Tag: SEO

Categories
General SEO

The 3 Most Important SEO Things You Must Do To Optimize Your Website Now

high performance seo websites

We are in a new phase of website optimization that goes beyond just the usual SEO techniques of website building. To understand this premise, we must look through the eyes of potential customers who are looking for solutions.

All of the metrics that provide for the mechanical ranking of websites still hold true in today’s competitive world, but we need to go beyond that. We will assume that you are up-to-date with search engine optimization training, long tail keywords, mobile marketing, and videos and social media marketing (more about that later) used in the optimization of your site.

Here a salient fact that must be recognized. You can get to page one of Google, but if no one understands your message and takes some sort of (positive) action, you might as well not exist.

“Who is Your Website Visitor?”

Website visitors today are very impatient. And, especially if they are coming to your site for the first time. According to Tony Haile, the CEO of “Chartbeat” the average viewer will only stay on your first page for 15 seconds, unless you can convince them that you can meet their needs. Well designed and coded templates, proper placement of images, and symmetrical design configurations don’t mean a whole lot in that short space of time. Do you know who your visitor really is, and what they are looking for?

“What is The Purpose of Your Website?”

Most business owners respond by stating that their website should actually work to bring in new customers, clients or patients. If it is there for any other purpose, the business owner is just wasting time and money. You have to capture the attention of a typical first time viewer in that first 15 seconds (or less), or you are just whistling in the wind.

Think of a time when you went to a very well designed website, but when you got right down to brass tacks and attempted to read through the content you were still unsure of the message, and if it could help you. Even after more reading, you still found it difficult to find the purpose of this business.

Unfortunately, this is a problem with many websites. The very system that is supposed to convey the message that will cause people to come “into” the store, click the button on the site for more information, or pick up the phone and call your office, leaves the reader in a fuzzy state of mind.

If your business solves a real problem for people, but the website fails to communicate that, potential customers will never discover how good you are with such a short window of opportunity.

We hear over and over that content is king, and that is still very true. Because, the one thing that people are looking for, more than anything else, is information gained from excellent content and placement. They want very targeted and focused information, and if they fail to find it they will quickly move on.

There are three major things that must occur in order to get the right message out to website visitors, so that they will want to call you, visit you, or delve more deeply into your products or services.

1. State Clearly What the Business is About – Quickly Show the Value Being Offered to your Target Audience

Hire a professional copywriter, with a track record of success. Your business must be presented as the problem solver that it is, very clearly, and to the point.

A copywriter is a professional who will “sell” your concept with words that have high impact and will be deeply informative. This quality content will outweigh flashy designs or cute pictures.

2. Communicate Vividly Why Your Business Is Different From Your Competitors

Without disparaging other businesses, clearly state what you do that the competition does not do. Your customers will catch on very quickly.

Demonstrating this proposition by video is an excellent way to get the facts right out there in the open. If you can show why you are better in the video, you don’t have to say it.

3. Establish Realistic Expectations As Well As Solid Credibility That You Deliver Your Promises

Clearly state the issues and problems that you have solved in the past, with clear-cut testimonials to that fact.

People rely on testimonials in a big way, and you will gain credibility. Also if you belong to any professional organizations and affiliations, your credibility is enhanced.

REMEMBER:

…that people are looking for solutions, and the content of your website must give them the solutions to their problems. When they fully understand that, they will come to you for help, and buy your products and services. Make sure that the information is easy to find as you develop and expand the information architecture.

Categories
Content Marketing General

12 Strategic Content Types That Drives Targeted Web Traffic

content types that drive targeted traffic

If you want targeted web traffic, you need to have a content strategy.

Below is an extensive list of 12 strategic content types that you should consider to acquire those targeted web visitors.

1. Original and Informative Blog Posts

Blog posts are an important part of you content strategy for several reasons.

  • When women and men browse the internet, they are often searching for useful content.
  • When you create blog posts, make sure to write with a purpose, whether you are telling a story or trying to help educate others on a specific topic.
  • Use your knowledge and some research to create engaging blog posts.
  • Never copy something that someone else has written.

Keep your paragraph shorts and keep the content looking clean with subheadings. If it is engaging enough and looks good, there are people who are going to share it and continue to read other blog posts you have written.

For SEO, make sure to have a keyword map and keyword research in place.

2. Creative and Useful Videos

When you want to learn how to do something, do you prefer reading a tutorial or watching one?

Even though written content is often engaging and informative, videos add a sense of personalization.

  • Create a video where you are discussing your niche.
  • Provide tips that people probably want to know about or show them how to do something.
  • While recording your videos, make eye contact with the camera.
  • Show a softer, friendlier side.

If you are funny and kind in your videos, people will relate to you, and they will keep on watching.

If your videos are interesting enough, they could even go viral.

Even Bill Gates (twitter) went viral with this video:

3. Accurate and Relevant Infographics

Infographics give you the perfect opportunity to combine facts with images.

  • You may be able to easily create your own using a photo editing software program.
  • Gather the statistics for the one you are creating
  • Research the information several times to make sure the statistics are accurate
  • Turn them into an infographic using images and fun text.

If you have never made an infographic before, you may not even know where to start.

Consider using a search engine to look at others that are already on the web.

They may give you some inspiration for how your infographic should look in terms of size and color.

Start with infographic creation tools like piktochart and infogr.am

personalprofessionalpictures4. Captivating Professional Images

Some pictures really do tell a story, so why not share them?

Instead of using pictures that belong to others, take your own with a professional camera to ensure your images look their best. Tie the pictures you have taken in with your niche.

Post them on social media accounts, especially Instagram and Pinterest, and allow people to share them.

5. Frequently Asked Questions Section

Whether you are selling certain types of products or services, having a frequently asked questions section will work in your favor.

It allows you to address some of the most common questions people tend to ask you about your business without constantly repeating yourself.

And, you can include essential keywords into some of those questions and answers, which will help you with search engine optimization.

customerreviewsareimportant6. Honest and Meaningful Reviews

Are there companies sending products out to you in exchange for an honest review?

Even if they are not sending the products to you, it would be wise to add a review section in which you discuss different products you have tried.

Your customers and followers will read the reviews and may follow your suggestions.

For example, there may be a certain product that makes life more convenient.

You could discuss what you like most about it. If your followers buy it, you are helping them out. And, if they end up loving it as much as you do, it will help build a trust between you and them.

7. Fun and Interesting Audio Series

If you are successful at what you do, why not share advice with others?

People can choose to listen to the audio series whenever they want to, whether they are on their way to work or sitting at home.

  • Create your own audio series in the form of a podcast.
  • The audio should certainly be entertaining and interesting because you do want people to continue listening.
  • Always offer something new if you want people to enjoy the podcast.

Podcast hosting here if you want to get started today.

8. Promotion via Email Messages

Quality content is not just important for your website.

While marketing for your business, the content in your promotional email messages should be engaging, fun and short. You do not have to write multiple paragraphs.

Instead, write out a few catchy sentences, offer some type of deal to your mailing list and add an image on the side.

Start simple, and work into deeper content for your members and clients. (special email segment)

Email messages are not nearly as complicated as some people think.

And, they are an essential component for your content strategy.

9. Interactive Poll

Make sure that you are inviting your followers to communicate and interact with you.

Add a poll or quiz to your website and social media accounts to ask for opinions from these followers. It shows that their opinions are important to you, but it also helps you figure out what types of improvements you need to make.

Polldaddy and Surveymonkey are great tools to help you here.

10. Monthly Business Update

There are many people who enjoy reading about progress.

  • Create a monthly business update that discusses some details about expansion.
  • Talk about improvements that you have made and goals that you have managed to reach throughout the month.

These updates may inspire others.

11. Professional Guest Posts

If you are creating guest posts for other websites, you are on the right track. However, do not forget to allow people to guest post on your website.

Of course, you get to decide who you want to allow to write these posts.

Consider selecting those who have a large following (to help push your message too) or a fantastic message to spread.

12. Current News Spot Light

Keep up with topics that are trending by including a current news spotlight that updates people about things that are going on in the world and with different celebrities.

Not only does this allow for a discussion between different people, but it keeps people on your website for a longer period of time.

If you use these types of content, there should be absolutely no problem driving traffic to your website.

Finally – total success from content marketing for corporations requires buy-in, as well as an ongoing, creative process for handling it.

Here are additional success factors: (from Content Marketing Institute)

WANT US TO HELP YOU? Take a look here.

content-marketing-success-factors

Categories
SEO

7 Essentials To Consider Before Starting SEO

new website with seo in mind

Search engine optimization can be a positive channel for any ambitious business owner to achieve an unfair advantage ahead of their competitors in Google.

This post was created to help new website owners understand the beginning elements of successful SEO campaign building.

The reason why many people have problems achieving specific rankings is that they do not what Google wants and what to do when.  They hear “content & links”, but there are so many changes, search filters and penalties being applied almost daily.

Furthermore, there is an underground community that is dedicated to “Black Hat SEO”.  It can be VERY EFFECTIVE; but the results are short lived and it’s highly risky for good business.  It’s like fast food – it tastes good now, but will leave that “why did I eat that?” feeling afterwards.  Here are some great tips to give you long-lasting results on your website.

#1 – Creating “Shareable” Content is Very Important

According to Moz, a URL’s number of “Google +1’s” for a webpage plays a sizable part in determining its rankings.  Google’s algorithm is becoming less of a mathematical problem and more of a result of human interaction.  Therefore, when you create content, you want to make sure that it has these three elements:

  1. Catchy
  2. Easy to read
  3. Informative/Relevant

Try to think outside the box.  Instead of just making a “How-To” article, create an interesting graphic, audio and a video version to go along with it. Then, distribute those assets into relevant channels. (iTunes, YouTube, Pinterest for example).

#2 – How Your Traffic Interacts with Your Website Does Matter

In Moz’s 2013 ranking factors, user experience does play a key role.  User experience with your website includes things such as:

  • Page loading speed
  • Bounce Rate (How quickly are users leaving your website)

If users are going to your website, and hitting the back button within seconds – there is evidence that Google will factor this into their rankings for your website.

Create a website that informs and sells.

#3 – Consider Domain Keywords But Balance With Brand

You may be thinking, “What should my domain name be?”  Just several years ago, many search engine optimization experts were making keyword “sniper sites” in which a domain name was purchased and a mini-site was created to focus on that keyword.  This lead to many SEOs purchasing hundreds of domain names, loading them up with “basic” content, so that they could rank easily for many different keywords. They would also start to link these sites together and after Google discovered these link networks, they would be penalized or filtered as “low-value”.

Google has come after that strategy and it’s not effective now. If you are looking to be creative with domain names, a great tool to use is BustAName.com – this can help you find a catchy brandable name, instead of one for SEO purposes.

#4 – How Important is Domain Age?

Many people who are just getting into the SEO game believe that they are at a major disadvantage because their domain age isn’t that old.  However, if Google sees that the quality of your website is high – that will override domain age.  If your domain is wet behind the ears – just focus on on-page factors such as content quality, loading speed, making content easily shareable, etc. If you are offering value and creating relationships – everything tends to work in your favor.

Matt Cutts (head of webspam at Google) on Domain Age: “The difference between a domain that’s six months old verses one year old is really not that big at all.”

#5 – Domain Registration 

If a business owner plans on creating a successful business (why not?) – then it is important that they make a significant commitment. If you can make at least a 5 year commitment in terms of domain registration or more, it is likely you will receive some extra brownie points. Clearly, starting a business is more than paying your dues via a domain name, so consider getting a mentor or coach to help you on that side as well.

A Google Patent of 2005 states: “Valuable (legitimate) domains are often paid for several years in advance, while doorway (illegitimate) domains rarely are used for more than one year.”

Obviously, Google looks at this data. Even though the significance of it is unknown, consider it.

#6 – Private Registration

Some websites like Namecheap and GoDaddy offer private registration. Why is this ‘bad practice’? If you are a webmaster who is using multiple websites for online malpractice – then there’s a chance that you will want to hide your registration identity.  Be completely transparent and decline the option to stay hidden.  If you do not want your addressed displayed on WhoIs – then get a P.O Box.

#7 – LSI, Keyword Density, Content Length

Let’s go over these three terms with regards to content quality and why they are significant to search engines.

  • Latent Semantic Indexing (LSI) – This is not something should be over-analyzing; however, it is important to know.  Based on synonymous words or phrases – these can increase your website’s perceived quality and you are less likely to be caught for spamming and/or over-optimization. A natural approach and inclusion of related terms is good practice.
  • Keyword Density – While this may not be as important as it once was, a natural inclusing of keywords and phrases helps.  Review competitor sites and do a baseline analysis for your market. Apply as necessary.
  • Content Length – The average length for content on the top of Google was about 2,000 words per webpage.  Longer content tends to get shared more.

Keep these factors in mind when you are starting your new SEO campaigns. Make sure that your website is search engine friendly, doesn’t contain any spider blocks, has a good architecture and provides value – so that people will share and link to it.  Authority and trust building is just as important online as off.

Get started today!

Categories
Default

How To Find High Performing Keywords In Google Analytics For Your SEO: Listen!

listen to your customers using adwords for your SEO

A while back, we lost a key ingredient for SEO practitioners and it’s still ever-present: Keyword referrer data inside Google Analytics. The dreaded “not provided” (no keyword data) is here, and most SEO’s and marketers are very irritated about this and believes Google is using the privacy issues concern as an excuse for this move.

Keywords, content and links form the foundation for SEO work, and while the signals are changing (ex: social media, Google+), the foundation is centered around what Google established back in 1998: a voting system of trust and relevancy.

You can still get to your website keyword data inside Google Webmaster Tools, but it’s not the full history and it’s not integrated very well with GA as of date.

So how do you find and optimize for the highest performing keywords for your CURRENT website?  Sure, you can run the good old ranking reports, which are not exact – and try to correlate those to pages with GA, but it’s very manual and slow. It’s not exact.

QUESTION: What’s a quicker, better and EXACT way to determine your keyword performance? Here’s the surefire way to do this:

Continue reading “How To Find High Performing Keywords In Google Analytics For Your SEO: Listen!”
Categories
Content Marketing

10 Unusual Ways to Use Content Marketing to Promote Your Business

Content marketing plans, channels and formats

Content creation continues to emerge as a very important part of an online marketing strategy.

You can’t just build an appealing website but throw in some mediocre content and make it rank well. These days, people know how and where to get what they want; and Google is responding to that. High quality content that caters to people’s problems is the key to drive traffic to your website and make your audience share it to others, therefore multiplying your reach.

Content marketing can be a much more affordable and effective way to help your SEO efforts these days. Writing high quality content (assumed) produces links faster and naturally gets shared on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google Plus, and the like.

Another big advantage is Content marketing doesn’t get affected by algorithm updates, making it count as a big investment for the long term. Now that you know just how important high quality content is for both Google and your audience, you need to guarantee results. There are many tactics utilized now by different businesses worldwide, but these 10 unusual, non-conventional ways of using content marketing to promote your business may just do the trick for you.

1. Research, Research, Research

Staying in research mode at all times will always be better than being stagnant and just sticking to the same formula over and over again. You need to be updated about content marketing for you to never run out of great and effective content ideas. Research will keep your mind fresh, making idea pop into your head and increase the quality of your content. As soon as you get ideas based on the current trends in content marketing, jot them down and develop them until you have a good outline to work on.

how to organize content marketing in your business
(Click to see larger image – From Altimeter Group)

In connection to doing your research on a regular basis, you should think out of the box when it comes to choosing the topic and title of your articles. Know the latest things happening in your industry and write about them with a unique and thought-provoking angle in mind. You should learn how to stimulate your readers’ minds and make everything more interesting than usual. Many businesses are writing content, so you should know how to stand out.

3. Write with Personality

At the end of the day, your audience are people and they would want to read something that sounds like a relatable human being actually wrote it. Whether you’re writing a press release or a blog entry, it’s important to incorporate who you are and what is unique about your brand. Developing your writing style for your business and finding your own voice (if you are a content writer) is an ongoing process. Let the content you produce innovate by developing your own voice and knowing what works well with your target audience.

4. Create Infographics

Infographics is a one-two punch when it comes to content marketing. Not only do you create content that matters, you produce them through images that make them more interesting and shareable. Looking at a full page of text can sometimes feel basic and boring, so incorporating infographics to your content marketing will make your strategy more effective than usual.

5. Different File Types

Converting your content into a PDF file, slideshow, or eBook is an unusual but effective strategy. This is especially effective for content materials that aim to inform. These file types are print-ready and can be projected so your readers can use them as a reference material or as a lecture. Make sure you leave links leading to your website so your readers can always go back to your site for future references.

6. Giveaways

Some businesses are stuck with using content creation to inform and persuade, but it shouldn’t end there. Just like any marketing strategy, having some kind of promo or giveaway will definitely spark interest to your content. Giveaways are unusual blog traffic method that can generate massive blog traffic. Get your visitors to participate by sharing your posts to various sites and subscribe to your feed. This way, you can retain them and even earn some loyal followers in the long run.

7. Blog Commenting

The good thing about blog commenting is you gain blog traffic and also earn a backlink. Same with forum commenting—simply use your site URL as your forum signature and when you make comments, it will be displayed alongside your posts. Join active forums and blogs, start commenting today (and regularly), and see the amount of traffic you can drive to your blog.

8. Promote Your Content Daily

Content creation is a marketing strategy, so you must know how to promote your content. Direct promotion involves sharing your content through email and social media, while indirect promotion involves building connections with key players and credible sources related to your business. You need to have techniques for both of them to work effectively, and this requires daily practice. Make it a habit to perform all these promotional tasks. This is the only way your content will get noticed, and ultimately, help your business grow.

9. Get Affiliated

Affiliates are important because the more partners you have, the more exposure your business gets. This promotes business stability and identity in the long run. Learn to choose affiliates wisely. They should be related to your business or the key interests of your target audience. Learn how to deal with them in a friendly manner so that your relationship will grow overtime.

10. Create Shareable Content

We live in an online world dominated by social media. People now have the means to share to their followers what they’re interested in. If you can create content that is shareable, contains important keywords, and is interesting, it will rank high in search results, make people talk, and introduce your business to a wider audience. One of the greatest ways to drive traffic to your website is to create valuable and engaging content that is highly shareable and relevant to a large group of people. Make sure everything you write is so exciting that people will want to share it to their own social networking accounts.

The opportunities of content marketing and promotion are already vast, but they continue to expand by the minute. Growing your business is the bottom line objective with content marketing.

Use these 10 unusual strategies and always remember to step it up a notch to promote your business the best way possible. Do all this with one primary goal in mind: how can I provide useful, helpful value to my community and market?

BONUS: Have you tried NewsJacking for your company, product or service? Here’s a detailed look at how to get big media attention: Get the authority book from Meermann Scott today (Kindle/Amazon link)

Resources:

https://www.quicksprout.com/the-advanced-guide-to-content-marketing-chapter-5/

https://creativemarket.com/blog/2013/07/03/10-tips-for-driving-traffic-to-your-website-part-1

https://www.netmediablog.com/increase-blog-traffic-in-2013

photo credit: AltimeterGroup | cc

Categories
Search marketing

How To Measure SEO Goals

When building your strategy for a search engine optimization (SEO) campaign, it is vital to be clear on the success metrics and results. You know that.

However, it’s not enough.

seo-goal-setting-executives

You should also make sure to get buy-in and build better understanding of SEO goals at every key level of your organization.

From the CEO, VP level and down into the ranks of Information Technology (IT) and related teams that will support the SEO effort.

An educated marketing team will understand that a keyword ranking alone is not as important as the growing of a business from more sales. This has to be communicated and reinforced at every turn.

But, you must find better alternatives and seek to understand the complete picture.

Continue reading “How To Measure SEO Goals”
Categories
B2B Marketing SEO

How To Use SEO For Your B2B and Small Business in 2013 (WEBINAR VIDEO)

In a recent webinar series with our friends at LogMyCalls, we covered some key SEO (Search Engine Optimization) strategies you might implement for your business this year.

We covered 5 important topics:

  1. The SEO process (What works today + myths/trends)
  2. Keyword strategies (How to get the “best” keywords for rankings/traffic)
  3. Social implication (How to leverage social signals for search engines)
  4. Content strategies (What you can do now)
  5. Small business optimization (Automation and lead management)

(The webinar replay is available below).

Continue reading “How To Use SEO For Your B2B and Small Business in 2013 (WEBINAR VIDEO)”