and ask yourself is it simple and easy to follow? Is the content ready and available? If the answer is no, then work on getting there. Work on keeping the design simple, and letting the content shine. Keep it simple.
Quick Website Tips: Page Titles
Each page of your website has a title, and this is what shows in the tab at the top of your web browser. For each page of your website, you should have a different title. The title should be specific to what is on that page, and use the keyword(s) for that webpage. For example, say you have an online baby clothing store. You have your product categorized by girl, boy, or neutral, and then by shirts, pants, dresses, and size. You would want the webpage that features the 3-6 month girls dresses to be named appropriately. Maybe “3-6 month Baby Girl Dresses” or something similar. Keep the length to around 65 characters. Making a little extra time to specifically, and correctly name each of the pages within your website will help to improve the search engine optimization for your site. Take a look at your site. Are the pages properly named? If not, talk to your web designer (the how to actually do this involves meta tags and should be saved for another post) and get them updated!
Quick Website Tips: Proofread!
It is easy to make simple spelling and grammatical errors on your website. You are so involved with the design and writing the copy, that you can overlook small errors. Once you have your website up, or a new page completed, step away. Give it a day, and then go back and look at your site with fresh eyes. Take the time to read through each page, even read the page out loud, so you can catch any errors. It is a simple process, but many overlook the importance of proofreading your website. You want your website to represent your company in a professional manner, and having spelling and grammatical mistakes takes away from that. If you have a hard time catching these errors, ask a friend or family member to proofread it for you, or hire a professional. This one simple step can really improve the appearance of your website and your company.
Quick Website Tips: Keeping Your Website Current
When is the last time you updated your website? Did you create your site (or have it created) and haven’t looked at it since? Take some time to look at your website from a visitors point of view. You want your site to be up to date and current. Your website is a representation of your company, and often is the first impression your customer gets. I land on websites all the time that seem so old and outdated. My immediate reaction, no matter what the content, is that the information is also outdated. With the resources available to make website maintenance simple, there is no excuse for neglecting your site. Take your website seriously and make it a priority to keep it as current as possible.
Quick Website Tips: Email Newsletter Sign-Up
Recently, while doing research for an online competitive analysis, I found many email newsletter sign-up boxes virtually hidden on the page. Many were placed below the fold, so you have to scroll down to see it, or in a tiny box at the top or bottom of the page (one page had the sign-up all the way at the bottom, next to the copyright information). Now, the goal of having an email newsletter is for people to read it, right? You want to be able to keep in touch with your target audience, and continue communication through your newsletter. In order for someone to sign up for your newsletter, they have to know it exists. Therefore, your sign-up box on your website should be very visible and right up front. Any visitor to your website should immediately know you have a newsletter and be able to easily subscribe. Take a look at your website – where is your sign-up box placed? Is it easy to find? If not, then the time is now to make it visible!
Keyword Research is Vital to your Website
When you are starting your business there are so many things to consider. Your business plan, target market, logo, website, prices…and the list goes on. You may just want to get your website up as soon as possible. But it is important to stop and consider your keywords before you start your website. Determining the keywords you want to target will help you with the layout of your site, as well as the content. You really want to spend some time doing the research, so you do not have to go back and make a bunch of changes down the road.
Keywords are the key (ha, ha, get it?) to SEO. The whole goal of optimizing your website is for your site to show up when certain targeted keywords are searched for. So how can you optimize your site if you do not know what words you want to optimize for? Spend some time brainstorming. Think about your business, who is your target market? How does your target market think? If you were your ideal customer, what would you type into the search engine? Start making a list of as many keywords as you can think of.
The next step is to do a little research (or have your VA do it) on that list of words. You can use Wortracker or Google Adwords, both free services that suggest keywords, as well as show you the search volume and more. Your best bet is to be as specific as possible. You want the most targeted visitors as possible.
For example, you have an online candle business. Now, the keyword candle or candles has 4,090,000 monthly searches. That is a huge number! And this search includes people search for everything from candle making to candle safety to decorative candles. And the competition is very high for this keyword. So, you want to be more specific, and use say soy candles. Then go even further and specify soy candle votives or scented soy candles. Can you see where I am going with this? You want to find very specific keywords related to your business and target market. You do not need someone looking for candle making to end up on your site. You want the person who is searching for soy candle votives, which is exactly what you sell!
Keywords are so important for optimizing your website, and should be researched and considered carefully as you are planning and building your site. You want to use your keywords in the page titles, the headers, and the content. Keep in mind, your content must be good, make sense and grab your visitors – but should also include your keywords. Take the time to do your keyword research at the beginning of your planning and you will be glad you did!
How can Builders and Contractors use the Web: Blogs
Creating and maintaining a blog is a great addition to your website. A blog gives you the opportunity to establish yourself as an expert in your field, share new ideas or products, and to share a little about yourself. Keeping your blog updated with content is a must. This also helps with search engine optimization, as there is always new content for the search engine to find. Here are a few tips for setting up and maintain your blog:
1. There are many free sites available for setting up your blog. Some examples are wordpress.com and blogger.com. Word Press seems to growing and becoming the most popular site. They offer many customizable features.
2. Determine how often you will post to your blog. To keep content updated, try to at least post once per week. Create a schedule and stick to it. The most important aspect is creating that new content. Also, you can pre-write a few posts and schedule them to be posted at a later date.
3. Come up with a list of potential topics. Jot down ideas that you have throughout the day and keep a running list. Then you always have something to turn to when you are stumped for ideas.
4. Keep a log of what you have written previously (this tip comes via Sundi, at My Office Zilla). As your posts start to add up, this makes it easier to check on what you have already written about.
5. Promote your blog – add a link to your website, to your email signature, your business cards, etc.
A blog is another chance to show potential customers why they should choose you!